CC 100 - Intro to Computing Exam Review

Comprehensive practice vocabulary flashcards covering Cybersecurity, Information Security, Computer Networking, and Hardware Troubleshooting from the CC 100 lecture notes.

Cybersecurity

The practice of protecting computers, networks, accounts, applications, and information from unauthorized access, attacks, damage, and disruption.

Goals of Cybersecurity

Preventing unauthorized access, protecting personal and organizational information, detecting malicious activity, responding to security incidents, and recovering systems and data after an attack.

Phishing

A type of cyberattack in which an attacker impersonates a trusted person or organization to trick someone into revealing sensitive information or performing an unsafe action.

Phishing Targets

High-value confidential items targeted by attackers, including passwords, one-time passwords (OTPs), banking information, personal identification details, and account recovery codes.

Suspicious Links

A primary warning sign of phishing where a message directs the recipient to an unfamiliar login page or an unexpected website.

Urgent Threats (Phishing)

A deceptive social engineering tactic where messages threaten immediate negative consequences (such as account deletion or suspension) to pressure victims into hasty action.

Requests for Confidential Information

A phishing warning sign where an unsolicited message directly requests that a user disclose passwords, OTPs, or recovery codes.

Impersonation (Phishing)

A phishing technique where an attacker pretends to be a school administrator, bank employee, IT technician, or government official.

Unverified Claims

A warning sign of phishing where a message promises rewards or threatens penalties without providing verifiable evidence.

Phishing Response Procedure

Safety steps following a suspicious message: avoid clicking links, do not disclose credentials, verify claims through official contact channels, and report the message.

Credential Stuffing

A cyberattack where an attacker uses credentials stolen from one compromised website to attempt unauthorized logins across multiple other accounts and services.

Malware

Malicious software designed to harm systems, steal information, monitor activity, or perform other unauthorized actions.

Virus

A category of malware that attaches to a host file or program and spreads when that host is executed or shared.

Worm

A category of malware that spreads between systems automatically, often by exploiting network vulnerabilities, without attaching to a host file.

Trojan Horse

A category of malware that disguises itself as legitimate or useful software to mislead users into installing it.

Spyware

A category of malware that secretly monitors user activity or collects personal information without authorization.

Ransomware

A category of malware that encrypts or locks access to files and systems, demanding payment in exchange for restoring access.

Characteristics of a Strong Password

A password that is long enough to resist guessing, unique to the account, difficult to predict, stored securely, and never shared.

Password Manager

A specialized software application that generates, encrypts, and securely stores unique, complex passwords for multiple user accounts.

Multifactor Authentication (MFA)

A security system requiring two or more distinct authentication factor categories before granting access to an account.

Something You Know

An authentication factor category based on knowledge, such as a secret password or PIN.

Something You Have

An authentication factor category based on physical possession, such as a registered security key or physical authentication device.

Something You Are

An authentication factor category based on biological characteristics, such as a fingerprint or facial scan.

One-Time Password (OTP)

A temporary, single-use authentication passcode that must never be shared with unsolicited callers or unverified message senders.

Deepfake

Synthetic or manipulated media created using artificial intelligence or other digital techniques to make a person appear to say or do something they did not.

Media Verification Steps

The evaluation process for suspicious content: finding the original source, checking publication date and context, looking for independent reporting, and comparing with trustworthy sources.

Responsible AI Workflow

The structured academic sequence defined as: $\text{Ask} \rightarrow \text{Understand} \rightarrow \text{Verify} \rightarrow \text{Analyze} \rightarrow \text{Produce your own work}$.

Appropriate AI Use

Permitted assistance using AI, including requesting concept explanations, generating practice questions, checking understanding, and receiving feedback on drafts.

Inappropriate AI Use

Prohibited uses of AI, including submitting AI-generated work as original effort, inventing references, copying unverified data, and ignoring course policies.

Image Attribution

The practice of identifying the original creator, checking license terms, obtaining necessary permissions, and crediting the source before reusing visual content.

CIA Triad

A foundational information-security model built upon three core security objectives: Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability.

Confidentiality

The security objective ensuring that information is accessible only to authorized people or systems.

