# Attack Vector **Entity class:** Adversarial-security concept ## Definition An **attack vector** is the route, mechanism, carrier, or means through which an adversary reaches and exploits a target. In sociotechnical security it can be technical, physical, financial, informational, biological, or human. ## Relevance to this collection A dangerous individual may be the threat actor and also the attack vector when the person's body, identity, credentials, trusted relationship, or social position carries the attack into the protected system. ## Relationships - **master collection:** [[collections/Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and the Intelligence Environment|Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and the Intelligence Environment]]. - **sociotechnical system:** [[wiki/Sociotechnical Attack Surface|Sociotechnical Attack Surface]]. ## Sources / Provenance - [MITRE, CAPEC: Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification](https://capec.mitre.org/) (accessed 2026-09-23). **As of:** 2026-09-23