Glossary

Tracking - The process of continuously adjusting the orientation of an antenna so that its boresight follows the movements of the satellite about its nominal position. Used in earth stations equipped with large antennas and earth stations operating to satellites in inclined orbit, LEOs, MEOs, polar orbits.

An Acceptable Interruption Window is the maximum time allowed for restoration, when interrupted, of critical systems or applications of an organization, so that its business goals are not negatively affected.

Acceptable Use Policy is a policy that defines the level of access and degree of use of the organization’s network or internet by the members of an organization.

An access control list (ACL), with respect to a computer file system, is a list of permissions attached to an object. An ACL specifies which users or system processes are granted access to objects, as well as what operations are allowed on given objects. Each entry in a typical ACL specifies a subject and an operation. For instance, if a file object has an ACL that contains (Alice: read,write; Bob: read), this would give Alice permission to read and write the file and Bob to only read it.

See also: ACL

In computer networking, a wireless access point (WAP), or more generally just access point (AP), is a networking hardware device that allows a Wi-Fi device to connect to a wired network. The AP usually connects to a router (via a wired network) as a standalone device, but it can also be an integral component of the router itself. An AP is differentiated from a hotspot, which is the physical location where Wi-Fi access to a WLAN is available.

User account management is the methods which are used to create, manage and authenticate users.

Administrative safeguards are a special set of the HIPPA security rules. Administrative safeguards focus on internal organization, policies and procedures and the maintenance of security managers which are in place to protect sensitive patient information.

The Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), is a specification for the encryption of electronic data established by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2001.

AES has been adopted by the U.S. government and is now used worldwide. It supersedes the Data Encryption Standard (DES),[7] which was published in 1977. The algorithm described by AES is a symmetric-key algorithm, meaning the same key is used for both encrypting and decrypting the data.

See also: AES

Advanced penetration testing is the process of testing a network to discover vulnerabilities which make it open to harmful intruders; then addressing and remedying the issues.

An advanced persistent threat (APT) is a set of stealthy and continuous computer hacking processes, often orchestrated by a person or persons targeting a specific entity. An APT usually targets either private organizations, states or both for business or political motives. APT processes require a high degree of covertness over a long period of time. The "advanced" process signifies sophisticated techniques using malware to exploit vulnerabilities in systems. The "persistent" process suggests that an external command and control system is continuously monitoring and extracting data from a specific target. The "threat" process indicates human involvement in orchestrating the attack.

See also: APT

Adware is software distributed to the user free of cost with advertisements embedded into them. As such, it displays advertisements, and redirects your queries to sponsor’s websites. Adware helps advertisers collect data for marketing purposes, without your permissions to do so. A user can disable ad pop-ups by purchasing a registration key. 

Alternate facilities are secondary facilities includes Offices, data processing centers etc., from where high- priority emergency tasks can be performed, delivered when primary facilities are interrupted, unavailable.

Anti-malware is a program designed to protect computers and networks against any threats or attacks from viruses such as adware, spyware, and any such other malicious programs.

Antivirus software is a program or a set of programs that help prevent any malicious object, code, program from entering your computer or network. If any such malicious programs enters your computer, Antivirus software helps detect, quarantine, or remove such programs from the computer or networks.

An Asset is the resources of an organization, business either having tangible value – finance, Infrastructure, physical properties, human resource – or of intangible value such as goodwill that helps business and can be converted to cash for future use.

Public-key cryptography, or asymmetric cryptography, is any cryptographic system that uses pairs of keys: public keys which may be disseminated widely, and private keys which are known only to the owner. This accomplishes two functions: authentication, where the public key verifies that a holder of the paired private key sent the message, and encryption, where only the paired private key holder can decrypt the message encrypted with the public key.

See also: Public Key

An Attack Vector is a means and ways by which an attacker gains entry into the target system. Attackers mainly use the human element or the weak links to gain such access.

An audit trail is a detailed history of transactions to help you trace a piece of information back to its origin. In the field of computers, Audit trail or paper log, helps maintain security, recover any lost data.

Authentication is the process of identifying a piece of information, the veracity of information provided. In computers, it is the process of identifying a person or system with the username; password, etc. Authentication helps individuals; systems gain authorization based on their identity.

A backdoor or trapdoor is a process to gain unauthorized access to a computer or a network. A programmer may bypass security steps and gain access to a computer by trapdoor programs, in the event of an attack on the computer system or networks. Attackers may also use such mechanisms to enter computer or networks without proper permission.