Knowledge is power, particularly in the world of cybercrime.
To know your enemy, you must understand how they behave. To defend your bank, you must study the strategies at your disposal. To have confidence in tomorrow, you must have total clarity today.
That’s exactly what this domain cybersecurity term glossary provides: quick answers to essential questions.
Far from an exhaustive lexicon, however, this is a living list of A to Z domain cybersecurity terms every banker needs to know. As such, we will regularly update this document to reflect the latest industry trends, emerging attack vectors, and countermeasures available to defend your bank.
A
Access Control: A security process that restricts unauthorized users from accessing confidential networks, systems, and data.
Access Control List (ACL): The mechanism for specifying which users and groups can interact with your files and directories.
Advanced Persistent Threat (APT): A sophisticated hacking technique that quietly breaches systems for an extended period of time.
Authentication: The verification of a user’s claimed identity. Authentication precedes “authorization.”
Authorization: The verification of a user’s permission to access resources and perform operations. Authorization follows “authentication.”
B
Backdoor: Any clandestine method designed to bypass a computer system’s security protocols.
Blacklist: A security measure which blocks certain users from accessing systems and networks.
Botnet: A horde of compromised devices used to flood and ultimately destabilize a network. Botnets play an integral role in Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks.
Brute Force: An cyberattack that leverages trial-and-error to guess passwords and login credentials.
Business Email Compromise (BEC): A sophisticated impersonation attack that scams employees and executives into transfering money to fraudulent accounts.
C
Clickjacking: A cyberattack that tricks victims into clicking compromised web content, like a button, advertisement, or link. Clickjacking is also known as “UI redressing.”
Cryptography: Algorithmic techniques that conceal private information from unauthorized viewers.
Cyber Hygiene: An organization’s security habits used to maintain system health and minimize vulnerabilities. Employee training plays a major role in cyber hygiene.
Cyber Resilience: A bank’s ability to withstand cyber threats without losing sight of its mission, clients, and continuity.
Cybersquatting: The illegal purchase, usage, or registration of a domain name to profit from the reputation of a legitimate organization.
Cyber Supply Chain Risk Management: The ongoing process of identifying, analyzing, and addressing cybersecurity threats to your organization.
D
Data Breach: An event that releases confidential information into an unsecured environment. Though often the result of a deliberate attack, data breaches can also occur accidentally.
Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS): A cyberattack that floods a website with traffic to prevent users from accessing its services.
Domain Name: A website’s unique name and web address (i.e., www.register.bank).
Domain Name System (DNS): Databases that translate domain names into internet protocol (IP) addresses, which computers and network devices use to locate one another on the internet. Like the phonebook of the internet, DNS connects web browsers with websites.
Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC): Protocols that enhance the DNS through a cryptographically-secured framework. By employing digital signatures, DNSSEC prevents common attack vectors like DNS spoofing, hijacking, and cache poisoning.
DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM): An email authentication method that detects counterfeit sender addresses. By adding a unique digital signature to every email, DKIM plays an integral role in preventing hackers from impersonating (i.e., “spoofing”) legitimate domains.
Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC): An email standard that dictates the immediate response to messages that fail to align with DKIM and/or Sender Policy Framework (SPF) protocols.
While DKIM verifies the legitimacy of email (via digital signatures), DMARC suggests next-steps if the email in question doesn’t match DKIM authentication. That’s why each protocol—along with SPF—is essential to shield your bank from cyber threats.
Domain Spoofing: A cyberattack where criminals impersonate legitimate organizations (e.g., financial institutions) by forging lookalike websites and email addresses.
E
Encryption: The deliberate scrambling of plain text into unreadable “ciphertext.” This prevents scammers from accessing proprietary information, ensuring that only authorized users can decrypt and read the information.
Endpoint Security: The comprehensive protection of a network’s endpoints against malicious threats. Endpoints include anything that connects to the corporate network, including workstations, servers, and mobile devices.
Ethical Hacking: Cyberattacks used to make a political statement against an individual, corporation, or government.
Email Cybersecurity: The framework to protect email communications includes three standards, DMARC, DKIM, and SPF. Together, these authentication methods offer a robust defense against phishing and spoofing attacks.
F
False Negative: When a security system fails to identify a genuine security threat.
False Positive: When a security system incorrectly flags legitimate activities as suspicious.
Firewall: A security system that monitors and restricts traffic to, from, and within a network. Essential for screening-out hackers and viruses, firewalls can be deployed on software (i.e., virtual machines) and on hardware (i.e., physical devices).
Forensics: In the aftermath of a breach, cyber forensics involves the collection and analysis of digital evidence. This evidence is often used to determine the method of attack, to identify perpetrators, to fuel legal investigations, and to prevent future attacks.
G
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): A seven-part framework of European Union (EU) privacy and security law. GDPR applies to all organizations targeting consumers living in the EU. While GDPR laws may not apply to your bank, these mandatory cybersecurity regulations are worth your intention.
Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC): A security framework developed by the nonprofit think tank, Open Compliance and Ethics Group (OCEG). By uniting the siloes of governance, risk, and compliance, the GRC model offers organizations a tangible way to streamline cybersecurity best practices.
Greylisting: A convenient email security method that defends users from mass spam attacks.
H
Honeypot: A decoy system built to lure cybercriminals towards fake targets. Honeypots allow IT professionals to protect genuine assets, identify vulnerabilities, study hacker behavior, and improve network defenses.
Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP): The foundation of data exchange on the internet, HTTP powers network communication between a web browser and a web server. One disadvantage is HTTP communications happen in plaintext, which is not encrypted.
Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS): An advanced protocol that secures the transfer of data between web browsers and websites. By incorporating Transport Layer Security (TLS)–a technology that allows for the encryption and decryption of data–HTTPS is considered a more secure version of HTTP.
