College Student Has Earned 15 Million Miles by Hacking United
Update 7/13/2017: Ryan Pickren just donated one million of his United miles to Eckerd Kids — a charity based Ryan's hometown of Clearwater, Florida which provides "child welfare, juvenile justice, and work force development programs" to over 34,000 kids each year across 20 states.
Ryan describes his motivation for donating: "I have enjoyed volunteering for the organization and raising money for them in the past. They do a lot to improve our community and provide kids and families with the second chances that they deserve.”
The last time Georgia Tech student Ryan Pickren was in the news, he had been arrested and faced up to 15 years in jail. Two days before a rivalry football game, he hacked into rival University of Georgia's website to post a prediction for the game (caution: mild language). But now, he's using his hacking skills for good — and United has generously rewarded him for his work.
Business Insider reported Friday that Ryan has earned a total of 15 million United miles from "white hat" hacking United Airlines. White hat (as opposed to black hat) hackers are computer experts who hack systems, companies and websites to discover and report vulnerabilities. Even the Pentagon ran a white hat program this year.
Ryan's payout came from United's Bug Bounty Program, which offers a reward of up to 1,000,000 United miles for reporting "high severity" bugs. While Ryan was unable to comment to The Points Guy about how many and what types of bugs he found, we can assume that the reward of 15 million miles means Ryan has likely found and reported 15 major issues in United's systems. While it's concerning that the airline's systems were so porous, at least now United knows about these issues and can work to fix them.
Other white hat hackers have been wary of United's bug bounty program. Other bug bounty programs give hackers the ability to try more creative methods of finding security faults — as long as the hacker reports all findings. However, United's program threatens "possible criminal and/or legal investigation" for some of these methods. But, it seems these restrictions haven't dissuaded Ryan from searching and finding flaw after flaw with United's system.
The other major disadvantage of United's Bug Bounty is that the only payout is United miles. While TPG values United miles at 1.5 cents each, United values its miles rather proudly at 2 cents apiece. Other hackers have ended up with huge tax bills for their efforts. Hacker Jordan Wiens ended up having to pay taxes on $25,000 of income for earning 1.25 million United miles — even though he still hadn't redeemed any of the miles for travel.
At United's valuation of 2 cents per mile, Ryan Pickren will have to pay taxes on $300,000 of income. That's perhaps what has partially motivated his donation of 5 million United miles to Georgia Tech. Subject to IRS limitations, this donation will earn Ryan a deduction of $100,000. Ryan knows that Georgia Tech can use these miles to help student engineers make the world a better place — such as through the Georgia Tech Engineers Without Borders program to bring clean drinking water to Uganda.
Ryan initially started with the United Bug Bounty program to get enough miles to visit his girlfriend on the weekends. Well, now he can do a lot more than that! 15 million miles is enough for 600 domestic economy round-trips. But, having this many miles, he hopefully won't fly economy class for a while.
If he can find the time to travel in the next 11 months, there are some incredible stopover awards you can still book before October 6. With 15 million miles, he has enough miles to fly 100 times — or 100 people — from the US to Africa to Japan to the US, all in business class!
H/T: Business Insider
Fair disclosure: This article was written by a Georgia Tech grad. Go Jackets!
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There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)Pros
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- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
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- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.
Rewards Rate
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Intro Offer
You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.As High As 100,000 points. Find Out Your Offer.Annual Fee
$325Recommended Credit
Credit ranges are a variation of FICO® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.Excellent to Good
Why We Chose It
There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.