cyberattack

noun

cy·​ber·​at·​tack ˈsī-bər-ə-ˌtak 

plural cyberattacks

: an attempt to gain illegal access to a computer or computer system for the purpose of causing damage or harm

An undermine-first strategy allows the United States government to intrude into adversaries' systems, exploiting this covert access to gather intelligence and occasionally to deliver a destructive cyberattack.

—Joshua A. Kroll

If your data is valuable enough, there is almost nothing you can do to provide total security against an expert adversary. Simply put, the attacker may be smarter than anyone you have defending the network. Cyberattacks are not only impossible to block, they're often difficult to detect; you may not even know you're under attack in the first place.

—Robert W. Lucky

cyberattacker

ˈsī-bər-ə-ˌta-kər 

noun

plural cyberattackers

Cyberattackers constantly evolve their skills and will always find new ways to attack—it's not a question of "if," but of "when."

—Eileen Dignen

Examples of cyberattack in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Ransomware used to be a popular trend in cyberattacks, but while cyberattacks are still pervasive, attackers have simplified their methods. —Megan Poinski, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026

Then the president’s team launched a false-flag cyberattack on electricity infrastructure and pinned it on North Korea. —Michael Scherer, The Atlantic, 22 Jan. 2026

Nearly 70% expect attackers to use AI to automate cyberattacks in the next 12 to 24 months, with many anticipating that those campaigns will be largely machine-driven. —CBS News, 21 Jan. 2026

In late 2025, research demonstrated how AI agentic systems can automate reconnaissance and vulnerability analysis, reducing the amount of human effort required to carry out cyberattacks. —Ethan Stone, USA Today, 19 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1996, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for cyberattack

• ammoniac
• biofeedback
• counterattack
• demoniac
• elegiac
• noncardiac
• paranoiac
• aback
• anzac
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack