Want to strengthen your digital security? Pay someone to break into your software - and your systems.
LAST MAY, UNITED AIRLINES, still struggling to integrate its computer system with Continental’s following the merger of the two companies, issued an open call to hackers. The challenge: to locate and report security holes on its website, with airline miles as an incentive for successful finds. Uncovering a scripting flaw could earn 50,000 miles, while a vulnerability that allowed denial-of-service attacks could score 250,000 miles. Within two months the Chicago-based carrier had shelled out 1.8 million miles for several bugs, including two so-called remote code execution flaws that could have let a hacker take over United’s system.
United’s experience reflects a sobering truth: No matter how many hours your digital team sweats it out in front of a computer, they’re never going to find and patch every vulnerability. And even if you pay an outside firm to do the job, it almost certainly won’t find everything either. But a boundless, global army of hackers who are paid only when they unearth security bugs? Now you’re talking.
Once the purview of tech giants like Facebook and Google, this model has gone mainstream. Today, hundreds of companies host so-called bug-bounty programs spanning apps, software, and company networks. Some companies have invitation-only programs. Many post program guidelines on their websites, including a schedule of payouts based on the seriousness of a flaw.
So how do you throw open your arms to ethical hackers without wasting your time or—far worse—exposing something critical that someone can exploit? A few pros share their insights. —KATE ROCKWOOD
Start With Self-Scrutiny
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة February 2016 من Inc..
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة February 2016 من Inc..
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Screen Play
Joe Thomas and his co-founders were two weeks away from running out of money for their software startup when, in 2016, they launched a new product and went all in on prerecorded videos as a workplace communication tool.
THE GUY WHO PUTS COPS IN THE SKY
BLAKE RESNICK, A 24-YEAR-OLD WITH FUNDING FROM SAM ALTMAN AND SAM BANKMAN-FRIED, IS ON A WILD RIDE TO REINVENT THE FUTURE OF EMERGENCY RESPONSE.
AI Gets to Work
It's leading-edge, it's downright scary and it's here. Following AI's breakout year, we take a look under the hood at how entrepreneurs are applying the tech and what you need to know to stay competitive.
THE CRUSADING KOMBUCHA CEO AND 200 YEARS OF STARTUP-DESTROYING LEGAL DOCTRINE
Michael Peter wants to dismantle a longstanding legal precedent that can prevent entrepreneurs from getting their day in court. His not-so-secret weapon: A small-business superhero named Reverend Justice.
ONLY THE STRONG SURVIVE FEMALE FOUNERS 250
SUCCESS often breeds success-but triumphs also arise out of necessity. Consider that Airbnb, Uber, and Rent the Runway started during the Great Recession. In many ways, the past year was defined by similar tumult. While the U.S. never technically entered a recession, the retrenchment in investment and ad spending paired with the psychological-if not direct-toll of tech layoffs yielded tough times indeed. But female founders are nothing if not resilient, and their achievements defied the conditions they faced, giving us cause to expand our list to 250 of them. They're not ranked, but they are organized around themes. In the pages that follow, you'll find snapshots of courage from women who've overcome trials-such as keeping the internet running in war zones, coping with the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, or facing personal crises. You'll also learn how this year's top female founders grew their collective 2023 revenue to more than $8.86 billion, raised $6.2 billion in funding to date, and kept it together not just to survive, but to thrive.
Shelley Zalis
On that elusive work-life balance, her own version of perfection, and pivoting with positivity.
Steve Young Shares Lessons From the Private Equity Playbook With a First-Time Founder
The athlete-turned-investor helps Tessa Barton prepare to scale her bootstrapped photo-editing startup, Tezza.
AI in HR Tech: A New Era in Human Resources Technology
The next generation of HR software is here, powered by artificial intelligence (AI). Now, your business can harness the transformative power of AI in HR tech.
Think Liberally and Deliberately
Why do I devote four weeks a year to reading and thinking? So I can supercharge all the other days.
At Board Meetings, the CEO Should Get Lost
Directors need to candidly discuss company leadership. They can't do that if the top manager is also the board chair.