drive-by download

noun

A download triggered by scripts, etc., on a website, without prompting the user, usually for malicious purposes.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

noundrive-by download (plural drive-by downloads)

plural drive-by downloads

  1. Internetcomputer securityA download triggered by scripts, etc., on a website, without prompting the user, usually for malicious purposes.

Origin

By analogy with a drive by shooting.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

drive-by download. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/drive-by%20download

MLA

“drive-by download.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/drive-by%20download. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “drive-by download,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/drive-by%20download.

Source: drive-by download on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.