IP spoofing is the act of forging the source IP address in packets to hide the true origin or impersonate another system. It's commonly used in DDoS attacks, like when that disgruntled ex-employee tried to take down the company website by flooding it with traffic from spoofed IP addresses.

How to use it in a sentence

"Did you hear about the latest DDoS attack on Twitter? The attacker used IP spoofing to make it look like the traffic was coming from legitimate users, but it was actually just a bunch of bots."

"I spent all day trying to track down the source of that weird network traffic, only to find out it was just an intern messing around with IP spoofing techniques they learned on some hacker forum."

If you actually want to learn more...

• Stopping Spam: This article from 2003 compares various methods to combat spam, like complaining to ISPs, blacklists, signature-based filters, and Bayesian filtering. Spoiler alert: Bayesian filtering wins.

• A Plan for Spam: Want a clear definition of spam straight from the early 2000s? This article's got you covered, complete with legal definitions and why opt-out mechanisms are a joke.

• Spam Resources: If you're really into the thrilling world of spam (the email kind, not the canned meat), check out this list of resources covering everything from litigation to filter comparisons. Perfect for your next dinner party conversation.

Note: the Developer Dictionary is in Beta. Please direct feedback to skye@statsig.com.