Threats
Malicious code that attaches to legitimate programs and spreads.
What is a virus?
Converting readable data into unreadable ciphertext.
What is encryption?
Setting legal requirements for protecting personal and sensitive data.
What is the purpose of compliance standards like GDPR or HIPAA in cybersecurity?
One of the first worms to spread widely across the early internet.
What was the Morris Worm? It was released in 1988.
Software designed to harm, exploit, or disable computer systems.
What is malware?
Network security device monitoring/filtering traffic.
What is a firewall?
Revoking access promptly when employees leave to prevent unauthorized access.
What is the importance of regular employee offboarding in security?
It exposed personal data of roughly 147 million people.
The Equifax data breach of 2017?
Malware that encrypts files and demands payment for decryption.
What is ransomware?
Encryption where only the sender and recipient can read the message.
What is end-to-end encryption?
Adding extra verification steps beyond just a password.
What is multi-factor authentication.
A sophisticated supply-chain attack affecting numerous government and corporate networks.
What was the SolarWinds hack of 2020?
Manipulating people to reveal confidential information or gain access to company hardware.
What is social engineering?
Users have minimum permissions needed — reduces attack surface.
What is least privilege?
Protecting individual devices like laptops and phones from threats.
What is endpoint security?
It spread globally, exploiting a Windows vulnerability and affecting hospitals and businesses.
The WannaCry ransomware attack of 2017?
Self-replicating malware that spreads without needing a host program.
What is a worm.
A security model that never automatically trusts any user or device, verifying continuously.
What is zero trust architecture?
A documented strategy for restoring systems after a major disruption.
What is a disaster recovery plan?
An attack that disrupted fuel supply across parts of the US.
What notable ransomware attack affected the Colonial Pipeline in 2021?