This Earth observation composite image from the International Space Station captures morning sunglint and low clouds over the central Pacific Ocean. The image was put together at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, from a series of photographs taken by Expedition 47 Commander Jeff Williams on March 25, 2016.
Image Credit: NASA
source….www.nasa.gov
Natarajan
After making the steep-ever climb of any rover on Mars, Opportunity looked back along its own tracks toward a swirling Martian dust devil in the valley below.
View larger. | From high on a ridge, NASA’s Mars rover Opportunity recorded this image of a swirling Martian dust devil on March 31. Image via NASA/JPL-Caltech.
During its recent uphill drive to the top of Knudsen Ridge on Mars, the tilt of the Mars Opportunity rover reached 32 degrees, the steepest-ever for any rover on Mars. In this image – taken on March 31, 2016, the 4,332nd Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s work on Mars – you’re looking backwards along the rover’s tracks, with its camera aimed toward a dust devil twisting through the valley below.
In the image, the rover – which was launched from Earth in 2003 – has just climbed the north-facing slope of Knudsen Ridge on Mars. The ridge forms part of the southern edge of Marathon Valley.
Why is NASA’s image in black and white, by the way? It’s because it was taken with the Navcam on Opportunity, a camera that’s essential for enabling the rover to make its way across the surface of this alien world … but which doesn’t have a color camera.
Look below to see how artist Don Davis remedied the lack of color with some processing here on Earth:
Color view of Opportunity’s great dust devil shot, by artist Don Davis. Read more on Davis’ Facebook page.
NASA commented:
Dust devils were a common sight for Opportunity’s twin rover, Spirit, in its outpost at Gusev Crater, but Opportunity has seen them only rarely.
Just as on Earth, a dust devil is created by a rising, rotating column of hot air. When the column whirls fast enough, it picks up tiny grains of dust from the ground, making the vortex visible.
Artist’s concept of the rover Opportunity on Mars. This rover – and its twin rover Spirit – were launched from Earth in 2003. Image via NASA
Bottom line: Mars Opportunity rover image of a dust devil, from a perch on Knudsen Ridge on Mars, part of the southern edge of Marathon Valley, acquired on March 31, 2016, the 4,332nd Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s work on Mars.
Source….www.earthsky.org
Natarajan
எனது நண்பர் திரு. சுவாமிநாதன் ( ஜீ டிவி } அவர்களின் அனுபவம் … இமெயிலில் அவர் என்னுடன் பகிர்ந்து கொண்டதை நான் உங்களுடன் பகிர்ந்து கொள்கிறேன் .
நடராஜன்
12 04 2016
துபாயில் நடந்த 151-வது அனுஷ சிறப்பு வைபவத்தில் கலந்து கொள்வதற்காக சமீபத்தில் அங்கு சென்றிருந்தேன். மார்ச் 28 அன்று அனுஷம். அன்றைக்கு மாலை அங்கே நடந்த சிறப்பு பூஜையில் கலந்து கொண்டேன். துபாயில் இந்த வைபவத்தைத் தொடர்ந்து நடத்தி வருகிற என் அன்பு நண்பர் சூர்யா அவர்களின் அழைப்பின்பேரில் இந்தப் பயணம் வெகு சிறப்பாக அமைந்திருந்தது.
அனுஷ தினத்தன்று சூர்யா அவர்கள் எனக்கு ஒரு வேஷ்டி – புடவை வழங்கினார். இது அவர்கள் வழக்கமாம். ஒவ்வொரு அனுஷத்தின்போதும் ஒரு தம்பதிக்கு அவர்கள் இதை வழங்குவார்கள். துபாயிலும், உலகின் பிற இடங்களிலும் இருக்கிற மகா பெரியவா பக்தர்கள் போட்டி போட்டுக் கொண்டு இந்த வஸ்திரங்களை சூர்யாவுக்கு அனுப்பி, ‘இந்த பாக்கியத்தை இந்த முறை எங்களுக்குத் தாருங்கள்’ என்று அன்புடன் போட்டி போடுவார்களாம். அந்த வகையில், சிறப்பு அழைப்பாளனாக நான் அங்கு சென்றிருந்ததால், இவற்றை எனக்கு வழங்கியதாக சூர்யா அவர்கள் அந்த பூஜையிலேயே அறிவித்தார்.
