Pwned

Pwned is slang used to indicate that someone or something has been decisively defeated, outsmarted, or compromised. Originating in online gaming and hacker culture, the term functions as both a verb (to pwn) and an adjective (pwned). In gaming, a player is said to be pwned after being overwhelmed. In cybersecurity and information security discourse, "pwned" often refers to systems or accounts that have been compromised, often due to data breaches, malware, or credential theft.

Etymology and variants: The word likely derives from leetspeak manipulation of "own" or "owning," with "pwn" appearing as a misspelling that stuck in gaming communities around the late 1990s and early 2000s. Variants include pwnd, pwned, pwnage, and "you have been pwned."

Security context: In breach notices and security awareness, "pwned" is used informally to describe compromised accounts or exposed credentials. A famous online resource, Have I Been Pwned, was established by Troy Hunt in 2013 to collect and publish data from public breaches and to help users determine if their information has been exposed.

Usage and culture: The term has entered mainstream internet culture as a meme and is widely understood by technology users, though it remains informal and inappropriate in formal writing. It is often used humorously to taunt opponents or to describe successful hacks or breaches.