Defining Security : A Hierarchical Framework for Language, Mathematical Formulation, and Security Practice

by Chris Mark

Security practitioners and scholars have struggled for decades to establish precise, universally accepted definitions of fundamental security concepts. This whitepaper examines the definitional challenges facing the security profession, drawing from doctoral and professional research that identified approximately 25 distinct definitions of security among over 200 practitioners. Following Socrates' priority of definition—that one must first know what a property is before knowing anything else about it—this paper establishes operational definitions for security, risk, threat, vulnerability, asset, and controls. These definitions integrate insights from Manunta's seminal work on security conceptualization with practical frameworks developed through professional security practice. The paper explores the distinction between denotative and connotative meanings, examines why security professionals often resort to apophatic definitions (defining security by what it is not), and presents mathematical formulations that enable systematic analysis. By establishing definitional clarity, this work provides a foundation for improved communication among security professionals, more rigorous security methodology, and better evaluation of security measures and performance.

72 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 31, 2025

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