The Pentagon has commended and rewarded an 18-year-old high school graduate for successfully hacking into its website. The teenager reportedly spent at least 10 to 15 hours in between his classes to breach the sites managed by the U.S. Defense Department and he didn't get in trouble for it.
David Dworken was one of the over 1,400 participants of the "Hack the Pentagon" initiative, which was launched in April. Hackers were encouraged to hack into the public websites of the government that didn't contain highly sensitive or critical data, per UPI.
It was David Dworken who found the "highest number of potential vulnerabilities" along with another hacker, Craig Arendt, 35, per Stripes. The teenager is a graduate of Washington D.C.'s Maret High School and participated in the program as a way to get college credits from Boston's Northeastern University, where he plans to take Computer Science this fall.
Hackers did indeed "hack the Pentagon" https://t.co/qb9kmt8Yft pic.twitter.com/xkjoefqjRs
— Gizmodo (@Gizmodo) June 19, 2016
The Pentagon program came with a prize money, but David Dworken did not receive any cash as his discoveries were not new and were already previously reported. Nevertheless, David Dworken was honored by the Pentagon and said he would participate in the program when it launches again. The other hacker, Arendt, found 22 bugs and received $2,000, according to the Stripes report.
This is not the first time that David Dworken participated in a hacker bounty as he has also successfully joined similar programs in the past. He also hacked into his own school's website to expose its bugs. His abilities have had plenty of recruiters interested already as they have tapped him for internships, per Reuters.
Pentagon said that it plans to expand its "Hack the Pentagon" program after realizing that there are actually individuals who want to help the government and "make a difference," per Reuters. Anyone can participate in the program, including security contractors. The department is considering opening its other sites for this special endeavor next, per Engadget.
