Cyber Snake Oil Law and Legal Definition
Cyber snake oil refers to cryptography or security product. This security product makes exaggerated claims of what the product is capable of and gives the user a false sense of security. This term has been appropriated to mean security and encryption products that make impossible claims, such as unbreakable codes. The term snake oil was used by Matt Curtin for referring to computer security products. This term was derived from the 19th-century American practice of selling cure-all elixirs in traveling medicine shows. Snake oil salesmen falsely claim that the potions would cure ailments.
