Hot Tips for Security+ SY0- 101 Exam - GetCertify4Less.com

Hot Tips for Security+ SY0- 

101 Exam 

Tcat Houser Security+ 

Copyright 2003 GetCertified4Less. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the 

United States Copyright Act of 1976, No part of this publication may be reproduced, 

stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or 

mechanical or by photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written 

permission of the publisher. The views expressed in this book are solely those of the 

author, and do not represent the views of any other party or parties. 

This publication is not sponsored by, endorsed by, or affiliated with CompTIA, Inc. 

CompTIA®, A+®, Network+, CTT+ the CompTIA logos are trademarks or 

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All other trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners. Throughout this book, 

trademarked names are used. Rather than put a trademark symbol after every occurrence 

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Disclaimer Notice: Judgments as to the suitability of the information 

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Introduction 

Hot Tips for Security+: SY0-101 Exam 

The Security+ exam went live in 

late 2002. While this is a first time 

entry for CompTIA, it came into a 

very crowded field. Many folks ask 

if Security+ is a better choice than 

other options. My position is a 

qualified yes. Is it a better choice 

than say CISSP? That is like 

comparing apples and horses. Most 

horses like apples. Horses are 

higher up the food chain. 

The same could be said for 

Security+ verses CISSP. Security+ 

is an entry level vendor neutral 

exam. CISSP is a much higher level 

exam designed for those who have 

been in the field doing real work for several years. 

Security+ Facts 

Number of Tests: 1 

Exam Code: SY0-101 

Time Allowed: 90 minutes. 

Number of Questions: 100 

Passing Score: 764, based on a 

scale of 100-900 (83% correct) 

Exam Fees: $225 (As of April 11, 

2003) 

Available Languages: English 

Question Reality to Real World: 

100% 

Difficulty: Easy to crushing. See 

Text. 

The information you get from me and GetCertifiedr4Less this study guide 

contains some ideas you will not find anywhere else. 

☺ There is no shortage of free and fee based reference material for the 

Security+ exam. If you have read any of my material before this document, 

you know I have a different approach. I have written a full Security+ 

course book. It is based on what my team blasted out as a freebie for the 

Security+ beta exam which we released on the last workday before the 

exam in beta format released the following week. That free PDF is 200 

pages long, and available in English, French or Spanish.

You can find it at the web site I created just for Security+, http://www. 

AlphaGeekProductions.com 

That web site will offer (currently) two no nonsense options. The free PDF 

or the pay PDF. While of course it is my preference you select the pay 

option, I’m not here to sell you on the idea. I will outline the differences 

and you can make your own choice.

Since You Have 2 Books, What is This Document 

About? 

Actually I have more that two books. It can get a little confusing at first 

glance. Here is the drill. 

Http://www.totalrecallpress.com is the print publisher of this work. The 

premier piece is InsideScoop for Security+ 2 nd Edition April 2003 ISBN 

1590952065. This 700 page book has a rather exhaustive test simulation in 

the back of the book, also written and researched by me. That book is 

carved up to make two other print offerings. ExamInsight is the ‘meat’ of 

the InsideScoop book without the test sim or glossary. The glossary is 

included in this document from http://www.getcertified4less.com 

The third print option is ExamWise which is a printed version of the Test 

simulation without all the clickable web links found on the CD. (It just 

doesn’t work to push on the paper). Most of these titles are available from 

Amazon and other various web sites, and in some countries Amazon is a 

better deal than the print publisher itself. That details the print options. 

Swinging back to the PDF options from 

Http://www.alphageekproductions.com . That is my web site just for 

Security+. The free PDF is there, and you can take it no questions asked. 

In fact I strongly encourage anyone who touches a computer to read the 

first chapter. It is not exam specific; it is a short real life overview of 

security issues. 

As I mentioned previously the Pay PDF (and for that matter the print 

work) is an outgrowth of the free work. It grew from 200 pages to 700 

pages. This PDF is the exact word for word version of InsideScoop, 

without the test sim. It is made available for a minimum of $20. (Oh yes, I 

will gladly take an extra $5 or $10 bucks. You will see why you should 

consider that in a moment). 

