Home page

The term Home ( English homepage ) means the website that a web browser loads at startup or when opening a new window or tab. The home page is a way from which the user begins his visit to the World Wide Web .

To the pair of terms home and homepage

'Start page' is the translation of English homepage , literally 'home page', and was originally the page that belongs to a URL , as opposed to a domain . The two terms have developed different meanings in German: “ Homepage ” is nowadays understood to mean the entry page (frontpage) , colloquially also a website (web presence) as a whole. “Start page” is used for the default address to which a web call is directed and for the internal settings of a web browser.

Setting the homepage

The start page is preset when a web browser is installed for the first time. After connecting to the Internet, it often points to a web portal . The start page can be freely selected in all common browsers and can also be a local HTML page. A local start page can also be called up if the Internet connection has not yet been established.

Modern online services offer customizable start pages that combine the various functions of your own computer and offers from the Internet.

Changed homepage as an exploit: homepage hijacking

Malware can cause the start page of the browser to repeatedly switch to a website that you did not choose yourself. This exploit , which mostly targets advertising sites, often with extremely questionable content, was widespread in the years after 2000 and was a frequent function of adware or spyware . This type of malware is called browser hijackers after the English hijacking ' capers , forcible takeover' . Today that has become rare because modern Web browser their home (or the sections of the configuration file or the Windows registry (Registry) to protect against unauthorized modification, in which the address is entered).

Individual evidence

↑ The end of the homepage. In: Netvibes. Focus online , March 5, 2008, accessed February 24, 2009 .
↑ Private home page. In: Technology. manager magazin , March 31, 2008, accessed February 24, 2009 .
↑ Security . In: c't . heise-Verlag, 2000 (series of articles, formerly viruses, worms & Co ).
^ Browser hijacking. Redirecting browser requests to external websites. In: Security - information from the BSI. heise-Verlag, July 16, 2004, archived from the original on February 2, 2008 ; Retrieved February 24, 2009 .

[1] The end of the homepage. In: Netvibes. Focus online , March 5, 2008, accessed February 24, 2009 .

[2] Private home page. In: Technology. manager magazin , March 31, 2008, accessed February 24, 2009 .

[3] Security . In: c't . heise-Verlag, 2000 (series of articles, formerly viruses, worms & Co ).

[4] Browser hijacking. Redirecting browser requests to external websites. In: Security - information from the BSI. heise-Verlag, July 16, 2004, archived from the original on February 2, 2008 ; Retrieved February 24, 2009 .