English Oriented to Network Configuration and Operating

Systems 12th
Scenario: Cibersecurity
Theme 2: IoT Security
 Work in Class Rubric
The following chart is for your teacher to measure your performance during the
classes.

Assessment Strategies (3pts) (2pts) (1)

Achieved In Not
Progress Achieved
Extracts main points from news items,
manuals or formal reports with
opinions, arguments and discussion.
Extracts the meaning of unknown
words from context if the topic
discussed is related to IoT security.
Describes the way in which IoT security
challenges differ regarding the
corresponding security program.
Collaborates on a shared task, e.g.
formulating and responding to
suggestions, asking whether people
agree or disagree, and proposing
alternatives of IoT security measures.
Compares and contrasts situations in
some detail and speculate about the
risks IoT security issues pose to
businesses.
Gives a clear presentation of his/her
reactions to a work, developing his/her
ideas and supporting them with
examples and arguments.
Writes clear, detailed descriptions
about IoT devices which can pose a
greater risk.
 Cyber Security
I am learning how to keep my devices safe while using the internet.

1. Complete this glossary:

Term Definition

Hacking

Hackers

Virus

Firewall

Antivirus software

Software

Hardware

2. Can you think of three things which a Hacker may be able to steal from your
computer or data?

1.

2.

3.

Page 1 of 2
 6 Viruses

Get ready! Reading Audio # 8

●
1 Before you read the passage, talk about ●
2 Read the magaz ine article. Then, choose
these questions. the correct answers.
1 What are some common types of viruses? 1 What is the main purpose of the article?
2 What are some other A to describe the types of viruses and other
kinds of harmful harmful programs
programs? B to explain how to avoid viruses

worm C to stress the importance of having anti-virus

software
overwriting virus
D to alert readers to the existence of a new
virus type

2 Which of the following is NOT a threat to

computers?
A a resident virus
B an overwriting virus
C a worm
D a resident extension

3 How is a Trojan horse different from a virus?

A It attaches to another program.
B It is harmful to your computer.
infect
C It does not replicate itself.
D It spreads within a network.
b y J orie M c F a d d en
Vocabulary
The fear that a virus may infect your computer is a familiar
●
3 Match the words or phrases (1-7) with the
definitions (A-G).
one for many. Even casual computer users know that
unfamiliar files may host viruses. 1 ___ virus 5 ___ piggyback
While viruses are a well-known threat, many computer users 2 ___ host 6 ___ resident extension
do not know their enemy. There are many specific types of
viruses that one needs to guard against. 3 ___ embed 7 ___ overwriting virus
One dangerous type of virus is an overwriting virus. These 4 ___ resident virus
viruses not only spread malicious code, they also replace the
information contained in other programs. They erase A a harmful program that infects a computer
important information, sometimes rendering a computer B a virus that erases information by replacing it
entirely unusable.
C to plant a harmful program within an ordinary
Another common virus is a resident virus. They stay dormant
program
until a particular event activates them. If your computer
harbors resident viruses, you may not discover them until the D a computer or program that carries a virus
damage is done. These and other viruses often install E a virus that is dormant until activated
themselves in the resident extensions of other programs.
F the parts that are active even when a program
A Trojan horse is another destructive type of program. It’ s not
technically a virus, because it doesn’ t replicate, but it’ s still
is shut down
dangerous. A Troj an horse looks like an ordinary, useful file or G to attach to another program for transferring
program. However, it has destructive programming embedded in
it. This programming may also piggyback onto beneficial files.
Lastly, unlike viruses and Trojan horses, a worm does not need to
attach itself to another program. It is particularly troublesome because
it attacks computers directly.

