Introduction

INTERRUPT

An interrupt is a signal from a device attached to a computer or from a program

within the computer that requires the operating system to stop and figure out what to

do next OR

An interrupt is a signal emitted by a device attached to a computer or from

a program within the computer. It requires the operating system (OS) to stop and

figure out what to do next. An interrupt temporarily stops or terminates a service or a

current process. Most I/O devices have a buscontrol line called Interrupt Service

Routine (ISR) for this purpose.

An interrupt signal might be planned (i.e., specifically requested by a program) or it

may be unplanned (i.e., caused by an event that may not be related to a program

that's currently running on the system).

Today, almost all computing systems are interrupt-driven. What this means is that

they follow the list of computer instructions in a program and run the instructions

until they get to the end or until they sense an interrupt signal. If the latter event

happens, the computer either resumes running the current program or begins running

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another program. In either case, it must stop operations while deciding on the next

action. To do this and to work on other programs, the OS uses pauses in operations.

When the device processor handles interrupts, it informs the device sending the

signal that the interrupt request (IRQ) has been recognized. Then the device stops

sending the IRQ signal.

An OS usually includes code called an interrupt handler to prioritize interrupts and

save them in a queue if more than one is waiting to be handled. It also has a

scheduler program that determines the next program that gets control.

When an interrupt occurs, the associated service may not start immediately. The

time interval between the time the interrupt occurs and the time when ISR execution

starts is called interrupt latency.

MASKING

Data masking is a way to create a fake, but a realistic version of your organizational

data. The goal is to protect sensitive data, while providing a functional alternative

when real data is not needed—for example, in user training, sales demos, or software

testing.

Data masking processes change the values of the data while using the same format.

The goal is to create a version that cannot be deciphered or reverse engineered.

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There are several ways to alter the data, including character shuffling, word or

character substitution, and encryption.

OR.

Data masking is a method of creating a structurally similar but inauthentic version

of an organization's data that can be used for purposes such as software testing and

user training. The purpose is to protect the actual data while having a functional

substitute for occasions when the real data is not required.

Although most organizations have stringent security controls in place to

protect production data in storage and in business use, sometimes that same data

element has been used for operations that are less secure. The issue is often

compounded if these operations are outsourced and the organization has less control

over the environment. In the wake of compliancelegislation, most organizations are

no longer comfortable exposing real data unnecessarily.

Data masking substitutes original values in a data set with randomized data using

various data shuffling and manipulation techniques. The obfuscated data maintains

the unique characteristics of the original data so that it yields the same results as the

original data set.

HOW DATA MASKING WORKS:

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Encryption is the best way to securely store and transfer sensitive data.

Unfortunately, encrypted data is difficult to query and analyze. For example, you

cannot filter users based on age if their data of birth is encrypted. As a result,

organizations need another way to keep data secure and private when it is being used

for research, development and testing.

Data masking, which is also called data sanitization, keeps sensitive information

private by making it unrecognizable but still usable. This lets developers, researchers

and analysts use a data set without exposing the data to any risk.

Data masking is different from encryption. Encrypted data can be decrypted and

returned to its original state with the correct encryption key. With masked data, there

is no algorithm to recover the original values. Masking generates a characteristically

accurate but fictitious version of a data set that has zero value to hackers. It also

cannot be reverse engineered, and statistical outputs cannot be used to identify

individuals. Like data encryption, not every data field needs to be masked, although

some fields must be completely hidden.

IMPORTANCE OF DATA MASKING

Here are several reasons data masking is essential for many organizations:

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  Data masking solves several critical threats – data loss, data exfiltration,

insider threats or account compromise, and insecure interfaces with third party

systems.

 Reduces data risks associated with cloud adoption.

 Makes data useless to an attacker, while maintaining many of its inherent

functional properties.

 Allows sharing data with authorized users, such as testers and developers,

without exposing production data.

 Can be used for data sanitization – normal file deletion still leaves traces of

data in storage media, while sanitization replaces the old values with masked

ones.

Various data protection standards and regulations require that businesses and other

organizations protect personally identifiable information, or PII, and protected health

information and keep it confidential. These standards and regulations include the

following:

 California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)

 General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)

 Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS)

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These regulations and standards play an important role in establishing appropriate

levels of data protection and preventing unauthorized users from accessing the data.

