By:Vangie Beal(Page 5 of 5)
Did You Know...
The word phishing comes from the analogy that Internet scammers are using e-mail lures to fish for passwords and financial data from the sea of Internet users. The term was coined in 1996 by hackers who were stealing AOL Internet accounts by scamming passwords from unsuspecting AOL users. Since hackers have a tendency to replacing "f" with "ph" the term phishing was derived.
| Key Terms To Understanding phishing:
phishing The act of sending an e-mail to a user falsely claiming to be an established legitimate enterprise in an attempt to scam the user into surrendering private information that will be used for identity theft.
spear phishing A type of phishing attack that focuses on a single user or department within an organization.
spyware Any software that covertly gathers user information through the user's Internet connection without his or her knowledge
security In the computer industry, refers to techniques for ensuring that data stored in a computer cannot be read or compromised by any individuals without authorization.
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Based in Nova Scotia, Vangie Beal is has been writing about technology for more than a decade. She is a frequent contributor to EcommerceGuide and managing editor at Webopedia. You can tweet her online @AuroraGG.