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As if integrators don’t have enough to worry about when it comes to installing new technologies for clients, they have to worry about the omnipresent threat of cyberattacks as well.

Cyberattacks have been on the rise in recent years and have only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. A recent study from HP determined global cyberattacks have risen 238% since the onset of the pandemic.

“As the lines between work and home have blurred, security risks have soared and everyday actions such as opening an attachment can have serious consequences,” says Joanna Burkey, chief information security officer (CISO), HP Inc. “Without all of the pre-pandemic sources of visibility of devices, and how they are being used and by who, IT and security teams are working with clouded vision.”

This particular sentiment can clearly be applied to many K-12 and college students in 2020 and 2021 as most were learning remotely at some point, relying on technology for their education and making them prime targets. In the 2020 calendar year, there was a record-breaking 408 publicly-disclosed cybersecurity incidents at K-12 schools, according to the K-12 Security Information Exchange. In the last year, there were 1,332 cybersecurity incidents at educational institutions, says Verizon’s 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report.

As for healthcare organizations in the U.S., according to a Dec. 2020 report, more than 90% reported at least one cybersecurity breach over the last three years. In 2020, the average cost of a data breach in the healthcare industry hit $7.13 million — 84% more than the global average of $3.86 million.

Overall, cybersecurity is extremely complex, and along with that complexity comes a plethora of terminologies. For someone not involved in day-to-day cybersecurity activities or who may be new to the  industry, these terms can be overwhelming. Because of this, we thought it would be helpful to pull together an overview of terms you’ll see or hear when engaging in cybersecurity content or discussions, and the differences between the most common types of cyberattacks.

We’ll also provide some information on how different types of cyberattacks are continuing to affect K-12, higher education, and healthcare campuses.

General Cybersecurity Terms

• IP address: Each computer has a unique Internet Protocol (IP) address, which consists of a set of numbers. The set of numbers is a language that computers use to communicate with each other over a network. IP addresses allow any number of internet-connected computers to be distinguished from other computers. Blue Host compares it to calling someone on the phone — everyone has a unique phone number, and you have to dial that number to reach someone.
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  Source: https://www.cepro.com/security/basic-cybersecurity-terms-definitions-integrators-should-know/