Lesson 1: Assets

Tangible assets are the physical assets of an organization, the assets that can be seen and touched. Examples of tangible assets include computers, desks, and buildings.

Conversely, intangible assets cannot be readily perceived by the senses; rather, they are assets that are often called "goodwill" in the world of accounting and finance. Examples include a company's marketing strategy, customer records, and financial records.

Why is it important to make this distinction?

It is important to make this distinction because often, when describing its assets, an organization will focus solely on tangible assets, overlooking intangibles such as intellectual property. Even though intangible assets may not be visible, they are also very valuable. In fact, some organizations discover that their intangible assets are just as or more valuable as their tangible assets. For example, although you can't see a company's reputation, it may be just as important as the company's product.

As you will later see, much of information assurance and security focuses on protecting an organization's intangible assets. Let's look at the three categories of computer and information assets.