Cyber Security Flashcards
Define malware
software that is specifically designed to disrupt, damage, or gain unauthorized access to a computer system.
Define Virus
a piece of code which is capable of copying itself and typically has a detrimental effect, such as corrupting the system or destroying data.
Define Worm
A computer worm is a type of malware that spreads copies of itself from computer to computer. A worm can replicate itself without any human interaction, and it does not need to attach itself to a software program in order to cause damage.
Define Trojan Horse
A Trojan horse or Trojan is a type of malware that is often disguised as legitimate software. Trojans can be employed by cyber-thieves and hackers trying to gain access to users’ systems. Users are typically tricked by some form of social engineering into loading and executing Trojans on their systems.
Define Ransomware
Ransomware is a form of malware in which rogue software code effectively holds a user’s computer hostage until a “ransom” fee is paid. Ransomware often infiltrates a PC as a computer worm or Trojan horse that takes advantage of open security vulnerabilities.
Define social engineering
the use of deception to manipulate individuals into divulging confidential or personal information that may be used for fraudulent purposes.
Define Shouldering
In computer security, shoulder surfing is a type of social engineering technique used to obtain information such as personal identification numbers (PINs), passwords and other confidential data by looking over the victim’s shoulder.
Define Phishing
Phishing is a form of social engineering. Phishing attacks use email or malicious web sites to solicit personal, often financial, information.
Define Pharming
Pharming is a cyber attack intended to redirect a website’s traffic to another, fake site. Pharming can be conducted either by changing the hosts file on a victim’s computer or by exploitation of a vulnerability in DNS server software.
Define Blagging
Blagging is when someone makes up a story to gain a person’s interest and uses this to encourage them to give away information about themselves, or even send money.
Define White Hat Hacking
A white hat hacker is a computer security specialist who breaks into protected systems and networks to test and asses their security. White hat hackers use their skills to improve security by exposing vulnerabilities before malicious hackers (known as black hat hackers) can detect and exploit them.
Define Black Hat Hacking
A black hat hacker is a person who attempts to find computer security vulnerabilities and exploit them for personal financial gain or other malicious reasons.
Define White Box Penetration Testing
White box penetration testing allows you to perform system testing with admin or root level access. This includes access to the architecture, documents, specifications, and source code.
Define Black Box Penetration Testing
In penetration testing, black-box testing refers to a method where an ethical hacker has no knowledge of the system being attacked. The goal of a black-box penetration test is to simulate an external hacking or cyber warfare attack.
