Google Cybersecurity Professional Certificate Glossary

1000 Practice Question and Answer flashcards from the Google Cybersecurity Professional Certificate glossary.

What is availability as defined in Course 1?

The idea that data is accessible to those who are authorized to access it

What term describes a phishing attack where a threat actor impersonates a known source for financial advantage?

Business Email Compromise (BEC)

What is adversarial artificial intelligence?

A technique that manipulates artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technology to conduct attacks more efficiently

In Course 1, what is antivirus software?

A software program used to prevent, detect, and eliminate malware and viruses

How is an asset defined in the context of cybersecurity?

An item perceived as having value to an organization

What is cloud security?

The process of ensuring that assets stored in the cloud are properly configured and access to those assets is limited to authorized users

What is the process of adhering to internal standards and external regulations called?

Compliance

What is a computer virus?

Malicious code written to interfere with computer operations and cause damage to data and software

What is the definition of confidentiality in Course 1?

Only authorized users can access specific assets or data

What does the abbreviation CIA triad stand for in security models?

Confidentiality, integrity, availability (CIA) triad

What is a hacker?

Any person who uses computers to gain access to computer systems, networks, or data

What is a cryptographic attack?

An attack that affects secure forms of communication between a sender and intended recipient

How is cybersecurity (or security) defined?

The practice of ensuring confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information by protecting networks, devices, people, and data from unauthorized access or criminal exploitation

What is a database?

An organized collection of information or data

What is a data point?

A specific piece of information

What term describes a person who uses hacking to achieve a political goal?

Hacktivist

What does the abbreviation HIPAA stand for?

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)

In cybersecurity, what is integrity?

The idea that the data is correct, authentic, and reliable

What is an internal threat?

A current or former employee, external vendor, or trusted partner who poses a security risk

What is an intrusion detection system (IDS)?

An application that monitors system activity and alerts on possible intrusions

What is Linux?

An open-source operating system

What is a log?

A record of events that occur within an organization’s systems

What is a network protocol analyzer (packet sniffer)?

A tool designed to capture and analyze data traffic within a network

What is the order of volatility?

A sequence outlining the order of data that must be preserved from first to last

What is malware?

Software designed to harm devices or networks

What does the abbreviation NIST CSF stand for?

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cyber Security Framework (CSF)

What is network security?

The practice of keeping an organization's network infrastructure secure from unauthorized access

What is the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP)?

A non-profit organization focused on improving software security

What is a password attack?

An attempt to access password secured devices, systems, networks, or data

What does PII stand for?

Personally identifiable information (PII)

What is phishing?

The use of digital communications to trick people into revealing sensitive data or deploying malicious software

What is a physical attack?

A security incident that affects not only digital but also physical environments where the incident is deployed

What is programming?

A process that can be used to create a specific set of instructions for a computer to execute tasks

What is the process of properly working with fragile and volatile digital evidence called?

Protecting and preserving evidence

What does SIEM stand for?

Security information and event management (SIEM)

What is physical social engineering?

An attack in which a threat actor impersonates an employee, customer, or vendor to obtain unauthorized access to a physical location

What is privacy protection?

The act of safeguarding personal information from unauthorized use

What is protected health information (PHI)?

Information that relates to the past, present, or future physical or mental health or condition of an individual

What is security architecture?

A type of security design composed of multiple components, such as tools and processes, that are used to protect an organization from risks and external threats

What are security controls?

Safeguards designed to reduce specific security risks

What are security ethics?

Guidelines for making appropriate decisions as a security professional

What are security frameworks?

Guidelines used for building plans to help mitigate risk and threats to data and privacy

What is security governance?

Practices that help support, define, and direct security efforts of an organization

What is security posture?

An organization’s ability to manage its defense of critical assets and data and react to change

What is sensitive personally identifiable information (SPII)?

A specific type of PII that falls under stricter handling guidelines

What is social engineering?

A manipulation technique that exploits human error to gain private information, access, or valuables

What is spear phishing?

A malicious email attack targeting a specific user or group of users, appearing to originate from a trusted source

What is a supply-chain attack?

An attack that targets systems, applications, hardware, and/or software to locate a vulnerability where malware can be deployed

What is USB baiting?

An attack in which a threat actor strategically leaves a malware USB stick for an employee to find and install to unknowingly infect a network

What is vishing?

The exploitation of electronic voice communication to obtain sensitive information or to impersonate a known source

What is a watering hole attack?

