An independent hacker has revealed a second breach of NASA’s systems, exposing significant security vulnerabilities.
The hacker, using the handle “@7h3h4ckv157” on social media platform X, stated that they had informed NASA directly about the issues, allowing the space agency time to fix the weaknesses.
The hacker shared, “I hacked @NASA (again) and reported some vulnerabilities to them. Just today, I received this appreciation letter from them after they patched the loopholes!”
NASA confirmed the discovery and sent an official letter of appreciation, signed by Mark Witt from NASA’s Office of the Chief Information Officer. The letter praised the hacker for identifying and responsibly reporting the vulnerabilities, highlighting their compliance with NASA’s Vulnerability Disclosure Policy (VDP).
In the letter, Witt acknowledged the hacker’s efforts in safeguarding the “integrity and availability” of NASA’s information systems. He added, “We appreciate your work as an independent security researcher, both in identifying the vulnerability and for adhering to NASA’s VDP policy and guidelines.”
The news was met with widespread support on social media, with many users commending the hacker for choosing to report the flaws rather than exploit them. Some also humorously noted the absence of a more substantial reward from NASA.
