Framing is the process of dividing a raw stream of bits into distinct message units so a receiver can tell where one packet, record, or command begins and ends. In many protocols, framing uses start markers, length fields, delimiters, or bit patterns that separate payload from overhead.
Framing matters in cyber security because weak or predictable boundaries can be abused. Attackers may inject, split, or desynchronize frames to confuse parsers, hide malicious content, or trigger bugs in protocol handlers. Defenders study framing to decode traffic, detect anomalies, and recover messages from radio, serial, or network captures. In telemetry and other emitted signals, the framing structure can reveal how a system communicates even before the payload is fully understood.