1 4
●
4 Read the sentences and choose the correct Speaking
words or phrases.
●
8 W ith a partner, act out the roles below
1 The Troj an horse/worm appeared to be a based on Task 7. Then, switch roles.
harmless video editing program.
USE LANGUAGE SUCH AS:
2 The virus could replicate/infect itself and
spread its copies to other computers. I ho p e .
..
M a yb e it w a s .
..
●
5 Listen and read the magaz ine article A t l ea s t .
..
again. W hy might it be important to
understand the types of programs that can Student A: You are an IT employee. Talk to
threaten your computer? Student B about:
• a co-worker’ s computer problems
Listening Audio # 9
• what might have caused the problem
●
6 Listen to a conversation between two IT • how to solve the problem
employees. Mark the following statements
as true (T) or false (F).
Student B: You are an IT employee. Talk to
1 ___ A virus has spread to several computers. Student A about how to solve the problem.
2 ___ The man has already checked the resident
extensions.
3 ___ The woman suggests shutting down all of
W riting
the computers. ●
9 Use the magaz ine article and the
conversation from Task 8 to write an e-mail
to an employee with a computer problem.
●
7 Listen again and complete the
Include: possible sources of the problem,
conversation.
virus types, and safety precautions.
Employee 1: Gary reported that his desktop
1 ___________ ___________ . It won’ t even
boot up.
Employee 2: 2 ___________ ___________ looked at it?
Employee 1: Yeah, I checked it out earlier today.
3 ___________ ___________ it’ s probably a virus.
Employee 2: 4 ___________ ___________ it’ s not an
overwriting virus, or we’ ll have trouble
recovering his ^les.
Employee 1: He said he recently downloaded a new
word processing program. 5 ___________
___________ ___________ a Trojan horse.
Employee 2: Well, at least it would be 6 ___________
___________ his computer.

1 5
 Types of Attack
Name: Class:

Read the statements and then choose if it is an active attack, passive attack, social
engineering or an insider attack

Description Type of Attack

This is when a person is tricked into giving away
information that gives others access to the network or
accounts. This can be done by pretending to be
somebody else (such as a victim’s bank), watching over
their shoulder as they enter data (such as a PIN) or
stealing access cards through pick-pocketing.
This is when somebody spies on the system and scans for
vulnerabilities. A passive attack does not change any
data and is only used to gather information about a
system, usually in preparation for an active attack.

An employee, former employee, contractor or business

associate that has access to the system may steal
sensitive information or give away access details to
others.
This is when someone uses software such as a virus or
other technical methods to compromise a network's
security and take control of its devices and make
changes to data either on the system or when it is
travelling through networks. These can include a Denial of
Service (DoS) attack, brute force attack or a malware
attack which we will be learning about later in this
workbook.

Find a news story about a cyber-attack on a company and write a sentence to

answer each of the following questions:

Who were the

cybercriminals
targeting?

How did the

cybercriminals
attack the
company?

What were the

cybercriminals
hoping to achieve?

© 2022 Nichola Wilkin Ltd

 Types of Attack
Name: Class:

Task 1: There are some very strange people walking their dogs in the park today.
Each of them has named their dog after their favourite form of cyber-attack. Can
you match the descriptions to the correct owner by inserting the correct letter into
the box next to the dog owner.

Descriptions

A Manipulating people into giving authorised people access to a system

B Monitoring a system to find weaknesses

C A malicious attack on a computer system by a person from within an organisation

D Altering data or taking over control of a computer system

© 2022 Nichola Wilkin Ltd

Task 2: Read the newspaper story and then explain in the space below why you
think “Fireball” was created and how people could have protected themselves.

How could people have protected

Why was Fireball created?
themselves?

© 2022 Nichola Wilkin Ltd

Audio # 10
Audio # 11
 Malware
Name: Class:

Use the space below to list the different activities you do on your computer, phone
or tablet (i.e. playing games, taking photos, ordering goods online etc).

We rely heavily on this technology and by doing so we often enter our personal
data, access our money or chat to others through social media. All of this data
stored about you can be valuable to criminals.

Use the space below to identify three things that a criminal may use this data for.

1.

2.

3.

Criminals use many different types of malware (malicious software). Identify the
different malware from the descriptions given. The possible options are adware,
computer virus, phishing, spyware and trojan.

