MITRE most commonly refers to The MITRE Corporation, a large U.S. not‑for‑profit organization that runs government-funded research and development centers focused on national defense, cybersecurity, aviation, healthcare, and other critical infrastructures.
MITRE the organization
- MITRE is an independent, not‑for‑profit that operates federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs) for U.S. government agencies.
- Its work spans areas such as defense systems, air traffic control, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and healthcare technology, aiming to provide objective technical expertise in the public interest.
MITRE in cybersecurity
- In cybersecurity, MITRE is known for maintaining the ATT&CK knowledge base, which catalogs real‑world attacker tactics and techniques used to help organizations understand and defend against cyber threats.
- MITRE also curates widely used security resources such as the CVE (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures) list and the CWE (Common Weakness Enumeration) for software weaknesses.
“Mitre” as a word
- Apart from the organization, “mitre” (or “miter”) is also the name of a ceremonial headdress worn by certain Christian bishops and abbots.
- The term comes from Greek roots and historically referred to various types of headgear before becoming associated with church vestments.