Beyond the electronic version of InsideScoop directly from me, I have 

been working on other things. The Subliminal audio MP3s have already 

been released as version 1. They have been pulled to make room for 

Version 2. I am in progress on a different test sim than what is offered

with the InsideScoop book. Now as of this writing, neither the MP3 files 

or the alternate test simulation have been announced at 

Http://www.AlphaGeekProductions.com 

When someone purchases the Pay for PDF I get an email notification. As 

soon as I see that email I inform that person of the current location and 

password for the PDF which I am continuing to update. *I cannot continue 

to update the print work!* Not one more page can be added without killing 

the ability to print outside the USA. As a PDF is just electrons, I am 

updating that work and sending automagic announcements of where to 

find the latest and what the password is. It is my policy to make all my 

work updates for free for the life of SY0-101. A number of folks have 

been pleasantly surprised that I offered both updates and other study aids 

at no charge. So, I think coming to me directly is the best deal for you. 

And it is entirely your choice. As with all the work created exclusively for 

http://www.getcertifed4less.com, am not going to repeat what has been 

said in my PDFs. Since you are reading this document, you have most 

likely purchased a voucher from http://www.GetCertified4Less.com. That 

means you are pretty close to visiting the Security test. Before you do, 

make sure at a bare minimum you have downloaded the free PDF and 

understand each and every objective. 

This study guide was created to distill down much of the myth and 

conjecture regarding Security+ certification. That is addressed next. 

How Hard Is It? 

Without knowing more about the person asking the question, it is pretty 

much akin to sending me an email from a waterside dock and asking me, 

“How long is a rope?” Since I don’t have the knowledge of your 

background and I’m not on the dock with you, any guess would be pure 

luck. I sailed through the beta exam and stood up knowing I passed. Of 

course I did. I have been on the front lines playing with protocol analyzers, 

comparing and configuring firewalls since the IBM XT. Reading the 

objectives, I had to study up on PKI, and I was made in the shade. This 

isn’t bragging, it’s the result of being a COF (Certified Old Fart) who has 

been doing this stuff long before there was an IBM PC or a CompTIA. Of 

course it was an easy test… not.

Real World, Really? 

If you really understand everything in the glossary that is included with 

this document really well, my hunch is you’re half way there. With SY0- 

101, halfway doesn’t cut it. I doubt there were many beta candidates that 

didn’t have the free PDF. I do know that one web site alone counted 

10,000 downloads during the beta period. That is a pretty good clue that 

most of the test candidates we’re forearmed with the work of me and my 

team. I’ll assume you haven’t read either PDF, and state that the work is 

laid out precisely according to the objectives. For example, in Domain 1 

General Security Concepts 1.4.11.1 –Brute Force is discussed before 

1.4.11.2 – Dictionary Attack. 

This gave the candidates for the beta exam a ‘punch list’ to make sure they 

knew the objectives beforehand. The end result of so many beta test 

candidates being forearmed is the highest passing score on a CompTIA 

test to date. That is actually good news for you, if you have prepared. It 

means Security+ will not be taken lightly.

Question Reality to Real World 

Each of my study guides created exclusively for GetCertified4Less.com 

have a rating of how the test fares against the real world. The highest 

rating I have given to this series of study guides is for CTT+ which earned 

100% relevance. That test is all about ‘soft skills’. 

The Security+ gets a 100% from me. That’s my number, and I’m sticking 

to it. Ask anyone else and they are likely to give you a different answer. 

Some may say: “what is the point of memorizing port numbers?” Or, “why 

to I have to know the internal structure of an IP packet?” The simple 

answer is you cannot configure a firewall, IDS or other security device 

without knowing this stuff. 

Test Logistics 

In keeping with what I have seen out of CompTIA the past year, Security+ 

has no drag and drop, horrible graphics or other fancy stuff that can blow 

up in a test center. Some of the wording of the test questions is poor and 

you have to read a question a few times to figure out where it is going. My 

observations are folks who are not passing are tripping up on the poorly 

worded questions. It is also my observation that these same folks haven’t 

studied enough to figure out what the intent is. This is one test where 

memorizing a brain dump will only result in a several hundred dollar 

“Recon. Mission”. Security+ is a fair test. It is also tough. 

A memory aid I suggest for Security+ is the next topic.

Subliminal Audio 

If the mere reading of this topic heading makes you fearful or nervous, just 

skip this section. It isn’t for you. 

It is not possible to distill the data on subliminal audio into one page. Here 

I will only say that after almost 40 years of experimenting on this topic I 

can say: “it works if you want it to.” I am going to repeat that you have to 

want it to work. The scientists say we only use 3% of our brains. I believe 

that statement to say, we only use 3% of our conscious brain. The unconscious 

brain does process a properly prepared subliminal audio tape/ 

CD if it is repeated a sufficient number of times. The human subconscious 

mind is incredibly powerful and will support what it thinks we want. If 

you don’t want subliminal audio to work because you are scared someone 

might try to ‘sell’ you an idea that goes against your beliefs, you can listen 

to a subliminal audio for years on the same topic and you will get nothing 

out of it. 

