The internet has become an integral part of our lives. It provides us with endless information, connects us with people across the globe, and gives us access to services at the click of a button. But even as we use it every day, the internet still contains many mysteries. Here we have collected 71 riddles about the ins and outs of the internet – how well do you know this world-wide web?
General internet riddles
Let’s start with some general riddles about the internet:
Q: What begins with W, ends with T and has an E in the middle?
A: Website
Q: Two words, when combined, point you toward all the information you could possibly need. What are they?
A: Search engine
Q: I’m not alive, but I grow; I don’t have a body, but I give information. What am I?
A: A website
Q: I can spread information across the globe in mere seconds. But I’m not alive and don’t even breathe. What am I?
A: The internet
Q: I’m invisible, but without me you couldn’t browse. What am I?
A: WiFi
Q: I’m not text, not email, but I connect people across distances. What am I?
A: Social media
Q: Though I don’t take up physical space, I allow you to access spaces near and far. What am I?
A: A link
Q: I’m not SWAT but I can help stop a cyber attack. What am I?
A: Firewall
Riddles about internet history
How did the internet become what it is today? Test your knowledge with these riddles:
Q: Before Tim Berners Lee launched the first website, he developed me to store and find research papers at CERN. What am I?
A: The World Wide Web
Q: Which influential internet company started as a student project at Stanford University in 1996?
A: Google
Q: Founded in 2004, I allowed normal people to easily share short blog posts for the first time. What pioneering social network am I?
A: Facebook
Q: Created by Jack Dorsey in 2006, I let you share your thoughts in 140 characters or less. What microblogging app am I?
A: Twitter
Q: I’m a video sharing website that has over 2 billion monthly users, allowing people to watch, share and create videos. What am I?
A: YouTube
Q: Launched in 2007, I revolutionized smartphones by letting apps be downloaded directly to a device. What app store am I?
A: The App Store
Q: I was founded in 2009 to freely share information on the web without censorship. What controversial website am I?
A: WikiLeaks
Riddles about internet culture
From memes to viral videos, internet culture is a world of its own. Can you decipher these riddles about iconic internet phenomena?
Q: I’m a funny captioned image that gets rapidly shared online by internet users. What internet phenomenon am I?
A: A meme
Q: I’m a single video or link that gains sudden popularity through rapid sharing by internet users. What internet phenomenon am I?
A: A viral
Q: I’m slang for laughing out loud, and represent humor or amusement online. What internet abbreviation am I?
A: LOL
Q: Goat yelling like a man? Sneezes that sound like symphonies? You’ll find my wacky videos online. What meme-filled video site am I?
A: YouTube
Q: Dancing babies and dramatic chipmunks – I host many of the original viral videos. What early video sharing site am I?
A: Albino Blacksheep
Q: I’m a virtual space where internet users can create avatars and interact in a shared world. What am I?
A: A metaverse
Q: I’m slang for responding enthusiastically online, often with multiple exclamation points. What internet slang term am I?
A: Hype
Riddles about internet privacy and security
The internet comes with risks as well as rewards. How savvy are you about online privacy and security?
Q: I’m software that secretly gathers your data to sell ads or spread malware. What kind of sneaky program am I?
A: Spyware
Q: We’re malicious software that infects your computer and blocks access until money is paid. What kind of cyber threat are we?
A: Ransomware
Q: I’m the criminal practice of luring internet users to fake websites to steal passwords and financial data. What am I?
A: Phishing
Q: I’m a unique string of letters and numbers that lets you securely access online accounts. What am I?
A: A password
Q: I’m a secret word only you know, used alongside your password for extra security. What am I?
A: A security question
Q: I’m a unique digital code that proves your identity online. What secure standard am I?
A: Two-factor authentication
Q: I’m software that scans your device for malware and blocks malicious sites and downloads. What protective program am I?
A: Antivirus software
Riddles about internet connectivity
Without various forms of connection, we’d have no internet. But how much do you understand these connections?
Q: I connect your devices to the internet using radio waves transmitted through the air. What wireless technology am I?
A: WiFi
Q: I’m a physical connection that carries data from servers to your personal devices. What wired technology am I?
A: Ethernet cable
Q: Phone lines carry my signals to connect your home to the internet. What technology do I use?
