Cybersecurity Terms - A
Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) (An organizational policy that describes or defines, for employees, what is acceptable or unacceptable, or what is allowed or not allowed, when it comes to using organizational computing resources, as well as the consequences of unacceptable use.)
Access Control (AC) (A method or process that defines the degree of access granted to use a particular resource, data, systems, or facilities. The resource may be physical, such as computers, switches, or routers, or job-related, such as permissions to use or view a file, or folder.)
Access Control Engine (ACE) - (A software framework offered by the German company SAP in customer relationship management (CRM), a form of service-oriented architecture (SOA), which offers businesses specialized or targeted services in areas such as e-mail, analytics, or storage of marketing client lists and information.)
Access Control List (ACL) (A clearly defined list of permissions that specifies what actions an authenticated user may perform on a shared resource.)
access point (AP) - (wireless access point) (A network device that provides a connection point for hosts to enter a network, although most often associated with wireless clients. For wireless systems, usually a low-power transceiver (transmitter/receiver) that is connected to the local area network (LAN) through a standard network connection.)
acknowledgment (ACK) - (A Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) communication message used for system communication sessions. When a host receives a SYN (synchronous) from another host signaling that the other host wants to initiate a communication session, the receiver acknowledges the request by sending a SYN/ACK packet. The initial host responds with an acknowledgment (ACK) packet indicating that it received the SYN/ACK packet and is ready to begin the communication session.)
Action Message Format (AMF) - (A communication format used for messaging between Adobe Flash clients and a remote service.)
actionable intelligence (AI) - (Information gathered, or collected from reliable sources, which is specific enough to suggest a credible threat. In the intelligence community, information or warnings shared with the private sector so that organizations can make defensive preparations, when the threat is considered sufficiently significant. )
active directory (AD) - (A major utility of Microsoft Windows which contains or provides access to directory information about users, user groups, and assigned privilege levels.)
Active Server Pages (ASP) - (System, on Windows web servers, for generating web pages partly or completely by computation by running scripts within the web pages as they are delivered to the client.)
active threat, lone actor (ATLA) - (Individual who poses a threat, but has not been apprehended, who acts on his or her own, with no affiliation with a known group, and usually without a criminal record or history of criminal behaviour. Can refer to an active shooter or hostage situation, but could be used in a larger context, for phyiscal threats to facilities, buildings, or infrastructure, or even in the cyber security area, to individuals capable of conducting cyber attacks.)
Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) - (Protocol which correlates the IP (Internet Protocol) address number assigned with the phsical hardware/computer address based on the network interface card (NIC). Correlates the media access control (MAC) address (48-bit address burned into each network card), with a known IP address.)
Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) - (Official encryption standard adopted by the U.S. government in 2001, which is a symmetric block cipher, using large block sizes (128 bits) and runs an encryption algorithm through multiple rounds ( cycle repetitions) to encrypt and decrypt data.)
Advanced Malware Protection (AMP) - (Network protection against sophisticated malware.)
advanced persistent threat (APT) - (Term used for long-term threats, or attacks which are not limited to one-time attempts to access a system. Usually applied to very skillful, well-funded, and sometimes nation-state supported attackers.)
Advanced Persistent Threat Hacker Methodology (AHM) - (Approach or methodology used by Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) involving a consistent, systematic approach to targeting and attacking an organization.)
advanced threat (AT) - (Type of sophisticated attacker with highly-developed technical skills who uses a systematic approach to attacks and choice of victims, thinks strategically, and prefers anonymity.)
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) - (General term for software or system defenses with the capability to provide protection against advanced threats.)
Adversarial Tactics, Techniques, and Common Knowledge (ATT&CK) - (A guideline or framework, as well as an online database, created by the Mitre Corporation in 2013, to provide information about cyberattacks and attackers and the methods they use, in an organized fashion by classifying and describing attacks, with the goal of assisting organizations and agencies in learning about and defending against cybersecurity threats.)
adversary-in-the-middle (AiTM) - (Type of attack which takes place at the device communication level, by using networking protocols, to divert communications to a controlled system, in order to collect information or to manipulate system settings in order to carry out other malicious activities.)
African Network Information Centre (AfriNIC) - (Regional Internet Registry (RIR) which maintains information on organizations, their IP addresses, and related information, for African countries.)
Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate training (ALICE) - (Training program describing the stages or steps involved in preparing for and responding to an active shooter or attacker situation at a school or facility.)
algorithm - (generally, a set of rules for solving a problem in a finite number of steps or a sequence of instructions that tells how to solve a particular problem - in the area of cryptography, a mathematical process that defines how plaintext is altered to become ciphertext (encrypted), as well as how that process is reversed during decryption.)
Amazon Web Services (AWS) - (A cloud service offered by Amazon, introduced in 2006, which provides an infrastructure platform, including computing and networking services, as well as storage, database, and application services.)
American National Standards Institute (ANSI) - (Organization composed of government agencies, organizations, educational institutions, and individuals which sets standards supporting software development and computer system operations.)
American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN) - (A regional Internet registry (RIR) - a not-for-profit organization that maintains data on companies, organizations, or individuals - for those who have registered their IP addresses in America, Canada, some Caribbean countries, and North Atlantic islands.)
