Cybersecurity 101:
The Fundamentals of Cybersecurity

Active Directory Federation Service (AD FS) is a single sign on (SSO) feature developed by Microsoft that provides authenticated access to any domain, device, web application or system within the organization’s active directory (AD).

An advanced persistent threat (APT) is a sophisticated, sustained cyberattack in which an intruder establishes an undetected presence in a network in order to steal sensitive data over a prolonged period of time.

A botnet is a network of compromised computers that are supervised by a command and control (C&C) channel.

A cloud access security broker (CASB) is a security check point between cloud network users and cloud-based applications that manages and enforces all data security policies and practices, including authentication, authorization, alerts and encryption.

Cloud encryption is the process of transforming data from its original plain text format to an unreadable format before it is transferred to and stored in the cloud.

Cloud security is the collective term for the strategy and solutions that protect a cloud infrastructure, and any service or application hosted within its environment, from cyber threats.

A cloud security assessment is an evaluation that tests and analyzes an organization’s cloud infrastructure to ensure the organization is protected from a variety of security risks and threats.

Cloud security posture management (CSPM) automates the identification and remediation of risks across cloud infrastructures.

Cloud Workload Protection platforms offer organizations a solution to continuously monitor for, and remove threats from their cloud workloads and containers.

Container security is the use of security tools and policies to protect containers from threats.

Cross Site Scripting (XSS) is a code injection attack in which an adversary inserts malicious code within a legitimate website.

Cybersecurity is the act of defending digital assets, including networks, systems, computers and data, from cyberattacks.

The dark web is a subsect of the internet where users can access unindexed web content anonymously through a variety of encryption techniques.

Data loss prevention (DLP) is an overall security strategy that focuses on detecting and preventing the loss, leakage or misuse of an organization's data.

A Denial-of-Service (DoS) attack is a malicious, targeted attack that floods a network with false requests in order to disrupt business operations.

DevSecOps—short for Development Security Operations—is the practice of incorporating security continuously throughout the application development lifecycle.

A DDoS attack is the malicious attempt to render a service or a device unavailable by either flooding the resource with traffic or requests or by degrading the resource’s performance substantially.

An endpoint is any device that can be connected to a network. Common examples of endpoints include computers, laptops, mobile phones, tablets and servers.

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) is defined as a solution that records and store endpoint-system-level behaviors, use various data analytics techniques to detect suspicious system behavior, provide contextual information, block malicious activity, and provide remediation suggestions to restore affected systems.

Endpoint security, or endpoint protection, is the cybersecurity approach to defending endpoints – such as desktops, laptops, and mobile devices – from malicious activity.

Fileless malware is a type of malicious activity that uses native, legitimate tools built in to a system to execute a cyber attack. Unlike traditional malware, fileless malware does not require an attacker to install any code on a target’s system, making it hard to detect.

Ransomware first cropped up around 2005 as just one subcategory of the overall class of scareware. Learn how it's evolved since then.

A honeypot is a cybersecurity mechanism that leverages a manufactured attack target to lure cybercriminals away from legitimate targets, and also gathers intelligence about the identity, methods and motivations of adversaries.

Incident response (IR) is the systematic approach taken by an organization to prepare for, detect, contain, and recover from a cybersecurity breach.

Lateral movement refers to the techniques that a cyberattacker uses, after gaining initial access, to move deeper into a network in search of sensitive data and other high-value assets.

Malware (malicious software) is a term used to describe any program or code that is created with the intent to do harm to a computer, network, or server.

Malware analysis is the process of understanding the behavior and purpose of a suspicious file or URL to help detect and mitigate potential threats.

A man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack is a type of cyberattack in which a third party infiltrates a conversation between a network user and a web application.

Managed detection and response (MDR) is a cybersecurity service that combines technology and human expertise to perform threat hunting, monitoring, and response.

Mobile malware is malicious software designed to target mobile devices. Click here to read about the different types and distribution methods.

Next-Generation Antivirus (NGAV) uses a combination of artificial intelligence, behavioral detection, machine learning algorithms, and exploit mitigation, so known and unknown threats can be anticipated and immediately prevented.

Windows New Technology LAN Manager (NTLM) is a suite of security protocols offered by Microsoft to authenticate users’ identity and protect the integrity and confidentiality of their activity.

Patch management is the process of identifying and deploying software updates, or “patches,” to a variety of endpoints, including computers, mobile devices, and servers.

Penetration testing, or pen testing, is the simulation of real-world attacks in order to test an organization’s detection and response capabilities. 

Phishing is a type of cyber attack that uses email, SMS, phone, or social media to entice a victim to share sensitive information — such as passwords or account numbers — or to download a malicious file that will install viruses on their computer or phone.

PAM or privileged access (or account) management is a way to define and control privileged users and administrative accounts.

Ransomware is a type of malware that denies access to your system and personal information, and demands a payment (ransom) to get your access back.

Ransomware as a Service (RaaS) is a business model used by ransomware developers, in which they lease ransomware variants in the same way that legitimate software developers lease SaaS products.

In this post, we explore 12 recent ransomware examples to outline the adversaries behind them and how they work.

A red team/blue team exercise is a cybersecurity assessment technique that uses simulated attacks to gauge the strength of the organization’s existing security capabilities and identify areas of improvement in a low-risk environment.

SIEM stands for security information and event management and is a set of tools and services that enable analysts to review log and event data, understand and prepare for threats, and retrieve and report on log data.

A security operations center, or SOC, is the collective term for the people, processes and technologies responsible for monitoring, analyzing and maintaining an organization’s information security.

Spear-phishing is a targeted attack that uses fraudulent emails, texts and phone calls in order to steal a specific person's sensitive information.

In the cybersecurity world, spoofing is the act of disguising communication or activity from an unknown source and presenting it as a familiar or trusted source.

Spyware is a type of unwanted, malicious software that infects a computer or other device and collects information about a user’s web activity without their knowledge or consent.

Threat hunting is the practice of proactively searching for cyber threats that are lurking undetected in a network. Cyber threat hunting digs deep to find malicious actors in your environment that have slipped past your initial endpoint security defenses.

Threat intelligence is data that is collected, processed, and analyzed to understand a threat actor's motives, targets, and attack behaviors.

While there are many different variations of malware, there are several types that you are more likely to encounter.

Vulnerability management is the ongoing, regular process of identifying, assessing, reporting on, managing and remediating security risks to keep all systems and assets in a network protected.

A whaling attack is a social engineering attack against a specific executive or senior employee with the purpose of stealing money or information, or gaining access to the person’s computer in order to execute further attacks.

Zero Trust is a security concept that requires all users to be authenticated and authorized before being granted access to applications and data.

In this post, we'll outline a framework for a true Zero Trust model that adheres to industry best practices while specifically avoiding the potential pitfalls.

A zero-day exploit is an unknown security vulnerability or software flaw that hackers can specifically target with malicious code.