By Mohammed AlSubayt

Terms Every GRC - Cybersecurity

Analyst Should Know
Term Description
Incident Response Plan A set of written instructions for detecting, responding to, and
(IRP) limiting the effects of a security breach or cyberattack.
Digital Rights Management Technologies used by publishers, copyright holders, and
(DRM) individuals to control how digital information and media is used
and distributed.
Risk Appetite The level of risk that an organization is willing to accept in pursuit
of its goals before action is deemed necessary to reduce the risk.
Compliance Management A program that helps organizations maintain compliance with legal
System requirements, and manage risk and governance throughout the
enterprise.
Public Key Infrastructure A set of roles, policies, hardware, software and procedures needed
(PKI) to create, manage, distribute, use, store, and revoke digital
certificates and manage public-key encryption.
Data Minimization The principle of limiting personal data collection to what is directly
relevant and necessary to accomplish a specified purpose.
Supply Chain Attack A cyberattack that seeks to damage an organization by targeting
less-secure elements in the supply network.
Data Sovereignty The concept that information that has been converted and stored
in digital form is subject to the laws of the country in which it is
located.
Security Policy A written document in an organization outlining how to protect the
organization from threats, including computer security threats, and
how to handle situations when they occur.
Quantitative Risk Analysis A method of risk analysis that quantifies risks in terms of concrete
numbers, such as cost and statistical probabilities.
Cyber Insurance A product that is intended to help an organization mitigate risk
exposure by offsetting costs involved with recovery from a cyber-
related security breach or similar events.
Mobile Device Management Software that allows IT administrators to control, secure and
(MDM) enforce policies on smartphones, tablets, and other endpoints.
Next-Generation Firewall A part of the third generation of firewall technology that combines
(NGFW) a traditional firewall with other network device filtering
functionalities.
Behavioral Analytics A technology used to detect anomalies in user behavior, which
could indicate potential security violations.
Secure Coding The practice of writing computer programs in a way that guards
against the accidental introduction of security vulnerabilities.
Third-Party Certification An assessment conducted by an independent body which verifies
that an organization meets the requirements specified in a
standard.
Penetration Testing A set of guidelines and methodologies used for conducting
Framework comprehensive security assessments.
By Mohammed AlSubayt
Data Retention Policy A policy that establishes protocols for retaining information for
compliance purposes and disposing of data that is no longer
needed.
Cloud Security Alliance An organization dedicated to defining and raising awareness of
(CSA) best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing
environment.
IoT Security The area of cybersecurity focused on the network-connected
devices, and the networks and data associated, protecting them
from unauthorized access and harm.
Access Control Security techniques that regulate who or what can view or use
resources in a computing environment.
Advanced Persistent Threat A prolonged and targeted cyberattack in which an intruder gains
(APT) access to a network and remains undetected for an extended
period of time.
Asset Management The process of ensuring that the assets of an organization are
accounted for, deployed, maintained, upgraded, and disposed of
responsibly.
Audit Trail A security-relevant chronological record that provides
documentary evidence of the sequence of activities that have
affected at any time a specific operation, procedure, or event.
Business Continuity Plan A document that outlines how a business will continue operating
(BCP) during an unplanned disruption in service.
Compliance Adherence to laws, regulations, guidelines, and specifications
relevant to business processes.
Cybersecurity Framework A set of industry standards and best practices to help organizations
manage cybersecurity risks.
Data Breach A security incident in which information is accessed without
authorization.
Data Encryption The method by which plaintext or any other type of data is
converted from a readable form to an encoded version that can
only be decoded by another entity if they have access to a
decryption key.
Disaster Recovery Strategies and processes for recovering from and mitigating the
effects of a disaster or event that causes significant, prolonged
disruption of business operations.
Encryption The process of encoding messages or information in such a way
that only authorized parties can access it.
Endpoint Detection and Cybersecurity technologies that address the need for continuous
Response (EDR) monitoring and response to advanced threats.
Governance The policies, processes, and structures used by an organization to
direct its activities and meet its business objectives.