A: DSL internet
Q: I beam internet from satellites orbiting in space down to receivers on Earth. What wireless internet am I?
A: Satellite internet
Q: I provide internet access over existing cable TV connections using coaxial cable. What technology am I?
A: Cable internet
Q: I provide wireless internet access by transmitting signals between cell towers and mobile devices. What mobile internet am I?
A: Cellular data
Q: I’m a technology that increases your internet speeds by combining multiple connections. What method am I?
A: Broadband bonding
Riddles about internet hardware
The internet requires an array of hardware, from massive servers to tiny chips. Let’s see if you know these vital components:
Q: I’m the physical computer that stores websites and serves pages to your devices. What am I?
A: Web server
Q: I’m specialized computers that speed up network traffic by saving duplicate copies of repeated web content. What am I?
A: Cache server
Q: I’m the main computer that coordinates operations and data storage across multiple connected servers. What am I?
A: Central server
Q: I’m a small device that provides wired or wireless internet access in homes and offices. What am I?
A: Router
Q: I’m a protocol for time synchronization that helps coordinate internet events and traffic. What standard am I?
A: Network Time Protocol (NTP)
Q: I’m the interface device that connects area networks together across the internet. What hardware am I?
A: Gateway
Q: I convert analog signals like radio waves to digital data that computers can understand. What hardware device am I?
A: Modem
Riddles about internet protocols
Protocols standardize and govern internet communications. But do you know these important sets of rules?
Q: I’m the leading protocol for web page requests and transfers between browsers and servers. What foundational standard am I?
A: HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)
Q: I allow email transmission between servers and clients on the internet. What protocol standard am I?
A: SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol)
Q: I help move packets securely between a source and destination on the internet. What key networking protocol am I?
A: IPsec (Internet Protocol Security)
Q: I provide real-time interactive voice and video communication over the internet. What protocol standard am I?
A: WebRTC (Web Real-Time Communications)
Q: I allow for files or other data to be downloaded from internet servers. What file transfer protocol am I?
A: FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
Q: I’m a protocol that resolves domain names to internet addresses. What foundational service am I?
A: DNS (Domain Name System)
Q: I govern communications and data exchange in a decentralized blockchain network. What protocol standard am I?
A: Cryptocurrency protocols like Bitcoin
Riddles about internet programming
The internet as we know it couldn’t exist without the intricate languages and frameworks built by generations of programmers. But how well can you identify these technologies?
Q: I’m a programming language created in 1995 for developing web pages and web apps. What language am I?
A: JavaScript
Q: We’re markup languages that structure and present content on the web. What paired standards are we?
A: HTML and CSS
Q: I’m a popular open-source server environment that runs over half the websites on the internet. What web technology am I?
A: Apache HTTP Server
Q: I’m a programming language released in 1991 that over 80% of websites use on their backend. What language am I?
A: PHP
Q: I’m a software framework created by Google for building fast, scalable web apps. What technology am I?
A: AngularJS
Q: I’m a JavaScript library developed by Facebook to build dynamic user interfaces. What UI framework am I?
A: React
Q: I’m a protocol and standard for transferring webpage assets that helps speed up loading. What technology am I?
A: HTTP/2
Riddles about internet communication
The internet transformed how we connect and share information with others across the globe. But how well do you know internet communication methods?
Q: I allow real-time text, voice, and video chat communication between peers. What technology am I?
A: VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)
Q: I’m text, images, videos, and documents exchanged electronically between internet users. What am I?
A: Digital communication
Q: I’m the use of websites and apps to relay health information and care remotely. What growing field am I?
A: Telehealth
Q: I allow students to take online courses and receive instruction remotely. What form of distance education am I?
A: E-learning
Q: I’m live video streams broadcast over the internet to large audiences. What internet medium am I?
A: Webcasting
Q: I’m real-time messaging through internet chat apps and platforms. What communication method am I?
A: Instant messaging
Q: I’m online meetings, conferences, and webinars held remotely over the internet. What technology enables me?
A: Web conferencing
Conclusion
How did you do with these riddles about the history, culture, technology, and services of the internet? As vast and complex as the internet is, these puzzles only brush the surface of all there is to know about this revolutionary and world-changing technology. But hopefully they provided some fun and intrigue as you learned a bit more about the inner workings of the worldwide web!