துபாய் பயணம் முடிந்து சென்னையும் திரும்பி விட்டேன். ஒரு வாரம் கழித்து, சூர்யா எனக்கு ‘வாட்ஸப்’பில் ஒரு தகவல் அனுப்பி இருந்தார். ‘உங்களுக்கு ஒரு வேஷ்டி – புடவையும் பெரியவா பிரசாதமாக வழங்கினோமே… அதை என்ன செய்தீர்கள்? இப்படிக் கேட்கிறேன் என்று என்னை தவறாக நினைத்துக் கொள்ள வேண்டாம்’ என்று கேட்டிருந்தார்.
நான் பதிலுக்கு, ‘இதில் தவறு ஒன்றும் இல்லை. மகா பெரியவா பிரசாதமாக அனுஷ தினத்தன்று வழங்கி இருக்கிறீர்கள். எனவே, அவற்றை நானும் என் மனைவியும் எங்களது பயன்பாட்டுக்காக வைத்துக் கொள்ளலாம் என்று தீர்மானித்திருக்கிறோம்’ என்று செய்தி அனுப்பிய அடுத்த விநாடியே, ‘உங்களுடன் இப்போது பேசலாமா?’ என்று செய்தி அனுப்பினார்.
ஜீ தமிழ் படப்பிடிப்பு முடித்துத் திரும்பிக் கொண்டிருந்தேன். ‘பேசுங்களேன். நான் ஃப்ரீதான்’ என்று பதில் அனுப்பினேன்.
சூர்யா பேசத் துவங்கியபோதே அவரது நா தழுதழுத்தது. ‘கடந்த மார்ச் 25-ஆம் தேதி வெள்ளிக்கிழமை சென்னை சாலிகிராமத்தில் ஒரு திருமணத்துக்குச் சென்றிருந்தீர்களா?’ என்று கேட்டார்.
நான் ரொம்ப ஞாபக மறதி பேர்வழி. யோசித்தேன். சூர்யாவே ஆரம்பித்தார். ‘அன்றைக்கு அந்தப் பெண் வீட்டுக்காரர் உங்களுக்குச் சொந்தம்’ என்று எடுத்துக் கொடுத்தார்.
எனக்கு நினைவு வந்தது. என் மனைவியின் குடும்பத்துக்குச் சொந்தமான நண்பர் ரமானந்த் அவர்களின் மகள் திருமணம் அது. ‘ஆமாம்… நான் போயிருந்தேன்’ என்றேன் நினைவுக்கு வந்தவனாக.
சூர்யா ஆரம்பித்தார். ‘கல்யாணத்துக்குப் போனபோது மணமகன் வீட்டாரை நீங்கள் சந்திக்கவில்லை போலிருக்கிறது. மணமகனின் தாயார் பெயர் பட்டு சீனிவாசன். அவர்கள் எங்கள் துபாய் அனுஷ குரூப்பில் இருந்து வருகிறார். அவரிடம் ஓரிரண்டு நாட்களுக்கு முன் யதேச்சையாக பேசும்போது, ‘பையன் கல்யாணம் நல்ல விதமாக முடிந்ததா?’ என்று கேட்டேன். ‘எல்லாம் நன்றாக முடிந்தது. ஆனால், ஒரே ஒரு வருத்தம். அன்றைக்கு சொற்பொழிவாளர் சுவாமிநாதன் இந்தக் கல்யாணத்துக்கு மனைவியுடன் வந்திருக்கிறாராம். எனக்குத் தெரியவே இல்லை. அவர் வந்து விட்டுச் சென்ற பின்தான் எனக்குத் தெரிய வந்தது. ஆஹா… அவரை நாம் பார்த்திருந்தால் ஒரு வேஷ்டி – புடவை வைத்துக் கொடுத்து நமஸ்கரித்திருக்கலாமே என்று தோன்றியது. எனக்கு ஏனோ கொடுத்து வைக்கவில்லை’ என்று வருத்தத்துடன் சொன்னார்.
