R-S

(remote access Trojan) A program that allows hackers to access your computer from a remote location. See Trojan horse.

Utility that restores a hard disk's contents back to a previous state. Often used to repair damage caused by erratic software installations but can also be used to repair damage caused by hackers, viruses, or Trojan horses.

A collection of one or more programs designed to hide a hacker's tracks on a computer and install additional back doors to ensure that the hacker can get back into that computer at a later time.

An acronym that stands for Security Administrator Tool for Analyzing Networks. SATAN is a program designed to probe a website for security weaknesses.

1. A type of antivirus program that contains a database of known virus characteristics. By comparing files to this database, a scanner can accurately determine the exact type of virus that may be infecting your computer. 2. A type of program that searches the Internet or a network for computers.

Derogatory term used to describe hackers who use programs written by other people without understanding the technical details.

A collection of several programs designed to correct multiple flaws or bugs in a program. See Patch.

A method of software distribution that lets you freely copy and try the program without payment. If you use the program regularly, you are legally obligated to pay for it. See Adware, Freeware, and Open source.

The unique structural characteristic of a virus or Trojan horse, much like a fingerprint on a person. Every virus and Trojan horse has a unique signature, which antivirus and anti–Trojan horse scanners use to detect and identify it.

The unused space in a cluster, which often contains keystrokes or other fragments of a file that can be recovered and used as evidence. See Clusters.

A virus that only infects files when they are created or modified. By doing this, slow infectors avoid detection by antivirus programs, such as integrity checkers. See Fast infector.

A program that copies data as it the data passes through a network.

The actual commands that make up a program. If you have the source code of a virus, you can modify its behavior. Virus source code is usually written in assembly language or Visual Basic for Applications, online harassment programs are usually written in Visual Basic, and Trojan horses are usually written in C/C++ or Delphi. See Assembly language, C/C++, and Visual Basic for Applications.

Slang name for unwanted email.

A virus that infects files only occasionally to avoid detection by antivirus programs.

Slang term for "exploits." Often used by hackers to identify the latest vulnerabilities found in a particular program, such as an operating system or firewall.

Programs that retrieve information from a hard disk and send that information to another computer. Often used by advertiser-sponsored shareware programs or desktop-monitoring programs designed to spy on people using a computer. See Adware.

A virus that tries to avoid detection by antivirus programs.

The science of hiding information like text in another medium, such as a graphic file, sound file, or another text file. See Encryption.