A type of attack when a threat actor compromises a website frequently visited by a specific group of users

What is social media phishing?

A type of attack where a threat actor collects detailed information about their target on social media sites before initiating the attack

What does SQL stand for?

SQL (Structured Query Language)

What are technical skills?

Skills that require knowledge of specific tools, procedures, and policies

What is a threat?

Any circumstance or event that can negatively impact assets

What is a threat actor?

Any person or group who presents a security risk

What are transferable skills?

Skills from other areas that can apply to different careers

In Course 2, what does the 'Assess' step of the NIST RMF mean?

To determine if established controls are implemented correctly

What are attack vectors?

The pathways attackers use to penetrate security defenses

What is authentication?

The process of verifying who someone is

What is biometrics?

The unique physical characteristics that can be used to verify a person’s identity

What is the second step of the NIST RMF used for?

Categorize; used to develop risk management processes and tasks

What is authorization?

The concept of granting access to specific resources in a system

What does 'Authorize' refer to in the sixth step of the NIST RMF?

Being accountable for the security and privacy risks that might exist in an organization

What is business continuity?

An organization's ability to maintain their everyday productivity by establishing risk disaster recovery plans

What is Chronicle?

A cloud-native tool designed to retain, analyze, and search data

In the NIST core functions, what does 'Detect' relate to?

Identifying potential security incidents and improving monitoring capabilities to increase the speed and efficiency of detections

In the NIST core functions, what does 'Identify' relate to?

Management of cybersecurity risk and its effect on an organization’s people and assets

What is encryption?

The process of converting data from a readable format to an encoded format

What is an external threat?

Anything outside the organization that has the potential to harm organizational assets

What is the fourth step of the NIST RMF?

Implement; implement security and privacy plans for an organization

What is incident response?

An organization’s quick attempt to identify an attack, contain the damage, and correct the effects of a security breach

What is the NIST Special Publication (S.P.) 800-53?

A unified framework for protecting the security of information systems within the U.S. federal government

In Course 2, what is the first step of the NIST RMF?

Prepare; activities necessary to manage security and privacy risks before a breach occurs

What are metrics in the context of software performance?

Key technical attributes such as response time, availability, and failure rate

What is the seventh step of the NIST RMF?

Monitor; be aware of how systems are operating

What is an operating system (OS)?

The interface between computer hardware and the user

What is a playbook?

A manual that provides details about any operational action

In the NIST core functions, what does 'Protect' involve?

Implementation of policies, procedures, training, and tools that help mitigate cybersecurity threats

What is the 'Recover' core function in NIST?

Returning affected systems back to normal operation

What is the 'Respond' core function in NIST?

Making sure proper procedures are used to contain, neutralize, and analyze security incidents, and implement improvements

What is a security audit?

A review of an organization's security controls, policies, and procedures against a set of expectations

What is the third step of the NIST RMF?

Select; choose, customize, and capture documentation of the controls

What is ransomware?

A malicious attack where threat actors encrypt an organization’s data and demand payment to restore access

What is risk?

Anything that can impact the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of an asset

What is risk mitigation?

The process of having the right procedures and rules in place to quickly reduce the impact of a risk like a breach

What does SOAR stand for?

Security orchestration, automation, and response (SOAR)

What are SIEM tools?

A software platform that collects, analyzes, and correlates security data from various sources to identify and respond to threats in real-time

What is a vulnerability?

A weakness that can be exploited by a threat

What is shared responsibility?

The idea that all individuals within an organization take an active role in lowering risk

What is Splunk Cloud?

A cloud-hosted tool used to collect, search, and monitor log data

What is Splunk Enterprise?

A self-hosted tool used to retain, analyze, and search log data to provide information and alerts in real-time

What is active packet sniffing?

A type of attack where data packets are manipulated in transit

What is the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)?

Used to determine the MAC address of the next router or device to traverse

What is bandwidth?

The maximum data transmission capacity over a network, measured by bits per second

What is a baseline configuration?

A documented set of specifications within a system used as a basis for future builds, releases, and updates

What is Bluetooth used for?

Wireless communication with nearby physical devices

What is a botnet?

A collection of computers infected by malware under the control of a single threat actor known as the 'bot herder'

What are cloud-based firewalls?

Software firewalls that are hosted by the cloud service provider

What is the Domain Name System (DNS)?

A networking protocol that translates internet domain names into IP addresses