Dive Brief:

• Two hackers received one million frequent flyer miles each last week for helping identify holes in United Airlines' security system. 

• So-called “bug bounties" have also been leveraged by other companies, including Google and Facebook.

• United’s flights were grounded earlier this month due to a computer issue — though the airline said the issue was due to a connectivity problem, not hacking. 

Dive Insight:

As the shortage of IT security professionals continues, some companies are turning to bug bounties to help identify potential security holes, which can give them the help they need without requiring them to make a full-time hire or invest a significant amount of money. One of the winners of the United contest said it only took him about two hours to find and document the bug, which, according to the hacker, was not a minor one.