If you need to grab the attention of Facebook why not post on the social network CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s wall? That is exactly what IT expert Khalil Shereateh did to alert the social network czar about a flaw in his website.
Shereateh discovered a security bug that allowed any user to share and publish links on the wall of any Facebook user. Following the proper protocol, the Palestinian IT professional submitted his discovery to the site’s page security team. To encourage users to submit discoveries like this, no matter the severity of the bug, the social network pledges a minimum reward of $500 to anyone who alerts them of a security flaw.
Facebook brushed off the security bug submission, which even came with examples. After seeing nothing was done the hacker showed the flaw in action one more time, on Zuckerberg’s private Facebook page. The site’s engineers quickly fixed the issue after the public demonstration.
Now after all that work how was Shereateh rewarded? Facebook said his wall post violated the site’s term of use so he does not quality for a reward. Besides Zuckerberg’s wall, he tested the bug on the walls on two other users he is not friends with, so the TOS violated even though it was for a good cause disqualified him from an award.
Written by Dru Ashe (@ShottaDru)
Source: HuffingtonPost
