Encryption
The process of converting data into a coded form that can only be read by someone with the correct decryption key.
Encryption protects data both at rest (stored on disk) and in transit (moving across a network), so that even if an attacker intercepts or steals it, the data itself remains unreadable without the key. Strong encryption is a baseline expectation under NIS2, GDPR, ISO 27001, and PCI DSS alike, and is one of the few controls that can render a stolen dataset effectively worthless to an attacker.
Data Loss Prevention (DLP)
Tools and policies that detect and block sensitive data from leaving an organization's control, whether by accident or theft.
DLP systems monitor email, file transfers, cloud uploads, and removable media for patterns matching sensitive data (like credit card numbers, health records, or classified documents) and can block, quarantine, or flag transfers that violate policy. It addresses both accidental leaks (an employee emailing a spreadsheet to the wrong address) and deliberate exfiltration.
24/7 SOC Monitoring & MDR →Backup and Recovery
Maintaining copies of data separate from production systems, and the process of restoring from them after data loss or a ransomware attack.
Effective backup strategy typically follows the '3-2-1' principle: three copies of data, on two different media types, with one copy offline or immutable. That offline/immutable copy matters specifically because ransomware routinely targets connected backups first, encrypting or deleting them before encrypting production data, to remove the victim's ability to recover without paying.
Ransomware Detection & Response →Firewall
A network security device or software that monitors and filters incoming and outgoing traffic based on defined security rules.
Firewalls sit at the boundary between trusted and untrusted networks (or between network segments) and block traffic that doesn't match allowed rules. Modern 'next-generation' firewalls go beyond basic port/protocol filtering to inspect traffic content, application behavior, and known threat signatures, but a firewall alone doesn't stop threats that arrive through allowed channels, like a phishing email or a compromised software update.
Endpoint Protection (EDR) →VPN (Virtual Private Network)
A service that encrypts internet traffic and routes it through a secure tunnel, hiding it from anyone on the local network.
VPNs are commonly used to secure remote employee connections back to corporate resources, or to protect traffic on untrusted networks like public Wi-Fi. Traditional corporate VPNs typically grant broad access to the internal network once connected, which is why many organizations are shifting toward ZTNA, which grants narrower, per-application access instead.
Endpoint Protection (EDR) →Network Segmentation
Dividing a network into smaller, isolated zones so that a breach in one segment can't automatically spread to others.
A flat, unsegmented network lets an attacker who compromises one device move freely to reach anything else connected to it. Segmentation restricts that lateral movement by placing barriers, such as firewalls or VLANs, between zones (like separating guest Wi-Fi, office IT, and production OT systems), so a compromise in one zone stays contained rather than spreading network-wide.
Patch Management
The process of identifying, testing, and deploying software updates that fix known security vulnerabilities.
Patch management is deceptively hard at scale: it means tracking what software and versions run across every device, prioritizing which fixes matter most (based on active exploitation, not just severity score), testing patches don't break production systems, and confirming they're actually deployed. Unpatched, publicly known vulnerabilities remain one of the most common ways attackers gain initial access, despite fixes already existing.
24/7 SOC Monitoring & MDR →Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)
Tools that continuously scan cloud environments for misconfigurations, like publicly exposed storage buckets, that create security risk.
Cloud misconfiguration, not a sophisticated exploit, is one of the leading causes of cloud data breaches, since a single wrong permission setting can expose an entire database to the public internet. CSPM tools continuously audit cloud environments against security best practices and compliance frameworks, flagging drift as new resources are spun up, which happens constantly in fast-moving cloud environments.
24/7 SOC Monitoring & MDR →OT/ICS Security
Security practices tailored to operational technology and industrial control systems, which run production, utility, and physical infrastructure.
Operational Technology (OT) and Industrial Control Systems (ICS) run physical processes (manufacturing lines, utilities, building systems) and often can't be patched or monitored the way office IT can, since downtime or a misbehaving agent can halt physical operations. OT/ICS security typically relies more on network segmentation and passive monitoring than on standard endpoint agents.
24/7 SOC Monitoring & MDR →DMARC
An email authentication standard that tells receiving mail servers what to do with messages that fail sender-verification checks.
DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance) builds on SPF and DKIM to let a domain owner specify how unauthenticated email claiming to be from their domain should be handled: quarantined, rejected, or allowed with reporting. Properly configured DMARC significantly reduces the effectiveness of email spoofing used in phishing and business email compromise.
Phishing Training →Vulnerability Management
The ongoing process of identifying, prioritizing, and remediating security weaknesses across an organization's systems.
Vulnerability management is continuous, not a one-time scan: it involves regularly scanning systems for known weaknesses, prioritizing them by real-world exploitability and business impact (not just a raw severity score), and tracking remediation through to completion. Unpatched, known vulnerabilities remain one of the most common ways attackers gain initial access.
24/7 SOC Monitoring & MDR →Penetration Testing
An authorized, simulated attack against a system to find exploitable weaknesses before a real attacker does.
Penetration testing ('pen testing') is performed by security professionals under an explicit scope and authorization agreement, attempting to exploit weaknesses the way a real attacker would, then reporting findings with remediation guidance. It differs from vulnerability scanning by actually attempting exploitation rather than just flagging theoretical weaknesses.
Attack Surface
The complete set of points where an unauthorized user could try to enter or extract data from a system.
The attack surface includes every exposed device, application, API, user account, and third-party connection, anywhere an attacker could potentially gain a foothold. It grows with every new cloud service, remote employee, IoT device, and vendor integration, which is why attack surface management (continuously discovering and inventorying what's actually exposed) has become its own discipline.
24/7 SOC Monitoring & MDR →Shadow IT
Software, devices, or cloud services used within an organization without the knowledge or approval of the IT/security team.
Shadow IT usually starts innocently, an employee signs up for a free cloud tool to solve an immediate problem, but it means data flows through a system the security team can't monitor, patch, or include in incident response. It's grown substantially with the ease of signing up for cloud SaaS tools with just a credit card, and it directly enlarges the attack surface in ways that don't show up in official asset inventories.
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)
A policy allowing employees to use their personal phones, laptops, or tablets to access company data and systems.
BYOD reduces hardware costs and is often more convenient for employees, but it means company data lives on devices the organization doesn't fully control, often mixed with personal apps and accounts. Managing BYOD risk typically requires mobile device management (MDM) tools that can enforce encryption and remote wipe on the business data specifically, without controlling the entire personal device.
Endpoint Protection (EDR) →CVE (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures)
A standardized, unique identifier assigned to a publicly known software vulnerability, used as a common reference across the security industry.
A CVE ID (formatted like CVE-2024-12345) lets security teams, vendors, and tools all refer to the exact same vulnerability unambiguously, instead of relying on inconsistent descriptions. Each CVE entry is typically paired with a CVSS severity score, and patch management programs use CVE feeds to identify which known, publicly disclosed vulnerabilities need addressing in an environment.
24/7 SOC Monitoring & MDR →