evil maid attack

A term coined in 2009 by Joanna Rutkowska, a computer security researcher, which describes a computer system or laptop's security is compromised because the attacker is a physical one and one that has access to the actual hardware in question. The target is usually a laptop computer or cellphone that is left inside a hotel room and easily available to a maid or someone who poses as a maid to come and clean the room. They use a USB plug or even something less conspicuous to get a copy of the system's password or to introduce keyloggers and other such identity theft viruses.