My experiments with students using subliminal audio and certification 

tests have revealed it is a great aid in studying. It does not replace other 

forms of study. 

The very best results come from making your own tape/CD. If you want to 

try it for yourself, I have an under 1 minute MP3 file at 

http://www.tcat.net. Be sure to download the file and save it locally. (It is 

only 660KB). Copy the test (questions and answers) on the web site, 

glance at the answers sheet, and take the test. Listen to the MP3 file for 

several minutes a day for at least 4 days. Refresh you memory by glancing 

at the answers to the test, put the answers down and re-take the test on a 

blank sheet. Compare your results. If you can fill in the IRQ-I/O chart with 

many more correct answers, you are a good candidate for subliminal audio. 

If you can’t, you aren’t.

Conclusion 

In this guide you have learned: 

Options for free and inexpensive study resources 

Got my thoughts on Security+ 

Been given details on how to find out if subliminal audio is a good study 

aid for you. 

Been given a glossary of terms (which follows) 

This study guide has been created solely for GetCertified4Less by Tcat 

Houser, Security+

Glossary 

(See http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2828.txt for 191 pages of more definations 

and 13 pages of references) 

Access Control 

A method for determining who can access what resources. In most cases this is accomplished 

with an ACL (Access Control List) http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/a/ACL. 

html 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/a/access_control.html 

Refer to DAC 

Access Point (AP) 

The place where access to a network is achieved. Refer to WAP. 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/A/AP.html 

Refer to Access Control. 

ACL (Access Control List). 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/A/ACL.html 

Adhoc mode 

One of two configurations created within wireless networks. Does not use a WAP (Wireless 

Access Point). Refer to WAP. 

http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,289893,sid9_gci213462,00.html 

AH (Authentication Header) 

Used to provide connectionless integrity and did portion authentication for IP data grants, 

and to provide protection against replays". Refer to RFC 2402 

http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid14_gci214037,00.html 

http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/cgi-bin/rfc/rfc2402.html

Algorithm 

Typically a mathematical formula created to generate results 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/a/algorithm.html 

Asymmetric 

Encryption using a public and private key. Contrast this to symmetric which uses only one 

key. In a symmetric encryption one key is used to encode data so it cannot be read, while the 

other key issues to decode the data. Refer to symmetric 


Authentication 

Verifying someone is who they say they are. Refer to Authorization 


Authorization 

Data or objects (printers) a user is authorized to access or use 


Back Orifice Windows 

A program created to gain access to Windows NT/W2K servers to take control. A powerful 

dual-use technology. Back Orifice is a rootkit program. Refer to rootkit. 


Bell -LaPadula 

A security model found in MAC. Users and objects are portioned into different security levels. 

Refer to MAC 

http://www.cs.unc.edu/~dewan/242/f96/notes/prot/node13.html

Biometrics 

A method of authentication based on something you are. Examples include back fingerprint, 

eye scan, & speech recognition 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/b/biometrics.html 

Birthday attack 

A mathematical approach to breaking encryption. It is a quirk of math that when you bring 

23 people into of Rome, a room, but you have doubled the possibility that two of them have 

exactly the same birthday 

http://www.iks-jena.de/mitarb/lutz/security/cryptfaq/q95.html birthday 

Blowfish 

A symmetrical block cipher utilizing 32 to 448 bit cipher keys 


Boot sector 

The portion of the hard disk which points to one or more operating systems. A popular 

point of attack for virus authors 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/M/MBR.html 

Bridge 

A hard were device operating on layer 2 of the OSI model (MAC) which divides a LAN into 

2 segments 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/b/bridge.html 

Brute Force 

An attack method relying on trial and error, working permutations 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/b/brute_force.html

Buffer Overflow 

Delivering more data than the buffer was designed for. A type of DoS attack. Refer to DoS 



CAST (Carlisle Adams Stanford Tavares) 

Symmetric block cipher defined in RFC 2144 

http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/cgi-bin/rfc/rfc2144.html 

Certificate 

A verifying electronic object which authenticates a person, entity, or file. The digital equivalent 

of a notarized signatures Refer to Digital Certificate 

Certificate Authority (CA) 

A body which issues digital certificates, and verifies they are valid 


Chain of custody 

A method of proving integrity of evidence collected 

http://www.4n6links.com/appendix.htm 

Chain of evidence 

The accumulation of proof admissible in court that proves the conclusions of the forensic investigator 

http://www.dis.unimelb.edu.au/staff/atif/AhmadPACIS.pdf

Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol (CHAP) 

More secure than PAP. Uses a one way hash function. Has the ability to re-challenges during 

the session. 

