Deciphering All Things Cyber Security

Ever wondered what ‘Rubber Duckie’ means when we talk about cyber security? How about a White Hat? We at Coder Academy sure have, so we decided to quiz some of our current Cyber Security Educators to decipher these terms once and for all…

// Pen Tester:

Someone hired to break into systems to test their defences for ethical purposes;

// OWASP:

Open Web Application Security Project; an organisation whose mission is to help developers learn how to make secure software;

// Steganography:

A way to get secret information past someone without them noticing, for example by making subtle changes to the colours of an image;

// SQL Injection (SQLi):

The number one web application vulnerability – creating sly inputs to websites that can abuse their database;

// Malware:

Software with an unethical purpose, such as viruses, trojans, ransomware, backdoors and rootkits;

// Ransomware:

Software which infects your computer, encrypts your files, and demands you pay the developer a ransom (usually in Bitcoin);

// SOC Analyst:

Front line of an organisation’s cyber defence;

// Hacker:

See_white hat_,_black hat_;

// Ethical Hacker:

See_white hat_;

// Black hat:

Someone who breaks into systems for personal gain or other malicious purposes;

// White hat:

Ethical hacker – someone who breaks into systems that they are permitted to break into, for the purpose of improving the system’s defences;

// DDoS:

Distributed Denial of Service; a type of attack where thousands of infected computers all flood a target at the same time to make it unusable;

// Reverse Engineering:

Taking apart software or communications to learn how they work, which can be used by defenders to investigate attacks, or attackers to get past defences;

// Red team:

An organisation’s team of offensive hackers who try to break into the organisation’s system. (See_Blue team_);

// Blue team:

An organisation’s defensive team, who monitor incoming attacks, neutralise them, and improve the organisation’s defences (See_red team_);

// Social Engineering:

Using psychological tactics to trick people into helping attackers achieve their goals;

// Phishing:

When an attacker impersonates someone trustworthy, in emails or other messages, to obtain sensitive information;

// Rubber duckie:

A custom-made USB drive that when plugged in, masquerades as a keyboard for a split second and executes malicious commands, and then goes back to looking like an innocent USB drive;

// Kali Linux:

A flavour of Linux specifically designed for pen testing, with heaps of hacking tools and learning resources;

// Bug bounty:

A cash reward offered by an organisation to anyone who finds weaknesses in their system.