20 cybersecurity terms you need to know
Cybersecurity can sound like a foreign language. Pick any topic in the field, start reading, and you’ll quickly get lost in a jungle of tech terms.
You’ve come across the word spyware, and you want to know what it means. The moment you start looking, you’re assaulted by terms you’ve never heard before. You may find a definition like this:
Spyware is a type of malware that monitors the victim’s device to extract sensitive data without the victim’s knowledge. Examples of spyware: adware, keyloggers, and trojans.
That’s an accurate definition, but it’s not super helpful. Now you have more questions. How does spyware work? What is considered sensitive data, and how worried should you be about its security? What’s a keylogger? Is that even a word?
Complicated definitions are partially to blame for the fact that 1 in 5 doesn’t care about cybersecurity at all.
What if something like ciphertext was explained this way:
You open a messaging app and text, “SORRY GUYS, can’t make it tonight. Probably caught a stomach bug.”
That’s called plaintext. It’s unencrypted text that can be intercepted and read by an online spy. That’s also called a lie — you feel fine, but you’d rather watch a movie.
At least you’re using a secure messaging app. It applies an algorithm to turn your lie into ciphertext: “ueEeQrwrd1GL24HWDi2ttNg5fIUXUzqslFqb94^Ef2NU1NBrD rPb84wbReVnclTP2AgnMCkhaHC3UrfR8VWxh3jWWh+0WE”
That’s encryption in action. Plaintext is turned into ciphertext via a secure key (a cipher). The messaging apps your friends use have the key that deciphers your messages. Online spies don’t have the key and can’t read your communications.
Rather than giving technical definitions, the experts at NordVPN show how cybersecurity affects your life and provide down-to-earth comparisons in an eBook called Cybersecurity A-Z: 20 cybersecurity terms you need to know. This is not a comprehensive glossary, and it’s so by design. It’s meant to whet your appetite for further learning.
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