Malware Description Malware Name

A type of program that can reproduce itself and
attempts to make data unreadable or alter the way
a computer operates

Malware that pretends to be something else so the

victim downloads it onto their computer system

Malware that hides on your computer, tablet or

smart phone and monitors everything that you do
on that device

Malware that displays unwanted advertising on

your computer system

Sending an email or text message to ask for

personal information

© 2022 Nichola Wilkin Ltd

 How it spreads:
Ransomware is a programme that gets into your
computer, either by clicking or downloading malicious
files. It then holds your data as ransom. Some security
researchers say the infections in the case of
WannaCry seem to be deployed via a worm,
spreading by itself within a network rather than
relying on humans to spread it by clicking on an
infected attachment.

Wannacry –Cyberattack. Where it has spread:

Malicious software or "ransomware" has been used in Researchers with security software maker Avast said
a massive hacking attack, affecting tens of thousands Russia, Ukraine, and Taiwan were the top targets of
of computers worldwide. Software security companies the attack, but dozens of other countries also
said a ransomware worm called "WannaCry" infected reported system infections. James Scott, from the
about 200,000 computer systems in 150 countries on Washington DC-based Institute of Critical
Friday, with Russia, Ukraine, and Taiwan being the top Infrastructure Technology, said ransomware emerged
targets. "as an epidemic" back in 2016. He said the healthcare
The hack forced British hospitals to turn away sector was particularly vulnerable because of poor
patients, affected Nissan in UK, Spanish companies digital security knowledge.
such as Telefonica, and threw other government
agencies and businesses into chaos. What can you do to prevent infection:
According to Microsoft's Malware Protection Center,
Cyber security researchers from Symantec and here are the steps you should take to protect yourself
Kaspersky Lab have said that some code in an earlier against ransomware: Install and use an up-to-date
version of the WannaCry software had appeared in antivirus solution (such as Microsoft Security
programmes used by the Lazarus Group, which Essentials) ,Make sure your software is up-to-date,
researchers from many companies have identified as a Avoid clicking on links or opening attachments or
North Korea-run hacking operation. emails from people you don't know or companies you
don't do business with, Ensure you have smart screen
How it works: (in Internet Explorer) turned on, which helps identify
WannaCry is a form of ransomware that locks up files reported phishing and malware websites and helps
on your computer and encrypts them in a way that you make informed decisions about downloads, Have
you cannot access them anymore. It targets a pop-up blocker running on your web browser,
Microsoft's widely used Windows operating system. Regularly backup your important files.
When a system is infected, a pop-up window appears
with instructions on how to pay a ransom amount of WannaCry 'kill switch'
$300. Several hours after the initial release of the
The pop-up also features two countdown clocks; one ransomware on 12 May 2017, while trying to establish
showing a three-day deadline before the ransom the size of the attack, Marcus Hutchins, a researcher
amount doubles to $600; another showing a deadline
who blogs under the handle @MalwareTech,
of when the target will lose its data forever. Payment
is only accepted in bitcoin. accidentally discovered what amounted to be a "kill
switch" hardcoded in the malware.

Source : http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/05/ransomware-avoid-170513041345145.html
iSLCollective.com
Questions. Reading for specific details.

1. Wannacry is a kind of ________________________ software.

2. Approximately how many computers world-wide were infected.? ____________ __________

3. How many countries were affected? _______________________

4. Which were the three main countries affected? ___________,_____________,________________

5. Name 3 software security companies mentioned in the article?

_____________________ ____________________________ ___________________________

6. Some researchers believe the hack began in which country ? _________________________

7. How much does the hack demand for release of your files? _____________________________

8. Which currency is the ‘ransom’ to be paid in? ___________________________________

9. The ransom doubles if the ransom is not paid within _________ days.

10. Which ‘sector’ of economy is very vulnerable to such attacks? ________________________

11. Write down three things experts say can help prevent your computer from being attacked.

____________________________, _____________________________,________________________________

Source : http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/05/ransomware-avoid-170513041345145.html
iSLCollective.com
 Reducing Risks
Name: Class:

Describe how you can reduce the risks of the following dangers.

