Peak power is the highest instantaneous power during a pulse. It is different from average power, which measures energy spread over time. A pulsed system can look modest on paper but still produce a very intense burst for a tiny fraction of a second, making peak power the more important number for understanding short-duration effects.
In cyber security, peak power matters whenever an attack or defense depends on brief bursts of energy. High peak power can overwhelm optical sensors, blind cameras, saturate photodiodes, or create fault conditions in electronics and fiber links. Defenders use peak-power measurements to set safe thresholds, design filters and limiters, and test whether equipment can survive or detect transient pulses. Looking only at average power can hide the real risk.