GISP flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

ALE formula

Annualized Loss Expectancy equals Single Loss Expectancy multiplied by Annualized Rate of Occurrence; SLE is asset value times exposure factor. It supports quantitative risk decisions.

Due care vs due diligence

Due care is the action taken to meet a duty of care; due diligence is the ongoing verification and investigation that informs those actions. Both are required to demonstrate reasonable protection.

RTO versus RPO

Recovery Time Objective is the maximum acceptable downtime before a process must be restored; Recovery Point Objective is the maximum acceptable data loss measured in time.

Residual risk

The risk that remains after controls are applied. It must be documented and formally accepted by an accountable business owner, not silently ignored.

STRIDE threat categories

Spoofing, Tampering, Repudiation, Information disclosure, Denial of service, and Elevation of privilege. Each maps to a violated security property and suggests specific mitigations.

Data classification purpose

Classification assigns sensitivity labels such as public, internal, confidential, and restricted. It drives handling, labeling, retention, access, and encryption requirements consistently.

Data remanence on SSDs

Residual data left after deletion. Degaussing does not erase flash memory; use cryptographic erasure, overwriting tools designed for SSDs, or physical destruction.

Data owner versus custodian

The owner is accountable for classification and protection decisions; the custodian implements and operates the technical controls. Users must follow handling rules.

Data states

Data exists at rest (stored, protected by encryption), in transit (moving, protected by TLS or IPsec), and in use (being processed, protected by memory safeguards).

Tokenization scope reduction

Replacing sensitive values with non-sensitive tokens so systems handling tokens fall outside regulated scope, reducing compliance obligations and breach impact.

Bell-LaPadula model

A confidentiality model with no read up and no write down. Subjects cannot read higher-classified data or write to lower levels, preventing leakage.

Biba integrity model

An integrity model with no read down and no write up. It prevents subjects from reading less trustworthy data or corrupting higher-integrity data.

Reference monitor properties

The reference monitor must be tamper-proof, always invoked on every access, and verifiable. It mediates all subject-to-object access within the trusted computing base.

AES-GCM mode

An authenticated encryption mode providing confidentiality and integrity in one pass. It detects tampering and avoids the pattern leakage of ECB mode.

Digital signature construction

A hash of the message encrypted with the sender's private key. The receiver verifies with the public key, giving integrity, authenticity, and non-repudiation.

Common Criteria EAL

Evaluation Assurance Levels EAL1 through EAL7 describe increasing depth of assurance testing. The Protection Profile states requirements; the Security Target describes the evaluated product.

IPsec AH versus ESP

AH provides integrity and authentication without confidentiality; ESP provides confidentiality plus integrity. Tunnel mode protects gateways; transport mode protects hosts.

DNSSEC purpose

It signs DNS records so resolvers can verify authenticity and integrity of responses, preventing cache poisoning. It does not encrypt queries or provide confidentiality.

Stateful versus stateless firewall

A stateless packet filter evaluates each packet independently; a stateful firewall tracks connection state and permits return traffic for established sessions.

Network segmentation benefit

Dividing networks into zones, VLANs, and DMZs limits lateral movement after compromise and constrains which systems can reach regulated data.

WPA3 SAE

Simultaneous Authentication of Equals replaces the WPA2 pre-shared key handshake, resisting offline dictionary attacks and providing forward secrecy.

Crossover error rate

The biometric threshold where false acceptance rate equals false rejection rate. A lower CER indicates a more accurate biometric system.

OAuth 2.0 versus OpenID Connect

OAuth 2.0 delegates authorization to access resources; OpenID Connect adds an authentication layer with an ID token built on OAuth 2.0.

RBAC versus ABAC

Role-based access control grants permissions by job role; attribute-based access control evaluates attributes of user, resource, action, and context for finer-grained decisions.

Salted password hashing

Adding a unique random salt per password before hashing with bcrypt, PBKDF2, or Argon2 prevents rainbow-table and precomputed cracking across identical passwords.

SAST versus DAST

Static analysis inspects source or bytecode without running the application; dynamic analysis tests the running application from outside. Each finds different vulnerability classes.

Penetration test rules of engagement

A documented agreement covering scope, targets, timing, permitted techniques, escalation contacts, and legal authorization. It must be signed before testing begins.

SOC 2 Type II

An independent attestation covering the design and operating effectiveness of controls over a period, unlike Type I which reports design at a point in time.

Incident response phases

Preparation, detection and analysis, containment, eradication and recovery, then post-incident activity. Evidence handling must maintain chain of custody throughout.

Backup types

Full copies all data; incremental copies changes since the last backup of any type; differential copies changes since the last full backup. Restore speed and storage differ.

Order of volatility

Collect evidence from most to least volatile: CPU and cache, memory, network state, disk, then backups and archives. Hash and document every step.

Injection mitigation

Use parameterized queries or prepared statements and validate input server-side. Output encoding is context-specific and prevents cross-site scripting.