The Anti-virus Times

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

A vulnerability (Vulnerability) is a piece of code that can be exploited to disrupt a system's operation and penetrate it.

There are vulnerabilities in any software program. Information about vulnerabilities and the ways they can be exploited is in high demand on the black market. Criminals use it to bypass existing security systems or to gain access to undocumented features of the software installed on target devices in order to attack PCs and handhelds.

This is one reason why individual researchers and companies actively search for vulnerabilities.

Out of concern for their reputations, which can be tarnished by the presence of vulnerabilities in their software, many companies and organisations (Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Mozilla, etc.) have special programmes that pay researchers for information about any security flaws they discover.

• In 2013 alone, Facebook received 14,673 vulnerability reports of which 687 were considered relevant. As a result, the company paid $1.5 million to 330 researchers from various countries.
• Microsoft's programmes Mitigation Bypass and BlueHat Defense offer security researchers $100,000 for each vulnerability they discover and $50,000 for a suggestion on how to close it.

Working as one of the good guys in cyberspace is lucrative and designing security software even more so!