hacker
Americannoun
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a person or thing that hacks.
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Slang. a person who engages in an activity without talent or skill.
weekend hackers on the golf course.
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Computers.
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a person who has a high level of skill in computer technology or programming; a computer expert or enthusiast.
My brother is a real hacker—he fixed my laptop in no time.
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a person who circumvents security and breaks into a network, computer, file, etc., often, but not always, with malicious intent.
A hacker got into my computer remotely and wiped my hard drive!
The company has hired hackers to test system security.
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noun
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a person that hacks
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slang a computer fanatic, esp one who through a personal computer breaks into the computer system of a company, government, etc
Etymology
Origin of hacker
First recorded in 1200–50 hacker for def. 1; Middle English (as surname); hack 1, -er 1; 1965–70 hacker for def. 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Yet hackers linked to its biggest adversary, Iran, have managed to pull off a series of successful breaches by using known vulnerabilities to attack institutions that aren’t as well-defended as the country’s critical infrastructure.
It comes after the Sun newspaper reported that hackers affiliated to the Chinese state accessed the data in October with information possibly including visa details targeted.
From BBC
Known as red-teaming, this kind of service will become more important as hackers turn to AI to speed up their attacks, Mandia said in an interview.
An Iranian-linked hacker group leaked sensitive personal data belonging to a former Israeli prime minister this week, one of a number of attacks linked to Tehran that have raised concerns about Israel’s cyber defenses.
There is considerable concern about AI enabling cyber attacks, but equally it can be used to help secure systems from hackers.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