பிறகு என்னிடம் பட்டு சீனிவாசன் கேட்டார்: ‘இந்த அனுஷத்தில் ஒரு தம்பதிக்கு வழங்குவதற்காக வேஷ்டி மற்றும் புடவை அனுப்பி இருந்தேனே… வந்து சேர்ந்ததா?’ என்று கேட்டார்.
‘வந்து சேர்ந்தது. அதை வழங்கியும் விட்டேன். யாருக்குக் கொடுத்தேன் என்று சொன்னால் நீங்கள் ஆச்சரியப்படுவீர்கள்’ என்று சொல்லி இருக்கிறார் சூர்யா.
‘சொல்லுங்கள்… யாருக்கு?’ என்று பட்டு ஆர்வத்துடன் கேட்க…
‘25-ஆம் தேதி சென்னையில் நீங்கள் கொடுக்க முடியவில்லையே என்று கவலைப்பட்ட சுவாமிநாதனுக்கு 28-ஆம் தேதி துபாயில் கொடுத்து விட்டேன். நீங்கள் சென்னையில் விருப்பப்பட்டதை மகா பெரியவா இங்கே முடித்து விட்டார். நீங்கள் அனுப்பிய வஸ்திரம் பெரியவா கிருபையால் இப்போது அவரிடம் போய்ச் சேர்ந்திருக்கிறது’’ என்று சொல்ல… பட்டு சீனிவாசனுக்கு ஆனந்தம்.
இதனால்தான், ‘அந்த வஸ்திரத்தை என்ன செய்தீர்கள்?’ என்று சூர்யா கேட்டிருக்கிறார்.
மகா பெரியவா பக்தர்கள் என்றைக்கு எதை விரும்பினாலும், நினைத்தாலும் அதை அந்த மகானே முடித்துத் தருவார் என்பதற்கு இதை விட என்ன சாட்சி வேண்டும்?!
நன்றி திரு சூர்யா, திருமதி பட்டு சீனிவாசன்.
மகா பெரியவா சரணம்.
அன்புடன்,
பி. சுவாமிநாதன்
When I was young, I was a very happy kid. I played around with other children, had many friends, and while I was slightly shy, I still had no problem talking to people. As I grew up, I learned that being chubby and smart made people dislike me for my appearance and envy me for my intelligence. As they began to shun me, I became quite lonely and withdrew to my room and my computer to ease the pain.
I had a few friends, and they made life a little brighter, but I was still unhappy and felt so bad about how I looked, also dumbing myself down so people would like me. By the time I was 18, nature helped me out. I grew into my body, and suddenly I wasn’t fat anymore, but that chubby little kid was still there in the back of my mind.
The young, hurt child inside of me kept me insecure about my looks, as well as forced me to play dumb, with the fear that I’ll lose friends and be lonely again if I was perceived to be too smart. I was failing school because I didn’t want to seem smart, I was failing at my love life because I had no self-confidence, and I started to believe that nothing other than bleakness awaited me in my future.
Lucky for me, I managed to pull myself out of the mire and learned a few ways to boost my self-confidence. I’m now happy, married and have a career that I love. I’m also blessed with many friends who love me for who I am. It’s now my turn to help those who might still be having problems with their own self-confidence by showing you a few methods to boost it.
First, you should identify what you’re good at: We are all good at one thing at least, so find what you can do well. You might not be the best in that field, but as long as you do what you do well, you can improve and take pride in your expertise.