I
Incident Response Plan (IRP): A formal set of instructions that detail an organization’s response to a cyberattack. In the world of cyberwar, banks need an incident response plan.
Insider Threat: A security risk caused by an individual within an organization, including contractors, partners, vendors, and employees. While some insider threats are born out of malice, they are more often the result of human error.
Intrusion Detection System (IDS): Sentinel technology that monitors networks and systems for signs of unauthorized access. When suspicious activity is detected, the IDS system will alert the incident response team.
K
Keylogger: Malicious software that records device keystrokes to harvest confidential information (such as passwords and credit card numbers).
L
Least Privilege: An information security concept where users are given the minimum level of access required to accomplish their assigned tasks. By reducing user and administrator access, the “principle of least privilege” can help reduce an organization’s attack surface.
M
Malware: Short for “malicious software,” malware is a sinister program designed to contaminate computer systems, networks, servers, and endpoint devices. Common forms of malware include rootkits, viruses, ransomware, keyloggers, adware, worms and trojans.
Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) Attack: A form of active eavesdropping where hackers intercept a conversation, masquerade as one or more of the victims, and hijack the conversation without either party knowing. Man-in-the-Middle attacks were instrumental in the Equifax breach.
Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): A login process that requires users to enter at least two independent credentials. Beyond usernames and alphanumeric passwords, MFA requires additional layers of security—like a fingerprint scan, a code sent to their email or mobile phone, or a code available through an authenticator application.
N
Network Intrusion Detection System (NIDS): A program that monitors inbound and outbound traffic from devices on the network, while also reporting unauthorized access and suspicious activity to incident response teams.
Non-Repudiation: A cybersecurity principle that ensures people and entities are held responsible for their digital actions and communications. Non-repudiation leverages timestamping and digital signatures to validate electronic messages and transactions.
P
Penetration Testing: A simulated cyberattack used to test your network’s resilience and identify zero-day vulnerabilities.
Phishing: A cyberattack where criminals pose as legitimate organizations (e.g., financial institutions) to obtain confidential information. While the vast majority of phishing attacks occur via email, many victims are also targeted through text messages, phone calls, and other forms of communication.
R
Ransomware: A malicious form of software that encrypts the victim’s data until the ransom is paid.
Registrar: An organization that oversees the registration (and security) of internet domain names. Not all are accredited by ICANN—find out which are accredited here.
Remote Access Trojan (RAT): A type of malware that allows hackers to gain remote control over a computer device.
Risk Register: A list of potential cybersecurity risks that could impact your organization, along with the accompanying incident response plans for each scenario.
S
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL): A networking protocol that encrypts data sent between a website and a browser. As of 1999, Transport Layer Security (TLS) is the official successor of SSL and plays an integral role in HTTPS.
Sender Policy Framework (SPF): An email authentication protocol that ensures only authorized servers can send emails from your domain. SPF is essential for safeguarding against spoofers, phishers, and scammers.
Social Engineering: The use of psychological manipulation to trick people into sharing confidential information. Common social engineering attacks include phishing, whaling, and Business Email Compromise (BEC).
Spear Phishing: A cyberattack that targets a specific individual or group within an organization.
T
Threat Actor: An individual or group seeking to breach systems and steal data.
Tokenization: The process of exchanging sensitive data for nonsensitive, encrypted substitutes. In the financial world, tokenization is frequently used to conceal credit card numbers with randomly-generated symbols.
Transport Layer Security (TLS): Cryptographic protocols designed to insulate digital communications and transactions from hackers. Though TLS is the updated version of Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology, the two acronyms are still used interchangeably.
Typosquatting: A social engineering attack that exploits common domain name typos.
V
Vendor Risk Management: The due diligence process of evaluating the risk postures of third-party vendors, business partners, cloud solutions, and IT suppliers.
Virtual Private Network (VPN): An internet security service that encrypts user traffic and masks IP addresses. Remote access VPNs allow users to safely access the organization’s network from anywhere in the world.
Vishing: Voice phishing schemes that leverage phone calls to impersonate reputable companies, employees, and executives.
W
Watering Hole Attack: A large-scale security exploit that compromises users by infecting websites they frequently visit.
Whaling: Sophisticated phishing attacks that target high-profile executives in an organization.
Whitelist: A cybersecurity strategy that limits the number of users and entities authorized to operate on a system or network.
Z
Zero-Day Exploit: A cyberattack vector deployed on a security vulnerability that is entirely unknown to the software provider and victim organization.
Zero Trust: A strict security framework that requires all users to be fully authenticated, authorized, and validated before receiving access.
.Bank: The Domain That Means Trust
This glossary covers a lot of ground, but it makes one point abundantly clear: cybersecurity is a reaction to a metastatic problem.
Without cybercrime, there would be no need for cybersecurity protocols and best practices.
But here we are, warring with a shadow industry that’s getting more punitive by the day.
At .Bank, we deliver an essential solution to bankers looking to fight back.
While public domains–like .com and .net–are innately vulnerable to impersonation, .Bank domains cannot be forged.
Why? Because no other industry can use it. Literally. We made it exclusively for banks.
While strategically limiting our audience, we maintain rigorous security requirements, including—but not limited to—the HTTPS protocol, DNSSEC (with strong cryptographic algorithms), and strict enforcement of TLS 1.2 or higher on web services.
When combined with DMARC, SPF, and DKIM protocols (and our global DMARC policy), the .Bank security framework becomes a fraudster’s worst nightmare.
Spoofed domains? Nope. URL hijacking? No sir. Typosquatting? Cute.
.Bank is a banker’s fortress of trust.
Find out why hundreds of banks have moved to .Bank. Or, schedule a meeting to discover how we can help you defend your domain.