See RFC 1334 Refer to PAP 

http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci213847,00.html 

http://www.faqs.org/rfcs/rfc1334.html 

Confidentiality 

Controlling information so that only those authorized to see the data actually do and no one 

else 

http://www.ifi.uio.no/~abie/security.htm 

Cookie 

A plain text files stored on a client's hard drive and used by a browser. Cookies are used to 

store user preferences and sometime data. Cookie harvesting may give a users credit card 

data or other information away if it is stored in a cookie 


http://help.mindspring.com/docs/005/cookies/CHDDECBH.php3 

Certificate Practice Statement (CPS) 

The policies and practices a certificate authority uses 

https://www.verisign.com/repository/CPS1.1/CPSCH13.HTM 

Certificate Revocation List (CRL) 

The serial numbers of public key certificates that have been revoked 

http://www.entrust.com/resources/glossary.htm#c

Ciphertext 

Text encoded so it cannot be read by unauthorized readers 


Cryptanalysis (Crypto analysis) 

The study of secret code systems aimed at breaking the code without having access to the 

code 


CTL (Certificate Trust List) 

A set predefined items that have been signed by a CA 

http://www.sdsusa.com/dictionary/glossAZ/c.htm#certificatetrustlist 

DAC (Discretionary Access Control) 

A form of control with certain access permissions capable of passing that commission directly 

or indirectly. Refer to MAC RBAC 

http://www.atis.org/tg2k/_discretionary_access_control.html 

Assuring data has not be modified 

Data integrity 

http://searchdatabase.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid13_gci518970,00.html 

DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) 

State of no service to legitimate users of a service such as DNS, email. With more than one 

system attacking a single target. A variation of a DoS because the service is being overloaded 

with bogus requests from multiple sources. Common attacks include: Syn Flood, Teardrop, 

and Smurf 

http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,289893,sid9_gci213591,00.html

DoS (Denial of Service) 

More than one system attacking a single target. A variation of DoS. Refer to DoS 


Dictionary attack 

A series of attempts to crack a password using every possible guess 

http://www.integritysciences.com/glossary.html 

Differential backup 

A backup of all changed files since the last full or archival backup. Refer to Incremental 

backup 

http://inews.webopedia.com/TERM/D/differential_incremental_backup.html 

Diffie-Hellman 

(Also referred to as Exponential key agreement) Allows two systems to exchange a secret key 

without any prior shared secrets 

http://www.rsasecurity.com/rsalabs/faq/3-6-1.html 

Digital certificate 

An electronic form of identification. Includes your name, a serial #, expiration date, and 

your public key 


Digital signature 

An electronic signature which authenticates the signer of a document or sender of a message 


DRP (Disaster Recovery Plan)

The prescribed procedure for dealing with potential disaster 

http://searchsystemsmanagement.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid20_gci752089,00.html

DMZ (DeMilitarized Zone) 

A neutral zone between the public network (Internet) and a firm’s private network 

http://searchwebservices.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid26_gci213891,00.html 

DNS (Domain Name Service) 

The protocol that converts friendly names to IP addresses 


DoS (Denial of Service) 

A condition where an expected service is not available, typically due to an attack. Refer to 

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) 


Eavesdropping 

Listening to a data exchange without being detected. Typically done via covert channels 

http://www.cccure.org/Documents/HISM/404-407.html 

Encryption 

Converting human readable data or text to a form not readable by unauthorized users (cyphertext) 


ESP (Encapsulating Security Payload) RFC 2406 


http://www.unet.univie.ac.at/aix/aixbman/commadmn/ip6_features.htm

Extranet 

A private network utilizing TCP/IP (Internet) protocols that connect firms. Sometimes referred 

to as B2B (Business 2 Business) 


The process of creating prime numbers 

Factoring 

http://www.infosecuritymag.com/articles/1998/julycrypto.shtml 

Firewall 

Hardware or software designed to prevent unauthorized access to or from a private network 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/f/firewall.html 

Forensics 

Recover, analyze and present material recovered from a computer in a manner acceptable to 

a court of law 

http://www.dibsusa.com/methodology/methodology.html#2 

FTP (File Transfer Protocol) 

A method for sending and receiving files via the TCP/IP suite 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/F/FTP.html 

Grandfather-father-son 

A simple tape rotation system. 4 tapes for Monday through Thursday. Four tapes for all Fridays. 

