Threat management

Terms related to security threats, including definitions about anti-virus programs or firewalls and words and phrases about malware, viruses, Trojans and other security attacks.

snooping - Snooping, in a security context, is unauthorized access to another person's or company's data.
Snort - Snort is an open source network intrusion detection system (NIDS) created by Sourcefire founder and former CTO Martin Roesch.
SOAR (security orchestration, automation and response) - SOAR (security orchestration, automation and response) is a stack of compatible software programs that enables an organization to collect data about security threats and respond to security events with little or no human assistance.
social engineering - Social engineering is an attack vector that relies heavily on human interaction and often involves manipulating people into breaking normal security procedures and best practices to gain unauthorized access to systems, networks or physical locations or for financial gain.
social engineering penetration testing - Social engineering penetration testing is the practice of deliberately conducting typical social engineering scams on employees to ascertain the organization's level of vulnerability to this type of exploit.
spambot - A spambot is an automated system that sends unwanted, unsolicited messages to users, known as spam.
spear phishing - Spear phishing is a malicious email spoofing attack that targets a specific organization or individual, seeking unauthorized access to sensitive information.
spyware - Spyware is a type of malicious software -- or malware -- that is installed on a computing device without the end user's knowledge.
SS7 attack - An SS7 attack is a security exploit that takes advantage of a weakness in the design of SS7 (Signaling System 7) to enable data theft, eavesdropping, text interception and location tracking.
stack overflow - A stack overflow is a type of buffer overflow error that occurs when a computer program tries to use more memory space in the call stack than has been allocated to that stack.
stateful inspection - Stateful inspection, also known as dynamic packet filtering, is a firewall technology that monitors the state of active connections and uses this information to determine which network packets to allow through the firewall.
stealth virus - A stealth virus is a computer virus that uses various mechanisms to avoid detection by antivirus software.
storage security - Storage security is the group of parameters and settings that make storage resources available to authorized users and trusted networks and unavailable to other entities.
stream cipher - A stream cipher is a method of encrypting text (to produce ciphertext) in which a cryptographic key and algorithm are applied to each binary digit in a data stream, one bit at a time.
strong password - A strong password is one that is designed to be hard for a person or program to guess.
Structured Threat Information eXpression (STIX) - Structured Threat Information eXpression (STIX) is a standardized Extensible Markup Language (XML) programming language for conveying data about cybersecurity threats in a way that can be easily understood by both humans and security technologies.
supply chain attack - A supply chain attack is a type of cyber attack that targets organizations by focusing on weaker links in an organization's supply chain.
supply chain security - Supply chain security is the part of supply chain management that focuses on the risk management of external suppliers, vendors, logistics and transportation.
SYN flood attack - A SYN flood attack is a type of denial-of-service (DoS) attack on a computer server.
SYN scanning - SYN scanning is a tactic that a malicious hacker can use to determine the state of a communications port without establishing a full connection.
tailgating (piggybacking) - Tailgating, sometimes referred to as piggybacking, is a type of physical security breach in which an unauthorized person follows an authorized individual to enter secured premises.
threat actor - A threat actor, also called a malicious actor or bad actor, is an entity that is partially or wholly responsible for an incident that affects -- or has the potential to affect -- an organization's security.
threat detection and response (TDR) - Threat detection and response (TDR) is the process of identifying potential threats and reacting to them before they impact the business.
threat intelligence (cyber threat intelligence) - Threat intelligence, also known as cyber threat intelligence (CTI), is information collected from various sources about current or potential attacks that threaten an organization.
threat modeling - Threat modeling is a procedure for optimizing application, system or business process security by identifying objectives and vulnerabilities, and then defining countermeasures to prevent or mitigate the effects of threats to the system.
timing attack - A timing attack is a type of side-channel attack that exploits the amount of time a computer process runs to gain knowledge about or access a system.
token - In general, a token is an object that represents something else, such as another object (either physical or virtual), or an abstract concept as, for example, a gift is sometimes referred to as a token of the giver's esteem for the recipient.
tokenization - Tokenization is the process of replacing sensitive data with unique identification symbols that retain all the essential information about the data without compromising its security.
Top 10 spyware threats - The top 10 spyware list describes the 10 common spyware threats behind famous spyware attacks and is frequently identified by Webroot's Spy Audit, a free spyware scanner tool.
Tor browser - The Tor (the onion routing) browser is a web browser designed for anonymous web surfing and protection against traffic analysis.
Transport Layer Security (TLS) - Transport Layer Security (TLS) is an Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) standard protocol that provides authentication, privacy and data integrity between two communicating computer applications.
TrickBot malware - TrickBot is sophisticated modular malware that started as a banking Trojan but has evolved to support many different types of attacks, including ransomware.
Trojan horse - In computing, a Trojan horse is a program downloaded and installed on a computer that appears harmless, but is, in fact, malicious.
trusted computing base (TCB) - A trusted computing base (TCB) is everything in a computing system that provides a secure environment for operations.
Trusted Platform Module (TPM) - A Trusted Platform Module (TPM) is a specialized chip on a device designed to secure hardware with cryptographic keys.
tunneling or port forwarding - Tunneling or port forwarding is the transmission of data intended for use only within a private -- usually corporate -- network through a public network in such a way that the public network's routing nodes are unaware that the transmission is part of a private network.
two-factor authentication (2FA) - Two-factor authentication (2FA), sometimes referred to as two-step verification or dual-factor authentication, is a security process in which users provide two different authentication factors to verify themselves.
