Discussion on The First Two Sermons 1

Perhaps someone can explain to me why karma seems to be misused by non-Buddhists. From Dr. Tennent's lecture and some other sources online, it refers to acts (good and bad) that have consequences. Now the confusing part: Why do I constantly hear people use the word as if it refers to some sort of result? From what I could find online, vipāka actually is the result that comes from karma. But people generally say that doing X will bring "bad karma" and doing Y will bring "good karma." Is this a reflection of some Buddhist ideas being adopted into mainstream, albeit in a misunderstood way?