 Terminology and Background
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| "Hacker" and "cracker" are often used interchangeably, so what exactly is
the difference? Before we begin this discussion, it will be helpful to review some
commonly used terminology: |
| Hacker |
| A hacker is someone who enjoys the thrill of discovering the manner
in which a device operates. Hackers are more interested in gaining knowledge about computer
systems and possibly using this knowledge for playful pranks. |
| Cracker |
| A cracker is someone who breaks into someone else's computer system,
often on a network; bypasses passwords or licenses in computer programs; or in other ways
intentionally breaches computer security. A cracker can be doing this for profit,
maliciously, for some altruistic purpose or cause, or because the challenge is there.
Some breaking-and-entering has been done ostensibly to point out weaknesses in a
site's security system. |
| Phreaker |
| A person who can exploit phone/PBX systems to make free calls or to
have calls charged to a different account. |
| Warez |
| A hacker who trades pirated software. A warez strips software
of its copyright-protection and makes it available on the Internet for downloading. |
| Script-Kiddie |
| A person with little technical understanding of how exploits work,
but uses pre-written code to hack. |
| Many people defend the hacker as being nothing more than a harmless information seeker, completely
lacking in any malicious intent. This is contrasted with those who get a kick out of
breaking into computers and phreaking the phone system. Real hackers call these people
'crackers' and want nothing to do with them. Real hackers tend to think crackers are lazy,
irresponsible and object that because you can break security it doesn't make you a hacker
any more than being able to hotwire cars makes you an automotive engineer. |
