A 19-year-old student from Kerala has been honoured by Facebook for reporting a bug on the instant messaging platform WhatsApp. KS Ananthkrishnan, a second-year student of Mount Zion College of Engineering and Technology, Pathanamthitta, now features in the list of 94 people in the Facebook Hall of Fame. This is besides winning prize money of $500.

Awarded For Reporting A Bug

Speaking to The Logical Indian, Ananthkrishnan reveals that he reported about a bug on WhatsApp which potentially cause memory corruption. “The bug enabled trackers to delete or wipe the complete data of the victim. I reported about this bug to Facebook in March and was awarded for the same in May,” says Ananthkrishnan.

He explains that anybody who manages to find a bug on Facebook or any affiliated platform can report the same on facebook.com/whitehat through the ‘Report Vulnerability Form’. “The team usually contacts in 2-3 days. After this, you are asked to submit proof and then they fix it.”

Ananthkrishnan is a young cybersecurity enthusiast and this is not the first time that his skill and talent has been recognised. “A year and a half back, I was also enlisted in Google’s honourable mentions. I had reported a bug on the platform and while it did not meet the criteria for a reward, I did get an honourable mention,” he said.

Ananthkrishnan was drawn to the field of cyber and information security when he was in 12th class. He says that vast opportunities available in this field drew him to it. He also works as a volunteer with the Kerala Police Cyberdome, technological research and development centre of the Kerala police. Apart from this, he also works as a freelance consultant with private firms.

Son of a classical dance teacher mother and a newsagent father, Ananthkrishnan says that he has always been supported by his family. In future, he wants to work in the information security domain.

The Logical Indian Take

Young man, Ananthkrishnan’s findings come at a time when the social media giant has been plagued with reports of security and privacy breach. According to Ananthkrishnan, he is one among the two people from Kerala to feature in the coveted list. The Logical Indian extends heartiest congratulations to him.

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