Glossary
Term Description
Web beacon
Web beacons are images that are placed in HTML documents (Web pages, HTML email) to facilitate user activity tracking. Web beacons are usually used in conjunction with cookies and are often used to track visitors across multiple internet domains. Web beacon images are usually, but not always, small and “invisible. ”
Web bugs
Small image in an HTML page with all dimensions set to 1 pixel. Because of its insignificant size, it is not visible but used to pass certain information anonymously to thirdparty sites. Mainly used by advertisers. Can also be referred to as a Web beacon or invisible GIF.
Web crawler
A software program that searches the Web for specified purposes such as to find a list of all URLs within a particular site.
Web defacement
Also referred to as defacement or Web site defacement, a form of malicious hacking in which a Web site is vandalized. Often, the malicious hacker will replace the site’s normal content with a specific political or social message, or will erase the content from the site entirely, relying on known security vulnerabilities for access to the site’s content.
Web farm
Either a Web site that has multiple servers or an ISP that provides Web site outsourcing services using multiple servers.
Web hosting
The business of providing the equipment and services required to host and maintain files for one or more Web sites and to provide fast Internet connections to those sites. Most hosting is “shared,”
Web log
Most Web servers produce “log files,” timestamped lists of every request that the server receives. For each request, the log file contains anonymous information such as date and time, the IP address of the browser making the request, the document or action that is being requested, the location of the document from which the request was made, and the type of browser that was being used. Log files are usually used to ensure quality of service. They also can be used in a limited way to analyze visitor activity.
Web risk assessment
Process for ensuring websites are in compliance with applicable policies.
Web server
Using the client/server model and the World Wide Web’s HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP), Web Server is a software program that serves Web page files to users.
Web services
Software applications that talk to other software applications over the Internet using XML as a key enabling technology.