• Access control: The process of regulating who or what can access resources, such as systems, applications, or data, based on predefined security rules.
  • Advanced Encryption Standard (AES): A symmetric-key encryption algorithm that is widely used for secure data transmission and storage, and is a commonly used alternative to DES.
  • Adware: A type of software that displays unwanted advertisements on a user’s computer.
  • Adware: A type of software that displays unwanted advertisements on a user’s device.
  • Adware: Software that displays advertising pop-ups or other types of advertisements on a computer.
  • AES (Advanced Encryption Standard): A symmetric encryption algorithm, widely used for secure data encryption, selected by the US government as a standard for secure communications.
  • AES (Advanced Encryption Standard): A symmetric-key block cipher that was selected by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) as the standard for encryption. AES is widely used for secure communication and is considered to be highly secure.
  • AES (Advanced Encryption Standard): A widely-used block cipher algorithm that replaces DES as the U.S. federal standard for encryption.
  • AES (Advanced Encryption Standard): A widely-used symmetric encryption algorithm, chosen as the standard by NIST, providing strong encryption with a fixed block size of 128 bits and key sizes of 128, 192, or 256 bits.
  • AES: A widely-used symmetric-key cryptography algorithm.
  • Anonymous Browsing: The act of accessing the internet without revealing one’s identity or location.
  • Antivirus software: A type of software that detects and removes malware from a computer.
  • Asymmetric encryption: A type of encryption that uses a public key for encryption and a private key for the decryption of data.
  • Asymmetric encryption: A type of encryption where a different key is used for encryption and decryption.
  • Asymmetric Encryption: An encryption method that uses a pair of keys, one for encryption and one for decryption.
  • Asymmetric encryption: An encryption method that uses a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption, providing the benefits of secure key exchange and digital signatures.
  • Asymmetric Key Cryptography: Cryptography that uses a pair of keys, one for encryption and one for decryption.
  • Asymmetric key: A pair of keys, one public and one private, used for encryption and decryption in asymmetric-key cryptography.
  • Asymmetric Key: Different keys are used for encryption and decryption.
  • Asymmetric-key cryptography: A type of cryptography where two different keys are used for encryption and decryption.
  • Authentication Token: A token that verifies the identity of a user, device, or system.
  • Authentication: Process of verifying the identity of a communication endpoint.
  • Authentication: The process of verifying the identity of a user, device, or entity.
  • Authentication: The process of verifying the identity of a user, device, or system.
  • Authorization: The process of determining what actions a user, device, or system is allowed to perform.
  • Authorization: The process of granting or denying access to resources based on an authenticated identity.
  • Authorization: The process of granting or denying access to resources based on the authenticated identity of a user, device, or entity.
  • Birthday attack: An attack that takes advantage of the birthday paradox to find collisions in hash functions more efficiently than brute force.
  • Blind signature: A type of digital signature where the message being signed is hidden from the signer.
  • Block cipher mode: A method for using a block cipher to encrypt data of arbitrary length.
  • Block Cipher: A cipher that encrypts fixed-size blocks of data at a time, often with a size of 128-bits.
  • Block Cipher: A cipher that encrypts plaintext into ciphertext one block of data at a time.
  • Block cipher: A type of cipher that encrypts data in fixed-size blocks.
  • Block cipher: An encryption algorithm that encrypts data in fixed-size blocks (e.g. 128 bits at a time), as opposed to encrypting data one bit or byte at a time.
  • Block Cipher: An encryption algorithm that processes the input data in fixed-size blocks, such as AES and DES.
  • Block Cipher: An encryption method that encrypts data in fixed-size blocks.
  • Blowfish: A fast and secure symmetric encryption algorithm, designed by Bruce Schneier, using a variable-length key, up to 448 bits, and 64-bit blocks.
  • Blowfish: A symmetric key block cipher that uses a variable-length key.
  • Blowfish: A symmetric-key block cipher designed by Bruce Schneier in 1993. Blowfish is fast and secure, and it is often used in conjunction with other encryption algorithms in secure communication protocols.
  • Botnet: A network of compromised computers that are controlled remotely by an attacker to carry out malicious activities, such as spamming or launching distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.
  • Buffer overflow attack: A type of attack where an attacker sends a large amount of data to a program, causing it to overflow its buffer and execute arbitrary code.
  • Buffer overflow: A type of security vulnerability in which an attacker exploits a flaw in a program to send more data than the program can handle, causing it to crash or execute arbitrary code.
  • Bullet Point List All Cipher Terminology and Related Definitions.
  • CA (Certificate Authority): An entity that issues digital certificates to verify the identity of a person, organization, or device.
  • CBC (Cipher Block Chaining) Mode: A mode of operation for symmetric encryption, where the previous ciphertext block is XORed with the current plaintext block before encryption, providing diffusion and making it more secure than ECB mode.
  • CBC (Cipher Block Chaining): A mode of operation for block ciphers that improves security by XORing the previous ciphertext block with the current plaintext block before encryption.
  • CBC (Cipher-Block Chaining): A mode of operation that uses the previous ciphertext block to encrypt the current block.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): A trusted third party that issues and manages digital certificates.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): A trusted third-party organization that issues and manages digital certificates.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): A trusted third-party organization that issues digital certificates, linking a public key to a subject, such as a domain name, an organization, or an individual, and verifying their identity.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): An entity that issues and manages digital certificates for secure communication. CAs are trusted by both parties to a communication to verify the authenticity of the other party’s digital certificate and to verify that the public key in the certificate belongs to the correct party.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): An entity that issues and manages digital certificates used for secure communication and authentication.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): An entity that issues and manages digital certificates, used to verify the identity of a website and establish trust in secure online communication.
  • Certificate authority (CA): An entity that issues digital certificates and attests to the identity of the certificate’s subject.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): An entity that issues digital certificates and verifies the identity of certificate applicants.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): An entity that issues digital certificates, used to verify the identity of a party in a cryptographic communication.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): An entity that issues digital certificates, which are used to verify the identity of a person, device, or service and secure data transmission.
  • Certificate Authority (CA): The trusted third-party responsible for issuing and managing digital certificates.
  • Certificate revocation list (CRL): A list of digital certificates that have been revoked and are no longer considered valid.
  • CFB (Cipher Feedback) Mode: A mode of operation for symmetric encryption, where the previous ciphertext block is encrypted and used as feedback to encrypt the current plaintext block, providing diffusion and making it similar to stream ciphers.
  • CFB (Cipher Feedback): A mode of operation for block ciphers where the ciphertext from the previous block is XORed with the plaintext to produce the ciphertext for the current block.
  • CFB (Cipher Feedback): A mode of operation that encrypts data in a stream and uses feedback to ensure that the same plaintext encrypts to a different ciphertext.
  • Cipher Terminology Definitions
  • Cipher: A method for encrypting a message to keep its contents secure.
  • Ciphertext: Encrypted data that is unreadable without the proper encryption key.
  • Ciphertext: Encrypted message that only can be decrypted with the proper key.
  • Ciphertext: The encrypted data that results from encrypting plaintext using a cipher.
  • Ciphertext: The encrypted form of plaintext, which appears as random gibberish.
  • Ciphertext: The encrypted form of plaintext.
  • Clickjacking: A type of attack in which an attacker tricks a user into clicking on a button or link that performs unintended actions, such as installing malware or sharing sensitive information.
  • Code injection attack: A type of attack where an attacker injects malicious code into a program, causing it to execute the code with the privileges of the program.
  • Collision resistance: A property of a hash function that makes it infeasible to find two inputs that produce the same hash output.
  • Collision resistance: A property of cryptographic hash functions where it is difficult to find two distinct inputs that produce the same hash output.
  • Confidentiality: The property of keeping information hidden from unauthorized parties.
  • Confidentiality: The property that information is not disclosed to unauthorized individuals or systems.