12 tapes for each month 

http://www.pcmag.com/print_article/0,3048,a=29643,00.asp 

http://tutorials.findtutorials.com/read/id/281 

http://www.govst.edu/users/gintern/group4/tape.html

Handshake 

A process which two devices establish a communications system 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/H/handshaking.html 

Hardening 

The process of making digital break-ins more difficult 

http://wssg.berkeley.edu/public/projects/SecurityInfrastructure/reports/ 

SystemHardening/ 

Hash 

Numbers generated from a string of text. Refer to MD5 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/h/hashing.html 

Hijacking Refer to MITM (Man In The Middle) 

http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/ateQuestionNResponse/0,289625, 

sid14_cid487139_tax285453,00.html 

HMAC (Keyed-Hash Message Authentication Code) 

Message authentication using cryptographic hash functions. RFC 2104 


http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/drafts/dfips-HMAC.pdf 

Hoax 

Any act, document or other object created to deceive 

http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/glossary/bldef-hoax.htm

HoneyPot 

A decoy system created to slow or stop potential malicious hackers created to deliver false 

data 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/H/honeypot.html 

Hostile code 

Programming created to circumvent proper and secure operations of a system 

http://membrane.com/security/java_and_cookies/notes/mobile_code_malware.html 

Hot fix 

A Microsoft term for bug fixes before formal service paks are released 

http://www.entmag.com/news/article.asp?EditorialsID=5165 

HTTP (Hyper Text Transport Protocol) 

The protocol that makes the World Wide Web operate. Utilizes port 80 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/H/HTTP.html 

HTTPS (Hyper Text Transport Protocol over Secure Sockets Layer) 

Combines the Netscape created protocol to create web pages in a secure manner. By default 

HTTPS uses port 443 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/SSL.html 

IDS (Intrusion Detection System) 

IDS comes in two forms: host based and network based. They can be passive or active in nature. 

They are designed to detect suspicious activity on a system 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/i/intrusion_detection_system.html 

http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/tip/1,289483,sid14_gci850706,00.html

IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force) 

An open group creating standards to evolve the Internet 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/I/IETF.html 

http://www.imc.org/novice-ietf.html 

Illicit server 

A program designed to gain unauthorized access and control by bypassing standard authentication 

procedures. NetBus is an example 

http:// ] www.zurich.ibm.com/security/publications/1995/Hauser95b.ps.gz

Internet 

A network connecting other networks. AKA Internetwork 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/I/Internet.html 

http://www.webopedia.com/DidYouKnow/Internet/2002/Web_vs_Internet.asp 

Intranet 

An internal network that utilizes the same protocols as the Internet 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/i/intranet.html 

IP spoofing 

Unauthorized access to a system created by modifying the IP information in the source portion 

of an IP datagram 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/I/IP_spoofing.html 

IPSec (IP Security Protocol) 

A set of standards (protocols) to support secure communication in the IP layer (Network 

layer) 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/I/IPsec.html 

http://docs.real.com/docs/xingtech/sevenlayer_osi.pdf 

Issuing Authority (IA) 

The part of a Certificate Authority that issues, suspends or revokes a certificate 


Kerberos 

An authentication system that does not let the users’ password transverse the network 

http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid14_gci212437,00.html

L2F (Layer 2 Forwarding) 

A tunneling protocol developed by Cisco because they didn't like the design of PPTP Refer 

to L2TP, PPTP 

http://sunsite.cnlab-switch.ch/ftp/doc/standard/rfc/23xx/2341 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/L/Layer_Two_Forwarding.html 

L2TP (Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol) 

A tunneling protocol that combines the best features of PPTP and L2F 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/L/L2TP.html 

http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2661.txt 

Lattice 

A security model broken down by department and public or private 

http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/modules/2000-01/csc331/ notes/Security%20Models.pdf 

LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) 

A protocol enabling the location of people or resources. A subset of X.500 


Level 0 Backup 

Unix/Linux references to the command DUMP which copies data to tape. 0 Means a full 

backup 

http://www.tldp.org/LDP/solrhe/Securing-Optimizing-Linux-RH-Edition-v1.3/backdump.html 

Logic Bomb 

A program that executes creating damage when certain conditions are met. Example, the 

programmers name fails to show up in payroll data


A backdoor program 

http://www.itsecurity.com/papers/p37.htm 

Loki 

MAC (Mandatory Access Control) 