Integrity

The security objective ensuring that information remains accurate, complete, and protected against unauthorized modification.

Availability

The security objective ensuring that information and systems are accessible when authorized users need them.

Authentication

The security process of verifying an entity's claimed identity using credentials such as passwords, fingerprints, or security keys.

Authorization

The security process of determining what an authenticated user is permitted to do or access within a system.

Authentication vs. Authorization Sequence

The principle that authentication must occur before authorization in a typical login flow; logging in successfully does not guarantee permission to view specific restricted files.

Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)

An access control system that assigns permissions strictly according to a person's organizational role.

Principle of Least Privilege

The practice of giving each user only the minimum permissions necessary to perform their assigned organizational tasks.

Encryption

A cryptographic process that transforms readable plain text into a protected encoded form to prevent unauthorized disclosure.

Limitation of Encryption

Encryption safeguards data from unauthorized reading but does not replace access controls; authorized users with decryption keys can still misuse data if proper permissions are lacking.

Secure Data Transfer

The transmission of sensitive information using approved encrypted services, restricted access, verified recipients, and organizational handling policies.

Data Backup

A separate copy of data maintained to recover information after loss, corruption, accidental deletion, or a cyberattack.

3-2-1 Backup Rule

A baseline backup rule requiring $3$ copies of important data, stored across $2$ different media types, with $1$ copy kept off-site or isolated.

Backup Restoration Testing

The procedure of actively verifying that backed-up files can actually be restored, as a backup job reporting 'successful' does not guarantee recovery.

Security Incident

An event that threatens the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of an organization's information or systems.

Security Incident Response

Standard response actions including following incident procedures, reporting promptly, isolating affected devices when authorized, and securing accounts from a trusted device.

Unknown USB Drives

Removable storage media of unknown origin that pose severe malware risks and must never be inserted into computers simply to explore their contents.

Computer Network

A collection of interconnected devices that communicate and share resources such as files, Internet access, and printers.

Personal Area Network (PAN)

A short-range network typically used for personal devices, such as a smartphone connected to wireless earbuds.

Local Area Network (LAN)

A network connecting computers within a limited physical environment, such as a laboratory, classroom, or office.

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

A communication network that spans an entire city or metropolitan area.

Wide Area Network (WAN)

A network connecting distant locations across large regions, countries, or continents.

Network Hierarchy by Coverage

The ordering of network classifications from smallest to largest geographical area: $\text{PAN} \rightarrow \text{LAN} \rightarrow \text{MAN} \rightarrow \text{WAN}$.

Network Topology

The structural layout and arrangement of devices and connections within a computer network.

Star Topology

A network layout where every workstation connects independently to one central switch or hub.

Advantage of Star Topology

A single workstation cable failure affects only that connected device, leaving the remainder of the network fully operational.

Disadvantage of Star Topology

The central switch represents a single point of failure; if it malfunctions, all connected devices lose network connectivity.

Bus Topology

A network layout where all connected devices share a single common communication cable backbone.

Ring Topology

A network layout where devices are connected in a continuous circular arrangement, passing communications around the loop.

Mesh Topology

A network layout where devices have multiple interconnections and alternate redundant paths to maximize fault tolerance.

Disadvantages of Mesh Topology

Higher financial cost, substantial cabling requirements, and increased configuration complexity compared with simpler topologies.

Switch

A data-link layer network device that connects devices within a LAN and selectively forwards Ethernet frames using MAC address information.

Router

A network layer device that connects different networks and forwards IP packets based on logical IP addressing.

Switch vs. Router Distinction

A switch connects devices locally within the same network, whereas a router connects and directs traffic across separate networks.

Hub

A basic network hardware device that repeats incoming electrical signals out to all other ports rather than selectively forwarding frames by MAC address.

Modem

A hardware device that modulates and demodulates signals to enable digital communication across specific network access technologies.

Access Point

A networking device that provides wireless Wi-Fi devices with connectivity to a wired local area network.

Network Interface Card (NIC)

A hardware component that provides a computer or device with a physical or wireless interface to join a network.

MAC Address

A physical link-layer address permanently associated with a network interface, utilized by switches for forwarding local Ethernet frames.