Try expressing yourself through a form of art you like – this is a real confidence booster and a great way to meet like-minded people. Friends who share your interests can make you feel more accomplished and push you forward.
If you can’t think of anything you’re good at, think of something you’d like to do – then go and do it! It doesn’t matter if you succeed or fail, trying is the most important step!
Once you’ve taken that first step, you’ll be amazed at how much better you feel, and your confidence will start to grow.
Second, you must take pride in your good qualities: Yes, being humble is important, but if you’re good at something, don’t be embarrassed about it. Celebrate it and be happy that you possess such qualities – they make you a better person. Remember – you can take pride in your accomplishments and behavior while still retaining your humility.
If you start doubting yourself because of one weakness or another, remember that you have good qualities and strengths, and those are the things that define you, rather than your weaknesses.
Third, identify your insecurities: What do you think is holding you back? Is it that little voice in the back of your head? The way you look? Something you’re ashamed of? Find whatever it is that’s dragging you down and write it on a piece of paper. By giving it a name and writing it down on a piece of paper, you make it a tangible object. Next, TEAR THE PAPER UP! This is a psychological trick that makes your brain think that you’re ripping up the actual weakness.
Next, talk about it: Find a loved one or a friend that you trust and bare your soul. Sharing lightens the burden, and another person can offer perspective, pointing out things you might have missed. This is what friends and family are for! Even if that person can’t help you solve the problem, just talking about it can help.
Don’t let past mistakes bring you down: We all make mistakes constantly, but wallowing in self-pity after you make one only serves to make you feel bad about yourself. It’s a crippling behavior that ruins self-confidence and prevents you from actually learning from the mistake (believe me, I’ve been there too many times!). Remember that most billionaires had several failed business and moments when they thought it was all over for them, but they never let it stop them getting to where they wanted to be.
Turn negative into positive: The song goes: “when you’re smiling – the whole world smiles with you”, and it can’t be more accurate. Avoid the Debbie Downers and Negative Nancys. When you surround yourself with negative thoughts and people, you dictate the conversation of your life. If you keep telling yourself ‘no’ – you’ll never hear a ‘yes.’ Look for the silver lining in every situation. Finding a positive spin in a negative situation will help you get through hard times and identify opportunities in bad situations.
Avoid comparisons: Yes, there’s always someone better – they can be richer, prettier, in better shape, etc. That doesn’t mean you can’t strive to improve – instead of looking at people you think are “better” than you, look at how you can improve. You might not be as fit as that person in the gym, but if you keep exercising, you’ll lose weight, look better and feel better. Don’t be jealous of that person at work who seems smarter than you – find what you might be doing that needs improvement and work on that. Strive for improvement, not perfection.
Be grateful: When someone compliments you, take the compliment and thank the person. There’s nothing wrong with it and it doesn’t make you seem boastful. Usually, when someone compliments you, they’re showing appreciation of you. When you refuse to accept the compliment, you’re rejecting someone’s honest appreciation .
Help others: Many studies have shown that when we help others, it releases dopamine in our brain, making us happier. When you help other people, it gives you a sense of control, purpose and benevolence, and all three are amazing confidence-boosters.
Make eye contact: When you’re talking to another person, avoid looking at the ground or away. It sends a message that your confidence is low or that you don’t want to talk to them. Make eye contact instead – it shows them that you value them and makes them respond in kind, creating a positive cycle that builds confidence.
Take care of yourself: Personal grooming is a huge factor in confidence building. When you groom yourself and dress well, people say you “look like a million dollars”. Whether we admit it or not, our self-worth is influenced by our looks, so looking better makes us feel better!
| Spend time with loved ones: Avoid people who make you feel negativity and spend more time with those who encourage and support you. These people build you up, push you on and help you grow confidence in yourself and in your actions.
