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Security Dictionary
Can't tell 'smtp' from 'snmp'? Find the precise meaning of these and hundreds of other security-related terms in our convenient and up-to-date Security Dictionary.
dongle
(I) A portable, physical, electronic device that is required to be
attached to a computer to enable a particular software program to
run. (See: token.)
(C) A dongle is essentially a physical key used for copy
protection of software, because the program will not run unless
the matching dongle is attached. When the software runs, it
periodically queries the dongle and quits if the dongle does not
reply with the proper authentication information. Dongles were
originally constructed as an EPROM (erasable programmable read-
only memory) to be connected to a serial input-output port of a
personal computer.
