1
: one that hacks
2
: a person who is inexperienced or unskilled at a particular activity
a tennis hacker
3
: an expert at programming and solving problems with a computer
4
: a person who illegally gains access to and sometimes tampers with information in a computer system
Examples of hacker in a Sentence
My friends and I have been playing golf for years, but we're still just a bunch of hackers.
the company's security experts spent days trying to figure out how a hacker could have gotten past the firewall
Recent Examples on the Web
Cryptocurrency tracing firm Chainalysis found that in 2023, ransomware victims paid the hackers targeting them fully $1.1 billion, a new record.
—
Andy Greenberg, WIRED, 23 Apr. 2024
Officials revealed that the provision had proved crucial to tracking fentanyl smuggling across the Mexican border and identifying the hacker behind the 2021 ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline.
—David V. Gioe, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
Microsoft and Google security experts have previously linked the hackers to China and Wray said the effort is connected to U.S.-Chinese tensions around Taiwan.
—Brie Stimson, Fox News, 20 Apr. 2024
In contrast, a human hacker would probably avoid such comments, especially since their goal is to disguise their techniques.
—Michael Kan, PCMAG, 10 Apr. 2024
New Survey Shows Mixed Results FBI director Christopher Wray warned a congressional committee in January about Chinese hackers targeting critical U.S. infrastructure such as water treatment plants, electric grids, energy pipelines, and transportation.
—Koh Ewe, TIME, 5 Apr. 2024
To gain access to email accounts belonging to 22 organizations and 500 individuals worldwide, the hackers, known as Storm-0558, stole a Microsoft cryptographic key.
—Dell Cameron Andrew Couts, WIRED, 6 Apr. 2024
The hackers and programmers of 4Chan were out for kicks.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 6 Apr. 2024
On March 25, the district’s legal council announced at an emergency meeting that the hackers were asking for $700,000.
—Noah Alcala Bach, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Apr. 2024
Andy Greenberg, WIRED, 23 Apr. 2024
Officials revealed that the provision had proved crucial to tracking fentanyl smuggling across the Mexican border and identifying the hacker behind the 2021 ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline.
—David V. Gioe, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
Microsoft and Google security experts have previously linked the hackers to China and Wray said the effort is connected to U.S.-Chinese tensions around Taiwan.
—Brie Stimson, Fox News, 20 Apr. 2024
In contrast, a human hacker would probably avoid such comments, especially since their goal is to disguise their techniques.
—Michael Kan, PCMAG, 10 Apr. 2024
New Survey Shows Mixed Results FBI director Christopher Wray warned a congressional committee in January about Chinese hackers targeting critical U.S. infrastructure such as water treatment plants, electric grids, energy pipelines, and transportation.
—Koh Ewe, TIME, 5 Apr. 2024
To gain access to email accounts belonging to 22 organizations and 500 individuals worldwide, the hackers, known as Storm-0558, stole a Microsoft cryptographic key.
—Dell Cameron Andrew Couts, WIRED, 6 Apr. 2024
The hackers and programmers of 4Chan were out for kicks.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 6 Apr. 2024
On March 25, the district’s legal council announced at an emergency meeting that the hackers were asking for $700,000.
—Noah Alcala Bach, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hacker.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to hacker
Dictionary Entries Near hacker
Cite this Entry
“Hacker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hacker. Accessed 28 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hacker
noun
hack·er
ˈhak-ər 
1
: one that hacks
2
: a person who is unskilled at a particular activity
3
: an expert at programming and solving problems with a computer
4
: a person who illegally gains access to a computer system
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