Word Notes

A subset of the internet where communications between two parties or client-server transactions are obscured from search engines and surveillance systems by layers of encryption. The U.S. Navy designed the original Darknet by developing The Onion Router network, or TOR, back in the 1990s. Roger Dingledine and Nick Mathewson deployed the first alpha implementation in 2002 with some initial funding...

1. A wireless access point installed by employees in an office or data center environment as a convenience to connectivity without the consent or the knowledge of the network manager. 2. A wireless access point, sometimes called an Evil Twin, installed by a cyber adversary in or near an office or data center environment designed to bypass security controls, gain access, and/or surveil the network...

A network mapping tool that pings IP addresses looking for a response and can discover host names, open communications ports, operating system names and versions. Written and maintained by Gordon Lyon, a.k.a. Fyodor, it is a free and open source software application used by both system admins and hackers alike and has been a staple in the security community for well over two decades. CyberWire Glo...

A cyber threat intelligence analysis model that defines relationship pairs between four core components in the shape of a diamond of adversary playbook activity across the intrusion kill chain: the adversary, their capability, the infrastructure used or attacked, and the victim. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/diamond-model Audio reference link: “Diamond Presentation v2...

Unsolicited, unwanted, and sometimes malicious electronic messages indiscriminately transmitted to a large number of people. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/spam Audio reference link: zumpzump, 2007. Monty Python - Spam [Video]. YouTube. URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anwy2MPT5RE. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A US Department of Homeland Security agency tasked with supporting cyber and physical security for US critical infrastructure. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/cybersecurity-and-infrastructure-security-agency Audio reference link: CISA, 2021. CISA Director Jen Easterly’s Keynote at Black Hat USA 2021 [Video]. YouTube. URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7bu-L-m4K4. Learn...

The act of searching through an organization's trash for discarded sensitive material.  CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/dumpster-diving Audio reference link: “Better Call Saul jimmy digs in the Sandpiper trash scene,” uploaded by Robert Bowersock, 18 September 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The manipulation of search engine optimization, SEO, to promote malicious sites in search engine results. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/search-engine-optimization-poisoning Audio reference link: Brown, B.E., 2021. The Ending Of The Waldo Moment Explained [Video]. YouTube. URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsWja44-EMg. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone...

The practice of crafting a fake online persona for malicious purposes. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/catfish Audio reference link: netbunny, 2013. Catfish - The Movie - Ending Scene [Movie Scene]. YouTube. URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qR_NIN6zy0U Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A passwordless authentication protocol based on the FIDO2 standard. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/passkey Audio reference link: Summers, J., 2023. Google Passkeys Have Arrived (here’s how to use them) [All Things Secured Channel]. YouTube. URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFO7JgUx-bU. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A type of phishing attack that uses QR codes as the lure. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/qr-code-phishing Audio reference link: KNR, 2018. Batman The Dark Knight Joker bomb blast by phone calls scene [Video]. YouTube. URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB_fXfzB4z0. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Definition one: The recognition of a set of repeatable attack patterns across the intrusion kill chain. Definition two: Determining the responsibility for offensive cyber operations. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/attribution Audio reference link: Nunnikhoven, M., 2018. Cybersecurity Basics #9 - Attack Attribution [Video]. YouTube. URL www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlyMz5jN_V...

A type of cyber attack where an attacker sends a targeted and personalized email or other form of communication to a specific individual or a small group of individuals with the intention of tricking them into divulging sensitive information, such as a password, or convincing them to click a malicious link that will enable the attacker to take control of the victim's machine. CyberWire Glossary li...

The ability to continuously deliver the intended outcome despite adverse cyber events. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/resiliency Audio reference link: Cameron, J., 1984. The Terminator [Movie]. IMDb. URL www.imdb.com/title/tt0088247/. Clip Nation, 2012. The Arnold Schwarzenegger “I’ll Be Back” Supercut [Video]. YouTube. URL www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YEG9DgRHhA. Coops, C....

A centralized facility or team responsible for monitoring, detecting, analyzing, and responding to cybersecurity incidents within an organization. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/security-operations-center Audio reference link: AT&T Tech Channel, 2012. A tour of AT&T’s Network Operations Center (1979) [Video]. YouTube. URL www.youtube.com/watch?v=cigc3hvMyWw. Learn more...

Defensive cyber operations carried out by U.S. Cyber Command's Cyber National Mission Force, CNMF at the request of allied nations. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/hunt-forward-operation Audio reference link: Paul Nakasone, G., 2022. Vanderbilt Summit Keynote [Video]. YouTube. URL www.youtube.com/watch?v=Axg4s9l9wi0. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/a...

The invisible force that governs the movement of data across networks. Audio reference link: “Things to Come 1936 - HG Wells.” YouTube, YouTube, 28 Sept. 2011, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atwfWEKz00U.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The ability of computers to execute tasks typically associated with human intelligence, including natural language processing, problem solving, and pattern recognition. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/ai Audio reference link: Staff, 2016. Alan Turing - The Imitation Game - Can Machines Think? [YouTube Video]. Learn Understand Create. URL www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vs7Lo5MKI...

A credential demonstrating an individual's knowledge in the field of cybersecurity, usually obtained by passing an exam or series of exams.  CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/certification Audio reference link: Bombal, D., 2022. Are certifications important in Cybersecurity? [Video]. YouTube. URL www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zdgf_Wr82rs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

A technique used to create virtual networks within a shared physical network infrastructure. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/network-slicing Audio reference link: Whitehead, D.N., 2021. 5G Smart Networks Part 1: Network Slicing [Video]. YouTube. URL www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCt3rYODZ7g. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The process of verifying that a device is known, secure, and uncompromised before allowing it to connect to a network or access resources. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/device-trust Audio reference link: “Favorite Scene of Alan Rickman from Die Hard.” YouTube, YouTube, 14 Jan. 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mklnXM3LIXo.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit m...

A technology set design to support the cybersecurity first principle strategy of zero trust, that limits device people and software component access to only designated authorized resources and nothing more. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/zero-trust-network-access Audio reference link: “Zero Trust Explained by John Kindervag.” YouTube, YouTube, 2 Oct. 2022, https://www.y...

A data privacy legal framework that applies to all countries in the European Union, regulating the transmission, storage, and use of personal data associated with residents of the EU.  CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/general-data-protection-regulation Audio reference link: “Mr. Robot Predicts JPM Coin!” YouTube, YouTube, 14 Feb. 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ee-...

A conversational language model developed by the company OpenAI.  CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/chatgpt Audio reference link: jeongphill. “Movie - Her, First Meet OS1 (Operation System One, Os One, OS1).” YouTube, YouTube, 29 June 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GV01B5kVsC0.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A cyber attack technique where adversaries intercept communications between two parties in order to collect useful information or to sabotage or corrupt the communication in some manner. CyberWire Glossary link: https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/man-in-the-middle-attack Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices