Browse Definitions by Alphabet

content-addressed storage (CAS) - Content-addressed storage (CAS) -- also called content-addressable storage -- is a method for storing fixed content as objects and providing fast access to that content.
context menu (right-click menu) - A context menu is a pop-up menu that provides shortcuts for actions the software developer anticipates the user might want to take.
context switch - A context switch is an operation that a computer's central processing unit (CPU) carries out when alternating between processes or threads while ensuring that the processes do not conflict.
context window - A context window is a textual range around a target token that a large language model (LLM) can process at the time the information is generated.
contextual marketing - Contextual marketing is an online marketing strategy model in which people are served with targeted advertising based on their search terms or their recent browsing behavior.
contingency budget (cost contingency) - Contingency, in the context of project management, is an amount of money that is included to cover potential events that are not specifically accounted for in a cost estimate.
contingency plan - A contingency plan is a course of action designed to help an organization respond effectively to a significant future incident, event or situation that may or may not happen.
contingent workforce - A contingent workforce is a labor pool whose members are hired by an organization on an on-demand basis.
continual service improvement - Continual service improvement (CSI) is a method to identify and execute opportunities to improve IT processes and services, and to objectively measure the effects of these efforts over time.
Continuity of Care Document (CCD) - A Continuity of Care Document (CCD) is an electronic, patient-specific document detailing a patient's medical history.
Continuity of Care Record (CCR) - The Continuity of Care Record, or CCR, provides a standardized way to create electronic snapshots about a patient's health information.
continuous authentication - Continuous authentication is a method of verification aimed at providing identity confirmation and cybersecurity protection on an ongoing basis.
continuous delivery (CD) - Continuous delivery (CD) is an approach for software delivery in which development teams produce and test code in short but continuous cycles to improve software quality.
continuous deployment - Continuous deployment is a strategy for software development and releases in which every code change is automatically run through a pipeline of tests and inspections before being pushed into production.
continuous learning - Continuous learning is the ongoing expansion of knowledge and skill sets.
continuous performance management - Continuous performance management, in a human resource (HR) management context, is the supervision of an employee's performance through one-on-one discussions and ongoing feedback from supervisors during regularly scheduled check-ins.
continuous quality - Continuous quality is a systematic approach to finding and fixing software defects during all phases of the software development cycle.
control framework - A control framework is a data structure that organizes and categorizes an organization’s internal controls, which are practices and procedures established to create business value and minimize risk.
control loop - A control loop is a system made up of all the hardware components and software control functions needed for the measurement and adjustment of a variable that controls an individual process.
control plane (CP) - The control plane is the part of a network that carries signaling traffic and is responsible for network routing.
control system - A control system is a set of mechanical or electronic devices that regulates other devices or systems by way of control loops.
controller (computing) - A controller, in a computing context, is a hardware device or a software program that manages or directs the flow of data between two entities.
ControlUp - ControlUp is a monitoring software company that sells tools IT professionals can use to manage, monitor and analyze virtual desktop and application performance.
CONUS (continental United States) - Refers to the continental United States.
converged infrastructure - Converged infrastructure, sometimes called 'converged architecture,' is an approach to data center management that packages compute, networking, servers, storage and virtualization tools into a prequalified set of IT hardware.
converged network adapter (CNA) - A converged network adapter (CNA) is a single network interface device that provides the functionality of both a Fibre Channel (FC) host bus adapter (HBA) and a TCP/IP Ethernet network interface card (NIC).
conversational marketing - Conversational marketing is marketing that engages customers through dialogue.
conversion rate optimization - In online marketing, conversion rate optimization (CRO) is a strategic approach to increasing the percentage of website visitors who follow a desired call to action.
convolutional neural network (CNN) - A convolutional neural network (CNN) is a category of machine learning model, namely a type of deep learning algorithm well suited to analyzing visual data.
cookie - A cookie is information that a website puts on a user's computer.
cookie poisoning - Cookie poisoning is a type of cyber attack in which a bad actor hijacks, forges, alters or manipulates a cookie to gain unauthorized access to a user's account, open a new account in the user's name or steal the user's information for purposes such as identity theft.
cooperative games - Cooperative games are games where players work with one and other in order to achieve a common objective.
coopetition (co-opetition) - Coopetition is a business strategy that uses insights gained from game theory to understand when it is better for competitors to work together.
COPE (corporate-owned, personally enabled) - COPE (corporate-owned personally-enabled) is a business model in which an organization provides its employees with mobile computing devices and allows the employees to use them as if they were personally-owned notebook computers, tablets or smartphones.
COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act ) - The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA) is a federal law that imposes specific requirements on operators of websites and online services to protect the privacy of children under 13.
copy data management (CDM) - Copy data management (CDM) is an approach to reducing storage consumption that involves eliminating the unnecessary duplication of production data.
copypasta - Copypasta is a chunk of text that is repeatedly copied and pasted until it proliferates across the Web, gaining meme status.
copyright - Copyright is a legal term describing ownership of control of the rights to the use and distribution of certain works of creative expression, including books, video, motion pictures, musical compositions and computer programs.
core banking system - A core banking system is the software that banks use to manage their most critical processes, such as customer accounts, transactions and risk management.
Core competencies: What they are and how they lead to success - For any organization, its core competencies refer to the capabilities, knowledge, skills and resources that constitute its 'defining strengths.
core HR (core human resources) - Core HR (core human resources) is an umbrella term that refers to the basic tasks and functions of an HR department as it manages the employee lifecycle.
corollary - A corollary is a statement that follows naturally from some other statement that has either been proven or is generally accepted as true.
corporate account manager (CAM) - In the channel, a corporate account manager (CAM) is responsible for maintaining the relationship between the clients of a value-added reseller (VAR) and the VAR.
corporate culture - Corporate culture is the collection of values, beliefs, ethics and attitudes that characterize an organization and guide its practices.
corporate culture model - A corporate culture model is the organizing principle behind the values, beliefs and attitudes that characterize a company and guide its practices.
corporate division - A corporate division, also known as a business division, is a discrete part of a company that may operate under the same name and legal responsibility or as a separate corporate and legal entity under another business name.
corporate governance - Corporate governance is the combination of rules, processes and laws by which businesses are operated, regulated and controlled.
corportal (corporate portal) - Corportals, short for corporate portals, are sometimes referred to as enterprise information portals and are used by corporations to build their internal web presence by leveraging a company's information resources.
correlation - Correlation is a statistical measure that indicates the extent to which two or more variables fluctuate in relation to each other.
correlation coefficient - A correlation coefficient is a statistical measure of the degree to which changes to the value of one variable predict change to the value of another.
COSO cube - The COSO cube is a diagram that shows the relationship among all parts of an internal control system.
COSO Framework - The COSO Framework is a system used to establish internal controls to be integrated into business processes.
cost containment - Cost containment is a process of judiciously reducing costs in a business or limiting them to a constant level.
cost management - Cost management is the process of planning and controlling the budget of a business.
cost of goods sold (COGS) - Cost of goods sold (COGS) is the total of the costs directly attributable to producing things that can be sold.
cost per engagement (CPE) - Cost per engagement (CPE) is an advertising pricing model in which digital marketing teams and advertisers only pay for ads when users interact with their campaign in some way.
cost per sale (CPS) - The cost per sale (CPS), also known as the pay per sale, is a metric used by advertising teams to determine the amount of money paid for every sale generated by a specific advertisement.
cost price - Cost price is the total amount of money that it costs a manufacturer to produce a given product or provide a given service.
COTS, MOTS, GOTS and NOTS - COTS, MOTS, GOTS and NOTS are abbreviations that describe prepackaged software or -- less commonly -- hardware purchase alternatives.
coulomb (C) - A coulomb (C) is the standard unit of electric charge in the International System of Units (SI).
Counter Mode with Cipher Block Chaining Message Authentication Code Protocol (CCMP) - Counter Mode with Cipher Block Chaining Message Authentication Code Protocol (CCMP) is an encryption protocol based on the U.
counterintelligence - Counterintelligence (CI) is the information gathered and actions taken to identify and protect against an adversary’s knowledge collection activities or attempts to cause harm through sabotage or other actions.
COVID-19 Glossary for Employers and HR Managers - We will be updating this pandemic glossary frequently over the next few weeks to help you use consistent vocabulary in your crisis communication emails, newsletters, phone scripts and telecommuter updates.
cow power (biogas) - Cow power is a term for the conversion of manure to usable energy.
CPRI (Common Public Radio Interface) - CPRI (Common Public Radio Interface) is a specification for wireless communication networks that defines the key criteria for interfacing transport, connectivity and control communications between baseband units (BBUs) and remote radio units (RRUs), which are also called remote radio heads (RRHs).
CQRS (command query responsibility segregation) - CQRS (command query responsibility segregation) is a programming design and architectural pattern that treats retrieving data and changing data differently.
