sleeper cell
- noun
- /ˈsliːpər sɛl/
- Specialized
:
célula durmiente
- An advanced persistent threat sometimes plants a sleeper cell to wait for remote activation and exfiltrate data.
Examples
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Security researchers discovered a sleeper cell of dormant malware hidden in the corporate network.
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During the audit, the team removed several sleeper cell instances that activated when the user installed an update.
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The network was compromised by a sleeper cell of malware.
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Security experts discovered multiple sleeper cells in the system.
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Security researchers discovered a sleeper cell of dormant malware hidden in the corporate network.
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During the audit, the team removed several sleeper cell instances that activated when the user installed an update.
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An advanced persistent threat sometimes plants a sleeper cell to wait for remote activation and exfiltrate data.
Synonyms
5
6.7
A computer secretly controlled by attackers after bad software infects it
How Active
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound is directly compositional: 'sleeper' (dormant/undercover operative) + 'cell' (a small clandestine group) yields the predictable meaning 'a dormant group waiting to be activated.' This sense maps transparently onto computing usage (a dormant malware node) and similar constructions exist in other languages, so a learner who knows both constituents can infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Sleeper cell in computing borrows the same image: a sleeper (something 'asleep' and not active) inside a cell (a hidden part of a network). So the picture is of malicious code quietly 'sleeping' until it is 'activated', which is why it means malware that waits to be switched on.