Danger How can you reduce the risk?

Staff accessing data they

should have no right to see

Staff losing a USB with

confidential private data

A virus that deletes files on

your computer system

Cybercriminals finding a
way into your network as
you are using an old
version of the operating
system

Cybercriminals gaining
entry to your computer
network as some of your
staff are using “password”
as their password

© 2022 Nichola Wilkin Ltd

Audio
# 12
Audio # 13
 HEAAADERLOGORIGHT
GENERAL ENGLISH · GENERAL ISSUES · UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

CYBER
CRIME
QrrkoD Scan to review worksheet

Expemo code:
1DJ8-M74B-RBP6

1 Warm up
Watch this short video about digital safety and then answer the questions.

1. Where do you think this video was shown and why?

2. What is the main message?

3. What sort of people do you think particularly need to hear about this type of scam?

2 Reading 1
Read this short introduction to cybercrime and find words which match the meanings below.

Cybercrime is a way of committing crimes using computer networks, including via e-mail,
websites, social media apps and even phone calls. It’s a very broad category: some of the
criminals involved are operating in a coordinated way while others are working on their own,
and their actions may involve a high level of technical skill, for example hacking into a secure
computer system or just a willingness to try, for example scamming someone on social media.
These cons are evolving all the time, and it is proving almost impossible for lawmakers and
the police to keep up and for ordinary people to spot what’s real and what’s fake.

FOOOOTERRIGHT Learn without forgetting! 1/7

Scan the QR at the top of Page 1 to review the lesson flashcards with Expemo.
© Linguahouse.com. Photocopiable and licensed for use in Teacher Vasquez's lessons.
 HEAAADERLOGORIGHT
UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

CYBER CRIME

1. gaining access to a computer or computer system without permission

2. a synonym for scams
3. something that appears to be real but isn’t, which is intended to deceive
people
Choose the best number to complete the sentences about cybercrime in 2023.
1. If cybercrime were a country, it would have the third / fifth / seventh largest economy in the
world.
2. Cybercrime increased by 100% / 115% / 125% during the Covid-19 pandemic.
3. In the UK, 26% / 31 % / 43% of businesses and 26% / 31 % / 43% of charities are attacked at
least once a week.
4. The average cost of each of these cyber-attacks is £4200 / £5300 / £6400.
5. Hackers attack a computer an average of every 39 seconds / minutes / hours.

Which information is the most surprising for you?

3 Vocabulary
Complete the following definitions.

a) harms others b) threatening someone c) someone is to pay

d) cannot read e) asked f) wrong or cruel
g) dishonest h) release someone or something i) afford

1. credit rating (n): a score that shows how likely back money that they’ve borrowed
2. wrongdoing (n): an action that or is against the law
3. fraudulent (adj): and illegal
4. costly (adj.): expensive, difficult to
5. extort (v): get something by or forcing them to pay money
6. ransom (n): money that someone pays to a criminal to they have taken
7. unsolicited (adj.): not for
8. encrypt (v): put information into a form that people
9. abuse (v): treat someone or something in a way

Answer the following questions.

1. Abuse is defined here as a verb, but the noun has the same form. How are they pronounced
differently?
2. Which other word in the exercise has the same form as a noun and a verb?
3. What is unusual about the ending of costly?
4. What do you think we call a person who scams other people? What about someone who hacks
into computer systems?

FOOOOTERLEFT Learn without forgetting! 2/7

Scan the QR at the top of Page 1 to review the lesson flashcards with Expemo.
© Linguahouse.com. Photocopiable and licensed for use in Teacher Vasquez's lessons.
 HEAAADERLOGORIGHT
UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

CYBER CRIME

4 Reading 2
Work in A/B/C groups. You will each read a text about a different aspect of cybercrime.

extort credit rating wrongdoing

costly abuse ransom

unsolicited fraudulent encrypt

Group A
• First, look through your information and use three of the items from the word box to complete
the text. Look back at the Vocabulary stage of the lesson if you need to. Your teacher will tell you
the answers.
• Then prepare a mini presentation about your information for the other students in your group,
including the underlined items in the test. You will need to cover your information and remember
what to say, using your own words.
• Listen to the other two presentations and ask questions.
• Read through the other two texts and add the missing words.

