Verizone, the largest US wireless carrier, has praised Hieu PC, a cybersecurity expert from Vietnam. A certificate was sent from Verizon to the expert to thank him for his help in discovering and fixing security vulnerabilities. 

The certificate said Verizon appreciated Hieu’s great efforts in providing a report on security holes.

Hieu was considered by the US as one of the most dangerous black-hat hackers in the world as he was once behind one of the largest systems selling users’ identities.  

After a period of atonement in the US, Hieu returned to Vietnam and became a cybersecurity and digital investigation expert at NCSC (National Cyber Security Center). 

He is also one of the founders of the not-for-profit project Chongluadao, which aims to protect users from scams.

This is not the first time Hieu has been honored by American technology firms. In 2022, Hieu was included on Apple’s list of security experts who have made great contributions to the company. 

Hieu was one of 43 names honored by Apple in 2022. 

Hieu told VietNamNet that he was honored by Verizon after he found two holes that could affect data and two bugs related to the web management system of the wireless carrier.

He said he scans hosts, both public and private, of large technology firms to find security flaws. The activity helps him practice, improve skills, challenge himself, and earn money.

According to the expert, vulnerabilities always exist in large systems. The vulnerabilities may be exploited by hackers and used for malicious purposes. In the case of Verizon, if flaws exist, this affects a large number of users, especially when the company’s services are turned into tools for scams.

In order to avoid becoming a victim of cybercrime, enterprises should regularly check and strengthen their security capability, as well as maintain high-quality personnel with experience in cybersecurity. 

He suggested that agencies, organizations and enterprises follow foreign tech-giants in organizing ‘bug bounty’ programs to glory white-hat hackers and encourage them to find security holes. 

In Vietnam, Coc Coc and P.A Vietnam are doing this very well.

Trong Dat