National Vulnerability Database

What Does National Vulnerability Database Mean?

The National Vulnerability Database (NVD) is a U.S. government project that was created to help individuals and companies research the automation of vulnerability management, along with other security and compliance goals. This database includes tabled information on different kinds of security threats and other factors in cybersecurity.

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Techopedia Explains National Vulnerability Database

The National Vulnerability Database is a project of the Department of Homeland Security National Cyber Security Division/U.S. CERT. Users can access:

  • Searchable database of vulnerabilities
  • Checklists
  • Impact metrics
  • Relevant statistics

The National Vulnerability Database uses a protocol called Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP). These solutions are intended to provide standardized and consistent models for automated vulnerability handling.

Reports have shown that the National Vulnerability Database itself has been hacked in the past, and that the project was briefly taken off-line in March of 2013.

Federal resources like these are part of a larger network of security standards and tools that developers and others use as they conduct a broader conversation about consistent and standardized security practices.

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Margaret Rouse

Margaret Rouse is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical, business audience. Over the past twenty years her explanations have appeared on TechTarget websites and she's been cited as an authority in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine and Discovery Magazine.Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages. If you have a suggestion for a new definition or how to improve a technical explanation, please email Margaret or contact her…