Security patch What you need to know
The more complex computer networks often, and quite unintentionally, contain security holes that are ripe for exploitation by hackers, opening the system to attack. In the "old days," a computer operator used to receive his security patch via paper tape or punch card. He was expected to extract the outdated or flawed portion of the original tape or deck himself and "patch" the replacement in (hence the name). Patches subsequently evolved to magnetic tape, then to disks and CD ROMs, as computer technology itself evolved. The computer user can now download her security patch from the computer company's website or receive it from them automatically.