What are crackers?

Among the many terms related to security and computing, we find crackers, a word that defines a certain person who uses all their computer knowledge to break a security system, whether for profit, as a form of protest, challenge, or even to conduct industrial espionage.

The main characteristics of a cracker, besides the fact that a good one can have extensive knowledge of computer security, is that they know the field in which they operate well; that is, they can bypass the security of a software program, alter its functionality, such as changing the expiration date of a program to turn it into a “legitimate” copy. From our IT maintenance company in Barcelona, today we explain the types of crackers that exist and the difference between a cracker and a hacker.

Types of crackers

Within this world there are different types of crackers among which we find:

• System Crackers – They are those who can alter the content of certain software.
• Cyberpunks – Specialized in altering websites or computerized systems.
• Cryptography Crackers – Dedicated to breaking cryptography.
• Pirates – Those who, with their knowledge, break protection systems and licenses of different software.
• Phreakers – Specialists in attacking telephone systems, tracing calls, or making calls without any cost.
• Insiders – Crackers who work inside a company and attack it from within.

Is there a difference between hackers and crackers?

On many occasions, people tend to think they are the same, although they agree that both are truly passionate about everything related to computing. The main difference is that the cracker damages systems and computers, always trying to do as much harm as possible. Currently, there are quite a few misunderstandings because hackers are considered the real computer pirates capable of breaking any security system, entering a certain system by exploiting a vulnerability, and stealing information, among many other purposes. But crackers are the ones who have the ability to illegally enter systems as well as create viruses, steal secret information, etc., although this does not mean there are no hackers who can do it.

Originally, hackers were dedicated to discovering vulnerabilities and leaving evidence of their presence there, leaving a warning to the person in charge of a system's security, for example; something that many hackers still do today. A hacker tries to improve security and the cracker to destroy it, whether as a challenge, to obtain certain information or simply for the pleasure they get from bypassing a company's security systems and doing as much damage as possible. Today, thanks to hackers, great innovations can be achieved in computing, especially in everything related to security, virus alerts, or even the creation of programs that make it easier to use computers in certain situations. The truth is that all this may sound quite like a movie, but crackers exist and today they are a serious threat, not only to the software industry but also to any kind of company that has a computer system in which it stores any kind of sensitive information or is likely to have value.