  • Confusion: Property of a cipher that makes it difficult to determine the relationship between the ciphertext and the plaintext.
  • CRL (Certificate Revocation List): A list of revoked digital certificates, maintained by a CA, that can be used to check the revocation status of a certificate.
  • Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) attack: A type of attack where an attacker tricks a victim into making an unintended request to a website, such as submitting a form or clicking a link, often with the goal of modifying or stealing data.
  • Cross-site request forgery (CSRF): A type of security vulnerability in which an attacker tricks a user into making unintended actions on a website, such as changing the password or making a purchase, by sending a request to the website in the user’s name.
  • Cross-site scripting (XSS) attack: A type of attack where an attacker injects malicious code into a web page, which is then executed by the victim’s browser when they visit the page.
  • Cross-site scripting (XSS): A type of security vulnerability in which an attacker injects malicious code into a web page viewed by other users, allowing the attacker to steal sensitive information or perform other malicious actions.
  • Cross-Site Scripting (XSS): A type of web security vulnerability that allows an attacker to inject malicious scripts into a web page viewed by other users.
  • Cryptanalysis: Study of methods for obtaining the meaning of encrypted information without access to the secret key.
  • Crypto Analysis: The study of cryptography and the methods used to break ciphers. Crypto System: A complete set of algorithms, protocols and methods used to secure communications. Crypto-gram: An encrypted message or message segment. Cryptographic Hash Function: A mathematical function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed size string of characters, which is unique to the unique values of the input. Cryptographic Primitive: A basic cryptographic algorithm or building block used in more complex systems. Cryptology: The study of cryptography and cryptanalysis. Diffie-Hellman Key Exchange: A method of securely exchanging keys over a public network. Digital Signature: A method of verifying the authenticity and integrity of a digital message. Encryption: The process of converting plaintext into ciphertext to protect the confidentiality of data. Key: A piece of information used by a cryptographic algorithm to encrypt or decrypt data. Plaintext: An original message or data that is readable without encryption. Public Key Cryptography: A method of encryption in which two keys are used – a public key to encrypt and a private key to decrypt. Symmetric Key Cryptography: A method of encryption in which the same key is used to encrypt and decrypt data.
  • Cryptographic Hash Function – A mathematical function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes, ideally with the property that any small change to the input should result in a vastly different hash output.
  • Cryptographic Hash Function: A deterministic, mathematical function that takes an input (or “message”) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes. Used to verify the integrity of messages and to identify messages.
  • Cryptographic Hash Function: A hash function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed-sized string of bytes. Used to ensure data integrity.
  • Cryptographic hash function: A mathematical function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes. A hash function is used to create a digital fingerprint of the original data, which is used for data integrity checks, digital signatures, and other applications.
  • Cryptographic Hash Function: A mathematical function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes. The output is deterministic, meaning the same input will always produce the same output, and it is designed to be one-way, meaning it is computationally infeasible to find two different inputs that produce the same output.
  • Cryptographic Hash Function: A mathematical function that takes in data (message) and returns a fixed-size string of characters. The output is designed to be unique and unpredictable, making it suitable for digital signatures and message integrity checks.
  • Cryptographic hash function: A type of hash function that has various security properties, such as collision resistance and preimage resistance.
  • Cryptographic Hash Function: Mathematical function that takes an input (or “message”) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes. The output is designed to be unique for each unique input, and even a small change in the input should result in a vastly different output.
  • CTR (Counter) Mode: A mode of operation for symmetric encryption, where a counter value is used to encrypt the plaintext blocks, ensuring that the same plaintext block results in a different ciphertext block.
  • CTR (Counter): A mode of operation for block ciphers where a counter is encrypted to produce a stream of keystream, which is then XORed with the plaintext to produce the ciphertext.
  • CTR (Counter): A mode of operation that encrypts data in a stream and generates the ciphertext using a counter value.
  • Cyber security: A field that deals with the protection of computer systems and networks from theft, damage, or unauthorized access.
  • Data encryption standard (DES): A symmetric-key encryption algorithm that was widely used for secure data transmission but has been mostly replaced by stronger encryption algorithms.
  • Data encryption: The process of converting plaintext into ciphertext to protect sensitive information from unauthorized access or modification.
  • DDoS attack: A type of attack where a large number of compromised computers are used to flood a target system with traffic, causing it to become unavailable to users.
  • Decryption: The process of converting ciphertext back into its original plaintext.
  • Denial of Service (DoS) attack: A type of attack in which an attacker floods a network or system with traffic, causing it to become unavailable to users.
  • Denial of Service (DoS) attack: An attack that aims to make a service unavailable to its intended users by overloading the service with requests.
  • Denial-of-service (DoS) attack: A type of attack in which an attacker disrupts a network or service by flooding it with excessive traffic.
  • DES (Data Encryption Standard): A deprecated symmetric key block cipher algorithm that was once widely-used for encryption.
  • DH (Diffie-Hellman): A key exchange algorithm that allows two parties to establish a shared secret key over an insecure communication channel.
  • DH (Diffie-Hellman): A key exchange algorithm, used for secure communication between two parties, allowing them to securely agree on a shared secret key.
  • Diffie-Hellman key exchange: A method for securely exchanging keys over an insecure channel.
  • Diffie-Hellman Key Exchange: A widely-used key agreement protocol, allowing two parties to agree on a shared secret key, without revealing their private keys, based on the discrete logarithm problem.
  • Diffie-Hellman key exchange: A widely-used key exchange algorithm that allows two parties to securely agree on a shared secret key, without the need to exchange the key over an insecure channel.
  • Diffusion: Property of a cipher that distributes the plaintext information over the entire ciphertext.
  • Digital certificate: A digital document that provides information about an entity and is signed by a trusted third party (e.g. a certificate authority) to verify the information’s authenticity.
  • Digital Certificate: A digital document, issued by a certificate authority, that contains a public key, a subject, and a digital signature, providing a secure and verifiable method of exchanging public keys over an insecure network.
  • Digital certificate: A type of certificate that contains information about an entity, such as a person or an organization, and is used to verify their identity.
  • Digital certificate: An electronic document that binds a public key to a subject’s identity and is used for secure communication.
  • Digital Certificate: An electronic document that uses a digital signature to associate a public key with an identity, such as a website or an individual, used in secure communication.
  • Digital Certificate: An electronic document that uses a digital signature to bind a public key with an identity, such as the identity of a person, device, or service, and is used for secure data transmission.
  • Digital Certificate: An electronic document that verifies the identity of an entity and is used for secure communication.
  • Digital Certificate: An electronic document used to verify the identity of a user, device, or system.
  • Digital Certificate: Electronic document that uses a digital signature to bind together a public key with the identity of an entity (e.g., a person or organization).
  • Digital rights management (DRM): A set of technologies used to control and restrict the use of digital content, such as music or video, after it has been purchased.
  • Digital signature algorithm (DSA): A standard for digital signatures, based on the mathematical properties of modular arithmetic.
  • Digital signature: A cryptographic mechanism that provides authentication and integrity for digital information, such as emails or electronic documents.
  • Digital Signature: A mathematical scheme for verifying the authenticity and integrity of a digital message or document, using a private key.
  • Digital Signature: A mathematical scheme, using a private key, to verify the authenticity and integrity of a digital message, providing non-repudiation and authenticity.
  • Digital signature: A secure digital code that is created by encrypting a hash of a message or document with a sender’s private key, allowing a recipient to verify the authenticity of the message or document by decrypting it with the sender’s public key.
  • Digital Signature: A secure method of verifying the authenticity and integrity of digital information.
  • Digital Signature: A signature created using public-key cryptography, used to verify the authenticity and integrity of a message.
  • Digital Signature: A type of electronic signature that is used to verify the authenticity and integrity of a message or document. Digital signatures use public-key cryptography to generate a unique, encrypted code that can only be created by the owner of a private key. This code can be used to verify that the message or document was not altered during transmission.
