Microsoft takes the security of its flagship web browser very seriously, and nowhere is this more evident than the Internet Explorer 11 bug bounty program that the technology titan had rolled out.
This initiative was launched back in June this year, when the Preview version of IE 11 was out in the open. And now with the launch of Windows 8.1 out on the horizon, the program has come to an end. The company has taken the opportunity to share details about this program.
Redmond says that it has paid out more than $28,000 to various security experts that have found vulnerabilities in its newest browser. Katie Moussouris, senior security strategist over at Microsoft Security Response Center explained this in a blog post:
“We’ve worked with so many bright security researchers through the years, and are thrilled that through the bounty programs, we received reports from researchers who had never reported to us directly before. This means we have even more great minds interested in working directly with us to help make our products more secure.”
Microsoft’s internal development teams, quite obviously, put their latest creations to the test, but nothing beats another view from outside sources — particularly when it comes to computing security.
And rightly so, six Internet Explorer 11 Preview flaws had been unearthed, which are now fixed.
One familiar face to receive a bounty reward is Ivan Fratric, the Google security engineer that had discovered flaws amounting to $1,100. Another Google employee, Fermin J. Serna found a glitch worth $500 in Microsoft’s latest browser.
Both Google employees have donated their wins to charity.
Another notable highlight is James Forshaw who is currently with Context Security. He has received $4,400 for the bugs he founds in the application, along with an additional $5,000 for what Microsoft has labeled cool IE design vulnerabilities.
Needless to say, you can rest assured that Microsoft’s flagship web browser will be even safer when you fire it up on release day.
