Bioterrorism is the deliberate misuse of a pathogen (virus, bacterium or other disease-causing microorganisms) or biotoxin (poisonous substance produced by an organism) to cause illness and death amongst the population. Bioterrorism and biological warfare (biowarfare) are terms often used interchangeably. However, bioterrorism is typically attributed to the politically motivated use of biological weapons by a rogue state, terrorist organisation or rogue individual whereas biological warfare refers to a country’s use of bioweapons. Although rare, bioterrorism is a rapidly evolving threat to global security due to significant advancements in biotechnology in recent years and the severity of agents that could be exploited. The pursuit of publicity plays a vital role in bioterrorism. The success of a biological attack is often calculated by the extent of terror resulting from the event, psychological disruption of society and political breakdown, rather than the lethal effects of the agent used.

生物恐怖主义是故意滥用病原体（病毒，细菌或其他引起疾病的微生物）或生物毒素（生物体产生的有毒物质）在人群中引起疾病​​和死亡的行为。生物恐怖主义和生物战（biowarfare）是经常互换使用的术语。但是，生物恐怖主义通常归因于流氓国家，恐怖组织或流氓个人出于政治动机使用生物武器，而生物战则是指一个国家对生物武器的使用。生物恐怖主义虽然很少见，但由于近年来生物技术的重大进步以及可被利用的代理的严重性，对全球安全的威胁正在迅速发展。追求宣传在生物恐怖主义中起着至关重要的作用。