  • Digital signature: A type of mechanism that uses public key encryption to verify the authenticity and integrity of a message.
  • Digital signature: A value that is calculated using the private key of an asymmetric encryption algorithm, and can be verified using the public key, allowing the recipient to verify both the authenticity and the integrity of a message.
  • Digital Signature: An electronic signature used to verify the authenticity and integrity of a message or document.
  • Digital signature: An electronic signature used to verify the authenticity and integrity of a message.
  • Digital Signature: Mathematical scheme for demonstrating the authenticity of a digital message or document.
  • Digital Signature: Mathematical technique for validating the authenticity and integrity of digital data.
  • Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack: A type of attack in which an attacker uses multiple computers to flood a network or system with traffic, causing it to become unavailable to users.
  • Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack: An attack that involves multiple systems coordinated to perform a DoS attack on a single target.
  • DSA (Digital Signature Algorithm): A digital signature algorithm specified by NIST, that uses the mathematics of modular arithmetic to produce digital signatures.
  • DSA (Digital Signature Algorithm): A digital signature algorithm used for authentication.
  • DSA: Digital Signature Algorithm, a US federal standard for digital signatures that uses the mathematics of modular arithmetic.
  • ECB (Electronic Code Book): A simple and straightforward mode of operation for block ciphers, where each block of plaintext is encrypted independently, without any feedback from previous blocks.
  • ECB (Electronic Codebook) Mode: A mode of operation for symmetric encryption, where each plaintext block is encrypted separately, without any feedback from previous blocks, making it vulnerable to patterns in the plaintext.
  • ECB (Electronic Codebook): A mode of operation that encrypts each block of data independently.
  • ECDSA (Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm): A digital signature algorithm that uses the mathematics of elliptic curves to produce digital signatures, offering the same level of security as DSA with smaller key sizes.
  • ECDSA: Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm, a variant of DSA that operates on elliptic curve groups.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): A public key cryptography algorithm that uses the mathematics of elliptic curves to provide the same security level as RSA with smaller key sizes, making it more efficient for devices with limited computational resources.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): A public key cryptography algorithm, based on the algebraic structure of elliptic curves over finite fields, providing smaller keys and faster computations than RSA for equivalent security levels.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): A public-key cryptography method based on the algebraic structure of elliptic curves.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): A public-key cryptography system that uses the mathematics of elliptic curves over finite fields.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): A type of asymmetric encryption that uses the mathematics of elliptic curves to provide strong security with shorter key lengths, compared to other algorithms like RSA.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): A type of public key cryptography that uses elliptic curve mathematics to encrypt and decrypt data.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): A type of public-key cryptography that is based on the algebraic structure of elliptic curves and is widely used for secure data transmission, digital signatures, and key exchange.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): A type of public-key cryptography that uses the mathematics of elliptic curves to perform encryption and decryption. ECC is often used for digital signatures and key exchange, and it is considered to be more secure than other types of public-key cryptography for equivalent key sizes.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): Public-key cryptography based on the algebraic structure of elliptic curves over finite fields.
  • Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC): Public-key cryptography method based on elliptic curve theory.
  • Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman (ECDH): A key agreement protocol, using elliptic curve cryptography, providing faster computations and smaller keys than traditional Diffie-Hellman for equivalent security levels.
  • Elliptic curve digital signature algorithm (ECDSA): A variant of the digital signature algorithm (DSA) that uses elliptic curve cryptography.
  • Encapsulating Security Payload (ESP): A protocol for providing authentication, confidentiality, and integrity for IP packets, as part of IPsec.
  • Encryption algorithm: A mathematical procedure for transforming plaintext into ciphertext, and vice versa, to secure data transmission.
  • Encryption: The process of converting plaintext into ciphertext to hide its meaning.
  • Encryption: The process of converting plaintext into ciphertext to protect its contents from unauthorized access or modification.
  • Encryption: The process of converting plaintext into unreadable ciphertext.
  • End Entity: An entity that is the end-user of the digital certificate, such as a website, an individual, or a device.
  • Extensible authentication protocol (EAP): A protocol used in wireless networks and point-to-point connections to authenticate users and provide security.
  • Firewall: A network security system that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predetermined security rules.
  • Format-preserving encryption (FPE): A type of encryption that encrypts data in such a way that the format of the encrypted data is the same as the format of the original data.
  • Fuzz testing: A type of software testing that involves providing invalid, unexpected, or random input to a system in order to find security vulnerabilities.
  • GnuPG: Free and open-source implementation of the OpenPGP standard for encrypting and signing electronic communications.
  • Hash Algorithm: A specific implementation of a cryptographic hash function, such as SHA-256, SHA-384, or SHA-512.
  • Hash Collision: When two different inputs produce the same hash value, a hash collision has occurred. Collisions can be used in cryptographic attacks and undermine the security of hash functions.
  • Hash Function: A function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed-size string of bits, the hash.
  • Hash function: A mathematical function that takes an input (or “message”) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes, called the “hash”. Hash functions are used for digital signatures, data integrity checks, and indexing data in hash tables.
  • Hash function: A mathematical function that takes an input (or “message”) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes, representing the “digest” or “hash” of the message. The hash is unique for each input and is often used for integrity checking and indexing.
  • Hash Function: A mathematical function that takes an input (or “message”) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes.
  • Hash Function: A mathematical function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes, used for message integrity and indexing.
  • Hash Function: A mathematical function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed-sized string of bytes.
  • Hash Function: A mathematical function used in hashing, to convert an input value into a fixed-size output value.
  • Hash Function: A mathematical function, taking an input (or “message”) and returning a fixed-size output (or “hash”), used for data integrity, digital signatures, and password protection, with the property that even a small change to the input should produce a vastly different output.
  • Hash Function: A one-way function that takes an input and produces a fixed-length output, used for message integrity and digital signatures.
  • Hash function: A one-way mathematical function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed-size string of characters, which is typically used for verifying data integrity.
  • Hash function: A type of function that takes an input and produces a fixed-size output that serves as a digital fingerprint of the input.
  • Hash Function: A type of mathematical function that takes an input (or “message”) and returns a fixed-size string of bytes. Hash functions are used in cryptography for tasks such as digital signatures, message authentication codes (MACs), and key derivation. The properties of hash functions, such as collision resistance and pre-image resistance, make them useful for ensuring the integrity and authenticity of data.
  • Hash function: A type of mathematical function that takes an input (or ‘message’) and returns a fixed-size string of characters, which serves as a ‘digest’ that is unique to the unique values of the input.
  • Hash length extension attack: An attack on hash functions that use a length field to extend the length of the input message, allowing attackers to create new hash outputs from an original hash value without knowing the original message.
  • Hash Value: Result of applying a hash function to an input.
  • Hash-Based Message Authentication Code (HMAC) – A type of message authentication code (MAC) involving a cryptographic hash function and a secret cryptographic key. It provides message integrity and authenticity.
  • Hash-based message authentication code (HMAC): A type of message authentication code that uses a cryptographic hash function in combination with a secret key.
  • Hash-Based Message Authentication Code (HMAC): Method for verifying the integrity and authenticity of a message using a cryptographic hash function in combination with a shared secret key.
  • Hashing: A process of converting an input value into a fixed-size output value, called a hash, using a mathematical function, with the properties of being a one-way function and having collision resistance.
  • Here are some more terms related to cryptography:
  • HMAC (Hash-based Message Authentication Code): A message authentication code, using a hash function in combination with a shared secret key, providing authenticity and integrity for messages.
  • HMAC (Hash-based Message Authentication Code): A type of message authentication code (MAC) involving a cryptographic hash function and a secret cryptographic key. It can be used to verify both the data integrity and the authenticity of a message.
  • HMAC (Hash-based Message Authentication Code): A type of message authentication code, using a hash function in combination with a secret key, providing message integrity and authentication.
