Pornhub had a quality April Fools’ prank this year, but it’s also had some trouble with malware. It’s the plight of most websites whether they offer porn or banking services. Pornhub is taking steps to protect itself, though, by creating a bug bounty program that will pay out up to $25,000 to people who discover and submit information about site vulnerabilities.
Bug bounty programs have become popular among tech companies, with many digital services happily taking any help they can get in defending themselves. Pornhub is offering its bug-vetting and reward program through HackerOne, a startup founded in 2012 to create a community of ethical hackers and the companies they might help. Apple is known for resisting the bug bounty trend, and some companies like Facebook have had tense interactions with volunteer hackers at times. But the programs are largely positive.
In March, during the height of the Apple/FBI fight, then-HackerOne chief policy officer Katie Moussouris told the New York Times that, “Especially with the stakes being as high as they are, if Apple wants to continue to compete in the modern world, they have to modernize their approach” to cybersecurity. (Moussouris is currently a cybersecurity fellow at New America, which is a partner with Slate and Arizona State University in Future Tense.)
Pornhub, which is owned by Canadian company MindGeek, seems to be making an earnest effort to lay out its expectations. The company writes on HackerOne, “Our bug bounty program is limited strictly to technical security vulnerabilities of Pornhub services listed in the scope. Any activity that would disrupt, damage or adversely affect any third-party data or account is not allowed.” And one more thing. “Thank you for helping keep Pornhub safe!”
Millions of people visit PornHub every day and they may not want to admit that they were there. This is all the more reason to keep the site safe and stable. It may not seem high-stakes, but after what happened with Ashley Madison it’s clear that the danger is real and the stakes are high.