Don’t fear the unknown: Sticking to what you know will make your world a small and gray place. Try new things instead – take on new challenges, meet new people and try new food. It might not all work out perfectly, but you’ll gain experience, knowledge and maybe pick up a few new friends along the way. |
| Source….Jonathan P. in www. ba-bamail.com
Natarajan
|
Expedition 47 Flight Engineer Tim Peake of the European Space Agency took this photograph on April 6, 2016, as the International Space Station flew over Madagascar, showing three of the five spacecraft currently docked to the station. The station crew awaits the scheduled launch today, April 8, of the third resupply vehicle in three weeks: a SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft, which will be the sixth spacecraft docked following its arrival and installation to the Harmony module on Sunday, April 10. Dragon is carrying 6,900 pounds (3,130 kilograms) of science, crew supplies and hardware; the largest payload is theBigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM). The BEAM will be attached to the Tranquility module a week after its arrival for a series of habitability tests over two years.
Orbital ATK’s Cygnus cargo craft, visible at the left of this image, was bolted into place on the Earth-facing port of the station’s Unity module on March 26, 2016. Although the SpaceX and Orbital ATK spacecraft have made 12 launches between them, this will be the first time that the two vehicles, contracted by NASA and developed by private industry to resupply the station, are connected to the space station at the same time.
Image Credit: ESA/NASA
Whether it’s organic farming, livestock rearing or dairy farming, these people quit their comfortable, high paying jobs to go back to their roots and take up farming.
Many dream of quitting their jobs or taking a sabbatical to find a new calling, see the world, indulge in art or pass time with nature. To some, the practice of farming involves all of those and more. The smell of Earth, the moo of cows, the open skies, the excitement of the first rain, the delight in the first sprout – there lies a simple joy in farming. Here are a few stories of people who took the plunge and never regretted it:
Akshayakalp head G N S Reddy
In Bengaluru, Shashi Kumar, Ranjith Mukundan, Venkatesh Sesasaye and Praveen Nale, all employed as software engineers, decided to quit their jobs in 2011. They teamed up with a group of dairy farming enthusiasts to form the Akshayakalpa Farms and Food Ltd, headed by G N S Reddy. At this farm, located in Hassan in Karnataka, the health of cows is of primary concern. Their health is electronically monitored daily, along with the milk production capability. Besides this, about 500 farmers have employment with a sure-shot chance of getting monetarily rewarded. The farm sells 4000 litres of milk daily, and has expanded to a farm in Mysore.
Slogging it out in the IT industry for nearly a decade had burnt out Santosh Singh. While he went on a sabbatical for two years, his brothers Rajesh and Sathish joined him. On their three-acre ancestral land in Haalenahalli, about 40 kilometres from Bengaluru, they set up Amrutha Dairy Farms with just three cows. In a short time, the farm expanded to accommodate 100 cows, backed by NABARD. Even though there was a drought that led to lower milk production, they stayed. Soon, they started rearing heifer (cows that haven’t borne calves) and launched the production of paneer and cheese in 2014.
Rajendra (left) and Rego (right), the organic farmers at Green Souls
Mumbai-based Sabita Rajendran and Julius Rego are part of a new breed of urban farmers who have taken up growing organic food as their true calling. In 2011, Rajendran quit her job in advertising, while Rego moved out of furniture dealership. Their need to avoid eating pesticide-laden food and chemically soiled water inspired them to start Green Souls in 2012, with an initial investment of just Rs 20,000. Along with vegetables and fruits, they also cultivate medicinal herbs and flowering plants, which they donate to the Tata Memorial Hospital.
Instead of being an armchair critic and sympathiser, Anand from Mysore gave up his position as a software engineer and set up a farm where he practices organic farming. Besides his passion for all things green and healthy, he also felt deeply about making farmers live sustainably through farming. He purchased six acres of land in Shadanahalli, Mysore, and started organic farming. He then created various groups for farmers, and invited them to explore how and why it would be feasible to take up organic farming. Helping not just himself but also a large collective of organic farmers, he tries to open the market up to organic products.