  • HMAC (Hashed Message Authentication Code): A type of MAC algorithm that uses a cryptographic hash function and a secret key, to produce the MAC value.
  • HMAC (Hashed Message Authentication Code): A type of MAC that uses a hash function for authentication.
  • HMAC (Hashed Message Authentication Code): A type of message authentication code (MAC) that uses a cryptographic hash function in combination with a secret key. HMACs are widely used for secure communication and for ensuring the integrity and authenticity of data.
  • Homomorphic encryption scheme: A type of encryption scheme that allows computations to be performed on ciphertext, producing an encrypted result which, when decrypted, matches the result of the computations performed on the plaintext.
  • Homomorphic Encryption: A type of encryption that allows computations to be performed on ciphertext, producing an encrypted result which, when decrypted, is the same as if the computations were performed on plaintext. This enables sensitive data to be processed without having to first decrypt it.
  • Homomorphic encryption: A type of encryption that allows computations to be performed on encrypted data without the need to first decrypt it.
  • IDEA (International Data Encryption Algorithm): A symmetric-key block cipher that is widely used for secure communication. IDEA is considered to be highly secure and is used in many encryption protocols, including the Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) email encryption software.
  • Identity-based encryption (IBE): A type of encryption scheme where the public key of a user is derived from their identity, rather than from a public key certificate.
  • Initialization vector (IV): A random value that is used to initialize the encryption process of a block cipher.
  • Initialization Vector (IV): A random value used to initialize a block cipher encryption process.
  • Initialization Vector (IV): A random value used to seed a block cipher, ensuring that the same plaintext input will produce a different ciphertext output each time it is encrypted.
  • Initialization Vector (IV): A random value used to start the encryption process, making the same plaintext encrypt to a different ciphertext.
  • Integrity: Property that ensures data has not been altered during transmission.
  • Integrity: Refers to the quality of being complete, uncorrupted, and unaltered. In cryptography, it refers to the quality of the data being unchanged from the time it was transmitted or stored until the time it is received or retrieved.
  • Integrity: The property of ensuring that information is not modified in an unauthorized or undetected manner.
  • Integrity: The property that data has not been altered in an unauthorized manner. In cryptography, integrity is often ensured through the use of message authentication codes (MACs) or digital signatures.
  • Integrity: The property that information has not been altered in an unauthorized manner.
  • Intermediate CA: A CA that operates below the root CA, but above the end entity in the PKI hierarchy, issuing digital certificates for the end entities.
  • Intrusion detection system (IDS): A security system that monitors network traffic for signs of malicious activity and alerts security personnel to potential security threats.
  • Intrusion detection system (IDS): A type of security system that monitors network traffic for signs of intrusion or attack and alerts administrators when an attack is detected.
  • Intrusion prevention system (IPS): A security system that monitors network traffic for signs of malicious activity and blocks or alerts security personnel to potential security threats.
  • Intrusion prevention system (IPS): A type of security system that monitors network traffic for signs of intrusion or attack and automatically blocks or neutralizes detected attacks.
  • IV (Initialization Vector): A random or unique value that is used to initialize a block cipher, improving security by ensuring that identical plaintext will produce different ciphertext.
  • IV (Initialization Vector): A random value used in symmetric encryption, to prevent the same plaintext input from producing the same ciphertext output.
  • Key Agreement Protocol: A protocol that allows two parties to agree on a shared secret key over an insecure communication channel. Key agreement protocols are used in situations where a secure key exchange is needed, but no prior secure channel exists.
  • Key Agreement Protocol: A protocol, allowing two parties to agree on a shared secret key, without a trusted third party, using public key cryptography or symmetric key algorithms.
  • Key Derivation Function (KDF) – A cryptographic function that takes a shared secret key as input, and uses it to generate a derived key with better cryptographic properties than the original key, such as longer length or increased entropy.
  • Key Derivation Function (KDF): A deterministic function that takes as input a secret value and an optional “salt” value, and produces an derived key. Used for password-based encryption, key stretching, and more.
  • Key Derivation Function (KDF): A function that derives a cryptographic key from a password or a passphrase, using a salt, a random value, and a key stretching algorithm, to make it more secure.
  • Key Derivation Function (KDF): A function that derives a cryptographic key from a password or other input.
  • Key derivation function (KDF): A function that takes a password or passphrase and a salt value and derives a cryptographic key from them.
  • Key Derivation Function (KDF): A function that takes a secret value as input and derives a key that can be used for encryption or authentication.
  • Key Derivation Function (KDF): A function that takes in a password or passphrase and outputs a derived key. KDFs are used to convert low entropy inputs, such as passwords, into high entropy keys for use in cryptographic algorithms.
  • Key Derivation Function (KDF): A function, taking a secret value and additional parameters, and producing a derived key, used for secure key generation, key stretching, and password protection.
  • Key Derivation Function: A function that takes a password or other ‘input entropy’ as input and derives a cryptographic key from it, by processing it through a deterministic algorithm.
  • Key Escrow: A system in which the encryption keys used to secure communications are held by a trusted third party.
  • Key Escrow: A system where a third party holds a copy of the encryption keys, allowing authorized access in case of emergency or for legal purposes, potentially raising privacy and security concerns.
  • Key escrow: A system where a third party holds the keys used to encrypt and decrypt data, allowing the data to be recovered if necessary.
  • Key Escrow: The practice of storing a copy of cryptographic keys with a trusted third party, allowing for recovery or government access, with various privacy and security implications.
  • Key Escrow: The practice of storing encryption keys with a trusted third party for safekeeping.
  • Key Escrow: Third-party storage of encryption keys for later retrieval, often for law enforcement purposes.
  • Key Establishment: The process of securely exchanging keys between two parties. Key establishment is a critical component of many cryptographic systems, as the security of the system depends on the keys being kept secret.
  • Key Exchange Algorithm – A cryptographic algorithm used to securely exchange cryptographic keys between two parties over an insecure communication channel. Examples include Diffie-Hellman, RSA, and Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman.
  • Key exchange: A cryptographic technique used to securely establish a shared secret key between two or more parties, without the need to exchange the key over an insecure channel.
  • Key Exchange: Process of securely exchanging cryptographic keys between two or more parties.
  • Key Exchange: The process of securely exchanging cryptographic keys between two parties, allowing for secure communication without prior shared secrets, using public key cryptography or key agreement protocols.
  • Key Exchange: The process of securely exchanging encryption keys between two parties.
  • Key Exchange: The process of securely exchanging keys between two parties.
  • Key Generation: The process of creating a new encryption key.
  • Key Generation: The process of creating an encryption key, typically using a key generator or an algorithm.
  • Key Length – The length, measured in bits, of a cryptographic key. Longer keys provide stronger security, but also result in slower encryption/decryption operations.
  • Key Length: In cryptography, the size of the encryption key, typically measured in bits, that determines the strength of the encryption.
  • Key Length: The number of bits in a cryptographic key.
  • Key Length: The number of bits in a key used for encryption or decryption. Generally, a longer key length provides greater security but also requires more processing power.
  • Key length: The number of bits in a key used for encryption, with a longer key providing stronger security.
  • Key Length: The number of bits in a key used in cryptography.
  • Key Length: The number of bits used to define the encryption key, used to measure the key strength of an encryption algorithm.
  • Key Length: The size of a cryptographic key, measured in bits. Larger key lengths provide stronger security.
  • Key Length: The size of an encryption key, usually measured in bits.
  • Key Management: The process of creating, distributing, using, storing, and destroying cryptographic keys.
  • Key Management: The process of creating, storing, distributing, and replacing encryption keys in a secure manner.
  • Key Management: The process of creating, storing, exchanging, and destroying encryption keys.
  • Key Management: The process of generating, distributing, storing, and destroying cryptographic keys.
  • Key management: The process of generating, distributing, storing, and using encryption keys to secure communication and data.
