Lexington, KY - Just about every day, Oscar Minks goes to his computer to battle against his Russian and Chinese enemies.
But it is not the typical 20-something online gaming. Minks is on the front lines of protecting personal and financial information
of Kentuckians
from hackers.
"I see a lot of attempted breeches on a daily basis," said Minks, a network security specialist for Key Technology in Lexington. Key is a Corbin-based company that was spun off of Forcht Bank in 2007. Key provides network security for Forcht and other businesses.
Part of what Minks does is monitor the "packet sniffer," which shows what is coming into a business's e-mail in-box, looking for suspicious IP addresses, key words, codes and attachments, or perhaps a flood of thousands of e-mails from one IP address - all things that could potentially harm the security system for a business, especially a bank. "And financial institutions are high on what hackers want to attack," Minks said.
Minks said he sees a lot of attempted attacks coming from Russia and China. One of the main things they are looking for is credit card information, he said, especially if it comes with the security number found on the back of a card or the personal identification number of the credit card holder.
He said the black market already is flooded with credit card numbers without a security code or PIN, evidence of how successful hackers have been. But they have been so successful, with so many credit card numbers available, that they have almost no value.
But it still is not something a business wants to give away.
And even if a business does not generate a ton of Web site traffic or e-mail, their computer network is still vulnerable. Minks said statistics show that the most successful network hackers are employees.
Minks' first piece of advice for any business is to cover the basics of network security.
"The most expensive security system is worthless if not properly configured," Minks said. He sees many businesses that install a network security system only to leave some default log-ons active. So if a hacker tries to log on with the user name "admin" and a password of "password" or "admin," they are in.
"It a basic thing they forget to do," Minks said.
"A business might be able to put on paper that they're secure," Minks said, but if the system is put to the test, it may not be true.
One of Key Technology's services is to put those systems to the test. It will perform a security assessment, trying to penetrate the system from the outside, simulating a physical break-in into a building to access information and pretending to be an employee, who might be able to gain more access than should be allowed.
Key offers consulting services to address any issues it finds. Or a business can contract with Key to provide and monitor its network security.
Key Technology has grown quickly since it was formed in 2007. Mike Good, Key's executive vice president, said it started as part of the data center for Forcht Bank, which is based in Corbin and has 35 locations in Kentucky.
As the issue of identity theft was exploding, "it made sense to begin marketing ourselves to other companies," Good said.
Key has added a half-dozen employees in the last year, including a sales person, as it is poised to market itself more aggressively. It also has become a partner with Cisco Systems, selling and installing its phone system.
Key now has 22 employees between its Corbin headquarters and its Lexington office in the Hamburg area, near the Forcht branch.
Minks joined Key just over a year ago. He grew up in Hazard in southeastern Kentucky, a self-described "tech nerd." He first attended Hazard Community and Technical College, getting a two-year degree in information technology. He then worked his way through the University of Kentucky, working 40 to 50 hours a week at ACS in Lexington. He is now working on a master's degree from Eastern Kentucky University while he works at Key.
"We feel pretty lucky to have snagged him," Good said.
And while network security may seem mundane to some, Minks doesn't see it that way.
"Every business is unique," Minks said, "like a fingerprint."