IP Address

A logical network-layer address that identifies an interface for IP communications and enables packet routing across networks.

MAC Address vs. IP Address

A MAC address operates at the data-link layer for local frame delivery, whereas an IP address operates at the network layer for logical packet routing.

IPv4

The fourth version of the Internet Protocol, utilizing a $32\text{-bit}$ address structure written in dotted decimal notation, such as $192.168.1.10$.

IPv6

An updated Internet Protocol standard utilizing a $128\text{-bit}$ address structure written in colon-separated hexadecimal notation, such as $2001:\text{db}8::10$.

IPv4 vs. IPv6 Address Length

IPv4 addresses have an address length of $32\text{ bits}$, whereas IPv6 addresses have an address length of $128\text{ bits}$.

IPv4 vs. IPv6 Notation

IPv4 uses dotted decimal notation, while IPv6 uses colon-separated hexadecimal notation.

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP)

A network protocol that automatically provides network configuration settings (such as IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, and DNS servers) to client devices.

Domain Name System (DNS)

A network service that resolves human-readable domain names into the numerical IP addresses required to contact hosts.

DHCP vs. DNS

A memory aid distinguishing network services: DHCP automatically configures IP settings, while DNS resolves domain names to IP addresses.

Default Gateway

The router or next-hop device that a computer uses to reach external destinations outside its local network subnet.

Wired Ethernet

A wired local connection technology that provides predictable connectivity, low latency, and immunity to radio-frequency interference on the wire.

Wireless Networking

A flexible network connection method providing mobility and eliminating endpoint cabling, though susceptible to distance, obstacles, and interference.

Fiber-Optic Cable

A high-bandwidth transmission medium that transmits data pulses using light, offering long-distance transmission and total immunity to electromagnetic interference.

Virtual Private Network (VPN)

A technology that creates an encrypted, protected communication tunnel over a public network to allow secure remote access to internal resources.

Central Processing Unit (CPU)

The primary processor of a computer that executes program instructions and performs computing and coordinating operations.

CPU Responsibilities

Executing program instructions, performing arithmetic operations, conducting logical comparisons, and coordinating software execution.

CPU vs. RAM

The CPU processes and executes active instructions, whereas RAM temporarily stores the instructions and data needed by running applications.

Random Access Memory (RAM)

Fast, volatile working memory that temporarily holds data and instructions currently in use by active programs.

Solid-State Drive (SSD)

A high-speed non-volatile persistent storage device utilizing flash memory, providing faster boot and data access times than mechanical drives.

Hard Disk Drive (HDD)

A non-volatile persistent storage drive that records data magnetically on spinning platters, generally having slower random access than an SSD.

Volatile vs. Non-Volatile Memory

Volatile memory (RAM) loses all stored data when power is turned off, while non-volatile storage (SSD or HDD) persistently retains saved data without power.

Motherboard Compatibility Checks

Hardware compatibility checks including CPU socket fit, processor support and firmware requirements, memory type and specifications, capacity, form factor, and power delivery.

Computer Cooling Systems

Hardware assemblies including heat sinks, cooling fans, airflow paths, and thermal paste designed to dissipate heat generated during operation.

Symptoms of Overheating

Operating anomalies caused by excessive internal temperatures, including unexpected shutdowns, thermal throttling, reduced system performance, and instability.

Thermal Throttling

An automatic protective mechanism where a CPU or GPU lowers its clock speed to prevent physical hardware damage from extreme temperatures.

Troubleshooting Suspected Overheating

Maintenance steps including checking cooling fans, clearing dust accumulation, verifying airflow, checking thermal components, and monitoring system temperature readings.

Ping

A command-line diagnostic tool that tests IP reachability by sending echo request packets to a remote host and awaiting responses.

ipconfig

A Windows command-line utility used to view and verify network interface IP configuration settings, including IP addresses, subnet masks, and default gateways.

Cable Tester

A specialized hardware tool used to verify physical wire continuity in cables, identifying open conductors, short circuits, and improper wire mapping.

Task Manager

A Windows system diagnostic utility used to inspect running applications, background processes, and resource utilization (such as CPU and RAM usage).