Computer Keystroke Recorder
Computer Keystroke Recorder
A computer keystroke recorder, as its name suggests, is simply a device for sequentially recording all the keys pressed on a computer keyboard. Keystroke recorders are available commercially, but much more sophisticated devices are used by government agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Also called a keystroke logger, key logger, or key-logger, a computer keystroke recorder is a program that runs in the background as the computer operates, recording all key depressions or strokes. Some such devices are plugged in manually, but the more effective kind operate through means of a computer program. The latter may be introduced to the computer by means of a trojan horse, a remotely inserted program that operates much like a virus.
See also Computer hardware security; computer software security; Forensic science.