  • Key Management: The process of generating, distributing, storing, and using keys in a secure manner. Key management is a critical aspect of cryptography, as the security of the system depends on the proper handling of keys.
  • Key Management: The process of generating, distributing, storing, using, and destroying cryptographic keys.
  • Key Management: The process of managing and protecting cryptographic keys.
  • Key pair: A pair of related keys, one public and one private, used for public-key cryptography.
  • Key Pair: In asymmetric encryption, a pair of a public and a private key that are mathematically related, allowing for secure communication between parties.
  • Key Pair: In public key cryptography, a key pair consists of a public key and a private key. The public key is used for encryption, while the private key is used for decryption.
  • Key recovery: The process of retrieving the key used to encrypt or decrypt data in a key escrow system.
  • Key schedule: A sequence of keys generated from a cipher key to be used in various rounds of encryption or decryption.
  • Key Schedule: A sequence of keys used in a block cipher algorithm, created using a specific key schedule algorithm.
  • Key schedule: The algorithm used to generate the round keys in a block cipher, starting from the encryption key.
  • Key Shredding: The process of securely destroying a cryptographic key, making it infeasible to recover the key and access the encrypted data.
  • Key Strength – A measure of the difficulty of breaking a cryptographic algorithm by brute force attack, usually measured in number of trials required. It is dependent on key length and complexity of the algorithm.
  • Key Strength: A measure of the difficulty in breaking an encryption algorithm or cracking a code, determined by the length and complexity of the encryption key.
  • Key Strength: A measure of the security provided by a cryptographic key, based on its length and the difficulty of breaking the encryption algorithm.
  • Key Stretching Algorithm: An algorithm that makes it more computationally intensive to derive a key from a password or a passphrase, providing additional security against brute force attacks.
  • Key Stretching: The process of applying a key derivation function to a password or a key, with a large number of iterations and a random salt, to increase the computational effort required to derive the original key, providing resistance to brute-force attacks.
  • Key Wrap: The process of encrypting a key using a “wrapping key”, providing confidentiality and authenticity for key distribution and storage.
  • Key Wrapping – A technique used to encrypt keys with another key, creating an encrypted “wrapper” around the original key. Key wrapping is used to secure the transfer of keys between devices, or for key storage.
  • Key Wrapping: The process of encrypting a key with another key, for the purpose of securely transmitting or storing the key.
  • Key Zeroization: The process of securely wiping a cryptographic key from a device, to prevent recovery of the key by an attacker.
  • Key: A value that is used in conjunction with a cipher algorithm to encrypt or decrypt a message.
  • Key: A value used in cryptography to encrypt or decrypt data. The key can either be symmetric (the same key is used for encryption and decryption) or asymmetric (a different key is used for encryption and decryption).
  • Key: Secret value used in cryptography to encrypt or decrypt a message.
  • Lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP): An open, vendor-neutral, industry standard application protocol for accessing and maintaining distributed directory information services over an Internet Protocol (IP) network.
  • MAC (Message Authentication Code): A short piece of information (hash) calculated using a secret key, that is added to the message, allowing the recipient to verify both the authenticity and the integrity of the message.
  • MAC (Message Authentication Code): A value that verifies the authenticity and integrity of a message.
  • Malleability: The property of a cipher that allows for modifications to ciphertext to produce different ciphertext that still decrypt to a valid plaintext.
  • Malware: A type of software that is intentionally designed to harm or exploit a computer system.
  • Malware: Short for “malicious software,” refers to any software or code intentionally designed to harm or exploit a computer system.
  • Malware: Short for malicious software, a type of software designed to harm or exploit computer systems, such as viruses, worms, and Trojans.
  • Man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack: A type of attack in which an attacker intercepts and modifies communication between two parties without their knowledge or consent.
  • Man-in-the-middle (MitM) attack: A type of attack in which an attacker intercepts and potentially alters the communication between two parties.
  • Man-in-the-middle (MitM) attack: A type of attack where an attacker intercepts and modifies communication between two parties, often without either party being aware of the interception.
  • Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) Attack: An attack where an attacker intercepts and alters the communication between two parties, appearing as a trusted party to each side.
  • Man-in-the-middle (MitM) attack: An attack where an attacker intercepts and potentially modifies communication between two parties.
  • MD (Message Digest) Algorithm: A family of hash functions, developed by RSA Data Security, used for secure digital signatures and message integrity, such as MD5 and MD4.
  • MD (Message Digest): A widely-used family of hash functions, designed by RSA, including MD2, MD4, and MD5, with variable output sizes and decreasing levels of security.
  • MD5 (Message-Digest Algorithm 5): A widely used hash function that produces a 128-bit hash value. MD5 has been widely adopted for use in secure communication protocols, but it has been shown to be vulnerable to attacks and is no longer considered secure for use in new systems.
  • Merkle tree: A data structure used in cryptography to efficiently verify the authenticity of large amounts of data.
  • Message Authentication Code (MAC): A code generated from a message and a secret key, used to verify the authenticity and integrity of a message.
  • Message Authentication Code (MAC): A code used to validate the authenticity and integrity of a message.
  • Message Authentication Code (MAC): A type of check value that is calculated based on both the contents of a message and a secret key. MACs are used to ensure the integrity of messages by detecting any changes that may have been made to the contents of the message.
  • Message authentication code (MAC): A value generated from a message and a secret key that is used to verify the integrity of the message.
  • Message Authentication Code (MAC): A value generated from a secret key and a message, used to verify the authenticity and integrity of the message. A MAC value is sent along with the message, allowing the recipient to verify the message’s authenticity.
  • Message Digest (MD5, SHA-1, SHA-2, SHA-3): Hash functions commonly used for secure hash algorithms (SHA) and message-digest algorithms (MD).
  • Message Digest: A fixed-size representation of a variable-size input, created by a hash function.
  • Message Digest: Another term for a hash value, specifically in the context of hash-based message authentication codes (HMACs).
  • Mode of Operation: A set of rules that define how block ciphers encrypt data in larger amounts.
  • Network segmentation: The practice of dividing a large network into smaller, isolated segments to reduce the attack surface and improve security.
  • Nonce: A number used only once, often used as an IV for encryption algorithms.
  • Nonce: A random value used only once to enhance the security of cryptographic operations.
  • Nonce: A unique, random value used in cryptography, to prevent replay attacks and ensure freshness of encrypted messages.
  • OCSP (Online Certificate Status Protocol): A protocol used to check the revocation status of a digital certificate in real-time, before establishing a secure connection.
  • OFB (Output Feedback) Mode: A mode of operation for symmetric encryption, where the ciphertext is used as feedback to encrypt the next plaintext block, ensuring that even small changes in the plaintext result in significant changes in the ciphertext.
  • OFB (Output Feedback): A mode of operation for block ciphers where the ciphertext from the previous block is used to encrypt the plaintext of the current block.
  • OFB (Output Feedback): A mode of operation that encrypts data in a stream and generates the ciphertext based on the encrypted output.
  • One-time pad: A type of encryption where a random key is used only once to encrypt a message.
  • Padding: Extra data added to a message before encryption, so that the length of the message is a multiple of the block size of the encryption algorithm being used.
  • Patch management: The process of identifying, testing, and deploying software updates and security patches to address known vulnerabilities in software and systems.
  • PBKDF2 (Password-Based Key Derivation Function 2): A standard for deriving a key from a password.
  • PBKDF2 (Password-Based Key Derivation Function 2): A widely-used key derivation function, using a password and a salt, along with a hash function and a configurable number of iterations, to generate a cryptographic key of a desired length, with resistance to brute-force attacks.
  • Penetration testing: A type of testing that involves attempting to breach the security of a system to identify vulnerabilities and weaknesses.
  • Penetration testing: The process of testing an organization’s security posture by attempting to penetrate its network and systems to identify vulnerabilities and assess risk.
  • Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS): A property of a key agreement protocol that ensures that previous sessions cannot be compromised even if the current session’s keys are compromised.
  • Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS): A property of key exchange algorithms, where the compromise of a single encryption key does not compromise the confidentiality of previous or future communications.
  • Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS): A property of secure communication protocols in which encryption keys are generated for each session, preventing past sessions from being decrypted if future keys are compromised.
  • Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS): A security property, achieved through the use of ephemeral keys, where the compromise of one session key does not affect the security of previous or future sessions, providing stronger protection against long-term compromises of private keys.
  • Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS): Property that ensures that past encrypted communications cannot be decrypted even if the private key is compromised in the future.
  • PGP (Pretty Good Privacy): A widely used encryption software that provides cryptographic privacy and authentication for data communication.
  • PGP (Pretty Good Privacy): A widely-used email encryption software, based on public key cryptography, providing confidentiality, authentication, and non-repudiation for email messages.
  • PGP (Pretty Good Privacy): An encryption program that uses a combination of symmetric and asymmetric encryption for secure email communication.
  • PGP: Encryption software that provides cryptographic privacy and authentication for communications over the Internet.
  • Phishing: A type of social engineering attack that aims to trick users into disclosing sensitive information, such as passwords or credit card numbers, by posing as a trustworthy entity.
  • Phishing: A type of social engineering attack that uses fraudulent emails or websites to trick users into revealing sensitive information, such as login credentials.
  • Phishing: A type of social engineering attack where an attacker uses fraudulent emails or websites to trick the user into revealing sensitive information, such as passwords or financial information.
  • PKI (Public Key Infrastructure): The system of digital certificates, certificate authorities (CAs), and other registration authorities (RAs) that issue and manage public keys, to allow secure communication over the internet.
  • Plaintext: Original unencrypted message.
  • Plaintext: The original message or data that needs to be encrypted.
  • Plaintext: The original unencrypted message or data. In cryptography, plaintext is transformed into ciphertext through the use of encryption algorithms.
  • Plaintext: The original, unencrypted message or data.
  • Plaintext: Unencrypted data that can be read without any special processing.
  • Post-Quantum cryptography: A branch of cryptography that aims to create cryptographic algorithms that are secure against attacks by quantum computers.
  • Preimage resistance: A property of a hash function that makes it infeasible to find an input that produces a specific hash output.
  • Privacy: The state of being protected from unauthorized access to or disclosure of one’s personal information or data.
  • Private Key: In asymmetric encryption, a secret key that is used for decryption and creating digital signatures.
  • Private Key: In public key cryptography, a private key is used for decryption and is meant to be kept secret.
  • Private Key: Key that must be kept confidential and used to decrypt messages and create digital signatures.
  • Pseudo-random number generator (PRNG): An algorithm that generates a sequence of numbers that appear to be random but are actually deterministic.
  • Public Key Cryptography: A type of cryptography that uses a pair of keys – a public key and a private key – to encrypt and decrypt data.
  • Public Key Cryptography: A type of cryptography that uses a pair of keys, one for encryption and one for decryption. Public key cryptography allows one party to encrypt a message using the public key of another party, and the recipient can then decrypt the message using their private key. This type of cryptography is often used for secure communication over an insecure channel and for digital signatures.
  • Public Key Cryptography: A type of cryptography where a public key is used for encryption and a private key is used for decryption.
  • Public Key Cryptography: A type of cryptography where two keys are used, a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption.
  • Public Key Cryptography: An asymmetric cryptography technique that uses a pair of keys, a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption, allowing for secure communication between two parties without exchanging a shared secret key.
  • Public key encryption: An encryption system that uses two keys, a public key for encrypting messages and a private key for decrypting messages.
  • Public Key Infrastructure (PKI): A set of hardware, software, people, policies, and procedures needed to create, manage, distribute, use, store, and revoke digital certificates and manage public-key encryption.
  • Public Key Infrastructure (PKI): A set of protocols, policies, and systems for the secure and reliable distribution of public encryption keys. A PKI enables the secure exchange of messages over the Internet, and is an essential component of many secure systems, including SSL/TLS.
  • Public Key Infrastructure (PKI): A system for managing and distributing public keys, typically used for secure communication and authentication. PKI provides a framework for securely distributing and revoking public keys, and for verifying the authenticity of digital certificates.
  • Public key infrastructure (PKI): A system for managing digital certificates and public-private key pairs.
  • Public key infrastructure (PKI): A system for managing the issuance, revocation, and distribution of digital certificates.
  • Public Key Infrastructure (PKI): A system of digital certificates and public-private key pairs used for secure communication, such as encrypted email or secure web browsing.
  • Public Key Infrastructure (PKI): A system of digital certificates, certificate authorities, and other components that support the use of public key cryptography.
  • Public Key Infrastructure (PKI): A system of digital certificates, certificate authorities, and other security entities that provide security services.
  • Public Key Infrastructure (PKI): System for managing digital certificates and public-private key pairs.
  • Public Key Infrastructure (PKI): The combination of hardware, software, people, policies, and procedures needed to create, manage, store, distribute, and revoke digital certificates.
  • Public Key: In asymmetric encryption, a key that is freely available for encrypting messages or verifying digital signatures.
  • Public Key: In public key cryptography, a public key is used for encryption and is meant to be shared publicly.
  • Public Key: Key that can be publicly shared and used to encrypt messages and verify digital signatures.
  • Quantum cryptography: A branch of cryptography that uses the principles of quantum mechanics to secure communication.
  • Quantum Cryptography: A type of cryptography that is based on the principles of quantum mechanics. Quantum cryptography offers the possibility of secure communication in a way that is immune to eavesdropping and hacking, and it is an active area of research and development.
  • Quantum Key Distribution (QKD): A technique for secure key exchange that uses the properties of quantum mechanics to ensure the security of the key exchange. QKD is considered to be secure against any potential eavesdropping, even by a quantum computer.
  • Random Number Generation: The process of generating random numbers for use in cryptography. Random number generation is a critical component of many cryptographic algorithms, and it is important that the numbers generated are truly random and not predictable.
  • Random Number Generation: The process of producing a sequence of numbers that are not predictable and meet certain statistical requirements. Random numbers are used in cryptography for key generation, nonce generation, and more.
  • Random Number Generator (RNG): Algorithm that generates a sequence of numbers that are unpredictable and statistically random.
  • Random Number Generator: A device or algorithm that generates random numbers for use in cryptography, such as generating encryption keys or initializing a cipher.
  • Ransomware: A type of malware that encrypts a victim’s files and demands payment to restore access to the data.
  • Ransomware: A type of malware that encrypts the victim’s data and demands payment in exchange for the decryption key.
  • Ransomware: A type of malware that encrypts the victim’s files and demands a ransom payment in exchange for the decryption key.
  • Remote code execution (RCE) attack: A type of attack where an attacker is able to execute code on a target system from a remote location.
  • Replay attack: An attack in which an attacker captures and retransmits a valid message to produce an unauthorized effect.
  • Replay Attack: An attack where an attacker captures and retransmits a valid communication, causing the recipient to repeat the same action.
  • Root CA: A top-level certificate authority that is trusted by all parties involved in secure communication.
  • Root CA: A trusted third party that issues digital certificates for other CAs, serving as a trust anchor in the PKI hierarchy.
  • Root of trust: A secure component, such as a hardware module, that is trusted to perform specific security functions and is used as the foundation for building a secure system.
  • Rootkit: A type of malware that hides its presence on a computer by modifying the operating system’s behavior and hiding its files, processes, and registry keys.
  • Rootkit: A type of malware that hides itself and its activities from the operating system and other software, making it difficult to detect and remove.
  • Rootkit: A type of malware that provides an attacker with administrative-level access to a compromised system and hides the attacker’s presence and actions from standard security measures.
  • RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman): A widely-used public key cryptography algorithm that uses prime factorization to encrypt and decrypt data.
  • RSA Algorithm: A widely-used public key cryptography algorithm, based on the mathematical properties of large prime numbers, used for digital signatures, key exchange, and encryption.
  • RSA: A widely used public-key encryption algorithm that is based on the mathematical properties of prime numbers.
  • RSA: A widely-used public key cryptography algorithm that can be used for encryption, digital signatures, and key exchange.
  • RSA: A widely-used public-key cryptography algorithm.
  • RSA: An asymmetric encryption algorithm that is widely used for secure data transmission, digital signatures, and key exchange.
  • RSA: An asymmetric encryption algorithm, widely used for secure key exchange, digital signatures, and software protection.
  • RSA: One of the first public-key cryptosystems and widely used for secure data transmission. It can be used for both encryption and digital signatures.
  • RSA: Public-key cryptography algorithm based on the mathematical properties of prime numbers.
  • RSA: The most widely used public-key cryptography algorithm, based on the mathematical properties of large prime numbers.
  • Salt – A random value that is used as an additional input to a one-way function that hashes a password or passphrase. The salt is stored along with the hashed result. Salting prevents attackers from using pre-computed tables of hash values for commonly-used passwords.
  • Salt: A random value added to a password before hashing, to prevent the use of precomputed hashes (rainbow tables) in cracking passwords.
  • Salt: A random value added to a password before it is hashed, for the purpose of making it more difficult to crack the hash through a brute-force attack. Salts are used in cryptography to make it more difficult for an attacker to reverse engineer a password from a hash.
  • Salt: A random value added to an input before hashing, to prevent pre-computed hash tables (rainbow tables) from being used to attack hashes of commonly used passwords.
  • Salt: A random value added to the input data of a hash function to make it more secure.
  • Salt: A random value added to the input of a hash function, to increase the entropy and make it more difficult to reverse the hash and find the original input.
  • Salt: A random value that is added to a password before being hashed. Salts are used to defend against dictionary attacks, where an attacker precomputes hashes for a large number of possible passwords and then searches the list for a match. By using a different salt for each password, the attacker must compute the hashes for each password individually, making the attack much more computationally expensive.
  • Salt: A random value that is added to a password or hash function input, in order to make it harder to crack the encrypted data using pre-computed tables of hashes (rainbow tables).
  • Salt: A random value used as an additional input to a key derivation function to protect against dictionary attacks.
  • Salt: Random value added to plaintext to produce a unique output during encryption. Used to defend against precomputed hash attacks.
  • Salted Hash: A hash function that combines a hash of the message with a salt value.
  • Salted Hash: A hash function that takes a salt value as input, in addition to the message. The salt is used to randomize the output of the hash function, making it more difficult for attackers to mount precomputation attacks.
  • Sandbox: A security mechanism that isolates a program or code from the rest of the system, allowing it to run without endangering the system or its data.
  • Secret Key: A shared key used for encryption and decryption in symmetric key cryptography.
  • Secret sharing scheme: A method for distributing a secret among multiple parties in such a way that only authorized subsets of the parties can reconstruct the secret.
  • Secret Sharing: A method for splitting a secret into multiple parts and distributing them among multiple parties such that only authorized parties can recombine the parts to reveal the secret.
  • Secure boot: A process that ensures that a device only runs authorized software, by verifying the digital signatures of all software components before they are executed.
  • Secure Hash Algorithm (SHA): Family of cryptographic hash functions standardized by NIST.
  • Secure multiparty computation (SMC): A type of computation where multiple parties can jointly compute a function over their inputs, without revealing anything but the final output.
  • Secure shell (SSH): A protocol used for secure network services and secure file transfers over an insecure network.
  • Security information and event management (SIEM): A type of security solution that collects, analyzes, and correlates security-related data from various sources to provide a comprehensive view of an organization’s security posture.
  • Serpent: A symmetric encryption algorithm, designed by Ross Anderson, Eli Biham, and Lars Knudsen, as a finalist for the AES competition, using a block size of 128 bits and key sizes of 128, 192, or 256 bits.
  • Serpent: A symmetric-key block cipher designed as a candidate for the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) competition. Serpent is highly secure and has been widely adopted for use in secure communication protocols.
  • Session Key: A temporary key that is used for encryption or decryption in a single session. Session keys are typically generated for each session, and discarded when the session is complete.
  • Session Key: A temporary key used for a single encryption session.
  • Session Key: A temporary key used for encryption and decryption during a single session.
  • SHA (Secure Hash Algorithm): A family of hash functions designed by the National Security Agency (NSA) for use in secure communication. There are several versions of SHA, including SHA-1, SHA-2, and SHA-3, with increasing levels of security.
  • SHA (Secure Hash Algorithm): A family of hash functions that are widely used for digital signatures and message authentication.
  • SHA (Secure Hash Algorithm): A family of hash functions, developed by NIST, used for secure digital signatures and message integrity, such as SHA-1, SHA-2, and SHA-3.
  • SHA (Secure Hash Algorithm): A widely-used family of hash functions, standardized by NIST, providing various security levels and output sizes, including SHA-1, SHA-2 (with variants of 224, 256, 384, and 512 bits), and SHA-3.
  • Side-Channel Attack: An attack that exploits information gained from the physical implementation of a cryptographic system, such as power consumption, electromagnetic radiation, or timing information.
  • Side-channel attack: An attack that exploits information leaked through a system’s implementation, such as power consumption, electromagnetic emissions, or timing information.
  • Signature Algorithm: Mathematical algorithm used to create and verify digital signatures.
  • Signature: A value that is computed from a message and a secret key, and is used to verify the authenticity of the message.
  • Single sign-on (SSO): A type of authentication process that allows a user to log in once and gain access to multiple systems or applications without having to enter separate login credentials.
  • Social engineering: A type of attack that uses psychological manipulation to trick users into divulging confidential information or performing actions that compromise security.
  • Social engineering: The use of psychological manipulation or trickery to obtain sensitive information or access to computer systems.
  • Spoofing: The act of creating fake or fraudulent digital certificates, emails, or websites in order to trick users into revealing sensitive information or downloading malware.
  • Spyware: A type of software that collects sensitive information about the user, such as passwords and browsing history, without their knowledge or consent.
  • Spyware: Software that collects information about a user’s computer use and internet habits, often without the user’s knowledge or consent.
  • SQL injection attack: A type of attack where an attacker injects malicious code into a database query, allowing them to steal or modify data stored in the database.
  • SQL injection: A type of security vulnerability in which an attacker inserts malicious code into an SQL statement, allowing the attacker to access, modify, or delete sensitive data stored in a database.
  • SQL injection: A type of web security vulnerability that allows an attacker to execute malicious SQL code against a database.
  • SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) / TLS (Transport Layer Security): A protocol for secure communication over the internet, used for securing websites and online transactions, replacing SSL in the late 1990s.
  • SSL (Secure Sockets Layer)/TLS (Transport Layer Security): A widely-used protocol, providing secure communication over the Internet, by establishing an encrypted link between a client and a server, using public key cryptography, digital certificates, and message authentication codes.
  • SSL (Secure Sockets Layer): A cryptographic protocol used to secure internet communications, specifically to secure the transmission of sensitive information, such as login credentials and credit card numbers, between a client and a server.
  • SSL (Secure Sockets Layer): A deprecated protocol for secure communication over the internet.
  • SSL (Secure Sockets Layer): An obsolete protocol for establishing secure links between networked computers.
  • SSL/TLS Handshake: A series of steps between a client and a server, to securely establish a SSL/TLS connection, agreeing on the encryption algorithms and verifying the identity of the server.
  • Stream Cipher: A cipher that encrypts individual characters/bits in a message stream one at a time.
  • Stream Cipher: A cipher that encrypts plaintext into ciphertext one bit or byte at a time.
