Volume 5
Abstract: A quote attributed to Bertrand Russell states that, “In all affairs, it’s a healthy thing now and then to hang a question mark on the things you have long taken for granted.” Perhaps it is even healthier to regularly inquire about things that are yet unsettled. This paper reports on our search for the first use of the term cyber security, our analysis of the current preference of the one-word (cybersecurity) vs. two-word (cyber security) form of the term, and our investigation into literature from academia, government, and the business world to determine the current state of definitions. The best evidence we found indicates that the 1990 book Kaduna Memories by Jack McKinney (a pseudonym for authors James Luceno and Brian Daley) contains the first use of the term cyber security. Though use of the two-word version, cyber security, came first, we found that the one-word version has gained acceptance and is now ascendant. Unsurprisingly, although the 60 definitions we examined share a common theme, there are sufficient differences among them that it seems consensus remains somewhere in the future. Synthesizing what we found, cybersecurity today might reasonably be considered the practice of protecting digital data, computer systems, information technology, and networks against attacks, threats, and unauthorized access. Conspicuously absent in this synthesis is the word risk, which seems likely to gain acceptance in future cybersecurity definitions as the domain continues to mature. Download this article: CPPJ - V5 N2 Page 34.pdf Recommended Citation: Parsley, M., Warpula, L., Clark, U.Y., Stoker, G., (2026). What is Cybersecurity (or Cyber Security)? Answer [Still] Loading…. Cybersecurity Pedagogy and Practice Journal 5(2) pp 34-58. https://doi.org/10.62273/HGTQ7475 | ||||||