Remember CIA
Full name: Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability
Memory aid: Keep secrets, keep accuracy, keep access.
Here CIA is a security triad, not an intelligence agency.
Study area: Defense & security operations · Batch 3
Relevant study for: CompTIA Security+ SY0-701 · ISC2 CISSP 2024 outline · ISC2 SSCP · CompTIA CySA+ · CompTIA SecurityX · ISC2 CC · Cybersecurity Architect SC-100
Practice with exam flashcards →Cybersecurity & Identity / Knowledge library
CIA — Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability
Frames three fundamental information-security objectives.
Why learn CIA — Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability?
Frames three fundamental information-security objectives.
Where it came from
Here CIA is a security triad, not an intelligence agency.
- Memory aid (a learning cue, not the expansion): Keep secrets, keep accuracy, keep access.
Build your understanding
Work through these exercises in order. Try the task before opening a reference.
- Without looking, expand CIA: Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability.
- Recall this memory aid: Keep secrets, keep accuracy, keep access.
- Explain the practical use: Frames three fundamental information-security objectives.
- Explain this distinction: Here CIA is a security triad, not an intelligence agency.
- Identify CIA in a device specification, architecture diagram, or system inventory.
Documentation and sources
- NIST cybersecurity glossary (csrc.nist.gov)