A security model that is not optional and everything gets a label. The Bell LaPadula model 

http://www.cs.unc.edu/~dewan/242/f96/notes/prot/node13.html 

Man In The Middle (MITM) 

Occurs when an attacker intercepts packets and retransmits them after modification 


A Trojan program 

http://www.hackfix.org/miscfix/mp.shtml 

Masters Paradise 

MD5 (Message Digest 5) 

Rivest (The R in RSA) developed this algorithm to create a one-way hash function that can 

be used to verify the digital string (program, data) has not been altered. Programs such as 

Tripwire rely on MD5 

http://theory.lcs.mit.edu/~rivest/Rivest-MD5.txt 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/M/md5.html 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/M/md5.html

M of N Control 

A private key is broken up into an algorithm to M number of holders. N is a % that must 

come together to restore a lost private key 

http://www.rsasecurity.com/products/keon/datasheets/dskeonkrm.html 

MSCHAP (Microsoft CHAP) 

A stronger version of CHAP. Server stores the hash rather than the plaintext password 

http://www.cryptoapps.com/~peter/part4.pdf 

NAT (Network Address Translation) 

Using a private IP range for internal traffic and public address (es) for external communication 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/N/NAT.html 

NetBus 

A famous backdoor program (illicit server) 

http://www.nwinternet.com/~pchelp/nb/netbus.htm 

http://www.hackfix.org/netbusfix/ 

Netcat 

*nix utility which reads and writes data across network connections, using TCP or UDP protocols 

http://rr.sans.org/audit/netcat.php 

Refer to stiffing 

Network sniffing

NMAP/NMAPWin 

A network port scanner with O/S detection 

http://www.insecure.org/nmap/ 

http://www.nmapwin.org/ 

Non-essential services 

A security hole left open via unneeded services 

http://mandrake.petra.ac.id:8888/info/max/BkPg155x32.htm 

Cannot be denied 

Non-repudiation 

http://cert.uni-stuttgart.de/archive/usenet/comp.security.misc/2002/07/msg00424.html 


Packet sniffing 

Think wire tapping for network traffic 

http://www.surasoft.com/tut/packsniffing.htm 

Pad 

To fill put characters in empty space to fill a required length 

http://inews.webopedia.com/TERM/P/pad_character.html 

PAP (Password Authentication Protocol) 

Name and password are transmitted and checked against a table of authorized users. Done 

in clear text. Refer to CHAP 

http://inews.webopedia.com/TERM/P/PAP.html

PAT (Port Address Translation) 

Used in conjunction with NAT. Each computer on the private side is translated to a single 

public IP address, and is given a different port assignment to keep requests correctly mapped 

http://inews.webopedia.com/TERM/P/PAT.html 

An interim fix to an error in a program 

Patch 

http://inews.webopedia.com/TERM/p/patch.html 

PBX (Private Branch Exchange) 

A mini telephone system with more internal users (extensions) than outside lines 

http://inews.webopedia.com/TERM/P/PBX.html 

PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) 

An encryption system based on the Public/Private key system 

http://inews.webopedia.com/TERM/P/Pretty_Good_Privacy.html 

A type of DoS. Refer to DoS 

Ping Of Death 


http://ftp.arl.mil/~mike/ping.html 

PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) 

A registration authority for authenticating the validity of each party in a transaction 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/P/PKI.html

Polymorphic 

A characteristic of some viruses which makes them 'look' different, making the virus more 

difficult to detect 

http://hostingworks.com/support/dict.phtml?foldoc=polymorphism 

http://www.computeruser.com/resources/dictionary/definition.html?lookup=5288 

Port scanner 

The process of reviewing a host for ports 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/P/port_scanning.html 

PPP (Point To Point Protocol) 

How computer connect, as opposed to the older SLIP protocol. Operates in Layer 2 (Data 

Link) layer of the OSI model 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/P/PPP.html 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/SLIP.html 

PPTP (Point to Point Tunneling Protocol) 

Developed by Microsoft and U.S Robotics to create tunneling (secure) connections as opposed 

to direct dial (toll) calls. PPTP uses Port 1723 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/P/PPTP.html 

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;EN-US;q164601& 

Private key 

An encryption key known only to the owner Refer to asymmetric, public key, PKI 


Process list 

The task manager in Windows, or the ps command in *nix. Trojan horse programs attempt 

to hide from these commands 

http://www.bsu.edu/ucs/article/0,1299,6313~4489~1985,00.html 

http://www.uwsg.iu.edu/usail/external/recommended/Xsecure.html 

Public key 

The key that is used to decode messages sent by an owner of a private key or can be used to 

encode a message to a owner of a private key. Refer to Asymmetric, PKI, private key 


