Information Security: Definitions

Definitions of a few more basic security-related concepts:

Vulnerability	An existing flaw or weakness in a computer system
Threat (n.)	A scenario of potential harm to a system
Attack (n.)	(Also: a Breach) An action of harming a system
Exploit (n.)	A tool (e.g., software) that misuses a vulnerability to attack a system
Control (n.)	(Also: a Security Patch) An action or tool that removes or reduces a vulnerability

• A threat is materialized when a person exploits a vulnerability, thereby attacking the system.
• To prevent this from happening, an InfoSec specialist would implement a control that remedies the vulnerability and thereby blocks the threat.