When scammers target individuals, their goal is to get your personal information like date
of birth, passport or ID numbers, bank details, and passwords so they can steal your
1
identity or access your bank account. Their actions can affect your .

2
You should also beware of emails, phone calls or messages asking for
personal details – this is a type of social engineering called phishing. Those that claim to
be from a bank may ask you to take urgent action, while others may be from an
organisation that wants to refund you some money or give you a prize, but either could
send you to a fake website. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true – it probably is.

There are also more personal types of phishing, where you receive a message from
someone who claims to be closely related to you, asking you to send money or reveal
personal information. A variation of this is called catfishing, a scam designed to
3
someone’s trust and exploit them romantically or financially.

FOOOOTERRIGHT Learn without forgetting! 3/7

Scan the QR at the top of Page 1 to review the lesson flashcards with Expemo.
© Linguahouse.com. Photocopiable and licensed for use in Teacher Vasquez's lessons.
 HEAAADERLOGORIGHT
UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

CYBER CRIME

extort credit rating wrongdoing

costly abuse ransom

unsolicited fraudulent encrypt

Group B

• First, look through your information and use three of the items from the word box to complete
the text. Look back at the Vocabulary stage of the lesson if you need to. Your teacher will tell you
the answers.
• Then prepare a mini presentation about your information for the other students in your group,
including the underlined items in the test. You will need to cover your information and remember
what to say, using your own words.
• Listen to the other two presentations and ask questions.
• Read through the other two texts and add the missing words.

Organisational victims of cybercrime could include large institutions like a bank or major
companies, service providers like schools, hospitals or charities, or even small businesses
and start-ups.

Hackers may gain access to a company’s database and threaten to steal, delete or
1 2 3
data until a is paid. The goal is to
money and may also involve the use of botnets to crash a popular website at an
inconvenient time, for example when tickets for a popular sports or music event go on
sale. This results in a denial of service message to ordinary users and loss of income or
reputation for the business or organisation.

Alternatively, hackers may install spyware on individual or organisational devices in order

to steal confidential commercial information about the company or personal information
about its customers. Money may be demanded, or the data may simply be stolen. The
individual or company may be unaware that this data breach has occurred.

FOOOOTERLEFT Learn without forgetting! 4/7

Scan the QR at the top of Page 1 to review the lesson flashcards with Expemo.
© Linguahouse.com. Photocopiable and licensed for use in Teacher Vasquez's lessons.
 HEAAADERLOGORIGHT
UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

CYBER CRIME

extort credit rating wrongdoing

costly abuse ransom

unsolicited fraudulent encrypt

Group C

• First, look through your information and use three of the items from the word box to complete
the text. Look back at the Vocabulary stage of the lesson if you need to. Your teacher will tell you
the answers.
• Then prepare a mini presentation about your information for the other students in your group,
including the underlined items in the test. You will need to cover your information and remember
what to say, using your own words.
• Listen to the other two presentations and ask questions.
• Read through the other two texts and add the missing words.

With so many people engaging in online shopping, marketplace cybercrime has become a
1
special category of , affecting buyers, sellers and websites.

Buyers may order and pay for something online only to discover that the goods they
receive are fake or not as advertised. Even worse, they may not receive any items at all,
while the dishonest seller has pocketed the purchase price. Meanwhile, sellers may run
2
into difficulty receiving payments from buyers, who may pay using
checks or cryptocurrency exchanges, or who may be using credit card or bank account
information stolen from an innocent victim.

Even the websites that host these transactions may suffer reputational damage if they
don’t introduce safeguards or are not honest about third-party payment procedures.
3
They are also likely to become involved in time-consuming and
procedures in response to complaints.

