What Does This Mean?
In computing, a person who breaks into computer systems without authorization; the word was preferred by programmers who wanted to keep "hacker" for skilled, benign programmers.
REAL-WORLD EXAMPLE
""The old Jargon File draws a line between a hacker who builds things and a cracker who breaks in.""
LORE & ORIGIN
Wikipedia's security hacker article says programmers who reclaim "hacker" prefer "cracker" for those who break into computers, a usage promoted by Eric S. Raymond, and cites the Jargon File, which dates the coinage to around 1985 by hackers responding to journalistic misuse of "hacker".
MENTIONS OVER TIME
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