Incident Response A set of procedures an organization follows when a cyber-attack
occurs.
Intrusion Detection System A device or software application that monitors a network for
(IDS) malicious activity or policy violations.
Malware Software designed specifically to disrupt, damage, or gain
unauthorized access to computer systems.
Network Security The policies and practices adopted to prevent and monitor
unauthorized access, misuse, modification, or denial of a computer
network and network-accessible resources.
By Mohammed AlSubayt
Patch Management The process of distributing and applying updates to software.
These patches are often necessary to correct errors (known as
"vulnerabilities" or "bugs") in the software.
Penetration Testing An authorized simulated attack on a computer system, performed
to evaluate the security of the system.
Phishing A cybercrime in which a target or targets are contacted by email,
telephone, or text message by someone posing as a legitimate
institution to lure individuals into providing sensitive data.
Risk Assessment The process of identifying and evaluating risks to an organization's
operations and assets.
Security Information and A set of tools and services offering a holistic view of an
Event Management (SIEM) organization’s information security.
Threat Intelligence Evidence-based knowledge, including context, mechanisms,
indicators, implications, and actionable advice about an existing or
emerging menace to assets.
Vulnerability Management The cyclical practice of identifying, classifying, remediating, and
mitigating vulnerabilities, particularly in software and firmware.
Zero-Day Attack A cyber-attack that occurs the day a weakness is discovered in
software, before it is fixed or before a fix is available to implement.
SOC (Security Operations A centralized unit that deals with security issues on an
Center) organizational and technical level, using real-time monitoring and
detection, as well as incident response and forensics.
CISO (Chief Information A senior-level executive within an organization responsible for
Security Officer) establishing and maintaining the enterprise vision, strategy, and
program to ensure information assets are adequately protected.
ISO/IEC 27001 An international standard on how to manage information security.
The standard includes requirements for establishing,
implementing, maintaining, and continually improving an
information security management system (ISMS).
NIST Framework Developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology,
it provides a policy framework of computer security guidance for
how private sector organizations in the US can assess and improve
their ability to prevent, detect, and respond to cyber attacks.
Privileged Access Cybersecurity strategies and technologies for exerting control over
Management (PAM) the elevated ("privileged") access and permissions for users,
accounts, processes, and systems across an IT environment.
Data Privacy The aspect of information technology (IT) that deals with the
ability an organization or individual has to determine what data in
a computer system can be shared with third parties.
Root Cause Analysis (RCA) A method of problem-solving used for identifying the root causes of
faults or problems in cybersecurity events.
SIEM (Security Information Software solutions that aggregate and analyze activity from many
and Event Management) different resources across your IT infrastructure.
Whitelisting A cybersecurity strategy under which a user can take action on
their computer or network only if the action is included on the
whitelist, thus blocking all non-approved actions.
Blacklisting A security measure that blocks certain entities and allows others,
identifying entities that are known to be malicious or suspicious.
Cyber Espionage The act or practice of obtaining secrets without the permission of
the holder of the information (personal, sensitive, proprietary or
By Mohammed AlSubayt
classified), for personal, economic, political, or military advantage
using illegal exploitation methods.
Man-in-the-Middle Attack A cyberattack where the attacker secretly relays and possibly
(MitM) alters the communications between two parties who believe they
are directly communicating with each other.
Social Engineering An attack vector that relies heavily on human interaction and often
involves manipulating people into breaking normal security
procedures and best practices in order to gain unauthorized access
to systems, networks, or physical locations, or for financial gain.
Tokenization The process of replacing sensitive data with unique identification
symbols that retain all the essential information about the data
without compromising its security.
Cloud Security A set of policies, controls, procedures, and technologies that work
together to protect cloud-based systems, data, and infrastructure.
Compliance Audit An in-depth review to ensure an organization is following external
laws, rules, and regulations or internal guidelines, such as
corporate bylaws, controls, and policies and procedures.
Risk Mitigation The process of developing actionable steps to reduce threats to
project success, or an application of controls to lower the impact or
likelihood of a risk.