FOOOOTERRIGHT Learn without forgetting! 5/7

Scan the QR at the top of Page 1 to review the lesson flashcards with Expemo.
© Linguahouse.com. Photocopiable and licensed for use in Teacher Vasquez's lessons.
 HEAAADERLOGORIGHT
UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

CYBER CRIME

5 Language in context

You saw these sentences in the texts A-C. Add the missing word and then use the context of the
sentence to explain the meaning of the items in bold. How formal is each item?

1. Remember, if it too good to be true – it probably is.

2. This in a denial of service message to ordinary users and loss of income or reputation
for the business or organisation.

3. Even worse, they may not receive any items at all, while the dishonest seller has pocketed the
price.

6 Talking point

Even though cybercrime is a massive problem, there are some steps we can all take to avoid becoming
victims. Work in pairs or small groups to match each piece of advice to one or more of the situations
you read about in texts A-C.

1. Avoid using unsecured networks or public computers to do your online banking.

2. Scammers are everywhere - check individual profiles carefully for each transaction.

3. Don’t send any goods, especially if they’re costly, until the payment has reached your bank
account.

4. In unsolicited e-mails, be suspicious of unusual e-mail or fake website addresses.

5. Make sure you back up important data so you can continue to work even if under attack from
hackers.

6. Offer guidance to everyone in the company about how to create secure passwords.

7. Regularly check your bank statements and credit rating status.

8. Report any concerns about possible wrongdoing to line managers or the IT Department.

9. Use a trusted website and pay attention to the reviews, but remember that some may be
fraudulent.

Think of at least one more piece of advice for each situation. Use vocabulary from the lesson.

FOOOOTERLEFT Learn without forgetting! 6/7

Scan the QR at the top of Page 1 to review the lesson flashcards with Expemo.
© Linguahouse.com. Photocopiable and licensed for use in Teacher Vasquez's lessons.
 System Security Crossword
Name: Class:

Across Down
4. Social _________ is when a cracker 1. Hostile software including viruses,
manipulates people to give them keyloggers, adware, spyware, trojans
confidential information, they can use and worms
to gain access to a computer system
2. This is a type of test that companies
5. Access rights ensure people only use to simulate a possible cyber
see ______ that is relevant to their job attack
and position in the company
3. Removable media can be lost or
6. A strong password should include stolen and can infect a computer
upper-case and lower-case letters, system with one of these.
numbers and __________
7. A small program that
manufacturers create to fix a specific
problem with their software, usually to
increase cyber security

© 2022 Nichola Wilkin Ltd

 BUSINESS NEWS LESSONS
Cyber Security – the danger may be closer
to home
1 Warmer

How many words do you know with the word data? Use these words to create noun or verb
phrases and give a definition. Add any other expressions you know that contain the word data.

Nouns:   
bank      breach      file      protection     security
Verbs:      download      analyse     leak      mine      migrate        steal        upload

2 Key words and expressions

Find the words or phrases in the article that match the definitions below. Use the paragraph
numbers to help you.

1. a situation in which something cannot continue normally because of a problem (1)

2. to process information in large quantities automatically (2 words) (3)

3. to mention something so that people know about it (3)

4. to increase very quickly in amount or degree (6)

5. a feeling of anger towards someone because they have done something to you that does not seem

right or fair (7)

6. the crime of stealing (7)

7. the activity of spying (7)

8. a responsibility or duty to do something (9)

9. becoming larger than something else (13)

10. beginning or formed recently (17)

11. acceptable (19)

12. causing unnecessary fear or worry (20)

Worksheet

D •
TE DE E
SI A L
EB LO B
W N IA

Teacher’s notes and worksheet: Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2020. 1
M W P
O DO O
FR BE C
N T
O
CA HO
•P
 BUSINESS NEWS LESSONS

Companies wrestle with growing

cyber security threat: their own
employees
Businesses deploy analytic tools to monitor staff as remote working increases
data breach risk
BY HANNAH MURPHY

