Glossary: Cyber Terms, Acronyms
Airgap – a standalone machine divorced from Internet connectivity
Anonymous – nonstate hacker group striking opponents of Internet freedom
Botnet – hacker controlled “army” of computers hired out to perform malicious activity online
Crypto-currency – digital money to validate transactions, promote transparency, and prevent duplicate spending
i.e. Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin
Cyberspace – includes the virtual environment, computer systems/networks, and the exchange of ideas online
Digital Immigrant – a user who has not grown up with information age realities
Digital Native – those born into information age and therefore instinctive users
Doxing – exposing user information online to embarrass target
Hacktivism/Patriotic Hacking – citizens conducting computer attacks on behalf of a state but without direct ties
to that government
Honeypot – leaving a machine intentionally exposed to reveal to observe attacker
Malware – computer viruses, worms, and Trojans designed to compromise computers and networks
Patch – software update to fix code
Phishing – attacker seeks to fool user into revealing credentials
Script Kiddie – a pejorative term referencing an unskilled individual who uses hacking programs or GUIs developed
by another to carry out a hack.
SQL injection – hacker seeks access to Structured Query Language (SQL) database
Spear-phishing – a targeted version of phishing designed to appear to come from a known or trusted individual
Stuxnet – most famous computer worm/weapon targeting Iranian nuclear program
Trolling – a deliberately offensive or provocative online posting with the aim of upsetting or warping online use
Worm – malware that reproduces itself and spreads from network to network
Zero Day Vulnerabilities – attacker exploits a previously unknown vulnerability
Zombie – computer seized by outside party to utilize as part of a botnet
APT Advance Persistent Threat
CNA Computer Network Attack
CNE Computer Network Exploitation
CNO Computer Network Operations
DCO Defensive Cyberspace Operations
DDOS Attack Distributed Denial of Service
DINO DoD Information Network Operations
GIG Global Information Grid
GUI Graphical User Interface
OCO Offensive Cyberspace Operations
SCADA Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition
Tor (The Onion Router) Provides online access free of surveillance
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