Computer Science Unit 1 Vocabulary Terms

Social Engineering

is the psychological manipulation of people into performing actions or divulging confidential information.

Phishing

is the act of sending an email 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.

Hoaxes

In e-mail terminology a hoax is a message which is written to deliberately spread fear, uncertainty and doubt.

Impersonation

is a deliberate falsehood designed to seem truthful.

Spoofing

is the act of disguising a communication from an unknown source as being from a known, trusted source.

Identity Theft

a type of crime in which your private information is stolen and used for criminal activity.

Private Information

information that can be used to identify you because it is unique to you (eg: your full name or address)

Internet scam

when someone tries to steal your identity on the internet by getting you to click a link or enter information about yourself.

Curiosity Gap

the desire every person has to figure out missing information

Shortened URL

a web address that has been condensed and that could potentially mislead a user into going into a risky website.