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

As both nations ramp up their space ambitions and militarized capabilities beyond Earth’s atmosphere, the threat of cyberattacks targeting critical orbital assets has become an increasingly pressing concern. —Vikram Barhat, CNBC, 30 Nov. 2024

At the forefront of challenges is the increasing instances of cyberattacks on healthcare every year; risk management becomes more complex when relying on older systems or software that haven't been updated. —Yusuf Qasim, Forbes, 26 Nov. 2024

Xi's cooperative pledge comes despite the CCP's recent cyberattacks targeting our telecommunications infrastructure, unprovoked maritime aggression, and worsening human rights abuses. —Tom Rogers, Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2024

In 2021, President Joe Biden inherited fallout from a sophisticated Russian cyberattack leveled against Texas software-maker SolarWinds and used to breach roughly 100 top U.S. companies and a dozen government agencies. —Nicole Sganga, CBS News, 22 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1996, in the meaning defined above