Two-Factor Authentication A security process in which users provide two different
(2FA) authentication factors to verify themselves, enhancing the security
of the login credentials and of the resources the user can access.
Risk Transfer A risk management and control strategy that involves the
contractual shifting of a pure risk from one party to another.
Digital Forensics The process of uncovering and interpreting electronic data, then
preserving the evidence in its most original form while performing
a structured investigation by collecting, identifying, and validating
the digital information for reconstructing past events.
Cybersecurity Posture A comprehensive assessment of an organization’s cybersecurity
strength which evaluates security measures, processes, and
responses to cyber threats.
Security Audit A systematic evaluation of the security of a company's information
system by measuring how well it conforms to a set of established
criteria.
Vulnerability Scanning The automated process of proactively identifying security
vulnerabilities of computing systems in a network in order to
determine if and where a system can be exploited and/or
threatened.
Compliance Framework A structured set of guidelines to detail an organization's processes
for maintaining accordance with established regulations,
specifications, or legislation.
Third-Party Risk The process of analyzing and controlling risks associated with
Management (TPRM) outsourcing to third-party vendors or service providers.
Data Classification The process of organizing data into categories for its most effective
and efficient use, often as part of data security and compliance
regulations.
Incident Management The activities of an organization to identify, analyze, and correct
hazards to prevent a future re-occurrence and to restore the
service to its operational state.
By Mohammed AlSubayt
Threat Modeling A process by which potential threats, such as structural
vulnerabilities or the absence of appropriate safeguards, can be
identified and quantified.
Identity and Access The security discipline that enables the right individuals to access
Management (IAM) the right resources at the right times for the right reasons,
emphasizing the control of individual user access within an
organization.
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Protocols designed to provide communications security over a
/ Transport Layer Security computer network.
(TLS)
Breach Notification The process by which organizations inform affected individuals
and authorities about unauthorized access to private data as
required by law or regulations.
Change Management A systematic approach to dealing with the transition or
transformation of an organization's goals, processes, or
technologies.
Forensic Analysis The process of identifying, preserving, recovering, analyzing, and
presenting facts and opinions about the digital information found
on computers or digital storage media.
Key Performance Metrics used to quantitatively measure the effectiveness of GRC
Indicators (KPIs) in GRC activities within an organization.
Risk Profile The quantified analysis of the types of threats an organization,
asset, project, or individual faces.
Information Security Policy A set of policies issued by an organization to ensure that all
information technology users within the domain of the
organization or its networks comply with rules and guidelines
related to the security of the information stored digitally at any
point in the network or within the organization’s boundaries.
Penetration Test Report Documentation of the findings from a penetration test, including
vulnerabilities found and exploits that were successful, along with
remediation recommendations.
Continuous Monitoring The ongoing process of detecting, reporting, responding to, and
mitigating security threats in real-time.
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) A strategy for making sure that end users do not send sensitive or
critical information outside the corporate network.
Security Awareness The process of teaching employees about cybersecurity, IT best
Training practices, and even regulatory compliance, often conducted
regularly to ensure all employees are informed and vigilant about
security threats.
Patch Management The process of managing a network of computers by regularly
applying patches, updates, and upgrades to the software.
Multi-factor Authentication A security system that requires more than one method of
(MFA) authentication from independent categories of credentials to verify
the user's identity for a login or other transaction.
Risk Analysis The process of identifying and analyzing potential issues that could
negatively impact key business initiatives or projects.
GDPR (General Data A regulation in EU law on data protection and privacy in the
Protection Regulation) European Union and the European Economic Area, which also
addresses the transfer of personal data outside the EU and EEA
areas.
By Mohammed AlSubayt
ISO 31000 An international standard for Risk Management that provides
principles, a framework, and a process for managing risk.
Data Integrity The accuracy and consistency of data stored in a database, data
warehouse, or other construct.
Cloud Access Security Software that sits between cloud service users and cloud
Broker (CASB) applications to monitor all activity and enforce security policies.
