Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Chapter 1 Introduction to Information Technology 23 • Trojan horses • spyware • adware • scareware and • ransomware. Cookies Cookies are small text fi les that websites put on the computer hard disk drive when a user visits the websites. These are used to identify users. Cookies are often used to prepare customized web pages for the user. On many e-commerce sites, cookies are required to keep track of items in the shopping cart. Many password-protected websites also require cookies to keep the user logged in. Phishing Phishing is an attempt to get sensitive information by appearing as a harmless request. For example, a user may be told he or she has won a special prize or qualifi ed for a no-cost introductory offer. Some information about a person that phishing scams commonly try to get includes: • full name • employer’s name • address • phone number • year of birth • credit card number and • Social Security number. Once this information is in the hands of the phishers, it may be used to steal the person’s identity or otherwise commit fraud. Data Vandalism Data vandalism is the manipulation or destruction of data found in cyberspace. It is unethical and can be illegal, as shown in Figure 1-18. For example, a hacker may break into a school computer database and alter grades. Computer Hacking Hacking is an activity by computer programmers to break into the e-mails, websites, computer systems, and fi les of other computer users. Hacking is often an unethical and illegal activity. However, there are legitimate hackers as well. Many companies hire hackers to fi nd faults in their own computer systems. In this way, the faults can be fi xed before they are exploited. FYI A malware attack may occur when the user downloads seemingly harmless data from the Internet or transfers fi les from a shared fl ash drive. FYI Visit the consumer information section of the US Federal Trade Commission website and search for “phone scams” to fi nd more information.