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

Business leaders know well the escalating capacity of state and non-state actors to target weak points for maximum disruption in a cyberattack. —Diane Brady, Fortune, 15 Aug. 2025

In fact, 99% of cyberattacks require you to let them in. —Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 13 Aug. 2025

Despite the speed, power and sophistication that agentic AI can bring to cyberattacks, enterprises aren’t necessarily overmatched. —Pieter Danhieux, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2025

However, many devices lack the processing power, network bandwidth, or GPS connection to support it, leaving them vulnerable to potential cyberattacks, says Chris Jenkins, a cybersecurity researcher at Sandia. —IEEE Spectrum, 5 Aug. 2025

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