New words – 22 August 2011

black hat noun someone who engages in criminal activity on the Internet, such as an illegal hacker

In this controversy, the term hacker is reclaimed by computer programmers who argue that someone breaking into computers is better called a cracker, not making a difference between computer criminals (‘black hats’) and computer security experts (‘white
hats’).

[www.xtrawebsolutions.com 11 June 2011]

cracker noun someone who evades security measures to get into a computer or network

In this controversy, the term hacker is reclaimed by computer programmers who argue that someone breaking into computers is better called a cracker, not making a difference between computer criminals (‘black hats’) and computer security experts (‘white hats’).
[www.xtrawebsolutions.com 11 June 2011]

dox plural noun personal documentation relating to someone who uses the internet, especially a hacker

So far, they’ve posted LulzSec’s ‘dox’ – the names, pictures, and addresses of the people claimed to be the ringleaders of the group.
[http://arstechnica.com 23 June 2011]

white hat noun someone who engages in computer security

In this controversy, the term hacker is reclaimed by computer programmers who argue that someone breaking into computers is better called a cracker, not making a difference between computer criminals (‘black hats’) and computer security experts (‘white
hats’).

[www.xtrawebsolutions.com 11 June 2011]

About new words

4 thoughts on “New words – 22 August 2011

  1. Harry

    For those not familiar with popular American film, I should explain that the terms “white hat” and “black hat” come the conventions of popular Western movies.

    I have real problems with “cracker,” since the word already has a strong and deeply entrenched meaning in American English: A “cracker” is a white resident of the rural South with little education and few salable skills beyond physical labor. “Crackers” are often presumed to hold racist views toward African-Americans, with whom they compete for jobs. It’s also common to hear black Americans, from corporate executives to rap artists, refer to hostile whites as “crackers,” a racial insult that is generally banned from public media.

      1. Hi sobreira, nothing to do with ‘crack’ the drug, this will have come from the verb ‘crack’ meaning to break through security in a computer network or device, a bit like cracking a code.

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