• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation

2

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

3

Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem

1

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation

2

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

3

Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
TechCybersecurity

Uber Wants to Be Hacked

Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
March 22, 2016, 10:55 AM ET
ROAD-SERVICES-DEMO
A protester wears a shirt displaying the logo of smartphone ride service Uber during by a protest by non-licensed private hire drivers blocking the Place de la Nation in Paris on February 9, 2016. Members of services known in France as "voitures de tourisme avec chauffeur" (VTC - Tourism vehicle with driver) have been protesting against assurances the French Prime minister has given to taxis. / AFP / Geoffroy Van der Hasselt (Photo credit should read GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT/AFP/Getty Images)Photograph by Geoffroy Van Der Hasselt—AFP via Getty Images
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

A year after debuting a private computer bug bounty program, Uber said it is doubling down on its cybersecurity effort by expanding and opening the program to the public.

The white-hot, ride-hailing firm—last valued at more than $60 billion—says it is also introducing an unusual loyalty rewards program for participants. Hackers who uncover a string of bugs will receive bonus payouts, the sums of which are determined as a portion—10%—of the average of the previous rewards.

Hackers who report critical vulnerabilities can earn as much as $10,000 for their work, the company said.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

“The way we thought about the bonus program was like bowling a couple of strikes in row—you add more on top of the previous amount,” explains Collin Greene, a security engineer at Uber who manages the project and who previously oversaw Facebook’s (FB) bug bounty program. “We think its an exciting way to get people locked in,” he adds, mentioning he hopes it will encourage researchers to take the time to get up to speed on the unfamiliar system.

Greene tells Fortune that he is most excited about the company’s creation of a “treasure map,” a document containing details about the architecture and layouts of Uber’s websites and apps. He says the map will make it easier for outsiders to find security vulnerabilities.

For more on hacking, watch:

During the 9-month initial limited trial period, Greene cites the most common bugs found were “missing authorization” bugs, which pay $5,000 a piece and do not endanger customer information. The first run had 200 invited participants, who filed a total of about 100 reported issues.

Uber has chosen to run the program through HackerOne, a bug bounty startup that originally spun out of Facebook. The startup has about 500 programs up and running at companies such as Twitter (TWTR), Yahoo (YHOO), Square (SQ), and Snapchat, three-quarters of which are private.

Alex Rice, co-founder and chief technology officer of HackerOne and one of the original designers of the program at Facebook, tells Fortune that Uber’s approach is more open than many other organizations. “They’re doing a pretty unprecedented level of transparency,” he posits, mentioning the plans for a so-called treasure map.

Read more: “Google Just Doubled the Reward for Cracking into Chromebooks“

Uber recently poached a number of top security personnel from the social network, including Uber’s security chief Joe Sullivan. “Even with a team of highly-qualified and well trained security experts, you need to be constantly on the look-out for ways to improve,” Sullivan said in a statement about the initiative. “This bug bounty program will help ensure that our code is as secure as possible. And our unique loyalty scheme will encourage the security community to become experts when it comes to Uber.”

The bug bounty program complements a number of other key cybersecurity hires that Uber has made in the past year. In addition to on-boarding 40 Carnegie Mellon roboticists, the company poached Charlie Miller and Chris Valasek, last year’s infamous Jeep Grand Cherokee hackers, from their respective roles at Twitter and cybersecurity firm IOActive.

The U.S. Department of Defense also made waves at last month’s RSA cybersecurity conference in San Francisco when Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter said the Pentagon planned to introduce a bug bounty program of its own. Other companies that have implemented such programs include General Motors (GM), Tesla (TSLA), and United Airlines (UAL), which offers frequent flier miles as rewards.

About the Author
Robert Hackett
By Robert Hackett
Instagram iconLinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Tech

‘It’s called StreetEasy, not StreetHard’: Mamdani cracks down on scourge of ‘housefishing’ and ‘real estate slop’
Real EstateHousing
‘It’s called StreetEasy, not StreetHard’: Mamdani cracks down on scourge of ‘housefishing’ and ‘real estate slop’
By Tatiana SatauaJuly 22, 2026
1 hour ago
As Washington panics about Chinese AI, Jensen Huang says open-source models like Kimi are ‘excellent’ and should be embraced, not banned
AIChina
As Washington panics about Chinese AI, Jensen Huang says open-source models like Kimi are ‘excellent’ and should be embraced, not banned
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJuly 22, 2026
1 hour ago
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman sits next to U.S. President Donald Trump.
AITech regulation
OpenAI’s rogue hacking incident was a warning shot. Will it be a wake-up call to finally create AI safety regulation?
By Jeremy Kahn and Emily ForliniJuly 22, 2026
1 hour ago
Man holding his hands open
InvestingStock
A new group of stocks is transforming global equities markets. Meet ‘Memi,’ the $3 trillion sector fueled by AI’s insatiable hunger for memory chips
By Amanda GerutJuly 22, 2026
2 hours ago
Sam Altman getting into a car
CybersecurityOpenAI
OpenAI’s models went rogue and hacked Hugging Face. It’s a wake-up call, experts say, but more concerning behavior may be next
By Beatrice NolanJuly 22, 2026
2 hours ago
Northrop Grumman launches private robot mission to strap jetpacks on aging satellites
InnovationSpaceX
Northrop Grumman launches private robot mission to strap jetpacks on aging satellites
By Marcia DunnJuly 22, 2026
5 hours ago

Most Popular

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
Cybersecurity
OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
By Jeremy Kahn and Emily ForliniJuly 21, 2026
1 day ago
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
Success
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 20, 2026
2 days ago
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
AI
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
By Eva RoytburgJuly 21, 2026
1 day ago
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
Success
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
By Emma BurleighJuly 21, 2026
1 day ago
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
Success
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
By Sydney LakeJuly 20, 2026
2 days ago
The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind
Real Estate
The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 22, 2026
5 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.