Nikki and Gaurav Chaudhary; Nikki was appreciated by World Congress on Agroforestry recently
Gaurav and Nikki Chaudhary realised that they earned more money and peace of mind through agroforestry than they would have in their corporate jobs. Gaurav is an economics post-graduate from Delhi School of Economics, and Nikki studied business economics from London. They were inspired by Gaurav’s father, Chaudhary Veerpal Singh, a farmer who toiled the Earth for many years to give his son an education. Gaurav, who had thought of going back to farming when he was in high school, raises poplar, eucalyptus and other plantations with his wife in Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh. They also run the Progressive Dairy Farmers Association. Nikki recently got appreciated by the World Congress on Agroforestry for her blog post that detailed their journey. They believe that farming needs intelligence and professionalism to get successful.
T. Arumugam from Chennai worked with an NGO and was the first graduate in his family with five siblings. When he decided to get into the agriculture sector, everyone in his family had major misgivings, except his mother. To prove that he could make good out of it, he took up studying and attending training programmes first. He learnt the ropes from workshops and short courses provided by the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) and the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU). According to him, Indian youth should go back to farming, being a largely agrarian economy. That’s what drove him to take up rearing livestock and wheat farming.
Source……Neeti Vijaykumar in http://www.the betterindia.com
Natarajan
do not understand his work, but just know he has grown to spend a lot of time with computers now.
I had spent an hour in the bank with my Uncle, as he had to transfer some money.
I couldn’t resist myself & asked…
”Uncle, why don’t we activate your internet banking?”
”Why would I do that?” He asked…
”Well, then you won’t have to spend an hour here for things like transfer.
You can even do your shopping online. Everything will be so easy!”
I was so excited about initiating him into the world of Net banking.
He asked ”If I do that, I wont have to step out of the house?”
”Yes, yes”! I said. I told him how even grocery can be delivered at door now and how amazon delivers everything!
His answer left me tongue-tied.
He said ”Since I entered this bank today, I have met four of my friends, I have chatted a while with the staff who know me very well by now.
You know I am alone… this is the company that I need. I like to get ready and come to the bank. I have enough time, it is the physical touch that I crave.
Two years back I got sick, The store owner from whom I buy fruits, came to see me and sat by my bedside and cried.
My wife fell down few days back while on her morning walk. My local grocer saw her and immediately got his car to rush her home as he knows where I live.
Would I have that ‘human’ touch if everything became online?
Why would I want everything delivered to me and force me to interact with just my computer?
I like to know the person that I’m dealing with and not just the ‘seller’ . It creates bonds. Relationships.
Does Amazon or Ebay deliver all this as well?”’
Source…input from a friend of mine…
Natarajan
Screengrab taken from YouTube video uploaded by ParachuteAdvansed
This new ad, made by a popular hair product brand, is set in a senior citizens’ home and shows that you are never too old to play Holi. The video shows an excited resident waking up at the break of dawn to prep for the festival. He changes into an old kurta, waves away his morning tea and pockets gulal to smear on his friends at the old age home. No one notices his excitement except a female resident.
So he goes to the verandah ready to have some fun – only no one else seems interested in playing Holi the way he planned. Even the youngsters who come to visit the residents only sprinkle a dusting of colour as a festive greeting.
As the senior citizen Holi enthusiast sits by disappointed, both fists full of gulal, something awesome happens. We’ll let you watch the video to see how one person’s infectious excitement manages to bring colour to an entire home.
From hacking into the social media accounts of his friends, to finding more than 90 security flaws for Facebook – Anand Prakash has come a long way with his love for technology and interest in ethical hacking. This is his story.
It was while preparing for his engineering entrance exams in Kota, Rajasthan that Anand Prakash first became interested in hacking. “I had a smartphone and Internet packs were very costly at that time. I came across some kind of proxy setting and figured out a way to use the Internet for free,” he says. The service provider rectified the loophole after some time when many users came to know about it. But for Anand, it was the beginning of a very eventful journey towards building a career in the field of hacking – the kind that’s ethical.