RAS (Remote Access Server) 

Used a remote connection (such as a modem) to connect to a network. Supports different 

transport protocols. MS-Chap can authentic a user and re-challenge during the session 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/R/RAS.html 

http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/rras/rras/ 

rassecuritydialogbegin.asp 

RBAC (Role Based Access Control) 

Security procedures that are based on organization-specific protection guidelines 

http://www.securecomputing.com/pdf/rbac.pdf 

http://hissa.ncsl.nist.gov/rbac/paper/rbac1.html 

Radius (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service) 

Allows remote access after authenticating via a central server. Refer to TACACS 


RC5 (Rivest Cipher 5) 

A popular block cipher algorithm 

http://www.rsasecurity.com/rsalabs/faq/3-6-4.html 

Replay attack 

An attack on an authentication system by recording and replaying previously sent valid messages 

(or parts of messages). 


Reverse DNS 

Reverse DNS lookup is using an Internet IP address to find a domain name. May be helpful 

to authenticate incoming connections 

http://www.whitehats.ca/main/members/Jeff/jeff_dns_security/jeff_dns_security.html 

Reverse engineering 

The process of analyzing functions of an existing objects and improves or duplicates the process 

http://www.computerworld.com/softwaretopics/software/appdev/story/0,10801,65532,00. 

html 

http://citeseer.nj.nec.com/guha96network.html 

Canceling credentials. Refer to CRL 

Revocation 

Risk assessment 

The process of determining security costs compared to threats 

http://www.security-risk-analysis.com/introduction.htm

Rootkit 

Provides access to a computer system via a 'back door'. 


Router 

A device that connects X number of LANs using the network layer (layer 3) data. Unlike a 

bridge which is limited to 2 LANs 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/r/router.html 

RSA (Rivest Shamir Adleman) 

Creators of the RC block ciphers 

http://www.rsasecurity.com/company/corporate.html 


RSBAC (Rule Set Based Access Control) 

Allows MAC implementation on Linux. Refer to MAC. 

http://www.imagineers.nl/RSBAC/articles/html/A1/en/x117.htm 

FTP made secure using SSL Refer to SSL 

http://www.glub.com/products/secureftp/ 

S/FTP 

S-HTTP 

A secure form of HTTP which has fallen out of favor for HTTPS 

http://www.homeport.org/~adam/shttp.html

S/MIME (Secure Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) 

Describes how encryption information and a digital certificate can be included as part of the 

message body using RSA public/private keys 


SAM 1. (Security Accounts Manager) 2. (Sequential Access Method) 

http://www.telemark.net/~randallg/ntsecure.htm 

http://search390.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid10_gci214626,00.html 

Refer to port scanning 

Scanner 

Secret key AKA Shared Secret Key 

Uses the same key to both encrypt and decrypt data. Generally speaking the shared secret 

must be sent by a different channel than the encrypted data. DES is an example 


Security Audit 

Review of standards to ensure confidentially and detect shortcomings 

http://www.its.bldrdoc.gov/projects/devglossary/_security_audit.html 

Security policy 

The structure for a number of sub-topics including acceptable use policy, incident response 

http://www-1.ibm.com/services/security/polspec.html

Session Key 

An encryption key which is unique to a session and may change during the session 

http://www.atis.org/tg2k/_session_key.html 

SHA (Secure Hashing Algorithm) 

SHA-1 is the official NIST standard for a data hashing algorithm and the MD5 is widely 

used for Internet applications 



http://csrc.nist.gov/encryption/tkhash.html 

http://www.itl.nist.gov/fipspubs/fip180-1.htm 

(SSO) Single Sign-On 

a single action of user authentication and authorization can permit a user to access all computers 

and systems where he has access permission, without the need to enter multiple passwords 

http://www.opengroup.org/security/sso/ 

http://www.techweb.com/tech/security/20020717_security 

SLIP (Serial Line Internet Protocol) 

a now outdated protocol for communications between 2 TCP/IP based hosts 


Smart Card 

A hardware device that contains data or used to generate a network ID. Refer to Token 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/smart_card.html

SMTP (Simple Message Transfer Protocol) 

Capable of sending or receiving email, it is typically used for sending only and uses port 25 as 

a standard 


SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) 

