If you think hacking Facebook sounds illegal, think again. Meta actively encourages security researchers to break into their platforms—and they'll pay you for it. The minimum bounty? $500 per qualifying vulnerability. But the real money comes from finding serious flaws: researchers have earned up to $300,000 for discovering critical remote code execution bugs.

This isn't some sketchy underground operation. Meta's bug bounty program is an official initiative that launched in 2011, making it one of the oldest and most lucrative in the tech industry. The program covers Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Meta Quest headsets, and even Ray-Ban Stories smart glasses.

Why Would Facebook Pay People to Hack Them?

It's simple economics. Paying researchers a few thousand dollars to find security holes is way cheaper than dealing with a massive data breach. In 2024 alone, Meta paid out over $2.3 million to nearly 200 researchers who submitted almost 10,000 bug reports. That's a bargain compared to the billions in damage a major hack could cause.

The program also creates a competitive market for finding bugs. Instead of vulnerabilities being sold on the dark web to criminals, white-hat hackers can make legitimate money by reporting them responsibly. It's a win-win: Meta gets stronger security, researchers get paid, and users stay safer.

Not All Bugs Are Created Equal

That $500 minimum only applies if your bug actually qualifies. Find a typo on a help page? Not getting paid. Discover a way to remotely execute code on millions of devices? Now we're talking serious money.

Meta uses a tiered payout system based on severity and impact:

Low-risk issues: May not qualify at all, or earn the $500 minimum
Medium vulnerabilities: Typically $1,000-$5,000
High-impact bugs: Can reach $10,000-$40,000
Critical mobile RCE bugs: Up to $300,000 for zero-click remote code execution

The program is entirely discretionary—Meta evaluates each submission based on risk, impact, number of affected users, and originality. Submit a duplicate bug someone else already reported? You're out of luck.

The Bug Bounty Hall of Fame

Some researchers have made this a full-time career. In January 2025, one security expert earned $100,000 for discovering a bug that granted access to Facebook's internal systems. Another researcher found a critical authentication bypass that could have compromised millions of accounts.

Meta doesn't just pay bounties—they publicly recognize top contributors and have awarded over $19 million since the program started. The company even expanded the program in 2021 to include data scraping vulnerabilities, paying researchers to find tools and datasets that illegally harvest user information.

So yes, Facebook really does pay hackers to break their security. And if you've got the skills, there's serious money on the table. Just remember: you have to follow their rules, submit through official channels, and avoid actually accessing user data. Otherwise, that $500 bounty turns into federal charges real quick.

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