Network and Security Flashcards
These are physical media that connect devices within a network
Cables
These are devices that connect multiple devices on a network.
Switches
These are devices that connect multiple networks together.
Routers
These devices create a wireless local area network, or WLAN, usually in an office or large building.
Wireless Access Points
A suite of communication protocols used to interconnect network devices on the internet; the basic communication language or protocol of the internet
TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)
This is the lowest layer of the TCP/IP model, which corresponds to the combination of the Physical and Data Link layers of the OSI model. It handles the transmission of data between devices on the same network.
Network Interface Layer
This layer is equivalent to the Network layer of the OSI model. It’s responsible for the transmission of data across networks, and it defines the IP addressing scheme.
Internet Layer
This layer is equivalent to the Transport layer of the OSI model. It provides communication session management between host computers. The protocols used here are TCP and UDP.
Transport Layer
This is the highest layer in the TCP/IP model, corresponding to the Session, Presentation, and Application layers of the OSI model. It includes protocols like HTTP, SMTP, FTP, etc.
Application Layer
A conceptual framework that standardizes the functions of a communication system into seven categories
Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Model
This is the lowest layer of the OSI model. It represents the physical devices and media that carry the data.
Physical Layer (Layer 1)
This layer provides node-to-node data transfer—a link between two directly connected nodes.
Data Link Layer (Layer 2)
This layer is responsible for packet forwarding, including routing through different networks.
Network Layer (Layer 3)
This layer provides transparent transfer of data between end users, thus providing reliable data transfer.
Transport Layer (Layer 4)
This layer manages communication sessions, i.e., it controls the dialogues/connections between computers.
Session Layer (Layer 5)
This layer translates data for the application layer based on the syntax or semantics that the application accepts
Presentation Layer (Layer 6)
This is the topmost layer that directly interacts with the software applications.
Application Layer (Layer 7)
This command is used to test the reachability of a host on an IP network and to measure the round-trip time for packets sent from the local host to a destination computer.
Ping
This command is used to track in real-time the pathway taken by a packet on an IP network from source to destination, reporting the IP addresses of all the routers it passed along the way.
Traceroute (tracert on Windows)
These commands are used to display or set the network configuration of a system. They can provide information like IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, etc.
Ipconfig (Windows) / ifconfig (Linux)
This command displays active network connections and listening ports, helping to identify unwanted connections or services that might be running.
Netstat
This command is used to obtain domain name or IP address mapping by querying the DNS (Domain Name System).
Nslookup
This command displays and modifies the IP-to-Physical address translation tables used by the Address Resolution Protocol.
ARP
This refers to computing environments that simulate the hardware of a physical computer.
Virtual Computing
Multiple VMs can run on a single physical machine, making more efficient use of hardware resources
Efficiency
VMs are isolated from each other, increasing security. If one VM crashes or is compromised, it doesn’t affect the others
Isolation
VMs can be created, deleted, and moved between physical machines as needed
Flexibility
This is the delivery of computing services—including servers, storage, databases, networking, software, analytics, and intelligence—over the internet (“the cloud”) to offer faster innovation, flexible resources, and economies of scale.
Cloud Computing
This includes basic storage and computing capabilities as standardized services over the network.
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
This includes sets of services and workflows that specifically target developers, who can use shared tools, processes, and APIs to accelerate the development, testing, and deployment of applications.
Platform as a Service (PaaS)
In this service model, the cloud-based applications are provided to the user, as a service on demand. It is a single instance of the service running on the cloud and multiple end users are serviced.
Software as a Service (SaaS)
Resources used exclusively by a single business or organization
Private cloud
Services provided over the public internet and available to anyone
Public cloud
A combination of public and private clouds
Hybrid cloud
A type of cable that has an inner conductor surrounded by a tubular insulating layer, surrounded by a tubular conducting shield. It was widely used for early computer networks as it can support greater cable lengths between network devices than twisted pair cable.
Coaxial Cable
This type of cable is widely used in most modern Ethernet networks. It consists of four pairs of thin wires, each pair is twisted to minimize interference from other devices and reduce error rates.
Twisted Pair Cable
The most common type due to its cost-effectiveness and ease of use. The wires in each pair are twisted around each other to reduce electromagnetic interference. Categories include: Cat3, Cat5, Cat5e, Cat6, Cat6a, Cat7, and Cat8, with each subsequent category offering improved performance.
Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP):
Has a metal shield around each pair of wires. The shielding helps to block electromagnetic interference, allowing for greater transmission distances and higher data rates.
Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)
This type of cable contains one or more optical fibers, which are used to carry light. These are capable of carrying a high bandwidth at high speeds over long distances, and it is not subject to electromagnetic interference like copper cables. They are commonly used for backbone networks, long-distance transmission, and noisy areas.
Fiber Optic Cable
Supports speeds up to 1 Gbps (Gigabit per second).
Maximum length of 100 meters.
Cat5e (Category 5 Enhanced)
Supports speeds up to 1 Gbps for a maximum length of 100 meters; can support 10 Gbps for a shorter distance (up to 55 meters).
Better performance than Cat5e, with less crosstalk and system noise.
Cat6 (Category 6)
Supports speeds up to 10 Gbps.
Maximum length of 100 meters.
Improved version of Cat6, designed to double the bandwidth and reduce noise and interference.
Cat6a (Category 6 Augmented)
An action that exploits a vulnerability to compromise the security of a system. Can be active, such as attempts to alter system resources or data, or passive, such as data eavesdropping
Attacks
An action that exploits a vulnerability to compromise the security of a system. Can be active, such as attempts to alter system resources or data, or passive, such as data eavesdropping
Threats
Refers to the potential for loss or damage when a threat exploits a vulnerability. It’s typically expressed as the likelihood of a threat source exploiting a vulnerability and the resulting impact on the organization.
Risks
A weakness or gap in a security program that can be exploited by threats to gain unauthorized access to an asset. Vulnerabilities can be physical (like a server room’s door left unlocked), digital (like an unpatched software), or even human (like an employee being susceptible to social engineering attacks).
Vulnerabilities
This is the assurance that sensitive information is accessed only by an authorized person and kept safe from others
Vulnerabilities
This is the assurance that the information is trustworthy and accurate. It aims to prevent unauthorized changes to data—whether it’s in transit or storage—and ensure that changes are traceable (non-repudiation). Methods to ensure include file permissions and user access controls, version control, checksums, and cryptographic hashes.
Integrity
This is the assurance that information and resources are accessible to authorized users when needed. Often ensured via redundancy, failover, RAID, backups, etc.
Availability
A network security device that monitors incoming and outgoing network traffic and decides whether to allow or block specific traffic based on a defined set of security rules
Firewalls
A device or software application that monitors a network or systems for malicious activity or policy violations
Intrusion Detection System (IDS)
Capable of not only detecting malicious activity but also preventing or blocking it
Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)
The same key is used to encrypt and decrypt data. It’s fast and efficient, but the key must be securely shared between the sender and receiver.
Symmetric encryption
Also known as public key encryption, it uses a pair of keys: a public key to encrypt data, and a private key to decrypt data
Asymmetric encryption
