Definition

1. Noun:
   • A person who works persistently and diligently at routine or tedious tasks: This meaning describes someone who applies sustained effort to monotonous work, often using tools like a machete or axe as a metaphor for laborious effort.
   • A skilled computer programmer who enjoys the intellectual challenge of creative programming or overcoming technical limits: In computing, this is the original, often positive, meaning. It refers to someone for whom programming is a rewarding pursuit in itself. This type of hacker often adheres to an ethical code that values learning and system improvement, distinguishing themselves from malicious actors.
   • A person who gains unauthorized access to computer systems: This is the most common contemporary meaning. It refers to someone who breaks into computer networks, often to steal, alter, or destroy data. This activity can constitute cyber-terrorism or cybercrime.
   • An unskilled golfer: In sports slang, a hacker is someone who plays golf poorly.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • He was a real hacker, spending all weekend in the garden clearing the overgrown bushes. (Referring to a diligent laborer)
  • She is a brilliant hacker who developed that innovative open-source software. (Referring to a skilled, ethical programmer)
  • The company's database was compromised by a hacker who stole customer information. (Referring to a malicious cyber-intruder)
  • I'm just a hacker on the golf course; don't expect a good game from me. (Referring to a poor golfer)

Advanced Usage

• "White-hat hacker" or "ethical hacker": A security expert who uses hacking skills to identify vulnerabilities in systems with the owner's permission, in order to improve security.

  • The bank hired a team of white-hat hackers to test its online security.

• "Hacker ethic": A philosophy originating in early computing culture that promotes sharing information, decentralization, and improving access to computers.

  • The open-source movement is deeply influenced by the original hacker ethic.

Variants and Related Words

• Hack (verb/noun): To program creatively or to gain unauthorized computer access. As a noun, it can mean a quick, clever solution or a piece of code, or the act of breaking into a system.

  • He managed to hack together a solution in an hour.
  • The system suffered a major hack last night.

• Hackable (adj): Describing a system vulnerable to unauthorized access.

  • The old software was highly hackable.

• Hacking (gerund/noun): The activity or practice of working as a hacker.

  • He got into hacking in his teenage years.

Synonyms

• For the diligent worker: drudge, grinder, toiler.
• For the skilled programmer: coder, programmer, developer (though these lack the specific connotation of creative problem-solving).
• For the malicious intruder: cybercriminal, cracker (a term preferred within the hacker community to distinguish malicious actors), intruder, black-hat.
• For the poor golfer: duffer.

Related Phrasal Verbs/Phrases

• Hack into: To gain unauthorized access to a computer system.

  • The journalist claimed he could hack into the corporate server.

• Hack away at: To work persistently on something difficult or tedious.

  • She hacked away at the report until it was finished.

Related Idioms

• "Hack it": To manage or cope with a situation (often used in the negative).

  • The training was so tough that many recruits couldn't hack it.

• "Life hack": A strategy or technique adopted to manage one's time and daily activities more efficiently. (This is a modern, popularized derivative).

  • Using a binder clip to organize cables is a great life hack.

Noun

1. one who works hard at boring tasks
2. a programmer for whom computing is its own reward; may enjoy the challenge of breaking into other computers but does no harm
   • true hackers subscribe to a code of ethics and look down upon crackers
3. a programmer who breaks into computer systems in order to steal or change or destroy information as a form of cyber-terrorism
4. someone who plays golf poorly