Whether out of curiosity, to catch up on the subject, or to discover the terms that permeate the technology universe, the truth is that if you have already heard of “hacker” and “cracker”, you have probably wondered what the difference between these words is. After all, as similar as they may be, they have completely distinct meanings.

Very important in the technology universe, the nomenclatures usually confuse users. To clarify who hackers and crackers are once and for all, we, from the CodeBlog team, created this informative and very didactic article. Read on and clear up your doubts right now.

But after all, what do hackers do?

Unjustly feared in the digital world, the so-called “hackers”, in fact, are individuals who direct all their knowledge and skills to optimize and develop features for software.

Furthermore, their actions do not cause any kind of damage, and the work is carried out in a completely constitutional manner. Among the professionals who make up the group are Information Technology (IT) specialists, System Analysts, and others who hold positions in the IT field.

Who are crackers?

Unlike hackers, crackers use their technological skills to promote harmful actions. Most of the time, they direct their knowledge dishonestly, to gain some kind of "financial advantage" through theft or diversion of information.

In other words, they are professional cybercriminals.

Differences between the terms

In general, the words "hacker" and "cracker" exist to represent individuals who have ability and aptitude with computers, however, for different purposes. This is because, while hackers create and alter hardware and software without the intention of causing any kind of destruction, crackers apply all the acquired know-how to practice cracking, which, in other words, involves 'breaking' a certain security system.

An interesting fact is that the terms were created by the hackers themselves, to avoid being confused with malicious people who took advantage of digital anonymity to practice vandalism.

Practice does not always correspond to theory

When it comes to the unpredictability of people and the countless possibilities offered by the digital environment, it must be mentioned that these rules also have their exceptions. It is worth knowing that there are cases of hackers who use their skills to acquire information unethically, and the opposite also occurs with crackers who, many times, can obtain certain data without using it improperly.

Check out the most common terms in the hacker universe:

White Hat

Users known as White Hat are considered 100% safe and reliable. This is because they work in an entirely ethical manner and in favor of a company's security. Most of the time, they hold positions related to computer science.

Black Hat

Black Hats are regarded as cybercriminals, practicing unconstitutional, malicious, and unethical actions. They breach websites and systems, and steal data and confidential information from individuals and legal entities to make profits. They are users interested in practicing theft and breaking systems.

Gray Hat

Gray Hats are types of hackers who have similar goals to White Hats, but are not reliable because, according to the hacker universe, they have questionable actions.

So, did you enjoy discovering, in a didactic way, the difference between hackers and crackers? If this article was useful to you, share this information on your social networks so that more people can access it.

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