Which term describes the prevention of damage to. protection of, and restoration of computers and electronic communications systems/services…

The definition provided in the question is the official definition of "Cybersecurity" used by the U.S. Government, including the Department of Defense (DoD). It precisely describes the protection of digital assets ("computers and electronic communications systems") and the data they contain. This definition is comprehensive, covering not only the classic Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability (CIA) triad but also the crucial aspects of Authentication and Nonrepudiation, which are fundamental to modern digital security practices and are explicitly called out in the CMMC framework's underlying standards.

B. Data security: This term is too narrow, as it focuses specifically on protecting data itself, rather than the broader "computers and electronic communications systems/services" mentioned in the question.

C. Network security: This is a subset of cybersecurity focused on protecting the underlying network infrastructure from unauthorized access and misuse, not the entire scope of systems and information.

D. Information security: While closely related, this is a broader term that encompasses the protection of information in all forms (digital, physical, etc.), whereas cybersecurity specifically pertains to the electronic or "cyber" domain.

1. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). (2020). NISTIR 7298 Revision 3: Glossary of Key Information Security Terms.

Page 61: Provides the verbatim definition for Cybersecurity: "Prevention of damage to

protection of

and restoration of computers

electronic communications systems

electronic communications services

wire communication

and electronic communication

including information contained therein

to ensure its availability

integrity

authentication

confidentiality

and nonrepudiation." This document notes the definition is derived from CNSSI 4009.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.7298r3

2. Committee on National Security Systems. (2015). CNSSI 4009: Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS) Glossary.

Page 23: This is the original source document for the official U.S. Government definition of Cybersecurity

which is identical to the one presented in the question and adopted by NIST and the DoD.

3. U.S. Department of Defense. (2022). CMMC 2.0 Program.

The CMMC program is fundamentally a cybersecurity initiative. Its scope

as detailed in the model documentation and scoping guides

directly aligns with protecting systems and information within the cyber domain to ensure attributes like confidentiality and integrity

reflecting the core definition of cybersecurity. The entire framework is an application of this definition.