rootkit meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

rootkit

noun

Etymology From root + kit.

A set of software tools used by a third party to gain unauthorized access to a computer system and control the system while concealing itself from the user.

Computer security

Derived terms: bootkit
Hypernyms: malware

rootkit

verb

Etymology From root + kit.

To infect (a computer system) with a rootkit.

Given crackers' propensity for "rootkitting" systems — installing altered system binaries to facilitate future access — systematic integrity checks using message digest algorithms or one-way hash functions can be an important detection safeguard.2000, Seth T. Ross, UNIX system security tools:
If not, your system might have been rootkitted.2006, Ed Skoudis, Tom Liston, Counter hack reloaded:

Related terms: backdoor, trojan, virus, worm