Glossary

ARCHIVED 2024-01-28, DATE APPROXIMATE · VERSION 20240128_rev01 · COMPARED WITH 20231203_rev01

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 In the context of Web privacy, anonymity means that when you visit a website it can't distinguish you from any other visitor, or even know whether you've visited previously. There's an important difference between anonymity and pseudonymity, which is a related (and far more common) concept. Pseudonymity means that when you visit a website the site can tell whether you've been to the site before, and may even remember what you did in previous visits, but otherwise doesn't know anything about your real-world identity.
 [API](https://brave.com/glossary/api/)
 API stands for "application programming interface." Most generally, an API is a way for software systems or pieces of code to communicate with each other-generally, for one system or piece of code to "ask" another to perform tasks, transfer data, or both. One system's API defines what other systems/code can ask it to do, and the technical details of the communication (such as data formats).
+[Authenticator app](https://brave.com/glossary/authenticator-app/)
+An authenticator app is a security application that usually runs on your mobile device, generating temporary codes for multi-factor authentication. The temporary code is used along with user ID and password as part of an enhanced login protocol meant to provide increased security. These enhanced login protocols may apply when logging into websites, software, or other apps.
 ## B
 [Big tech](https://brave.com/glossary/big-tech/)
 "Big tech" is a blanket term for large tech companies that make widely used hardware and software, and generally have a huge amount of influence on technology, the Internet, and the economy as a whole. When capitalized as "Big Tech," the term often refers to five companies: Amazon, Apple, Google (or Alphabet), Meta (formerly Facebook), and Microsoft. Several of the major Internet brands you may know are actually part of these companies, such as YouTube (Google), Instagram and WhatsApp (Meta), and LinkedIn (Microsoft).
 [Geolocation](https://brave.com/glossary/geolocation/)
 Geolocation is the process of determining the physical location of a device, either via GPS, cellular network, Wi-Fi system, Bluetooth signal, or IP address tracking. While some of these methods return only an approximate location, others can determine very precise location or even altitude.
 ## H
+[Hashing](https://brave.com/glossary/hashing/)
+Hashing transforms data of any size to an alphanumeric string of fixed and predetermined length. A hash function is irreversible, meaning it's not possible to determine the original input data based on the result of the hash function. This makes hashing ideal for secure data storage. Hashing can convert any type or volume of data, such as the title of a book, the entire text of a book, or the illustration file for the cover artwork. Each of these data items can be hashed to strings of the same fixed length. A hash function may aim to maximize the probability of uniqueness of the transformed data.
 [HTML](https://brave.com/glossary/html/)
 HTML (short for "HyperText Markup Language") is a system of special notations that specify what a webpage should look like and how it should work. HTML is how webpages-including their text, images, tables, links, forms, and so on-are transmitted over the Internet to your device. HTML is the standard coding (or "markup") language used to build pages that render in a Web browser.
 [HTTPS](https://brave.com/glossary/https/)
 Malware is any software that has a malicious purpose. Common uses of malware are to steal private information, steal or extort money, disrupt infrastructure, or to simply cause chaos. Examples of malware include viruses, Trojans, ransomware, and Spyware. When browsing the Web, it's important to take adequate steps to protect yourself from malware.
 [Metadata](https://brave.com/glossary/metadata/)
 Essentially, metadata is data about data; it's often (though not always) machine-readable information that determines the structure or organization of human-readable information or content. Metadata can appear on websites, databases, or elsewhere.
+[Multi-factor authentication](https://brave.com/glossary/multi-factor-authentication/)
+Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a login process that requires multiple forms of proof of identity, often including a password, biometric data, or a security token. When logging in, a person provides an identity-such as a username or email-and then authenticates this identity by providing additional information such as a password. Each authenticating item is called a factor. MFA requires more than one factor to authenticate the individual's stated identity. A common MFA setup is a user ID followed by a password and then a 6-8 digit temporary code.
 ## O
 [Open source](https://brave.com/glossary/open-source/)
 Open-source software is software whose source code-the instructions that define what the software does-is published and freely available. The opposite of open source is closed source. Source code is human-readable, and software developers create software by writing it. To run software on a device, though, the source code has to be transformed into a form that's mostly unreadable to humans. That unreadable form is what you get when you download an app. Open-source software is often developed in a collaborative manner, and considered a public good, free for anybody to use. The Brave Browser, Linux operating system, and OpenOffice are examples of open-source software.
 ## P
 [Password manager](https://brave.com/glossary/password-manager/)
 A password manager is software that stores the usernames and passwords to your online accounts. It can automatically fill in usernames and passwords on login pages, generate new random passwords, and sync your passwords across multiple devices. Using a password manager can save you a lot of hassle and-when used properly-dramatically improve your privacy, safety, and security online.
+[Password strength](https://brave.com/glossary/password-strength/)
+Password strength is the measure of the security of a password, typically based on length, complexity, and uniqueness. The strength of a password is often described in terms of how long it would take to correctly guess (or "crack") that password using current-day software and hardware tools.
+[Personal data](https://brave.com/glossary/personal-data/)
+In a digital setting, personal data is information that can be used to describe attributes of-or even identify-an individual. This data includes information that directly identifies an individual, such as name, email address, or social security number. Personal data can also include less obvious types of information, such as IP address, browser cookies, geolocation data, or biometric data that-when combined-can uniquely identify someone.
 [Phishing](https://brave.com/glossary/phishing/)
 Phishing (pronounced "fishing") refers to stealing people's passwords by tricking them, using a fake website that mimics a legitimate one. Phishing often takes place via email, with the sender pretending to be a well known person or company. Phishing messages typically invoke a sense of urgency or panic, and compel readers to take immediate action.
 [Privacy](https://brave.com/glossary/privacy/)
 A resource is anything that can be used to perform a task or achieve a goal. In computing, system resources refer to things like CPU, memory, hard drive storage, network bandwidth, and battery life.
 [Retargeting](https://brave.com/glossary/retargeting/)
 Retargeting is a specific type of ad targeting, in which you're shown ads for something that you've shown interest in buying. For example, if you put an item in your shopping cart on an e-commerce site, but you don't check out, you might start seeing ads for that item all over the Web. Those ads are retargeted.
+[Rootkit](https://brave.com/glossary/rootkit/)
+A rootkit is usually (though not always) a type of malware designed to give control of a device or its software to someone else, like a hacker. A rootkit can mask its presence from the device's owner, even while it's actively running. It can be difficult-if not impossible-to repair a device, whether a computer, phone, or tablet, once a malicious rootkit is installed.
 ## S
 [Safe Browsing](https://brave.com/glossary/safe-browsing/)
 Safe Browsing is a service, run by Google, that catalogs fraudulent or malicious websites. It's integrated into several major browsers-including Brave, Chrome, Safari, and Firefox-so that they can warn you if you're about to visit such a site. Edge uses a similar (though slightly different) service that's run by Microsoft.