What does EAL stand for in Common Criteria?

The term EAL stands for Evaluation Assurance Level, which is a crucial component within the Common Criteria framework used for evaluating the security properties of IT products and systems. EAL indicates the level of confidence in a product's security capabilities as determined through a rigorous evaluation process.

The EAL is represented by a number ranging from EAL1 to EAL7, with higher numbers corresponding to greater assurance through more stringent evaluation methods. EAL assessments help organizations and consumers make informed decisions about the security of the products they use by providing standardized assurance levels regarding their effectiveness against potential threats.

Understanding EAL is essential for anyone working with secure systems, as it facilitates a uniform understanding of the security assurances provided by different products, thus helping in making better security-related choices.