Endpoint

Noun · Development

Definitions

  1. A specific URL in a web API that accepts requests and returns responses. GET /api/users is an endpoint. Every REST API is a collection of endpoints. Every developer has accidentally hit the wrong one in production.

    In plain English: A specific web address that an application uses to send or receive data — like a specific window at a service counter.

  2. In security, an endpoint is any device that connects to a network — laptops, phones, servers, IoT devices. 'Endpoint security' protects these devices. The dual meaning (API endpoint vs. network endpoint) can confuse cross-functional conversations.

    Example: 'When the security team says 'endpoint' they mean your laptop. When the backend team says 'endpoint' they mean /api/users. Context matters.'

    Source: security meaning / homonym

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