American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T) - (U.S. company which held a monopoly on the telephone communications industry in the United States until January 1, 1984, when it agreed to split into seven regional Bell operating companies (RBOCs).)
annualized cost of safeguard (ACS) - (The cost of reducing a risk for specific asset within a year's timeframe.)
annualized/annual loss expectancy (ALE) - (An estimate or calculation of expected losses a business or organization may incur/suffer over the course of a year. Most commonly, will be used for physical assets, such as computers or physical facilities. As a management or budgeting tool, can be applied for an organization or business as a whole, but could also be developed for a division or department. Could be a rough estimate, based on past experience, such as losses resulting from floods or thefts occurring over past years. Could also be a more precise calculation, involving individual or multiple losses, and the likelihood, or level of risk assigned or associated with any given loss, applied to individual assets, plus the risk associated with multiple losses, as well as the risk associated with multiple threats, such as flooding or fires.)
annualized (annual) rate of occurrence (ARO) - (The number of times a negative event is expected to occur on a yearly basis.)
Anomaly Based Intrusion Detection System (AB-IDS) - (Intrusion detection system which looks for anomalies - unusual patterns or activities in collected data when compared to "normal" activity in a database of collected data.)
Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) - (A global, pan-industrial law-enforcement association focused on eliminating fraud and identity theft resulting from e-mail spoofing of all types.)
antivirus software (AV) - (A software program installed on a system which operates to defend against viruses in different ways, such as scanning drives and files to identify viruses and virus code, blocking or preventing them from gaining access to, or being installed on a system, isolating or deleting them once identified, or disabling them and preventing them from executing.)
application programming interface (API) - (A software application which allows two different applications or devices to communicate, such as a computer and a printer, by converting an application communication into a format which the sending or receiving device can understand, e.g., encrypting a plaintext message.)
application service provider (ASP) - (A network service that provides application software, such as networked database programs, usually by leasing the software or service, for a monthly subscription fee based on the number of users.)
architecture description (AD) - (A formal description and representation of a system, the components that make it up, the interactions and interdependencies between those components, and the relationship to the environment.)
artificial intelligence (AI) - (the use of computers to simulate human thinking)
asset - (Anything of value to an organization, or that is important to its mission - something that creates value for an organization. While normally thought of in terms of tangible property, such as equipment, systems, and facilities, and even data and people/employees, can also include intangibles, such as reputation, brand recognition, customer loyalty, and consumer confidence.)
asset value (AV) - (A value assigned to an asset; usually expressed in terms of dollars. Asset value calculations may involve the cost to repair or replace an asset, such as the cost to replace a computer, but may also include the revenue an asset generates, such as the product sales manufacturing equipment generates.)
Asia-Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC) - (Regional Internet registry (RIR), a not-for-profit organization that maintains data on companies, organizations, or individuals in the Asia-Pacific region that have registered their IP addresses.)
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) - (A high-speed network technology used in wide area networks (WANs) which encapsulates data in packets, known as "cells" of fixed size.)
attack surface (AS) - (The components of a system that a hacker/attacker can hack or gain access to - e.g., installed software and services, endpoints, e-mail and Internet connections, printers and attached devices, or Internet of Things (IoT) devices.)
attack surface management (ASM) - (The process or function of dealing with a system's attack surface, determining vulnerabilities, locating and listing access points or devices, analysis, reducing the attack surface, and hardening and deployment of defense counter-measures. An attack involves the components of a system that a hacker/attacker can hack or gain access to - e.g., installed software and services, endpoints, e-mail and Internet connections, printers and attached devices, or Internet of Things (IoT) devices.)
Attestation Identity Key (AIK) - (Key used for the attestation of the Trusted Platform Module (TPM) chip itself to service providers. The TPM microchip is installed on the motherboard of computers and is dedicated to carrying out security functions that involve the storage and processing of symmetric and asymmetric keys, hashes, and digital certificates.)
Attribute Based Access Control (ABAC) - (System access control based on an attribute (aspect or facet of an identity), or combination of attributes, of the user, such as the IP address used for a connection, the physical location of the user, group membership, or organizational unit (divison within a company).)
authentication, authorization and accounting (AAA) - (A system process/security function requiring the system to authenticate computers/users attempting to access the system, usually by some form of credential, to authorize the user by granting permission for some level of use, and accounting for, or tracking the amount of use, such as connection time and billing.)
Authentication Header (AH) - (Internet Protocol Security (IPSec) protocol for data packets, included in the packet header, which provides data integrity, data-origin authentication, and protection from replay attacks.)
authentication server (AS) - (A server in a key encryption system, which authenticates a user by means of a pre-exchanged secret key based on the user's password.)
Authority (or Approval or Authorization) to Operate (ATO) - (Under the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), the official management decision and formal approval given by a senior agency official which allows an information system to operate.)
Authorized Use Policy (AUP) - (A screen or warning banner that is displayed at account login informing the user of various requirements or policies they must agree to prior to, or during, the use of company resources, which may also require acknowledgment by clicking a continue button.)
authorizing official (AO) - (A senior agency official, manager, or executive, under the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) responsible for information system operations at an agency, and with the authority to approve new system implementation or changes to existing systems.)
Automated Teller Machine (ATM) - (Computer terminal allowing bank customers to make deposits, obtain cash from checking or savings accounts, pay bills, transfer money between accounts, and do other transactions available at a bank teller window.)
Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP) - (Company providing human management software.)
Autonomous Systems (ASs) - (Term for individual networks on the Internet, which are independently controlled by different service providers and organizations.)
availability, integrity, confidentiality (AIC Triad) - (also known as the CIA Triad) (The three tenets or principles of information system security: 1) Availability - Information should be accessible to authorized users whenever they need or request the information; 2) Integrity - Information cannot be corrupted or changed, unless the change is made by someone authorized to make changes; and 3) Confidentiality - Confidential information, such as private data about individuals, or information considered confidential by businesses, should be kept confidential and accessible only by those authorized to view it.)
armored virus (AV) - (A virus which uses advanced techniques to avoid detection and analysis, such as the ability to change the types of files and locations it hides in, the use of encryption to hide the virus code, and even the ability to change its code.)