Layer 8

<h2 id="layers-defined">Layers, defined</h2>
According to <a href="/facts/Bruce_Schneier/kWxPFPmQ">Bruce Schneier</a> and <a href="/facts/RSA_Security/s8kfo2SF">RSA</a>:

<ul><li>Layer 8: The individual person.</li>
<li>Layer 9: The organization.</li>
<li>Layer 10: Government or legal compliance<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3">3</a></li></ul>
Network World readers<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4">4</a> humorously report:

<ul><li>Layer 8: Money - Provides network corruption by inspiring increased interference from the upper layer.</li>
<li>Layer 9: Politics - Consists of technically ignorant management that negatively impacts network performance and development.</li></ul>
and:

<ul><li>Layer 9: Politics. "Where the most difficult problems live."</li>
<li>Layer 8: The user factor. "It turned out to be another Layer-8 problem."</li>
<li>7 to 1: The usual OSI layers</li>
<li>Layer 0: Funding. "Because we should always start troubleshooting from the lowest layer, and nothing can exist before the funding."</li></ul>
Since the OSI layer numbers are commonly used to discuss networking topics, a troubleshooter may describe an issue caused by a user to be a layer 8 issue, similar to the <a href="/facts/PEBKAC/IQmYe4Fc">PEBKAC</a> acronym, the <a href="/facts/ID-Ten-T_Error/IQmYe4Fc">ID-Ten-T Error</a> and also <a href="/facts/PICNIC/IQmYe4Fc">PICNIC</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5">5</a>
Political economic theory<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6">6</a> holds that the 8th layer is important to understanding the OSI Model. Political policies such as <a href="/facts/Network_neutrality/qAy17TBH">network neutrality</a>, <a href="/facts/Spectrum_management/etDs5EYB">spectrum management</a>, and <a href="/facts/Digital_inclusion/8EK5dtcv">digital inclusion</a> all shape the technologies comprising layers 1–7 of the OSI Model.
An 8th layer has also been referenced to physical (real-world) controllers containing an external hardware device which interacts with an <a href="/facts/OSI_model/oxN9Xhjz">OSI model</a> network. An example of this is ALI in <a href="/facts/Profibus/8GBvaRCb">Profibus</a>.
A network guru T-shirt from the 1980s shows Layer 8 as the "financial" layer, and Layer 9 as the "political" layer.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7">7</a> The design was credited to <a href="/facts/Evi_Nemeth/0qmrfkfm">Evi Nemeth</a>.

<h2 id="similar-pseudo-layers-for-tcpip">Similar pseudo-layers for TCP/IP</h2>
In the <a href="/facts/TCP/IP_model/KNkxtSpw">TCP/IP model</a>, the four-layer model of the <a href="/facts/Internet/Xw1rVvJU">Internet</a>, a fifth layer is sometimes analogously described as the political layer, and the sixth as the religious layer. This appears in a humorous <a href="/facts/April_Fools%27_Day_RFC/fylEEqRT">April Fools' Day RFC</a>, <a href="/facts/RFC_(identifier)/esftTvE7">RFC</a> <a href="https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc2321">2321</a>, published in 1998.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8">8</a>

<h2 id="other-uses">Other uses</h2>
<ul><li><a href="/facts/Linux_Gazette/fKhUnSyv">Linux Gazette</a> carries a regular column called Layer 8 Linux Security.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9">9</a></li>
<li>Layers 8, 9, and 10 are sometimes used to represent individuals, organizations, and governments for the user layer of <a href="/facts/Service-oriented_architecture/g8krR0dk">service-oriented architectures</a>. See OSI User Layers figure for details.</li>
<li><a href="/facts/User-in-the-loop/F0Uxfvur">User-in-the-loop</a> is a serious concept including Layer 8 as a system-level model.</li>
<li>In 2016, a company shipped a product called Layer8 to "bridge the universal divide between PC users and IT managers".<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10">10</a></li>
<li>Layer 8 Conference & Podcast is a professional conference focusing on social engineering and OSINT. The podcast features experts in the fields of social engineering and OSINT.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11">11</a></li></ul>
<h2 id="see-also">See also</h2>
<ul><li><a href="/facts/Real_life/a34ebUXs">IRL</a></li>
<li><a href="/facts/Liveware/rjph8FHW">Liveware</a></li></ul>

<h2 id="references">References</h2>

<ol>
<li id="fn:1">Gregg, Michael (2007-05-01), "OSI: Securing the Stack, Layer 8 – Social engineering and security policy", TechTarget <a href="https://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/tip/OSI-Securing-the-Stack-Layer-8-Social-engineering-and-security-policy" target="_blank">https://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/tip/OSI-Securing-the-Stack-Layer-8-Social-engineering-and-security-policy</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:2">"The Layer 8* Initiative". North Carolina State University, Information Technology Division. 2005-01-05. Archived from the original on 2013-10-29. Retrieved 2018-05-10. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20131029200727/http://www.ncsu.edu/it/cmptplans/layer8/" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20131029200727/http://www.ncsu.edu/it/cmptplans/layer8/</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:3">Farquhar, Ian (2010-12-07). "Engineering Security Solutions at Layer 8 and Above". Archived from the original on 2013-05-24. Retrieved 2018-05-10. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20130524214239/http://blogs.rsa.com/engineering-security-solutions-at-layer-8-and-above/" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20130524214239/http://blogs.rsa.com/engineering-security-solutions-at-layer-8-and-above/</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:4">Wexler, Steve Taylor and Joanie (2003-02-13). "Mailbag: OSI Layer 8 - money and politics". Network World. Retrieved 2021-11-19. <a href="https://www.networkworld.com/article/2339786/mailbag--osi-layer-8---money-and-politics.html" target="_blank">https://www.networkworld.com/article/2339786/mailbag--osi-layer-8---money-and-politics.html</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:5">"Layer 8 Performance Issues". Apposite Tech. 2017-10-30. Retrieved 2018-05-10. <a href="http://www.apposite-tech.com/blog/osi/layer-8/" target="_blank">http://www.apposite-tech.com/blog/osi/layer-8/</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:6">Mosco, Vincent (1996), The Political Economy of Communication: Rethinking and Renewal, SAGE Publications, Inc, ISBN 0-8039-8560-6. <a href="0-8039-8560-6" target="_blank">0-8039-8560-6</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:7">"ISC 9-Layer OSI Model Cotton T-Shirt". ISC. 2015-01-14. Retrieved 2024-06-11. <a href="https://shop.isc.org/products/osi-9-layer-model-t-shirt" target="_blank">https://shop.isc.org/products/osi-9-layer-model-t-shirt</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:8">RFC 2321 <a href="/wiki/RFC_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/RFC_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:9">Kachold, Lisa (July 2009). "Layer 8 Linux Security: OPSEC for Linux Common Users, Developers and Systems Administrators". Linux Gazette. No. 164. <a href="https://linuxgazette.net/164/kachold.html" target="_blank">https://linuxgazette.net/164/kachold.html</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:10">"OctoInsight's Layer8 technology helps rebranded company surge". Prnewswire. 2016-06-09. Retrieved 2018-05-10. <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/octoinsights-layer8-technology-helps-rebranded-company-surge-300282204.html" target="_blank">https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/octoinsights-layer8-technology-helps-rebranded-company-surge-300282204.html</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:11">"Layer 8 Conference on June 14, 2025". Retrieved 12 December 2024. <a href="https://layer8conference.com" target="_blank">https://layer8conference.com</a> <a href="#fnref:11" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
</ol>

Layer 8 open-in-new

Layer 8