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What is Security Audit?

A systematic examination of an information system to assess compliance with security policies, identify vulnerabilities, and verify controls.

Security audits evaluate whether systems meet defined security standards and best practices. Types include internal audits (by the organization), external audits (by third parties), compliance audits (SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, GDPR), and technical audits (vulnerability assessments, penetration tests). Audit scope covers access controls, data protection, network security, change management, incident response procedures, and backup/recovery. Deliverables include findings classified by severity, risk assessments, and remediation recommendations. Audit logs — records of who did what and when — are essential evidence. Regular audits demonstrate security maturity and build customer trust.

Related Terms

Principle of Least Privilege
A security principle where users and programs receive only the minimum access rights needed to perform their specific tasks.
Input Validation
The process of verifying that user-supplied data meets expected formats, types, and ranges before processing it.
DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service)
An attack that floods a target server or network with traffic from multiple sources to overwhelm it and deny service to legitimate users.
RBAC (Role-Based Access Control)
An access control model where permissions are assigned to roles, and users are assigned to roles rather than getting permissions directly.
OWASP Top 10
A regularly updated list of the ten most critical web application security risks, published by the Open Web Application Security Project.
Phishing
A social engineering attack that uses fraudulent communications to trick people into revealing sensitive information or installing malware.
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