Reference
Glossary
Plain-language definitions — no assumed background knowledge required.
- Business Email Compromise (BEC)
- A scam where attackers impersonate or compromise a business email account to redirect payments or extract sensitive data.
- Credential Stuffing
- An attack that uses previously breached username/password pairs to try logging into other, unrelated accounts.
- DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail)
- An email authentication method that uses a cryptographic signature to verify a message wasn't altered in transit.
- See also: SPF, DMARC
- DMARC
- A policy layered on top of SPF and DKIM that tells receiving mail servers what to do with messages that fail authentication.
- See also: SPF, DKIM
- Encryption
- The process of converting information into a coded form that can only be read with the correct key.
- Firewall
- A system that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic based on defined security rules.
- Malware
- Malicious software designed to damage, disrupt, or gain unauthorized access to a computer system.
- Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
- A login method requiring two or more independent proofs of identity, such as a password plus a one-time code.
- Phishing
- A deceptive attempt to trick someone into revealing sensitive information or installing malware, usually via email.
- See also: Smishing, Vishing
- Ransomware
- Malware that encrypts a victim's files and demands payment for the decryption key.
- Smishing
- Phishing conducted via SMS text message rather than email.
- See also: Phishing
- SPF (Sender Policy Framework)
- An email authentication standard that lists which mail servers are allowed to send email for a domain.
- See also: DKIM, DMARC
- Vishing
- Phishing conducted via voice phone call, often impersonating a trusted organization.
- See also: Phishing
- VPN (Virtual Private Network)
- A service that encrypts your internet traffic and routes it through a remote server, hiding your activity from your local network.
- Zero-Day
- A software vulnerability that is unknown to the vendor and has no patch available yet.