Wormed

To have gained information or influence from someone gradually, often through persistent, indirect, or cunning means. This typically involves subtle questioning, manipulative tactics, or building rapport to extract secrets, persuade, or otherwise achieve a desired outcome. It implies a strategic and often patient approach, like the way a worm might burrow and tunnel its way through soil to its objective. It can also refer to introducing malicious code into a system in order to extract information.

Wormed meaning with examples

• The detective, skilled at interrogation, carefully wormed the truth out of the suspect, asking seemingly innocuous questions until he revealed the vital details of the crime. He knew direct confrontation would fail.
• Over several months, the spy wormed his way into the diplomat's confidence, attending social events, and sharing personal anecdotes until he was able to access sensitive information.
• The clever salesperson wormed their way into the customer's budget, slowly adding extra options. Before they knew it the buyer was going way over what they originally wanted.
• The hacker successfully wormed malicious software into the company's network, secretly accessing and stealing valuable financial data before anyone knew what was happening.