bad actors

Noun

bad actor (plural bad actors)

1. (idiomatic) An individual or entity with a prior criminal conviction, or who has been sanctioned by the court or regulator.
   • More needs to be done to combat financial crime, a senior lawyer at HSBC has said as he called for global collaboration over the rules imposed on banks to keep “bad actors” out of the financial system.2016 September 26, Jill Treanor, quoting Stuart Levey, “Global collaboration needed on ‘bad actor’ rules, says HSBC legal chief”, in The Guardian
2. (idiomatic) A person with malicious intent.
3. (idiomatic) An ill-intentioned, mean, badly behaved or ill-tempered person.
   • At this stage of the game excitement ran high; all were on their feet and crowding close upon the Chair – all were talking at once. One Democratic brother loudly called another a G-d d--d fool and then apologised. The Convention was a Pandemonium of bad actors.1857 September 12, “The County Convention”, in The Evansville Daily Journal, page 2
4. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see bad, actor.

   Synonyms:

   criminal, wrongdoer, malefactor