1 As cyber criminals and hackers ramp up their attacks growing issue, is intellectual property theft and
on businesses amid coronavirus-related disruption, espionage on behalf of foreign governments.
companies are also facing another equally grave
security threat: their own employees. 8 Already more than a third of data breaches involve
internal actors, according to a 2019 Verizon analysis
2 Companies are increasingly turning to Big Brother-style of more than 40,000 incidents. At an exclusive
surveillance tools to stop staff from leaking or stealing meeting of top corporate cyber security heads at RSA,
sensitive data, as millions work away from the watchful one of the largest cyber security conferences earlier
eyes of their bosses and waves of job cuts leave some this year, delegates labelled insider threats as their
workers disgruntled. number one concern, according to one person in
attendance — above nation state activity and threats
3 In particular, a brisk market has sprung up for cyber from cyber criminals.
security groups that wield machine learning and
analytics to crunch data on employees’ activity and 9 Traditionally, groups such as McAfee have offered
proactively flag worrying behaviours. tools that detect and block the exfiltration of sensitive
data automatically. But there are also newer groups
4 “We’re seeing people say, ‘I need better visibility that seek to proactively alert employers to anomalous
into what my employees are doing with all of our activity through behavioural analysis of data — which
data at home’,” said Joe Payne, chief executive of can involve screenshots and keystroke logging — and
cloud security group Code42, which tracks and then place the onus on those employers to act in a way
analyses employees’ activity on work devices. The they see fit.
group examines factors including when an employee
typically works, what files they access and how much 10 Falling under this category, Code42, Teramind,
data they download. Behavox and InterGuard all told the Financial Times
that they were seeing a rise in interest from potential
5 “[Employers can ask] — if we have 10,000 employees, clients under lockdown.
can you tell us who the most high-risk people are?”
he said, adding that his company was handling a rise 11 “There is an increase [during this pandemic] in
in cases of data theft among clients. people trying to steal intellectual property — reports
or valuable HR data, client lists,” said Erkin Adylov,
Insider threats chief executive of artificial intelligence group
Behavox, which in February raised $100m from
6 According to Mordor Intelligence, the $1.2bn data
Worksheet

SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2.

loss prevention market is set to balloon to $3.8bn
by 2025, as many businesses migrate their data to 12 Its software analyses 150 data types to produce
the cloud. insights about employees’ behaviour, including using
natural language processing of email and workplace
7 So-called insider threats encompass employees
chats to assess “employee sentiment”, he said. “Maybe
unintentionally sharing private data outside of
there is uncertainty about [whether] the people are
workplace networks, but also the deliberate stealing
going to [keep] their job,” Mr Adylov added.
of data, typically motivated by financial opportunity
or a grudge against an employer. Rarer, but a Continued on next page
D •
TE DE E
SI A L
EB LO B
W N IA

Teacher’s notes and worksheet: Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2020. 2
M W P
O DO O
FR BE C
N T
O
CA HO
•P
 BUSINESS NEWS LESSONS

13 “The market is moving very fast. I would say it’s 17 Nevertheless, critics argue that the technology is still
probably growing at a clip of 100 per cent a year. The nascent and further investment is needed to develop
demand is outstripping supply,” he said. a more accurate understanding of what risky patterns
of behaviour look like.
State adversaries
18 And while employers have long been able to legally
14 The risk of nation states opportunistically grooming monitor emails and web activity for signs of external
employees for cyber espionage purposes is also a cyber security threats, for some there is a discomfort
growing threat, several experts said. The issue was about the privacy and trust implications of using
thrust into the spotlight recently when US officials such tools on staff.
last year charged two Twitter employees with mining
data from the company’s internal systems to send to 19 “It’s intrusive, it’s not very culturally palatable,”
Saudi Arabia. said former US army intelligence sergeant and
former Palantir executive Greg Barbaccia. “To me,
15 “If I were a nation state actor [involved in cyber the insider threat is a cultural human problem. If
espionage] . . . certainly this is an opportunity to someone wants to be malicious . . . you need to solve
exploit some realities that exist. This is a heightened the human problem.”
environment,” said Homayun Yaqub, a senior
security strategist at cyber group Forcepoint. 20 Omer Tene, vice-president of the International
Association of Privacy Professionals, said: “Data
16 Executives at Strider Technologies, which wields breaches have been a huge issue. It’s understandable
proprietary data sets and human intelligence to help why businesses would want to protect against that.
companies combat economic espionage, said it was I wouldn’t be alarmist.
seeing more recruitment of foreign spies, particularly
by China, take place online under lockdown, rather 21 “But you need to be aware as a business and a
than at events and conferences. “We’re providing technology of the creepy line,” he added. “Are you doing
[customers] with the capability to respond to that anything . . . unexpected that will trigger backlash?”
[changing] adversary tactic,” said chief executive
Greg Levesque.