“What I do now is called security research, not hacking,” he is quick to correct.
Anand Prakash
Anand, who is from the town of Bhadra in Rajasthan, was always interested in computers.
“It was always the same with me. I used to score better in technical subjects, but when it came to subjects like geography, environmental studies, etc., I used to face a lot of problems,” he recalls.
As a student, Anand strengthened his newly acquired knowledge of hacking by experimenting among friends.
“I used to practice phishing on my friends’ accounts with their permission. It is the most basic process in hacking. It involves extracting information like usernames, passwords, etc., by sending out emails to the victims in a way that they will trust them enough to open the links,” he says. Getting access to the password of a friend’s Orkut account was Anand’s first hack.
After Kota, he joined Vellore Institute of Technology to pursue a course in computer science engineering. Anand continued to polish his knowledge about ethical hacking and different programming languages in college, and practiced whatever he learned among friends.
“Up till then, I only knew about hacking processes that involved using some automated tools. And that did not interest me after a point. Finding security flaws in systems is completely different from what I was doing then,” he says.
In the third year of college, Anand came to know about Facebook’s Bug Bounty Program. It offers recognition and compensation to security researchers who find vulnerabilities in Facebook and report them according to the organization’s responsible disclosure policy.
By then, Anand was well-versed in languages like PHP, JavaScript, etc.
“I liked to analyse codes. And when I learnt that Facebook has given monetary compensation to someone for finding a bug in their technology, I thought of giving it a try,” he says.
He utilised the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP), which is an initiative by OWASP Foundation for the improvement of software security in different organizations around the world. The project provides users with open source study materials to understand application security over the Internet.
“I started learning with the help of OWASP, followed experts on Twitter, and read up a lot about security research. Fortunately, I found a bug on Facebook in just a month. It was a loophole that enabled me to find people online even if they had turned off their chat,” he says. Anand received his first bounty of USD 500 for reporting this issue.
Then he learned that many such organizations welcome people who find security vulnerabilities for them. And the work turned out to be so interesting that there was no turning back for the technology enthusiast. To date, he has found about 90 bugs for Facebook, and ranks fourth in the Facebook wall of fame 2015.
The highest bounty Anand received from Facebook was a sum of USD 12,500 for finding a major security flaw because of which a user could post anything on his/her profile using someone else’s account. “For example, I could post a picture, a video, or text, and it would be visible on my Facebook wall as a post from your side,” he explains.
After college, he did an internship with the Cyber Police Investigation Branch of Gurgaon Police. There he worked on finding the different strategies used by cyber criminals.
After the internship
He has also reported issues to companies like Twitter and Google and has earned Rs. 1.2 crore in the process. He was able to hack into the systems of the restaurant discovery and search application Zomato to gain access to the accounts of their 62 million users. He disclosed this issue to the company and they fixed it in two day, appreciating his efforts.
“I always first report the issue to the organization without exposing it elsewhere. It is called responsible disclosure. Then I take permission from them and post about it on my personal blog if they allow it.”
But Anand is not very happy about the way many Indian companies treat security researchers:
Some companies are very responsive. They fix the bugs immediately and also give monetary compensation without much delay. But if you report bugs to many companies in India, they reply saying they will take legal action against you. The condition is very bad in terms of security here. But it is changing slowly. I have come across some companies that are now open to security research.”
With new technologies coming up every day, Anand’s hunger for learning keeps developing. His advice to those who want to pursue a career in security research: “Try and report bugs to companies in a responsible manner. And do not disclose the issue unless you have permission. Security research is a great thing if done ethically.”
Find out more about how he finds different bugs, here.
Source……Tanaya Singh in http://www.the betterindia.com
Natarajan
Take off with Natarajan 