Role-based Access Control A method of regulating access to computer or network resources
(RBAC) based on the roles of individual users within an enterprise.
Security Configuration The process of identifying and managing the security of devices in
Management (SCM) an organization by performing vulnerability scanning and
evaluation of device configurations.
Security Orchestration, A stack of compatible software programs that enable an
Automation, and Response organization to collect data about security threats and respond to
(SOAR) low-level security events without human assistance.
Network Segmentation The practice of splitting a computer network into subnetworks,
each being a network segment or network layer, to improve
performance and security.
Business Impact Analysis A process that helps to predict the consequences of disruption of a
(BIA) business function and process and gathers information needed to
develop recovery strategies.
Privileged User The practice of controlling and monitoring account activity for
Management users who have elevated access to critical infrastructure or
sensitive data.
Intrusion Prevention A network security/threat prevention technology that examines
System (IPS) network traffic flows to detect and prevent vulnerability exploits.
Endpoint Security The approach to protecting a business network when accessed via
remote devices such as laptops or other wireless and mobile
devices.
Cryptographic Controls Techniques and tools used to implement cryptographic methods
involving the transformation of data into formats that are
unreadable for an unauthorized user.
Log Management The process of handling log data generated by computers,
including collection, storage, consolidation, analysis, and disposal.
Virtual Private Network A technology that creates a safe and encrypted connection over a
(VPN) less secure network, such as the internet.
Chief Risk Officer (CRO) An executive responsible for identifying, analyzing, and mitigating
internal and external risks that could affect an organization’s assets
and earnings.
Security Architecture The set of resources and components of a security system that
allow it to function effectively while managing the threats that it's
designed to neutralize.
nformation Lifecycle A policy-based approach to managing the flow of an information
Management (ILM) system's data from creation and initial storage to the time when it
becomes obsolete and is deleted.
Security Baseline The minimum level of security that an organization requires to
meet its objectives, established through a comprehensive
assessment of the organization's assets and risks.
Phishing Simulation A training exercise that sends simulated phishing emails to test
employee awareness and preparedness for real phishing attempts.
Security Governance The set of practices related to supporting, defining, and directing
the security efforts of an organization.
By Mohammed AlSubayt
Threat Hunting A proactive cybersecurity practice that seeks to detect and isolate
advanced threats before they cause harm or breach systems.
Unified Threat A comprehensive solution that has evolved from the traditional
Management (UTM) firewall into an all-inclusive security product capable of
performing multiple security functions within one single system.
Vulnerability Disclosure The practice of reporting security flaws in software or hardware
that, if exploited, could potentially expose users to a cyber attack.
Cyber Forensics The process of extracting information and data from computer
storage media and guaranteeing its accuracy and reliability to deal
with legal evidence in a court of law.
Data Masking The process of obscuring specific data within a database table or
cell to ensure that data security is maintained and sensitive
information is not exposed to unauthorized personnel.
Endpoint Protection A solution deployed on endpoint devices to prevent file-based
Platform (EPP) malware attacks, detect malicious activity, and provide the
investigation and remediation capabilities needed to respond to
dynamic security incidents and alerts.
Fraud Detection Systems Systems designed to prevent money or property from being
obtained through false pretenses by identifying anomalies,
inconsistencies, and patterns indicative of fraudulent activities.
ISO 27002 An international standard that provides guidelines for the best
Information Security management practices.
Network Access Control Security method that determines which devices are allowed to
(NAC) connect to a network based on a specific set of security criteria.
Red Teaming An exercise where a group of security professionals authorized and
organized to emulate a potential adversary's attack or exploitation
capabilities against an organization's security posture.
Security Automation The automatic handling of security operations-related tasks
without human intervention, which is designed to expedite the
identification and containment of cyber exploits and breaches.
Tokenization The process of replacing sensitive data with unique identification
symbols that retain all the essential information about the data
without compromising its security.
Whitelisting A security process where a list of permitted entities (such as email
addresses, users, applications) is used to provide access to a
system, while all others are blocked.
