System sprawl refers to the expansion of systems over time where the growth exceeds the documentation and understanding. Undocumented assets are parts of the system that aren't documented or otherwise known by the whole team.

What is VM sprawl?

VM sprawl, also known as virtualization sprawl, happens when an administrator can no longer effectively control and manage all the virtual machines on a network. This can happen with rapidly growing networks when multiple VMs are set up for use by different departments.

What is sprawl in security?

Identity sprawl refers to the growth in the many separate, incompatible accounts a user creates to access online services. As the number of accounts increases, the user's identity is said to spread, scatter, or “sprawl” almost needlessly as a more unified approach would do the opposite by consolidating identity.