Hannah Murphy, 12 May 2020.

© The Financial Times Limited.
All rights reserved.
Articles republished from the Financial Times
Worksheet

D •
TE DE E
SI A L
EB LO B
W N IA

Teacher’s notes and worksheet: Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2020. 3
M W P
O DO O
FR BE C
N T
O
CA HO
•P
 BUSINESS NEWS LESSONS

3 Understanding the article

Are these statements true or false according to the text? Correct the false statements.

1. Some companies are facing a security threat from their own employees under lockdown.

2. There is a growing market for cyber security groups that process data on employees’ activity.

3. Cloud security group Code 42 tracks and analyses employees’ activity on their home computers.

4. The data loss prevention market is predicted to increase its revenue from $1.2bn to $3.8bn by the end
of this year.

5. People who steal data are usually doing it on behalf of foreign governments.

6. Typically, employees steal intellectual property such as reports, HR data and client lists.

7. Under lockdown, the recruitment of foreign spies takes place at events and conferences rather
than online.

8. Critics of cyber security say the technology is still new and needs more investment.

4 Business language – two-word expressions

Match the words in the left-hand column with those in the right-hand column to make phrases from
the text.

1. security a. theft

2. machine b. security

3. data c. espionage

4. workplace d. list

5. cyber e. threat

6. client f. problem

7. economic g. learning
Worksheet

8. human h. network
D •
TE DE E
SI A L
EB LO B
W N IA

Teacher’s notes and worksheet: Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2020. 4
M W P
O DO O
FR BE C
N T
O
CA HO
•P
 BUSINESS NEWS LESSONS

5 Business language – adjectives

Replace the underlined words in the sentences using these words from the text.

anomalous      
disgruntled      
grave      
intrusive      
palatable      
potential

1. Some companies believe that they face a serious security threat from their
own employees.

2. Some employees may leak or steal sensitive data because they are annoyed after
waves of job cuts.

3. Cyber security tools alert employers to unusual activity by employees online.

4. There is a rise in interest in this technology from possible clients under lockdown.

5. Critics argue that staff may find the use of this technology unwelcome .

6. They also say that its use might not be culturally acceptable .

6 Business language - word building

Complete the table.

Verb Noun

1. survey

2. behave

3. attend

4. recruit

5. invest

6. imply
Worksheet

7 Discussion questions

• Is it right for companies to spy on their own employees? Give reasons for your answer.

• What methods could and should companies use to protect sensitive data?

• In what ways has the lockdown contributed to attacks on businesses?

D •
TE DE E
SI A L
EB LO B
W N IA

Teacher’s notes and worksheet: Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2020. 5
M W P
O DO O
FR BE C
N T
O
CA HO
•P
 BUSINESS NEWS LESSONS

8 Wider business theme – staying safe online

1. Staying safe online is both a problem for companies and a problem for individuals. You are the
human resources manager of a small company that does most of its business online. Make a
list of ways employees can say safe online (both at work and at home).

• Enter ‘staying safe online’ into an internet search engine.

• Consult at least two websites that give tips about staying safe online.

• Make a list of ‘do’s’ and ‘don’t’s’ for all employees.

2. Present your advice to the group.

Worksheet

D •
TE DE E
SI A L
EB LO B
W N IA

Teacher’s notes and worksheet: Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2020. 6
M W P
O DO O
FR BE C
N T
O
CA HO
•P