Is a collection of network management stations and network elements 

http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid7_gci214221,00.html 


Smurf 

A form of a spoof attack. By broadcasting a ping with a false address a site can experience a 

DoS due to overwhelm 

http://www.cert.org/advisories/CA-1998-01.html 

Snapshot backup 

Provide backups that are an image copy created instantly at a point in time without forcing 

users to close files for the backup 

http://storagemagazine.techtarget.com/strgFeature/0,291266,sid35_gci828732,00.html 

The digital equivalent to wiretapping 

Sniffing 

http://www.surasoft.com/tut/packsniffing.htm 

Social engineering 

An intrusion that relies on human interaction instead of technical vulnerabilities 


Spam 

Formal name: UCE (Unsolicited Commercial Email). A form of bulk electronic email that 

consumes both technical and human resources 

http://searchsystemsmanagement.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid20_gci213031,00.html 

SSH (Secure Shell) 

A method for secure access to a remote computer 


Stealth ports 

Ports which are open (therefore vulnerable) its existence being known 


Sub Seven 

A backdoor similar to NetBus or Back Orifice 

http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/backdoor.subseven.html 

Switch 

Similar to a hub however it learns MAC addresses of connected devices and creates a virtual 

circuit. IDS needs a tap to work on a switched network 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/s/switch.html 

An upcoming protocol 

SWP (Secure WLAN Protocol) 

http://www.infoworld.com/articles/hn/xml/02/04/19/020419hnfunk.xml

Symmetric 

Encryption which uses the same key (shared secret). Refer to asymmetric 


SYN flood 

Making requests using the TCP 3-way handshake faster than a resource can support them. A 

type of DoS attack 

http://www.iss.net/security_center/advice/Exploits/TCP/SYN_flood/default.htm 

TACACS (Terminal Access Controller Access Control System) 

An older protocol for remote access TACACS+ is not compatible with TACACS 



http://www.networkcomputing.com/902/902ws1.html 

Teardrop 

A DoS attack made by adjusting the fragment offset in a packet 


http://nw.uwplatt.edu/is/oit/network/reference/terms/d.html 

http://www.camtp.uni-mb.si/books/Internet-Book/IP_TeardropAttack.html 

TLS (Transport Layer Security) 

A communications privacy protocol. An update to SSL that is backwards compatible to SSL. 

Refer to SSL 

http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2246.txt 

http://www.ietf.org/html.charters/tls-charter.html

Token 

A device that creates changing ID codes on a network. Similar to a Smart Card. Refer to 

Smart Card 


http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/t/token.html 

Tower of Hanoi 

A tape backup rotation method that uses each tape a different number of times 

http://www.govst.edu/users/gintern/group4/tape.html 

Trojan Horse 

Malicious code pretending to be something benign 


Refer to CTL 

Trust List 

Tunneling 

Creating a private encrypted communication channel through a public network such as the 

Internet 


Virus 

Software code ranging from annoying to destructive and self-replicating. May be a macro virus, 

a virus that destroys the information in the boot sector of a drive or other form 


VLAN (Virtual Local Area Network) 

A local area network not based in geography. Computers spread across a large distance yet 

still on the same sub-network 


VPN (Virtual Private Network) 

Creating a private network within a public network using encryption. Refer to VLAN 


WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) 

A specification providing for weak encryption of data communications on radio links 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/WAP.html 

Secret key cipher with poor encryption 

http://www.x5.net/faqs/crypto/q60.html 

Weak keys 

http://www.cs.bris.ac.uk/Teaching/Resources/ COMS30124/Lectures/Part_III.pdf 

WEP (Wired Equivalent Protection/Privacy) 

A security protocol for wireless networking. The shared secret RC4 algorithm was not designed 

with the 'lossy' nature of radio-based network 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/WEP.html 

Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) 802.11x 

A standard for wireless networking for competing manufactures to adhere to for compatibility 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/Wi_Fi.html

WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) 

A LAN that uses radio instead of physical cable 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/WLAN.html 

Worm 

Similar to a virus however it is designed to run over a network and consume network resources 

http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/reference/worm.vs.virus.pdf 

WTLS (Wireless Transport Layer Security) 

An umbrella term for secure protocols used in wireless networks 

http://www.advisor.com/Articles.nsf/aid/MIKAP001 

X.500 

Specifications for a global directory standard. LDAP is a sub-set of X.500 

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/X/X_500.html 

X.509 V2/V3 

The specifications for digital certificates. Current version is 3, however the way the standards 

were written, certificated destruction is still based in Version 2

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