We often don’t realize how nuanced cybersecurity terminologies are. Pick any word from the security word soup, and it has a meaning that is sacrosanct, and unique to it alone.
Networking professional and Field Day delegate, Tim Bertino backs this up. In a short illuminating article curiously titled “Security+ Journey – Lions, Tigers, and Bears”, Bertino chooses four most-used terms in cyber security – vulnerabilities, threats, risks and exploits that are often interchangeably used in the press, and explains their different meanings. He writes,
Yeah I know, I went for the catchy title to try to draw you into reading this. However, when looking at the topic of vulnerabilities, threats, and risks in my list, the title above is what came to mind. Thinking through it though, that title seems to work. Vulnerabilities, threats, and risks are all scary things we have to consider and account for. Now, depending on where you live, lions, tigers, and bears may not be as applicable in your daily life as vulnerabilities, threats, and risks, but I think you get the idea.
To know how some of the supposedly synonymous cybersecurity terms are different from each other in meaning, read Bertino’s article – “Security+ Journey – Lions, Tigers, and Bears”. To stay in the know, sign up to our weekly newsletter that delivers stories like this right to your inbox.
