IT Baseline Protection Manual - The Information Warfare Site

Threats Catalogue Deliberate Acts Remarks
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T 4.36 Mistakes in encoded data
If data which is in an encoded form is changed, it may no longer be possible to
decode the data correctly. According to the mode of operation of the encoding
routines, this can mean that only a few bytes are decoded incorrectly or that all
data following the error is decoded incorrectly. If there is no data backup, this
can cause the data to be lost entirely.
Errors in the encoded data can occur in various ways:
- When the encoded data is transmitted, a transmission error occurs that
cannot be corrected.
- A permanent error occurs in the storage medium (floppy disk, hard disk).
- A computer virus manipulates the data.
- A third person intentionally manipulates the data, for example by
manipulating the encoded data in a few places with an editor.
In serious cases, such as when bits are lost or a large amount of data is altered
and the error is propagated, the data cannot be reconstructed even if you know
the cryptographic process and the code used for encoding.
An error in the cryptographic codes used can be even more serious. Even if a
single bit of a cryptographic code is altered, the result is that all of the data
encoded with it can no longer be decoded. If the cryptographic code has no
data backup, this data is lost for good.
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IT-Baseline Protection Manual: Oktober 2000