Drive-by download

A drive-by download refers to:


 * 1) A download that the user indirectly authorized but without understanding the consequences.


 * 1) A download that happens without the knowledge of the user.


 * 1) A download of spyware, a computer virus, or any other kind of malware that happens without the knowledge of the user. A drive-by download may happen when a user visits a website, views an e-mail message or clicks on a deceptive pop-up window: the user clicks on the window in the mistaken belief that, for instance, it is an error report from his own computer or that it is an innocuous pop-up advertisement; in such a  case, the "supplier" may claim that the user "consented" to the download, although the user was completely unaware of having initiated a malicious software download.


 * 1) A download of malware through the exploitation of a web browser, e-mail client or operating system bug, without any user intervention whatsoever.