  • Stream cipher: A type of cipher that encrypts a stream of data one bit or byte at a time.
  • Stream Cipher: A type of cipher that encrypts data by combining it with a stream of pseudorandom numbers, bit by bit.
  • Stream cipher: A type of cipher that encrypts data one bit or byte at a time.
  • Stream Cipher: A type of symmetric-key cipher that encrypts data one bit or byte at a time. Stream ciphers are fast and efficient, and they are often used in real-time applications where large amounts of data need to be encrypted quickly.
  • Stream Cipher: A type of symmetric-key encryption algorithm that encrypts a single bit or byte of plaintext at a time, rather than the entire plaintext message.
  • Stream cipher: An encryption algorithm that encrypts data one bit or byte at a time, as opposed to encrypting an entire block of data at once.
  • Stream Cipher: An encryption algorithm that processes the input data one bit or byte at a time, such as RC4.
  • Stream Cipher: An encryption method that encrypts data one bit or byte at a time.
  • Stream Cipher: An encryption technique that encrypts a single bit or byte of plaintext at a time, as opposed to block ciphers which encrypt fixed-size blocks of data. Stream ciphers are well suited for real-time communications, such as encrypted voice or video.
  • Symmetric encryption: A type of encryption that uses the same key for both encryption and decryption of data.
  • Symmetric encryption: A type of encryption where the same key is used for both encryption and decryption.
  • Symmetric Encryption: A type of encryption where the same key is used for both encryption and decryption. It is also known as shared secret encryption.
  • Symmetric encryption: An encryption method that uses the same key for both encryption and decryption, providing fast encryption and decryption speeds.
  • Symmetric Encryption: An encryption method that uses the same key for both encryption and decryption.
  • Symmetric encryption: An encryption system that uses the same key for both encryption and decryption.
  • Symmetric Key Algorithm: An encryption algorithm that uses the same key for both encryption and decryption. Examples include AES, Blowfish, and Twofish.
  • Symmetric Key Cipher: A cipher that uses the same key for both encryption and decryption.
  • Symmetric Key Cryptography: A type of cryptography where the same key is used for both encryption and decryption.
  • Symmetric Key Cryptography: Cryptography that uses the same key for both encryption and decryption.
  • Symmetric Key Encryption: An encryption technique that uses the same key for both encryption and decryption. It is fast and suitable for bulk encryption, but requires that both parties have a shared secret key.
  • Symmetric Key: A key used for both encryption and decryption in symmetric key cryptography.
  • Symmetric Key: A key used for symmetric encryption.
  • Symmetric key: A single key that is used for both encryption and decryption in symmetric-key cryptography.
  • Symmetric Key: Same key is used for both encryption and decryption.
  • Symmetric-Key Cryptography: A type of cryptography that uses a single key for both encryption and decryption. Symmetric-key algorithms are fast and efficient, but require that the same key be securely shared between the sender and receiver.
  • Symmetric-key cryptography: A type of cryptography where the same key is used for both encryption and decryption.
  • Threefish: A symmetric encryption algorithm, designed by Bruce Schneier, as part of the Skein hash function, using a block size of 512 bits and key sizes of 256, 512, or 1024 bits.
  • TLS (Transport Layer Security): A successor to SSL, a cryptographic protocol used to secure internet communications, providing authentication, confidentiality, and data integrity.
  • TLS (Transport Layer Security): A successor to SSL, used to secure internet communications.
  • TLS (Transport Layer Security): A widely used protocol for establishing secure links between networked computers, successor of SSL.
  • Tor network: A decentralized network that allows users to access the internet anonymously by routing their traffic through a series of servers, hiding their identity and location.
  • Transport layer security (TLS): A protocol used to secure communication over networks, especially the internet.
  • Transport Layer Security (TLS): A widely used protocol for establishing secure communication over the Internet. TLS is the successor to the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol and provides a secure channel for applications such as web browsing, email, and instant messaging.
  • Transport Layer Security (TLS): A widely used protocol for secure communication on the internet. It provides encryption, data integrity, and authentication of data sent over the network.
  • Transposition Cipher: A cipher that rearranges the plaintext into a different order but does not change its individual characters.
  • Trojan: A type of malware that disguises itself as a benign or useful program, but is actually harmful or exploitative.
  • Trojan: A type of malware that disguises itself as a harmless program or file but performs malicious actions when executed.
  • Trojan: A type of malware that disguises itself as legitimate software to trick users into installing it, then carries out malicious activities.
  • Trusted platform module (TPM): A hardware component that provides cryptographic services for securing devices and networks.
  • Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): A security process that requires two forms of authentication, such as a password and a one-time code.
  • Two-factor authentication (2FA): A security process that requires two methods of authentication, such as a password and a security token, to verify the identity of a user.
  • Two-factor authentication (2FA): A type of authentication process that requires a user to provide two separate forms of identification, such as a password and a security token.
  • Twofish: A symmetric encryption algorithm, designed by Bruce Schneier, as a successor to Blowfish, using a 128-bit block size and key sizes of 128, 192, or 256 bits.
  • Twofish: A symmetric-key block cipher designed by Bruce Schneier as a successor to Blowfish. Twofish is a highly secure algorithm that has been widely adopted for use in secure communication protocols.
  • Twofish: A symmetric-key block cipher with a block size of 128 bits and key size of 128, 192, or 256 bits.
  • Virtual Private Network (VPN): A secure, encrypted connection between two networks or between a device and a network, which is used to protect sensitive data from eavesdropping and tampering.
  • Virtual private network (VPN): A technology that creates a secure, encrypted connection over a public network.
  • Virtual Private Network (VPN): A type of technology that creates an encrypted connection over the internet, allowing users to securely access the internet from a remote location as if they were on a local network.
  • Virus: A type of malware that replicates itself by infecting other files or programs on a computer system.
  • Virus: A type of malware that replicates itself by infecting other programs or files on a computer.
  • Virus: A type of malware that spreads by infecting other files or systems.
  • Vulnerability scanning: The process of automatically identifying security weaknesses in software, systems, or networks.
  • Worm: A type of malware that replicates itself over a network, often causing widespread damage.
  • Worm: A type of malware that spreads by copying itself from one system to another.
  • Worm: A type of malware that spreads itself over a network by exploiting vulnerabilities in operating systems and other software.
  • X.509: An ITU-T standard that defines the format of public key certificates. X.509 certificates are used in many internet protocols, including TLS.
  • XOR (Exclusive OR): A binary operator that performs bitwise XOR on two input values, used in many encryption and compression algorithms.
  • XOR Cipher: A bitwise operation that takes two equal-length binary representations and returns their bitwise XOR combination.
  • XOR: A logical operation that results in a 1 if exactly one of its inputs is 1, and 0 otherwise. XOR is used in many encryption algorithms, including the one-time pad and the stream cipher XOR encryption.
  • Zero knowledge proof (ZKP): A type of proof that allows one party to prove to another party that they know a specific value, without revealing the value itself.
  • Zero-day vulnerability: A type of security vulnerability that is unknown to the vendor and can be exploited by attackers before a patch or fix is released.
  • Zero-Knowledge Proof: A method for proving the authenticity of a statement without revealing any additional information. In a zero-knowledge proof, the verifier is convinced that the statement is true, but cannot learn anything beyond that.
  • Zero-knowledge proof: A method for proving the validity of a statement without revealing any information about the statement.
  • Zero-Knowledge Proof: A method for verifying information without revealing it to the verifier.
  • Zero-knowledge Proof: A method to prove the knowledge of a value without revealing it.
  • Zero-Knowledge Proof: A type of proof that allows one party to demonstrate to another party that a given statement is true, without revealing any additional information. Zero-knowledge proofs are used in cryptography to prove the authenticity of a statement without revealing the underlying data, and they have applications in areas such as digital signatures, identification, and secure multiparty computation.