What does "sandboxing" refer to in cybersecurity?

Sandboxing in cybersecurity refers to the practice of isolating a program, application, or file within a controlled environment to observe its behavior without risking harm to the rest of the system or network. This technique allows security professionals to safely test potentially malicious content, such as malware or untrusted software, by executing it in a sandbox – a virtual space where it cannot affect other systems.

By utilizing sandboxing, organizations can analyze how a program operates, identify any harmful actions it might take, and understand its potential impact before allowing it to run in a live environment. This proactive approach helps to mitigate risks and enhances the overall security posture by preventing malicious software from executing and spreading.

The other options, while relevant to cybersecurity practices, do not accurately capture the essence of sandboxing. For example, storing sensitive data securely relates to data protection and privacy, creating backups pertains to disaster recovery and data integrity, and upgrading software applications focuses on maintaining application functionality and security rather than isolating and testing for malicious behavior.