Training & Professional Development

identification

The process by which a subject professes an identity and accountability is initiated. The identification process can consist of a user providing a username, a logon ID, a PIN, or a smart card or a process providing a process ID number.

identification card

A form of physical identification; generally contains a picture of the subject and/or a magnetic strip with additional information about a subject.

identity and access provisioning life cycle

The creation, management, and deletion of accounts. Provisioning refers to granting accounts with appropriate privileges when they are created and during the lifetime of the account.

Identity as a Service or Identity and Access as a Service (IDaaS)

A third-party service that provides identity and access management. IDaaS effectively provides SSO for the cloud and is especially useful when internal clients access cloud-based Software as a Service (SaaS) applications.

Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act

An act that makes identity theft a crime against the person whose identity was stolen and provides severe criminal penalties (up to a 15-year prison term and/or a $250,000 fine) for anyone found guilty of violating it.

ignore risk

Denying that a risk exists and hoping that by ignoring a risk it will never be realized.

immediate addressing

A way of referring to data that is supplied to the CPU as part of an instruction.

impersonation

The assumption of someone's identity or online account, usually through the mechanisms of spoofing and session replay. An impersonation attack is considered a more active attack than masquerading.

implementation attack

This type of attack exploits weaknesses in the implementation of a cryptography system. It focuses on exploiting the software code, not just errors and flaws but methodology employed to program the encryption system.

inappropriate activities

Actions that may take place on a computer or over the IT infrastructure and that may not be actual crimes but are often grounds for internal punishments or termination. Some types of inappropriate activities include viewing inappropriate content, sexual and racial harassment, waste, and abuse.

incident

The occurrence of a system intrusion.

incremental backup

A backup that stores only those files that have been modified since the time of the most recent full or incremental backup. This is also used to mean the process of creating such a backup.

indirect addressing

The memory address that is supplied to the CPU as part of the instruction and doesn't contain the actual value that the CPU is to use as an operand. Instead, the memory address contains another memory address (perhaps located on a different page). The CPU then retrieves the actual operand from that address.

industrial control system (ICS)

A form of computer-management device that controls industrial processes and machines. ICSs are used across a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, fabrication, electricity generation and distribution, water distribution, sewage processing, and oil refining. There are several forms of ICS, including distributed control systems (DCS), programmable logic controllers (PLC), and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA).

industrial espionage

The act of someone using illegal means to acquire competitive information.

inference

An attack that involves using a combination of several pieces of nonsensitive information to gain access to information that should be classified at a higher level.

inference engine

The second major component of an expert system that analyzes information in the knowledge base to arrive at the appropriate decision.

information flow model

A model that focuses on the flow of information to ensure that security is maintained and enforced no matter how information flows. Information flow models are based on a state machine model.

information hiding

Placing data and a subject at different security domains for the purpose of hiding the data from that subject.

informative policy

A policy that is designed to provide information or knowledge about a specific subject, such as company goals, mission statements, or how the organization interacts with partners and customers. An informative policy is not enforceable.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

A cloud computing concept that can provide not just on-demand operating solutions but complete outsourcing of IT infrastructure.

infrastructure mode

The wireless network configuration that uses a wireless base station to connect all wireless devices to the network and potentially to each other.

inherit (or inheritance)

In object-oriented programming, inheritance refers to a class which has one or more of the same methods from another class. So when a method has one or more of the same methods from another class, it is said to have inherited them.

initialization vector (IV)

A nonce used by numerous cryptography solutions to increase the strength of encrypted data by increasing the randomness of the input.

input validation

Checking, scanning, filtering, or sanitizing input received from users (especially over the Internet) before processing the received input.

inrush

An initial surge of power usually associated with connecting to a power source, whether primary or alternate/secondary.

instance

In object-oriented programming, an instance can be an object, example, or representation of a class.

instant messaging (IM)

Any mechanism that allows for real-time text-based chat between two users located anywhere on the Internet. Some IM utilities allow for file transfer, multimedia, voice and videoconferencing, and more.

Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)

A digital end-to-end communications mechanism. ISDN was developed by telephone companies to support high-speed digital communications over the same equipment and infrastructure that is used to carry voice communications.

integrity

A state characterized by the assurance that modifications are not made by unauthorized users and authorized users do not make unauthorized modifications.

intellectual property

Intangible assets, such as secret recipes or production techniques.

interface testing

Interface testing assesses the performance of modules against the interface specifications to ensure that they will work together properly when all of the development efforts are complete.

International Data Encryption Algorithm (IDEA)

A block cipher that was developed in response to complaints about the insufficient key length of the DES algorithm. IDEAA block cipher that was developed in response to complaints about the insufficient key length of the DES algorithm. IDEA operates on 64-bit blocks of plain/cipher text, but it begins its operation with a 128-bit key.

International Organization for Standardization (ISO)

An independent oversight organization that defines and maintains computer, networking, and technology standards, along with more than 13,000 other international standards for business, government, and society.

Internet Key Exchange (IKE)

A protocol that provides for the secure exchange of cryptographic keys between IPSec participants.

Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP)

A protocol used to transfer email messages from an email server to an email client.

Internet of Things (IoT)

The collection of devices that can communicate over the Internet with each other or with a control console in order to affect and monitor the real world.

Internet Security Association and Key Management Protocol (ISAKMP)

A protocol that provides background security support services for IPSec.

Internet Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI)

A networking storage standard based on IP. This technology can be used to enable location-independent file storage, transmission, and retrieval over LAN, WAN, or public Internet connections. iSCSI is often viewed as a low-cost alternative to Fibre Channel.

Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX)

IPX is the Network layer protocol of IPX/SPX. The IPX/SPX protocol suite was commonly used (although not strictly required to be used) on Novell NetWare networks in the 1990s.

interpreted languages

Programming languages that are converted to machine language one command at a time at the time of execution.

interrogation

Questioning a person suspected of crime. See also interview.

interrupt (IRQ)

A mechanism used by devices and components in a computer to get the attention of the CPU.

interview

Questioning a person to gather information to assist with a criminal investigation. In an interview, the person being questioned is not suspected of committing the crime. See also interrogation.

intranet

A private network that is designed to host the same information services found on the Internet.

intrusion

The condition in which a threat agent has gained access to an organization's infrastructure through the circumvention of security controls and is able to directly imperil assets. Also referred to as penetration.

intrusion detection

A specific form of monitoring both recorded information and real- time events to detect unwanted system access.

intrusion detection system (IDS)

A product that automates the inspection of audit logs and real-time system events. IDSs are generally used to detect intrusion attempts, but they can also be employed to detect system failures or rate overall performance.

IP header protocol field value

An element in an IP packet header that identifies the protocol used in the IP packet payload (usually this will be 6 for TCP, 17 for UDP, or 1 for ICMP, or any of a number of other valid routing protocol numbers).

IP Payload Compression (IPComp) protocol

A protocol that allows IPSec users to achieve enhanced performance by compression packets prior to the encryption operation.

IP probes

An attack technique that uses automated tools to ping each address in a range. Systems that respond to the ping request are logged for further analysis. Addresses that do not produce a response are assumed to be unused and are ignored.

IP Security (IPSec)

A standards-based mechanism for providing encryption for point-to- point TCP/IP traffic.

IP spoofing

The process by which a malicious individual reconfigures their system so that it has the IP address of a trusted system and then attempts to gain access to other external resources.

iris scans

An example of a biometric factor, which is a behavioral or physiological characteristic that is unique to a subject. The colored portion of the eye that surrounds the pupil is used to establish identity or provide authentication.

isolation

A concept that ensures that any behavior will affect only the memory and resources associated with the process.