Cracking may refer to: * Cracking, the formation of a fracture or partial fracture in a solid material studied as fracture mechanics ** Performing a sternotomy * Fluid catalytic cracking, a catalytic process widely used in oil refineries for cracking large hydrocarbon molecules into smaller molecules * Cracking (chemistry), the decomposition of complex organic molecules into smaller ones *

Cracking joints Joint cracking is the manipulation of joints to produce a sound and related "popping" sensation. It is sometimes performed by physical therapists, chiropractors, osteopaths, and masseurs in Turkish baths pursuing a variety of outcomes. The cr ...

, the practice of manipulating one's bone joints to make a sharp sound * Cracking codes, see cryptanalysis *

Whip cracking Whipcracking is the act of producing a cracking sound through the use of a whip. Used during livestock driving and horse riding, it has also become an art. A rhythmic whipcracking belongs to the traditional culture among various Germanic peoples ...

Safe cracking Safe-cracking is the process of opening a safe without either the combination or the key. Physical methods Different procedures may be used to crack a safe, depending on its construction. Different procedures are required to open different safes ...

* ''Crackin, band featuring Lester Abrams *

Packing and cracking In representative democracies, gerrymandering (, originally ) is the political manipulation of electoral district boundaries with the intent to create undue advantage for a party, group, or socioeconomic class within the constituency. The m ...

, a method of creating voting districts to give a political party an advantage In computing: * Another name for

security hacking A security hacker is someone who explores methods for breaching defenses and exploiting weaknesses in a computer system or network. Hackers may be motivated by a multitude of reasons, such as profit, protest, information gathering, challenge ...

; the practice of defeating

computer security Computer security, cybersecurity (cyber security), or information technology security (IT security) is the protection of computer systems and networks from attack by malicious actors that may result in unauthorized information disclosure, t ...

. * Password cracking, the process of discovering the plaintext of an encrypted computer password. *

Software cracking Software cracking (known as "breaking" mostly in the 1980s) is the modification of software to remove or disable features which are considered undesirable by the person cracking the software (software cracker), especially copy protection featur ...

, the defeating of software copy protection.

See also