Channel: itfreetraining

Category: Education

Tags: 220-1001smart cardsproximity cardcomptiaa+security input devicesitfreetraining

Description: In this video from ITFreeTraining, I will look at Security Input Devices. Security devices are important, as they help protect against unauthorized access to computing devices and resources in your organization. Download the PDF handout: itfreetraining.com/handouts/ap/1d30.pdf Categories of Security Devices 0:12 Before I start looking at some of the security devices that are available on the market, I will first look at the different categories security devices fall under. The first category is ‘Knowledge’. Essentially this is knowing something like the password or a pin number. Only the people who require access should know the password or the pin number. In this video, I won’t be looking at these types of security devices since they are pretty self-explanatory. Whenever you type a password or enter a pin on a number pad this is a knowledge type of security device. The next category is ‘Possession’. This means that you need to have something in order to obtain access. In the old days this would have been a key, but nowadays security devices like these require physical items like smart cards or authenticators. If you need to be holding something in order to gain access, it is part of this category. The last category is ‘Being’. This is something physical about the person attempting access. For example, a fingerprint scanner or facial recognition. Essentially the device tests for something physical about the person. If the device does not detect the required physical characteristics then the person is denied access. This covers the three basic categories. These are commonly referred to as ‘Factors’. You may hear the term two-factor authentication. This is when two factors are used together. The most common is a password and a device like an authenticator. You could use all three categories at once which would essentially give you three factors of authentication; however, generally this does not give much more security than two-factor authentication. For that reason, you generally only ever see three-factor authentication used in the movies. To start with, I will look at some of the security devices that fit into the possession category of devices. Proximity Cards 2:12 The first security device I will look at is a proximity card. A proximity or proxy card is a small plastic card. When the plastic card is put next to a sensor, commonly used to unlock doors, the proxy card transmits a small amount of data. This small amount of data is generally a unique number. The unique number identifies the proxy card and thus allows access. The basic idea being that the person who has the proxy card is allowed to have access. For the CompTIA exam, you don’t need to understand the inner workings of the proxy card, but I think knowing this helps you understand its uses and limitations. The basic proxy card has wires wound in a circle or square called an antenna coil. When the proxy card is moved past the sensor, these wires pick up and store energy from an electric field. The electrical energy is stored using a capacitor. The capacitor stores electricity to power a small chip. Essentially a capacitor works like a battery which holds electricity for a very short amount of time. Once there is enough power, the chip can operate and transmit data so the sensor can read it. Basic proximity cards are not very secure because you can make copies of them very easily. To make them more secure, more advanced proximity cards implement a password-like system on the card. In simple terms, the door sensor needs to supply a code in order to access the data on the proximity card. This prevents unauthorized copying since the attacker won’t have the code to access the proximity card. Description to long for YouTube. Please see the following link for the rest of the description. itfreetraining.com//ap/1d30 References “The Official CompTIA A+ Core Study Guide (Exam 220-1001)” Chapter 3 Position 13340-14046 “CompTIA A+ Certification exam guide. Tenth edition” Pages 406 – 409 “Multi-factor authentication” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-factor_authentication “Picture: Door” unsplash.com/photos/x8ondX_bTpg “Picture: Owl” unsplash.com/photos/c1fFv08N7qE “Picture: Hand in the wilderness” unsplash.com/photos/uCOd7GEjJvk “Picture: Key” unsplash.com/photos/CiMITAJtb6I “Picture: Cat” unsplash.com/photos/13ky5Ycf0ts “Smart card” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_card “Proximity card” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proximity_card “File:Fingerprint scanner in Tel Aviv.jpg” commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fingerprint_scanner_in_Tel_Aviv.jpg “Picture: Close up picture of a cat” pexels.com/photo/close-up-photo-of-cat-2031419 Credits Trainer: Austin Mason ITFreeTraining.com Voice Talent: HP Lewis hplewis.com Quality Assurance: Brett Batson pbb-proofreading.uk