Hacker claims he hacked NASA, reported vulnerabilities. Space agency sends appreciation letter

A self-proclaimed hacker claimed to have breached NASA’s systems for the second time, revealing critical security vulnerabilities. The hacker, who shared the news on X (formerly Twitter), explained that after uncovering the loopholes, they reported the issues to NASA to allow the agency sufficient time to resolve them.

In response, NASA sent the hacker an official letter of appreciation, recognising their assistance in identifying weaknesses and helping protect NASA’s systems. The letter was by Mark Witt, NASA Office of Chief Information Officer. The space agency acknowledged that the hacker’s actions contributed to safeguarding the “integrity and availability” of its information infrastructure.

"On behalf of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and NASA's Vulnerability Disclosure Policy (VDP), we would like to recognise your efforts as an independent security researcher, both in identifying the vulnerability you submitted and for following NASA's VDP policy and guidelines in responsibly reporting this to us," the letter read.

The incident sparked discussions about the role of ethical hackers in securing sensitive systems. Many social media users applauded both the hacker’s ethical approach and NASA’s response. One user commented, “Good on NASA for rewarding security researchers rather than punishing them with legal action—it’s really in their best interest.”

"They didn't even give you a 'I hacked NASA and all I got was this lousy T-Shirt' Shirt?" a user joked.