Twofish - Twofish is a symmetric-key block cipher with a block size of 128 bits and variable-length key of size 128, 192 or 256 bits.
unified threat management (UTM) - Unified threat management (UTM) describes an information security (infosec) system that provides a single point of protection against threats, including viruses, worms, spyware and other malware, and network attacks.
USB Killer - USB Killer is a device that connects to USB drives and delivers a surge which can damage or destroy unprotected hardware.
user behavior analytics (UBA) - User behavior analytics (UBA) is the tracking, collecting and assessing of user data and activities using monitoring systems.
virtual local area network hopping (VLAN hopping) - Virtual local area network hopping (VLAN hopping) is a method of attacking the network resources of a VLAN by sending packets to a port not usually accessible from an end system.
virtual machine escape - A virtual machine escape is an exploit in which an attacker runs code on a VM that lets the operating system (OS) running within it break out and interact directly with the hypervisor.
virus (computer virus) - A computer virus is a type of malware that attaches itself to a program or file.
virus hoax - A virus hoax is a false warning about a computer virus.
virus signature (virus definition) - A virus signature, also known as a 'virus definition,' is a piece of code with a unique binary pattern that identifies a computer virus or family of viruses.
vishing (voice or VoIP phishing) - Vishing (voice or VoIP phishing) is a type of cyber attack that uses voice and telephony technologies to trick targeted individuals into revealing sensitive data to unauthorized entities.
voice squatting - Voice squatting is an attack vector for voice user interfaces, or VUIs, that exploits homonyms -- words that sound the same, but are spelled differently -- and input errors -- words that are mispronounced.
vulnerability assessment - A vulnerability assessment is the process of defining, identifying, classifying and prioritizing vulnerabilities in computer systems, applications and network infrastructures.
vulnerability disclosure - Vulnerability disclosure is the practice of reporting security flaws in computer software or hardware.
vulnerability management - Vulnerability management is the process of identifying, assessing, remediating and mitigating security vulnerabilities in software and computer systems.
WannaCry ransomware - WannaCry ransomware is a cyber attack that spreads by exploiting vulnerabilities in the Windows operating system.
war driving (access point mapping) - War driving, also called access point mapping, is the act of locating and possibly exploiting connections to wireless local area networks (WLANs) while driving around a city or elsewhere.
watering hole attack - A watering hole attack is a security exploit in which the attacker seeks to compromise a specific group of end users by infecting websites that members of the group are known to visit.
Web bug (Web beacon) - A Web bug, also known as a Web beacon, is a file object (usually a graphic image such as a transparent GIF) that is placed on a Web page or in an e-mail message to monitor user behavior.
whaling attack (whaling phishing) - A whaling attack, also known as whaling phishing or a whaling phishing attack, is a specific type of phishing attack that targets high-profile employees, such as the CEO or CFO, in order to steal sensitive information from a company.
What is a potentially unwanted program (PUP)? - A potentially unwanted program (PUP) is a program that may be unwanted, despite the possibility that users consented to download it.
What is a private cloud? - Private cloud is a type of cloud computing that delivers similar advantages to public cloud, including scalability and self-service, but through a proprietary architecture.
What is BitLocker? - BitLocker Drive Encryption, or BitLocker, is a Microsoft Windows security and encryption feature.
What is Data Encryption Standard (DES)? - Data Encryption Standard (DES) is an outdated symmetric key method of data encryption.
What is exposure management? - Exposure management is a cybersecurity approach to protecting exploitable IT assets.
What is incident response? A complete guide - Incident response is an organized, strategic approach to detecting and managing cyberattacks in ways that minimize damage, recovery time and total costs.
What is PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard)? - The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is a widely accepted set of policies and procedures intended to optimize the security of credit, debit and cash card transactions and protect cardholders against misuse of their personal information.
What is ransomware? How it works and how to remove it - Ransomware is a type of malware that locks and encrypts a victim's data, files, devices or systems, rendering them inaccessible and unusable until the attacker receives a ransom payment.
What is SecOps? Everything you need to know - SecOps, formed from a combination of security and IT operations staff, is a highly skilled team focused on monitoring and assessing risk and protecting corporate assets, often operating from a security operations center, or SOC.
white hat hacker - A white hat hacker -- or ethical hacker -- is an individual who uses hacking skills to identify security vulnerabilities in hardware, software or networks.
Wi-Fi (802.11x standard) - Wi-Fi is a term for certain types of wireless local area networks (WLAN) that use specifications in the IEEE 802.
Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) - Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) is a security standard for computing devices equipped with wireless internet connections.
Wiegand - Wiegand is the trade name for a technology used in card readers and sensors, particularly for access control applications.
Windows Defender Exploit Guard - Microsoft Windows Defender Exploit Guard is antimalware software that provides intrusion protection for Windows 10 OS users.
wipe - Wipe, in a computing context, means to erase all data on a hard drive to render it unreadable.
Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) - Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) is a security protocol, specified in the IEEE Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) standard, 802.
Wireless Transport Layer Security (WTLS) - Wireless Transport Layer Security (WTLS) is a security level for the Wireless Application Protocol (WAP), specifically for the applications that use WAP.
wiretapping - Wiretapping is the surreptitious electronic monitoring and interception of phone-, fax- or internet-based communications.
zero-day vulnerability - A zero-day vulnerability is a security loophole in software, hardware or firmware that threat actors exploit before the vendors can identify and patch it.