Computer emergency response team
A computer emergency response team is an incident response team dedicated to computer security incidents.
Other names used to describe CERT include cyber emergency response team, computer emergency readiness team, computer security incident response team, or cyber security incident response team.
History
The name "Computer Emergency Response Team" was first used in 1988 by the CERT Coordination Center at Carnegie Mellon University. The term CERT is registered as a trade and service mark by CMU in multiple countries worldwide. CMU encourages the use of Computer Security Incident Response Team as a generic term for the handling of computer security incidents. CMU licenses the CERT mark to various organizations that are performing the activities of a CSIRT.The histories of CERT and CSIRT, are linked to the existence of malware, especially computer worms and viruses. Whenever a new technology arrives, its misuse is not long in following. The first worm in the IBM VNET was covered up. Shortly after, a worm hit the Internet on 3 November 1988, when the so-called Morris Worm paralysed a good percentage of it. This led to the formation of the first computer emergency response team at Carnegie Mellon University under a U.S. Government contract. With the massive growth in the use of information and communications technologies over the subsequent years, the generic term 'CSIRT' refers to an essential part of most large organisations' structures. In many organisations the CSIRT evolves into an information security operations center.
Global associations and teams
| Logo | Organization | Description | Size | Member of FIRST |
| FIRST | The Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams is the global association of CSIRTs. | 605 member organizations. | n/a | |
| Packet Clearing House | "CERT of last resort" with global coverage, serving countries and constituencies which are not yet served by their own dedicated CERT. Founded in 1994. | 18 staff, presence in 106 countries, budget US$251m/yr. |
National or economic region teams
| Country | Team/s | Description | Size | Member of FIRST |
 Algeria |