A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

P

page
A document on the Web (formatted using HTML) that is displayed by a Web browser. A Web page is a part of a Web site.

password
A password is a series of characters, letters or numbers or both, which must be entered before users can access a restricted file, program, or computer. Many Web sites now require registration and give out passwords to restrict "membership" to the site.

PDF
Portable Document Format. A file format that reproduces documents in an electronic form so that they can be sent, viewed, and printed exactly as they originally appeared, regardless of the computer they were created on. The Adobe Acrobat reader program included in your EarthLink Software software can be used to open PDF files.
 

Peer-to-peer

Any network in which all the computers are of equal capacities and capabilities, as opposed to a client-server network, in which one machine is intended to serve the needs of others. File-sharing networks are generally constructed with a peer-to-peer (also known as P2P) architecture.

Persistent Cookies

Cookies that are discarded when they reach their defined expiration time.

Personally identifiable information

Information that can identify an individual user, such as name, home address, or e-mail address.

Personally Identifiable Transactional Data

Information that describes your online activities such as the Web sites that you have visited, addresses to which you have sent email, files that you have downloaded, and other information revealed in the normal course of using the Internet. Transactional data differs from the content of a communication since it is not the actual substance of your communication, but rather the information about your communication. Personal user preferences tracked by a Web site via a online cookies are also considered personally identifiable when linked to other personally identifiable information provided by online users.

PGP
Pretty Good Privacy. Modestly named, PGP gives you more than pretty good privacy. PGP is a high-security encryption application used on many kinds of computers. It ensures the privacy and authentication of electronic communication. PGP is based on what's called public-key cryptography.

Phishing

An identity theft scam in which criminals send out spam that imitates the look and language of legitimate correspondence from e-commerce sites. The fake messages generally link to Web sites which are similarly faked to look like the sites of the respected companies. On the sites, you are directed to enter your personal information for authentication or confirmation purposes. The information, when submitted, however, goes to the thieves, not to the "spoofed" company.
 

NEXT >>