scareware en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
Etymology
Etymology tree English scare Proto-Indo-European *sem- Proto-Germanic *samþuz /*samftuz Proto-Indo-European *-yos Proto-Indo-European *-yós Proto-Germanic *-jaz Proto-West Germanic *-ī Proto-West Germanic *samft(ī) Old English sōfte Middle English softe English soft Proto-Germanic *warō Proto-West Germanic *waru Old English waru Middle English ware English -ware English softwarebf. English -ware English scareware From scare + -ware.
Meanings
- (informal, uncountable) Software that attempts to scare the user into compliance, as by displaying false warnings of virus infection.