False Positives

From Computing and Software Wiki

The term false positive is a broad and somewhat vague term that describes a situation in which an NIDS device trigger an alarm in a when there is malicious activity or attack occurring. Other common terms used to describe this condition are "false alarms" and "benign trigger". False alarm is the better term to describe this behavior since "false positive" gives the impression that IDS technology itself is fundamentally flawed and benign trigger gives the impression that there is no possibility for a true false positive to exist. Here I will use the term false alarm to describe the general condition of an alarm being generated without a true security related event. False alarms are the Internet security equivalents of the boy who cried wolf. They are problematic because by triggering unjustified alerts, they diminish the value and urgency of real alerts.