5 The Internet and its Uses Flashcards
internet
the world-wide interconnection of networks; the internet makes use of TCP and IP protocols
World Wide Web
a massive collection of web pages and is based on hypertext transfer protocols (http and https)
(web) browser
software that connects to a domain name server (DNS) to locate IP addresses; a browser interprets HTML web pages sent to a user’s computer so that the user can read documents and watch multimedia
hypertext mark-up language (HTML)
the language used to design, display and format web pages, and to write http(s) protocols
uniform resource locator (URL)
a text-based address for a web page
hypertext transfer protocol secure (https)
http with extra security (such as SSL) applied
hyperlink
highlighted text or an image that is activated by clicking and links to further text, images, a web page or a website
domain name server (DNS)
a server that looks up domain names for websites (for example, www.hoddereducation. com) in order to find the IP addresses that a computer needs to locate the web servers (for example, 07.162.140.19)
cookie
a text file sent from a website to a user’s browser; it is used to remember user preferences each time they visit the website
user preferences
settings or options stored in cookies that can remember customised web pages or indicate browsing history to target adverts
session cookie
a cookie that is stored temporarily on a computer; it is deleted when the browser is closed or the website session ends
persistent cookies
a cookie that is stored on the user’s hard drive and only deleted when the expiry date is reached or the cookie is deleted by the user
virtual shopping basket
an area of memory in a website where items a user wishes to purchase are temporarily stored; items remain in the basket until payment is made or the session has ended
digital currency
currency (a system of money) that exists in electronic form only; it has no physical form and is essentially data on a database
cryptocurrency
a form of digital currency that uses a chain of decentralised computers to control and monitor transactions
cryptography
the protection of data/information by use of coding; it usually involves encryption and decryption
blockchain
a decentralised database where all transactions are stored; it consists of a number of interconnected computers but not a central server
timestamp
a digital record of the date and time that a data block is created in blockchain networks
proof-of-work
the algorithm used in blockchain networks to confirm a transaction and to produce new blocks to add to the chain; special users called miners complete and monitor transactions on the network for a reward
brute force attack
a ‘trial and error’ method used by cybercriminals to crack passwords by finding all possible combinations of letters, numbers and symbols until the password is found
word list
a text file containing a collection of words used in a brute force attack