cyberattacks

ransomware

a type of malware which destroys or encrypts data on a tar-
get system and then issues a notice to the user or admin
demanding payment for return of access to the files

worm

an executable which creates copies of itself to spread to new
systems or subsystems

DOS

a cyber-attack in which the perpetrator seeks to make a ma-
chine or network resource unavailable to its intended users
by temporarily or indefinitely disrupting services of a host
connected to a network

Poisoning

any of several types of attack in which data or resources are
corrupted by an attacker to force a target to redirect to a
desired location which will cause some form of damage, or
force a target to utilize weakened security mechanisms

virus

a piece of code which creates copies of itself by injecting ma-
licious code into an otherwise legitimate host executable and
modifying that host to execute the malicious code

baiting

he act of leaving malware-infected removable storage media
(CDs, etc.) in locations people will find them (bathrooms,
elevators, sidewalks, parking lots, etc.), and waiting for vic-
tims to infect themselves

trojan

a malware application which disguises itself as another ap-
plication or as an innocuous file

rootkit

a type of malware that hides itself and gains access within a protected space

spyware

a piece of code which is intended to track or log any kind
of usage of a device, or to activate any sensors which would
collect information about the user or environment around the
device, and exfil the gathered data to an attacker

waterholing

the act of poisoning some trusted source that is often used by a target organzation or user

phishing

the process of contacting a user and providing a pretext for
that user to engage in an activity which will compromise
their system or account access

eavesdropping

an attacker physically or logically placing himself in a lo-
cation where data relevant to one or more targets will be
accessible to the attacker