One million air miles can take you pretty far.
That’s what Jordan Wiens, owner of the Florida-based security firm Vector, is learning after submitting information to United Airlines about a remote-code execution flaw in the airline’s website.
A few months ago, United issued a call to ethical hackers called a “bug bounty” that promised miles for anyone who can find security flaws in its system. The carrier is the first in the industry to launch such a program.
Wiens, 35, told MyFoxTampaBay that after poking through United’s systems for about six hours he found a vulnerability that was important but not one he thought was critical. “I did not expect to qualify for a full million,” he said.
Wiens posted a picture on Twitter showing his one million points that came in two deposits from United.
So what does that get him? Here’s a breakdown:
COACH
40 round trips in the U.S. and Canada (except Hawaii)
16 round trips to Europe
12 round trips to Australia
BUSINESS/ FIRST CLASS
20 round trips in the U.S. and Canada (except Hawaii)
8 round trips to Europe
7 round trips to Australia
Wiens said he plans to use the miles for coach class trips for his family, but his wife is pushing for something more.
“I have been telling the wife for awhile that I am going to take her to Hawaii,” he said. But that’s probably not going to cut it anymore. “She’s like, ‘you’ve got to do better than Hawaii.’”
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