Facebook claim to take internet security extremely seriously and having shelled out close to $1 million to hackers for correctly identifying security flaws, it seems they are prepared to put their money where their mouth is.
So when the unemployed Palestinian Khalil Shreateh discovered a loophole that allows users to post updates on the timelines of non-friends, he understandably expected a dollar flavoured thank you. Failing to be taken seriously following his initial email, he decided to demonstrate the frailty more publicly, and where better than via the wall of Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg. Unfortunately, if you want Facebook to pay you a handsome bounty, making the boss look a complete mug on his very own Facebook page is possibly not the smartest strategy.
Referring Mr Shreateh to their security researcher page, Facebook explained in this post on hacker news that they could not reward what was a clear violation of their terms.
Still, it’s not all bad news for the unemployed IT expert. Mr Shreateh has since become a local celebrity in his home town on the West Bank and by all accounts received a flood of job offers from companies keen to harness those hacking fingers of his, for entirely legitimate means, I’m sure 🙂
Dan
