National strategy for the protection of Switzerland against cyber risks 2018-2022 7 Glossary Cyber attack Cyber risks Cybercrime Cyberspace Cyber sabotage Cyber espionage Cyber defence Cyber incident Critical infrastructures Resilience Cyber security Intentional, unauthorised act of a person or group in cyberspace to compromise the integrity, confidentiality or availability of information and data; depending on the type of attack, this may also have physical effects. The product of the probability of occurrence and the extent of damage caused by cyber incidents. Cybercrime in a narrower sense refers to criminal offences committed with the help of information and communication technologies (ICT) or that exploit the vulnerabilities of these technologies. These criminal activities are new and only possible because of these technologies. Cybercrime in a broader sense uses the internet as a means of communication, abusing opportunities such as email traffic or the exchange or provision of files for harmful purposes. These criminal activities are not new, but the means of perpetration or storage media used (email, WhatsApp, Snapchat, Instagram, Telegram and electronic data carriers instead of paper, cloud services, etc.) are new. The entirety of information and communication infrastructures (hardware and software) that exchange, collect, store or process data or convert data into (physical) actions, and the interactions between individuals, organisations and states made possible as a result. Activities aiming to disrupt or destroy the reliable and errorfree functioning of information and communication infrastructures in cyberspace; depending on the type of sabotage, this can also have physical effects. Activities for gaining unauthorised access to protected information in cyberspace for political, military or economic purposes. The entirety of intelligence and military measures leading to the disruption, suppression or slowing down of cyber attacks, serving to identify authorship, ensuring the operational readiness of the Armed Forces in all situations, and serving to build capacities and capabilities for subsidiary support of civilian authorities. An intentional or unintentional event which, in cyberspace, results in a process that may adversely affect the integrity, confidentiality or availability of data and information and may lead to malfunctions. Processes, systems and facilities that are essential for the functioning of the economy and the welfare of the population. The ability of a system, organisation or society to withstand disruptions and to maintain functionality to the extent possible or to restore such functionality quickly. Desirable state within cyberspace in which communication and data exchange between information and communication infrastructures function as originally intended. This state is achieved with measures of information security and cyber defence. 30

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