e-mail [electronic mail] - (always hyphenated.) Messages, usually text, sent from one person to another via computer.

 

e-mail virus - An urban legend, since a virus travels by way of a program file and e-mail is a text-only medium. However, An e-mail can have an infected file attached to it.

 

e-mail spoofing - fraudulent e-mail activity in which the sender address and other parts of the e-mail header are altered to appear as though the e-mail originated from a different source. E-mail spoofing is a technique commonly used for spam e-mail and phishing to hide the origin of an e-mail message. By changing certain properties of the e-mail, such as the From, Return-Path and Reply-To fields (which can be found in the message header), hackers can make the e-mail appear to be from someone other than the actual sender. It is often associated with Website spoofing.

 

e-mail Worm – a commonly used misnomer for mass mailing viruses.

 

Easter egg - a hidden message or feature in an object such as a movie, book, CD, DVD, computer program, or video game. The term draws a parallel with the custom of the Easter egg hunt observed in many western nations. In computer programming, the underlying motivation is often to put an individual, almost artistic touch on an intellectual product which is by its nature standardised and functional. It is analogous to signature motifs such as Diego Rivera including himself in his murals or Alfred Hitchcock's legendary cameos.

 

eavesdropping - Surreptitious interception of information sent over a network by an entity for which the information is not intended.

 

emoticon - A group of characters that, when viewed sideways, looks like a face or object and add emotion to a lackluster e-mail message. Emoticons are used by those who cannot convey emotion with words. A "Smiley." :-)

 

emulation - Emulation is said to happen when a system, or a program, performs in the same way as another system.

 

encryption - process of scrambling information in a way that disguises its meaning. For example, encrypted connections between computers make it very difficult for third-parties to unscramble, or decrypt, information flowing over the connection. Encrypted information can be decrypted only by someone who possesses the appropriate key.

 

encryption certificate - certificate whose public key corresponds to a private key used for encryption only. Encryption certificates are not used for signing operations.

 

endless loop - (see "infinite loop")

 

enhanced capability port (ECP) - A high-speed, bi-directional parallel port that uses direct memory addressing (DMA).

 

enhanced parallel port (EPP) - A high-speed, bi-directional parallel port.

 

Enter key - Key on a computer keyboard used to tell the operating system or an application that input is complete. Also known as the Return key.

 

error hijacker – any software that resets your browser's settings to display a new error page when a requested Web address is not found. Hijacks may reroute your info and address requests through an unseen site, capturing that info. In such hijacks, your browser may behave normally, but be slower.

 

Esc key - Key on a computer keyboard used to exit a function or cancel an operation.

 

expansion card - Adapter card that expands the PC's capabilities, allowing the addition of new devices.

 

expansion slot - Place on the motherboard where you can plug in an expansion card.

 

exploit – an application that employs the use of a software or system exploit to install and/or operate.

 

Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformation (XSLT) - language used to convert an XML document into another XML document or into some other format.

 

Extensible Markup Language (XML) - open standard for describing data. Unlike HTML, XML allows the developer of a Web page to define special tags.

 

external command - DOS command that is a separate program usually stored in the DOS directory. (FORMAT, DISKCOPY, etc.) (compare "internal command")