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physical port On a computer, an interface where you can connect a device.

physical security Security that guards the physical aspects of the network.

Ping A TCP/IP utility used to test whether another host is reachable. An Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) request is sent to the host, which responds with a reply if it’s reachable. The request times out if the host isn’t reachable.

ping of death A large Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) packet sent to overflow the remote host’s buffer. A ping of death usually causes the remote host to reboot or hang.

Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) Standard telephone service, as opposed to other connection technologies like Digital Subscriber Line (DSL).

point-to-point Network communication in which two devices have exclusive access to a network medium. For example, a printer connected to only one workstation is using a point-to-point connection.

Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) A full-duplex line protocol that supersedes Serial Line Internet Protocol (SLIP). It’s part of the standard TCP/IP suite and is often used in dial-up connections.

Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP) An extension to Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) that is used in virtual private networks (VPNs). An alternative to PPTP is L2TP.

policies Rules or standards governing usage.

polymorphic An attribute of some viruses that allows them to mutate and appear differently each time they crop up. The mutations make it harder for virus scanners to detect (and react) to the viruses.

POP See Post Office Protocol (POP).

POP3 See Post Office Protocol Version 3 (POP3).

port Some kind of opening that allows network data to pass through.

Port Address Translation (PAT) A means of translating between ports on a public and private network. Similar to Network Address Translation (NAT), which translates addresses between public and private.

port scanner The item (physical or software) that scans a server for open ports that can be taken advantage of. Port scanning is the process of sending messages to ports to see which ones are available and which ones aren’t.

postmortem Anything that occurs “after the fact,” such as an audit or review.

Post Office Protocol (POP) An e-mail access program that can be used to retrieve e-mail from an e-mail server.

Post Office Protocol Version 3 (POP3) The protocol used to download e-mail from an SMTP e-mail server to a network client. See also Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP).

POTS See Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS).

power conditioner A device that “conditions” the electrical supply to take out spikes and surges.

power system A device that provides electrical power.

PPP See Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP).

PPTP See Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP).

Presentation layer The sixth layer of the OSI model; responsible for formatting data exchange, such as graphic commands, and converting character sets. This layer is also responsible for data compression, data encryption, and data stream redirection. See also Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model.

preservation of evidence The process of controlling access to evidence within chain-of-custody measures, often by placing it in a controlled-access area with a single custodian responsible for all access.

Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) An implementation of RSA encryption. See also RSA.

privacy A state of security in which information isn’t seen by unauthorized parties without the express permission of the party involved.

Private Branch Exchange (PBX) A system that allows users to connect voice, data, pagers, networks, and almost any other application into a single telecommunications system. A PBX system allows an organization to be its own phone company.

private information Information that isn’t for public knowledge.

private key An asymmetric encryption technology in which both the sender and the receiver have different keys. A public key is used to encrypt messages and the private key is used to decrypt them. See also public key.

private network The part of a