sniffer

views updated May 18 2018

sniff·er / ˈsnifər/ • n. 1. a person who sniffs, esp. one who sniffs a drug or toxic substance: a glue sniffer. ∎ inf. a device for detecting an invisible and dangerous substance, such as gas or radiation: electronic sniffers are used to detect the presence of a nuclear mass.2. inf. a person's nose.3. (also sniffer program) a computer program that detects and records a variety of restricted information, esp. the secret passwords needed to gain access to files or networks.

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