E2BN Blog

Vulnerability testing is a systemic review of security weaknesses within an information system. We're looking for the same weaknesses a cybercriminal might try to exploit, but we'll tell you about the weakness and how to fix it rather than stealing your data or money.

Why should I consider one?

At the end of the school day, you or the caretaker ensure the windows and doors are closed and locked.

It's a little bit harder to do that in the digital sphere. A vulnerability assessment can show you where your digital doors have been left open and give you the information to close and lock them.

The ECRC provides three different vulnerability assessments, which complement each other.

Remote Vulnerability Assessments

Remote vulnerability assessments identify weaknesses in how your organisation connects to the internet. This would be the typical way cybercriminals will target your systems from the outside, trying to get in.

Internal Vulnerability Assessments

The service will scan and review your internal networks and systems, looking for weaknesses such as poorly maintained or designed systems, insecure Wi-Fi networks, insecure access controls, or opportunities to access and steal sensitive data. This is the equivalent of once a criminal has got in, what would they be able to do? Could your logging systems spot them?

Web App Vulnerability Assessments

This service assesses your website and web services for weaknesses. For most schools, the website is not just a static page but might also link to pupil or parental portals. What access to data could a criminal have if they target your website? Could they change the content on your webpage to redirect customers, install some malware to capture payment details or show malicious content to ruin your reputation? 

Who would do the assessments?

We train and mentor local university students to deliver these services. Senior cyber security experts oversee them to ensure the service they provide is equivalent to the experts doing it themselves. The student gets unique real-world work experience to enable them to get a job when they finish their education, and we can offer an affordable service to businesses who might not be able to afford a commercial company or maybe want to test whether this service would benefit them.

You can get a quote free of charge with no obligation to see if our "affordable" is the same as yours.

What kind of report would I get?

One that you will understand! We know that not every school has an IT master, so our reports are designed to be understood by everyone, with an executive summary and a technical section. The student who completed the assessment will also be available to discuss the report with you.

Find out more about Vulnerability Assessments from the ECRC (Eastern Cyber Resilience Centre)

This article has been reproduced with kind permission from the Eastern Cyber Resilience Centre.

ChatGPT is an AI language model developed by OpenAI. It belongs to the GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) family of models. GPT models are based on the Transformer architecture, a deep learning model designed explicitly for natural language processing tasks.

The main objective of ChatGPT is to generate human-like text responses in a conversational context. It has been trained on vast text data from diverse sources, including books, articles, websites, and more. This extensive training allows ChatGPT to understand and generate text in a way that simulates natural conversation.

ChatGPT uses a "pre-training and fine-tuning" approach. During pre-training, the model learns to predict what comes next in a given text by analysing word patterns and relationships. This process helps the model to develop a strong understanding of language and context. In the fine-tuning phase, the model is further trained on specific datasets carefully generated with human reviewers following guidelines provided by OpenAI. This fine-tuning process helps to shape the model's behaviour and ensure it aligns with desired ethical and safety standards.

ChatGPT can be used for a wide range of applications, including answering questions, providing explanations, offering suggestions, engaging in discussions, and assisting with various tasks that involve natural language understanding and generation.

It's important to note that while ChatGPT is designed to be helpful and generate coherent responses, it can still produce incorrect or nonsensical answers. It may also sometimes exhibit biases or respond to inappropriate requests. OpenAI continually works to improve the system and address these limitations, and user feedback plays a crucial role in this ongoing development process.

This article was written using ChatGPT

Try ChatGPT

The article above was written using AI. The initial text was generated with ChatGPT. I then used the Grammarly grammar and spellchecker to remove American spellings (analyzing becomes analysing) and to improve clarity and conciseness. It took me longer to write this paragraph explaining how the article was written than it did to produce the five previous ones.  

