burtybob Posted June 7, 2007 Share Posted June 7, 2007 OK has anyone noticed that us HACKERS are getting all the blame for online credit card fraud etc? When in fact it is CRACKERS not HACKERS does anyone find this annoying you say to someone that you would like to be or are a hacker and they go all cold and nasty because of the way in which they have heard it? Most people think that hackers are bad people but we are not are we! hackers are good and crackers bad now anyone who says otherwise please post or post in agreement but make sure you post whether you agree or disagree with me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel0 Posted June 7, 2007 Share Posted June 7, 2007 Words can both carry different meanings and change meanings over time. The computer community did, according to Wikipedia, use both meanings. It was after the media started to use the word "hacker" exclusively about a person committing computer crimes the computer community started to change their usage. Terms such as "cracker" and "black hat (hacker)" were coined as a result of that. The mainstream media's current usage of the term may be traced back to the early 1980's. When the term was introduced to wider society by the mainstream media in 1983' date=' even those in the computer community referred to computer intrusion as "hacking", although not as the exclusive use of that word. In reaction to the increasing media use of the term exclusively with the criminal connotation, the computer community began to differentiate their terminology. Several alternative terms such as "black hat" and "cracker" were coined in an effort to distinguish between those performing criminal activities, and those whose activities were the legal ones referred to more frequently in the historical use of the term "hack". Analogous terms such as "white hats" and "gray hats" developed as a result. However, since network news use of the term pertained primarily to the criminal activities despite this attempt by the technical community to preserve and distinguish the original meaning, the mainstream media and general public continue to describe computer criminals with all levels of technical sophistication as "hackers" and does not generally make use of the word in any of its non-criminal connotations.[/quote'] What annoys me most is that the media doesn't differentiate script kiddies from crackers/hackers thus giving them more "credit" than they "deserve". Nowadays anybody can download some program which somebody else made and call themselves a hacker without knowing how/why it works (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Script_kiddie). As for the semantics of "hacker" - I think general usage of the word is so widespread that it is okay to consider it an additional official definition alongside with the one you claim is the only true one. I'll accept both definitions. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hacker_definition_controversy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burtybob Posted June 8, 2007 Author Share Posted June 8, 2007 True i mean the news started using it in the bad way so therefore people saw hackers as bad, however now it is not the case as much as more and more people have started learning the difference. I wish the media would start doing the same if more people took the following it should sort out most of the errors that have been made: 1)Hackers are good they help make the internet and fix bugs and other stuff in programs and games 2)Crackers try to gain unauthorised access to password protected sites for malicious uses 3) Script kiddies use other peoples programs (at times programs created by hackers for a good use) and basically do the same as a cracker However script kiddies are probably the worst as quite a few crackers will create their own programs for malicious use. I think that if we all point this out to everyone we can we might be able to get the original meanings back which will be good as we can once again become proud of being a hacker and disgusted at crackers/script kiddies Please if you agree post or if not post and say why not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trium918 Posted June 8, 2007 Share Posted June 8, 2007 Network administrators are hackers. They have to be able to hack into their own systems in order to find and fix wholes. The same people that are baming hackers are the same people who has a network adminsiterators working with in the company. It's the people with out any computer experience who get the word hacker confused. Crackers is someone who is looking to harm a system. While hackers are looking to have fun. lol http://www.phpfreaks.com/forums/index.php/topic,142691.0.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azu Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 Cracker = someone who commits crime on a computer. Hacker = someone who uses technology outside of it's specifications. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s0c0 Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 It's all semantics, in the end its easier to just say hackers because then everyone knows who you are talking about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burtybob Posted June 9, 2007 Author Share Posted June 9, 2007 It's all semantics, in the end its easier to just say hackers because then everyone knows who you are talking about. Not really cos as azu said one is a criminal and one is a really good person such as an administrator of a network. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azu Posted June 11, 2007 Share Posted June 11, 2007 It's all semantics, in the end its easier to just say hackers because then everyone knows who you are talking about. Let's just all say "people" instead of "genocidal people" because everyone knows what "people" means, and "genocidal people" are a type of "people" just like "crackers" are a type of "hackers". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burtybob Posted June 11, 2007 Author Share Posted June 11, 2007 i could break down CRackers into 2 parts here HACKERS / \ CR=criminal H=Helpfull / \ CRackers Hackers / \ Mailicous coders etc. Network admins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akitchin Posted June 11, 2007 Share Posted June 11, 2007 i don't care whether people use the term "hackers" when referring to people with malicious intent. it's become the mainstream definition - i can't expect a non-technical person to know such an unpublished difference in the term. asking someone to know the difference between cracker and hacker is like asking a layman to know the difference between a web developer and a web designer; there's no clear distinction for them simply because they don't understand what comprises a website. gripe about it all you want, but majority will do what the majority knows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burtybob Posted June 11, 2007 Author Share Posted June 11, 2007 yeah but we the minority can change that so that the majority learns the correct terms! 1 by one we can change it around. I would just like to see the MEDIA using the correct terms then the majority would know the correct! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roopurt18 Posted June 11, 2007 Share Posted June 11, 2007 yeah but we the minority can change that so that the majority learns the correct terms! 1 by one we can change it around. I would just like to see the MEDIA using the correct terms then the majority would know the correct! Then why are you having this discussion with people that already know the difference? Write letters to the biggest media companies instead of piddling around here increasing your post count. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burtybob Posted June 11, 2007 Author Share Posted June 11, 2007 Then why are you having this discussion with people that already know the difference? Write letters to the biggest media companies instead of piddling around here increasing your post count. I am writing here to see what others thought about it. I might just have to get the good old pen and paper out and do exactly what you said or send an e-mail to some of the breakfast time show (<--- yeah i know sad isn't it). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utexas_pjm Posted June 11, 2007 Share Posted June 11, 2007 Oh -- so when that guy called me a "cracker" on the basketball court a few weeks ago he was merely trying to assert that I used my code in some sort of illicit activity. It all makes sense now, thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trium918 Posted June 11, 2007 Share Posted June 11, 2007 I would love to learn the fundamentals hacking! lol Fun Dam Mental Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zq29 Posted June 12, 2007 Share Posted June 12, 2007 Oh -- so when that guy called me a "cracker" on the basketball court a few weeks ago he was merely trying to assert that I used my code in some sort of illicit activity. It all makes sense now, thanks. Hahahaha! Nearly had an incident with my tea and monitor then! Top marks that man. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.