(ICE) A contrived acronym for security software, coined by Usenetter Tom Maddox and popularised by William Gibson' s cyberpunk SF novels.In Gibson' s novels ICE software responds to intrusion by attempting to literally kill the intruder.The term is not in serious use as of 2000 apart from the commercial software product, BlackICE and a growing number of others.See also: icebreaker.[Jargon File](2000-03-18)