Use of the term latency in this context may invite confusion, since it is sometimes used in networking (especially in the context of firewalls) to indicate delay rather than inactivity. In the networking context, the usage probably derives from the use of the term "latency period" in neurology to refer to the delay between the moment a nerve impulse reaches a muscle fibre and the moment that fibre starts to contract. In fact, the notion of latency as entailing delay has its uses in discussion of virus issues, so dormancy may be a better term.