However, they also make it challenging for companies that want to analyze or share

their data with others. Data masking reduces the risks of sensitive data being

exposed and lets enterprises comply with various standards and regulations while

handling regulated data

DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN INTERRUPT AND MASKING

INTERRUPT

An interrupt is a signal emitted by a device attached to a computer or from

a program within the computer. It requires the operating system (OS) to stop and

figure out what to do next.

MASKING

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Data masking is a way to create a fake, but a realistic version of your organizational

data. The goal is to protect sensitive data, while providing a functional alternative

when real data is not needed.

LIST AND EXPLAIN TYPES OF INTERRUPTS

Interrupts are classified into two types:

1. Hardware Interrupt

2. Software Interrupt

HARDWARE INTERRUPT

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A hardware interrupt is an electronic signal from an external hardware device that

indicates it needs attention from the OS. One example of this is moving a mouse or

pressing a keyboard key. In these examples of interrupts, the processor must stop to

read the mouse position or keystroke at that instant.

In this type of interrupt, all devices are connected to the Interrupt Request Line

(IRL). Typically, a hardware IRQ has a value that associates it with a particular

device. This makes it possible for the processor to determine which device is

requesting service by raising the IRQ, and then provide service accordingly.

There are three types of hardware interrupts:

 Maskable interrupts

In a processor, an internal interrupt mask registerselectively enables and

disables hardware requests. When the mask bit is set, the interrupt is enabled.

When it is clear, the interrupt is disabled. Signals that are affected by the mask

are maskable interrupts.

 Non-maskable interrupts

In some cases, the interrupt mask cannot be disabled so it does not affect

some interrupt signals. These are non-maskable interrupts and are usually

high-priority events that cannot be ignored.

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  Spurious interrupts

Also known as a phantom interrupt or ghost interrupt, a spurious interrupt is

a type of hardware interrupt for which no source can be found. These

interrupts are difficult to identify if a system misbehaves. If the ISR does not

account for the possibility of such interrupts, it may result in a

system deadlock.

SOFTWARE INTERRUPTS

A software interrupt occurs when an application program terminates or requests

certain services from the OS. Usually, the processor requests a software interrupt

when certain conditions are met by executing a special instruction. This instruction

invokes the interrupt and functions like a subroutine call. Software interrupts are

commonly used when the system interacts with device drivers or when a program

requests OS services.

In some cases, software interrupts may be triggered unexpectedly by program

execution errors rather than by design. These interrupts are known

as exceptions or traps.

MASKING TRAPS

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 Traps are occurred by the user program to invoke the functionality of the OS.

Assume the user application requires something to be printed on the screen, and it

would set off a trap, and the operating system would write the data to the screen.

A trap is a software-produced interrupt that can be caused by various factors,

including an error in instruction, such as division by zero or illegal memory access.

A trap may also be generated when a user program makes a definite service request

from the OS.

Traps are called synchronous events because the execution of the present

instructions much more likely causes traps. System calls are another type of trap in

which the program asks the operating system to seek a certain service, and the

operating system subsequently generates an interrupt to allow the program to access

the services.

The traps are more active as an interrupt because the code will heavily depend on the

fact that the trap may be used to interact with the OS. Therefore, traps would repeat

the trap's function to access any system service.

REFERENCES

"Hardware interrupts". Retrieved 2014-02-09.

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"Interrupt Instructions". Control Data 3600 Computer System Reference

Manual (PDF). Control Data Corporation. July 1964. pp. 4–6. 60021300.

Jump up to: a b Jonathan Corbet; Alessandro Rubini; Greg Kroah-Hartman

(2005). "Linux Device Drivers, Third Edition, Chapter 10. Interrupt

Handling"(PDF). O'Reilly Media. p. 269. Retrieved December 25, 2014.

"The Jargon File, version 4.4.7". 2003-10-27. Retrieved 20 January 2022.

Rosenthal, Scott (May 1995). "Basics of Interrupts". Archived from the original on

2016-04-26. Retrieved 2010-11-11.

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