Identify and discuss two positives and two negative effects of the increasing use of Information technology in our lives
Information technology helps people communicate easily. Technology makes it possible for managers and their employees to communicate effectively, and this improves the quality of results achieved at work. Managers are able to use the internet to send crucial information through emails to their subordinates. This helps workers understand their work duties and how they need to perform them (Khosrow-Pour 78).
Technology enables business organizations to store important data and records without consuming a lot of space. This allows business firms to store financial records, employee records, and other relevant records for a long time. This makes it possible for different employees to access and use stored information easily (Khosrow-Pour 78).
Information systems and databases which are not well secured are easily compromised by cyber attacks. This makes crucial operations to grind to a halt if vital information and data stored in a firm’s databases get lost or damaged. A firm that fails to encrypt its databases and information systems runs the risk of losing vital information, which may affect its long term survival in the industry (Khosrow-Pour 79).
Workers who spend most of their time on online social networks are likely to register poor performance in their duties. Some employees waste a lot of time chatting and sending texts, which limits their productivity at work. Therefore, a lot of time spent on the internet may make employees incompetent and less motivated to perform their responsibilities. Some workers may also post sensitive company information on social networks, which may damage a firm’s reputation in the industry (Khosrow-Pour 79).
Many business firms do not understand that technology offers a lot of benefits to their operations. They fail to utilize technological solutions to make their internal and external business operations more efficient.
Some business firms lack effective IT policies to enable them to coordinate their work place functions effectively. This makes it difficult for them to achieve their business objectives.
Identify one of the primary activities in Porter’s Value Chain Model, then identify and describe an information system or application that can be used to support the primary activity that you identified
Customers have a higher bargaining power, which all business firms need to take note of. They are attracted to products that offer high value for their money. A business firm needs to have an effective market strategy to increase the control it has over the choices customers make in the market (Chhanda 90).
IT goods which are sold by a firm become substitutes if there are other products in the market serving similar customer needs. A firm needs to show its clients the unique attributes of the products it sells. This makes such products compete effectively with other substitutes in the market. Therefore, this helps a firm come up with effective market strategies to make its products more attractive to customers, which increases customer loyalty. This enables a firm to increase its market share in the industry it operates in.
Briefly discuss five various types of software attacks
Denial of Service (DoS) is software attacks that cripple the functions of a networked system in the organization. These attacks normally target services that are hosted on sensitive web servers, where acts of sabotage are used to make a system incapable of performing its core functions (Schermerhorn 65).
Trojans are used to mislead users on the internet to install harmful programs on their computers. Once installed, they make it easy for cybercriminals to gain access to a company’s networks leading to corruption and loss of crucial data.
Phishing attacks are used to send unnecessary messages through emails, which spam the inboxes of several employees. Spamming makes employees spend more time reading unnecessary emails, which slows them down at work, leading to low levels of productivity.
Network viruses are cyber-attacks done through the internet, which cripple crucial functions of networked IT systems. These are done by cybercriminals who take advantage of systems that are not encrypted to launch attacks, which may damage crucial data.
Backdoor software is used to bypass firewalls and other encrypted codes to compromise a networked system, to allow unrestricted access to unauthorized users. This makes it easy for cybercriminals to monitor and control crucial functions performed by a network system, which puts vital information and records at risk (Schermerhorn 65).
Briefly discuss what database management systems (DBMS) are
A database management system is a system that makes it possible for an organization to manage to control, modify, and update information on different databases. A database management system consists of several networked programs that allow users to access different types of data through their computers. DBMS organizes information in different formats depending on the way users consume this information. A DBMS links all functions performed by a firm electronically, which makes work processes conducted on different databases to run effectively without disruptions (Schermerhorn 74).
Inaccurate records pose a major problem to an organization’s data. Some employees fail to verify if the data they obtain is original before recording it. This makes them record inaccurate or incomplete information. A firm may not have an adequate data management system to cater to internal data generated from various work processes. This may cause a database to crash, resulting in loss of data and other important records. This can disrupt crucial operations in the organization leading to poor quality work outcomes (Schermerhorn 77).
Works Cited
Chhanda, Ray. Distributed Database Systems. New Delhi: Pearson Education India, 2009. Print.
Khosrow-Pour, Mehdi. Information Technology and Organization. Hershey: IGI, 2003. Print.
Schermerhorn, John R. Exploring Management. Hoboken: Wiley, 2010. Print.