CRC-4 (Cyclic Redundancy Check 4) - CRC-4 (Cyclic Redundancy Check 4) is a form of cyclic redundancy checking -- a method of checking for errors in transmitted data -- that is used on E1 trunk lines.
credential stuffing - Credential stuffing is the practice of using stolen login information from one account to gain access to accounts on a number of sites through automated login.
credential theft - Credential theft is a type of cybercrime that involves stealing a victim's proof of identity.
crisis communication - Crisis communication is a strategic approach to corresponding with people and organizations during a disruptive event.
crisis management - Crisis management is the application of strategies designed to help an organization deal with a sudden and significant negative event, while maintaining business continuity.
crisis management plan (CMP) - A crisis management plan (CMP) outlines how an organization should respond to a critical situation that if left unaddressed, could negatively affect its profitability, reputation or ability to operate.
critical infrastructure - Critical infrastructure is the collection of systems, networks and public works that a government considers essential to its functioning and safety of its citizens.
critical path method (CPM) - The critical path method (CPM) is a step-by-step project management technique for process planning that defines critical and non-critical tasks with the goal of preventing project schedule problems and process bottlenecks.
CRM (customer relationship management) - Customer relationship management (CRM) is the combination of practices, strategies and technologies that companies use to manage and analyze customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle.
CRM (customer relationship management) analytics - CRM (customer relationship management) analytics comprises all of the programming that analyzes data about customers and presents it to an organization to help facilitate and streamline better business decisions.
crontab - Crontab is a Unix command that creates a table or list of commands, each of which is to be executed by the operating system (OS) at a specified time and on a regular schedule.
cross-browser testing - Cross-browser testing, also called browser testing, is a quality assurance (QA) process that checks whether a web-based application, site or page functions as intended for end users across multiple browsers and devices.
cross-docking - Cross-docking is the practice of unloading goods from inbound delivery vehicles and loading them directly onto outbound vehicles.
cross-functional team - A cross-functional team is a workgroup made up of employees from different functional areas within an organization who collaborate to reach a stated objective.
cross-platform mobile development - Cross-platform mobile development is an approach to developing software applications that are compatible with multiple mobile operating systems (OSes) or platforms.
cross-site scripting (XSS) - Cross-site scripting (XSS) is a type of injection attack in which a threat actor inserts data, such as a malicious script, into content from otherwise trusted websites.
crosstalk - Crosstalk is a disturbance caused by the electric or magnetic fields of one telecommunication signal affecting a signal in an adjacent circuit.
crowdsourcing - Crowdsourcing is the practice of turning to a body of people to obtain needed knowledge, goods or services.
CRUD cycle (Create, Read, Update and Delete Cycle) - The CRUD cycle describes the elemental functions of a persistent database in a computer.
cruft - Cruft is the elements of a program, system or product that are either useless, poorly designed or both.
cryptanalysis - Cryptanalysis is the study of ciphertext, ciphers and cryptosystems to understand how they work and to find and improve techniques for defeating or weakening them.
crypto wallet (cryptocurrency wallet) - A crypto wallet (cryptocurrency wallet) is software or hardware that enables users to store and use cryptocurrency.
crypto-agility - Crypto-agility, or cryptographic agility, is a data encryption practice used by organizations to ensure a rapid response to a cryptographic threat.
cryptocurrency - Cryptocurrency is a digital form of currency that uses cryptography to secure the processes involved in generating units, conducting transactions and verifying the exchange of currency ownership.
cryptogram - A cryptogram is a word puzzle featuring encrypted text that the user decrypts to reveal a message of some sort.
cryptographic checksum - Generated by a cryptographic algorithm, a cryptographic checksum is a mathematical value assigned to a file sent through a network for verifying that the data contained in that file is unchanged.
cryptographic nonce - A nonce is a random or semi-random number that is generated for a specific use.
Cryptography quiz questions and answers: Test your smarts - Put your encryption knowledge to the test, and perhaps even learn a new word or concept in the process with these cryptography quiz questions.
cryptojacking - Cryptojacking is a cybercrime in which another party's computing resources are hijacked to mine cryptocurrency.
cryptology - Cryptology is the mathematics, such as number theory and the application of formulas and algorithms, that underpin cryptography and cryptanalysis.
cryptosystem - A cryptosystem is a structure or scheme consisting of a set of algorithms that converts plaintext to ciphertext to encode or decode messages securely.
Crystal Reports - Crystal Reports is a popular Windows-based report writer solution that allows a developer to create reports and dashboards from a variety of data sources with a minimum of code to write.
CSMA/CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Avoidance) - CSMA/CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Avoidance) is a protocol for carrier transmission in 802.
CSO (Chief Security Officer) - A Chief Security Officer (CSO) is a C-suite executive responsible for a company's physical and digital security.