Artificial Intelligence, or AI, offers several advantages to education, enhancing the learning experience for students and enabling more efficient and effective teaching methods. Here are some of the key benefits of AI in education:

1. Personalised learning: AI can adapt learning materials and experiences to meet the unique needs of individual students. It can analyse student data and provide tailored content, pacing, and support, allowing students to learn at their own pace and focus on areas where they need additional help.
2. Intelligent tutoring: AI-powered intelligent tutoring systems can give students personalised feedback, guidance, and support. These systems can identify misconceptions, offer explanations, and adapt the learning path based on individual progress, resulting in more effective learning outcomes.
3. Enhanced student engagement: AI can enhance student engagement through interactive and immersive learning experiences. Gamification, virtual reality, and augmented reality applications powered by AI can make learning more interactive, stimulating, and enjoyable for students.
4. Efficient administrative tasks: AI can automate school administrative tasks, such as grading assignments and tests, scheduling, and record-keeping. This saves teachers' time, allowing them to focus more on instructional activities and individual student support.
5. Access to educational resources: AI-powered platforms can provide students access various educational resources and materials. These platforms can recommend relevant content, suggest additional resources, and provide personalised study plans, ensuring students can access high-quality and diverse learning materials.
6. Data-driven insights: AI can analyse large amounts of educational data to generate actionable insights. These insights can help teachers identify student learning patterns, predict student performance, and tailor instructional strategies. It can also help educational institutions make data-informed decisions for curriculum planning and resource allocation.
7. Language translation and accessibility: AI-powered language translation tools can help students overcome language barriers, enabling access to educational content in different languages. Additionally, AI can assist students with disabilities by providing speech recognition, text-to-speech, and other accessibility features.

While AI offers numerous benefits for schools, some potential dangers and challenges must be considered. Some of the risks of AI in the context of schools include:

1. Privacy and data security: AI applications in schools often involve collecting and analysing student data. The storage and handling of this data can raise privacy concerns if not adequately protected. The unauthorised access or misuse of sensitive information is risky, requiring robust security measures and strict data protection protocols.
2. Bias and discrimination: AI systems are trained on existing data, which can sometimes contain societal biases and prejudices. AI algorithms can perpetuate or amplify these biases if not adequately addressed, leading to discriminatory outcomes in grading, admissions, or disciplinary actions. Schools must ensure AI systems are regularly audited for fairness and bias mitigation.
3. Lack of human interaction and personalised support: While AI can provide personalised learning experiences, it cannot fully replace the importance of human interaction and tailored support. Over-reliance on AI tools may reduce the opportunities for students to engage with teachers and peers, limiting their social and emotional development.
4. Ethical considerations: Using AI in schools raises ethical questions about student consent, transparency, and accountability. Schools must ensure that students and parents are well-informed about using AI systems, and there should be clear guidelines and policies to address any ethical concerns that may arise.
5. Dependency and skill gaps: Overreliance on AI systems may lead students to depend on technology for basic tasks and problem-solving, potentially undermining critical thinking and creativity. Schools need to strike a balance by fostering a mix of technological and traditional skills to prepare students for a rapidly evolving world.

Overall, AI has the potential to revolutionise education by providing personalised learning experiences, improving student outcomes, automating administrative tasks, and expanding access to educational resources. It complements the role of teachers, allowing them to focus on individualised instruction and fostering student growth. But as with every new technology, there are risks and hazards. To mitigate these dangers, schools must implement robust policies and guidelines for the ethical use of AI. Regular monitoring, transparency, and human oversight are essential to ensure that AI systems align with educational values and principles while prioritising students' well-being and development.

The article above was written using AI. The initial text was generated with ChatGPT. I then used the Grammarly grammar and spellchecker to remove American spellings (i.e. personalized becomes personalised) and to improve clarity and conciseness. It took me longer to write this paragraph explaining how the article was created than it did to produce the rest of the article!

The NEN has published a more in-depth look at the pros and cons of AI and its potential in Education. Read the NEN AI Paper 

Young people are growing up in an increasingly digital world, exposing them to both the opportunities and risks of the internet. These free-to-access resources from the NCSS (National Cyber Security Centre) will empower them to make smart decisions about staying secure online.

CyberFirst: How to stay secure online (11- 14 year olds)

Practitioner Factsheet

Practitioner Guidance

An interactive video resource

Three lesson plans (Quality Assured by the PSHE Association*) are also available

Practitioners can access the full suite of resources on the NCSC website. The resources support the school curricula across the UK’s four nations by linking in with key learning objectives and have been developed for use in formal settings such as classrooms and in non-formal settings such as clubs and youth organisations. (See the delivery guidance document for curriculum mapping).

CyberSprinters - CyberSprinters is an award-winning interactive online security resource for 7-11 year olds. The digital game can be played on phones, tablets, and desktop devices. CYberSprintersand is supported by a suite of activities to be led by educational practitioners working with 7-11 year olds. Parents and carers can also try the CyberSprinter puzzles with their children at home!

Try CyberSprinters here