Zero Trust Model A security concept centered on the belief that organizations should
not automatically trust anything inside or outside its perimeters
and instead must verify anything and everything trying to connect
to its systems before granting access.
Access Governance The process and technology associated with overseeing,
monitoring, and controlling who within an organization has access
to what information and when.
Business Resilience The ability an organization has to quickly adapt to disruptions
while maintaining continuous business operations and
safeguarding people, assets, and overall brand equity.
Extended Detection and A security solution that automatically collects and correlates data
Response (XDR) from multiple security layers – email, endpoint, server, cloud
workloads, and network – to improve threat detection and provide
an integrated response.
By Mohammed AlSubayt
Cybersecurity Posture
Assessment
Security Service Edge (SSE)
Zero Trust Architecture
(ZTA)
Data Ethics
Quantum Cryptography
Cyber Physical Systems
(CPS)
Operational Technology
Security
Dark Web Monitoring
Third-Party Risk
Assessment
Global Data Protection
Regulation (GDPR)
Compliance
National Institute of
Standards and Technology
(NIST) Cybersecurity
Framework
Cyber Warfare
Cloud Security Posture
Management (CSPM)
Incident Response
Automation
Cybersecurity Capacity
Building
An evaluation process to determine the strength of an
organization's cybersecurity defenses and its ability to handle
cyber threats based on its security capabilities and potential
vulnerabilities.
A security framework advocating a converged set of security
services delivered at the edge of the network to enforce consistent
policies across all connections without compromising performance.
A cybersecurity paradigm focused on the belief that organizations
should not automatically trust anything inside or outside its
perimeters and must verify everything trying to connect before
granting access.
The branch of ethics that studies and evaluates the moral problems
related to data (including generation, recording, curation,
processing, dissemination, sharing, and use), algorithms (artificial
intelligence and data analytics), and corresponding practices
(responsible innovation, programming, hacking, and professional
codes), in relation to the moral issues of social impact.
The use of quantum mechanics to perform cryptographic tasks and
provide secure communication that is theoretically tamper-proof.
Systems controlled or monitored by computer-based algorithms,
tightly integrated with the internet and its users, such as smart
grids, autonomous automobile systems, and medical monitoring
devices.
Security measures and controls applied to protect Operational
Technology (OT), including systems that manage, monitor, and
control industrial operations.
The process of searching for and monitoring the release of data on
the dark web, typically to discover threats or exposure of sensitive
corporate data or personal information.
Evaluating and managing risks associated with outsourcing to
third-party vendors or service providers, especially in areas like
cybersecurity, compliance, and operational execution.
Adherence to the stringent privacy and security laws under the
GDPR, which require businesses to protect the personal data and
privacy of EU citizens.
A framework that consists of standards, guidelines, and best
practices to manage cybersecurity-related risk without placing
additional regulatory requirements.
The use and targeting of computers and networks in warfare. It
involves the use of digital attacks like hacking and denial-of-service
(DoS) attacks to disable systems, steal data, or use a breached
computer system to launch attacks on others.
Automated tools and services that help manage cloud security
compliance and reduce risk by fixing misconfigurations and
violations of cloud security best practices.
The use of pre-configured security defense actions that can
automatically assess and remediate security threats without
human intervention.
Efforts aimed at enhancing the cybersecurity skills and capabilities
of organizations or countries to strengthen their ability to prevent,
detect, and respond to cyber attacks effectively.
By Mohammed AlSubayt
Sensitive Data Exposure The unauthorized disclosure, loss, or unauthorized access of
sensitive information that could lead to significant consequences,
such as identity theft or other forms of fraud.
Cybersecurity Insurance A specialized lines insurance product intended to protect
businesses from Internet-based risks, and more generally from
risks relating to information technology infrastructure and
activities.
Secure Software A process that incorporates security at every phase of software
Development Lifecycle development, aiming to ensure that security is built into the end
(SSDLC) product.
Microsegmentation A security technique that enables fine-grained security policies to
be assigned to data center applications, down to the workload
level.