Glossary of Terms
bit – A bit is a binary digit. It is one digit in a base 2 number. It can have one of two values. These value are usually represented by the numbers zero (0) and one (1).
IP – The Internet Protocol is a language computers use to communicate through networks. These networks can be within one machine, they can span the globe, and they reach as far as satellites including to the International Space Station.
IP Address – The address of a machine on a network. (we are limiting this to networks which route IP versions 4 or 6, because that includes most modern networks.) While an IP address is actually just a string of bits (either 32 or 128 digits long), IP addresses are usually represented in one of two ways, either as four base 10 numbers from 0 to 255 separated by periods “.” or as eight hexadecimal numbers from 0 to FFFF separated by colons “:”.
MFA – Multi Factor Authentication: the use of multiple “factors” for authenticating an account. Factors can include many different items. Typically one factor is a password while another factor would be something other than a password, for instance a phone number or an App which generates 6 digit numbers. Having multiple factors is usually intended to provide authentication using “what you have” and “what you know”. You might have your phone and you might know your password. These could be used as multiple factors.
Risk – Risk can be broken down and described in many different ways, but at is most basic form Risk is the combination of two things, the adversity of any outcome and the probability of that outcome.