{{short description|Act of secretly listening to the private conversation of others}} {{Redirect|Eavesdrop|water dripping from eaves|Eavesdrip}} {{use mdy dates|date=September 2023}} [[File:Henri Adolphe Laissement Kardinäle im Vorzimmer 1895.jpg|upright=1.35|thumb|Cardinals eavesdropping in the Vatican. A painting by {{Ill|Henri Adolphe Laissement|fr}}, 1895]] '''Eavesdropping''' is the act of secretly or stealthily listening to the private conversation or communications of others without their consent in order to gather information.
==Etymology== The verb ''eavesdrop'' is a back-formation from the noun ''eavesdropper'' ("a person who eavesdrops"), which was formed from the related noun ''eavesdrop'' ("the dripping of water from the eaves of a house; the ground on which such water falls").<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/eavesdrop|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811143412/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/eavesdrop|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 11, 2017|title=eavesdrop – Definition of eavesdrop in English by Oxford Dictionaries|website=Oxford Dictionaries – English|access-date=September 10, 2023}}</ref>
An eavesdropper was someone who would hang from the eave of a building so as to hear what is said within. The PBS documentaries ''Inside the Court of Henry VIII'' (April 8, 2015)<ref name="auto">{{cite book|title=Inside the Court of Henry VIII|url=https://www.pbs.org/program/inside-court-henry-viii/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150401021025/http://www.pbs.org/program/inside-court-henry-viii/|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 1, 2015|publisher=Public Broadcasting Service|date=April 8, 2016}}</ref> and ''Secrets of Henry VIII’s Palace'' (June 30, 2013) include segments that display and discuss "eavedrops", carved wooden figures Henry VIII had built into the eaves (overhanging edges of the beams in the ceiling) of Hampton Court to discourage unwanted gossip or dissension from the King's wishes and rule, to foment paranoia and fear,<ref name="auto"/> and demonstrate that everything said there was being overheard; literally, that the walls had ears.<ref>{{cite web|author=Stollznow, Karen|author-link=Karen Stollznow|date=August 7, 2014|title=Eavesdropping: etymology, meaning, and some creepy little statues|url=http://karenstollznow.com/eavesdropping/|website=KarenStollznow.com|access-date=June 23, 2016|archive-date=July 28, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180728181842/http://karenstollznow.com/eavesdropping/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Techniques== Eavesdropping vectors include telephone lines, cellular networks, email, and other methods of private instant messaging. Devices that support VoIP and other communication software are also vulnerable to electronic eavesdropping by computer viruses categorized as trojan viruses or more broadly as spyware.<ref name=":1">Garner, p. 550{{full citation needed|date=June 2014}}</ref>
==Network attacks== Network eavesdropping is a network layer attack that focuses on capturing small ''packets'' from the network transmitted by other computers and reading the data content in search of any type of information.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://vulnerabilities.teammentor.net/article/6a32e2d5-dba5-4f6d-9fe0-a51605fd0557|title=TeamMentor 3.5|website=vulnerabilities.teammentor.net|access-date=2019-09-27|archive-date=September 27, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190927063206/https://vulnerabilities.teammentor.net/article/6a32e2d5-dba5-4f6d-9fe0-a51605fd0557|url-status=dead}}</ref> This type of network attack is generally one of the most effective as a lack of encryption services are used and when the connection between the two endpoints are weak and not secure.<ref>{{Cite web|title=What Are Eavesdropping Attacks?|url=https://www.fortinet.com/resources/cyberglossary/eavesdropping|access-date=2021-10-02|website=Fortinet|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=What Are Eavesdropping Attacks & How To Prevent Them |url=https://enterprise.verizon.com/resources/articles/s/what-are-eavesdropping-attacks/ |access-date=2024-05-03 |website=Verizon Enterprise |language=en}}</ref> It is also linked to the collection of metadata.
== Security == There is a growing importance of security in communication systems, specifically in wireless technology. The need for security measures at different levels, including software encryption, hardware protection (e.g., trusted platform modules), and even the physical layer using wave-front engineering is as crucial than ever.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Ma |first1=Jianjun |last2=Shrestha |first2=Rabi |last3=Adelberg |first3=Jacob |last4=Yeh |first4=Chia-Yi |last5=Hossain |first5=Zahed |last6=Knightly |first6=Edward |last7=Jornet |first7=Josep Miquel |last8=Mittleman |first8=Daniel M. |date=November 2018 |title=Security and eavesdropping in terahertz wireless links |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-018-0609-x |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=563 |issue=7729 |pages=89–93 |doi=10.1038/s41586-018-0609-x |pmid=30323288 |bibcode=2018Natur.563...89M |s2cid=53085137 |issn=1476-4687|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
Researchers have expressed the importance of addressing the privacy concerns from eavesdropping attacks because they impact the rights of users and the ability to have confidence in the devices as well as the entire Internet. Ensuring that users have trust and confidence in their Internet activities is important so users continue to engage actively in the system and share data.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Anajemba |first1=Joseph Henry |last2=Iwendi |first2=Celestine |author-link2=Celestine Iwendi |last3=Razzak |first3=Imran |last4=Ansere |first4=James Adu |last5=Okpalaoguchi |first5=Izuchukwu Michael |date=2022 |title=A Counter-Eavesdropping Technique for Optimized Privacy of Wireless Industrial IoT Communications |journal=IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics |volume=18 |issue=9 |pages=6445–6454 |bibcode=2022ITII...18.6445A |doi=10.1109/TII.2021.3140109}}</ref>
==See also== {{div col|colwidth=30em}} * Cellphone surveillance * Computer surveillance * Covert listening device * ECHELON * Espionage * Fiber tapping * Global surveillance disclosures (2013–present) * ''Katz v. United States'' (1967) * Keystroke logging * Listening station * Magic (cryptography) * Man-in-the-middle attack * Mass surveillance * NSA warrantless surveillance controversy (December 2005 – 2006) * Opportunistic encryption * Party line * People watching * Privacy * Secure communication * Speke Hall, containing a physical eavesdrop for listening to people waiting at the door * Surveillance * Ultra (cryptography) * Wiretapping {{div col end}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{Wiktionary-inline|eavesdropping}} *{{Commons category-inline|Eavesdropping}}
{{Information security}} {{espionage}} {{intelligence cycle management}}
Category:Espionage techniques Category:Plot (narrative)