Attack Surface

Your attack surface is every possible way someone could try to break into your systems or pull information out of them. It includes your software, your websites and network connections, your online accounts and even the people who hold passwords, so it gets bigger every time you add a new app, device or online service.

Picture a house: every door, window and vent is a way in, and the more you add the more a burglar has to try. Shrinking your attack surface means closing the ways in you do not need and putting stronger locks on the ones you do. It matters because you cannot protect what you have never counted, which is why listing these entry points is usually the first real step in securing a business.