Facebook recently awarded security researcher Orange Tsai the sum of $10,000 after he discovered a backdoor script that was installed by hackers on the company's corporate server.
The company offers a bug bounty for anybody that can point out such vulnerabilities or bugs in the systems of Facebook. The social network has been true to its word, rewarding researchers that have been able to help in protecting its users by identifying such issues. Since the launch of the program in August 2011, Facebook has paid out rewards totaling $4.3 million to over 800 security researchers.
A new report reveals the youngest recipient of a bug bounty from Facebook, as 10-year-old Jani from Helsinki, Finland, was able to spot a bug in the company's picture sharing service Instagram that allowed him to delete comments made by any user.
The boy reported his discovery to Facebook and proved the bug by deleting a comment in one of the test accounts of Facebook on Instagram. The company used the information to patch up the security issue in February and then forwarded Jani his $10,000 reward a month after.
According to Jani, the reward has been used to purchase computers for his two brothers, a new bicycle and football gear.
Jani said that he was able to track the bug on his own, after learning the basics of his white hat hacking skills through YouTube. The boy is hoping to become a security researcher once he is all grown up, and he already has made great strides toward that goal even before reaching his teenage years.
Security researchers are sorely needed in an environment where bugs and vulnerabilities can lead to disastrous results for companies and users alike. Big names in tech including Google and Microsoft, in addition to Facebook, offer bug bounty programs, as the cost for rewarding researchers for tracing problems is much more manageable compared to the cost of cleaning up the mess that would be made when the problem is exploited by criminals.
