Twitter launches bug bounty program
Twitter will pay security researchers who spot potential issues in its Web and mobile applications. The company announced a bug bounty program that will pay out at least US$140 to eligible reporters who find qualifying vulnerabilities.
To be eligible for a bounty, researchers must report vulnerabilities through the HackerOne reporting tool, must be the first to report the vulnerability, and must not publicly disclose the vulnerability prior to resolution.
Qualifying vulnerabilities include cross-site scripting, cross-site request forgery, remote code execution, unauthorized access to protected tweets, and unauthorized access to DMs.
More information is available here.
Hortonworks lays out plans for Apache Hive
Hortonworks has announced a new initiative to improve the speed and scale of SQL support to allow real-time access in Apache Hive. Stinger.next is a continuation of the company’s Stinger Initiative, which brought interactive SQL querying to Apache Hive.
According to the company, Stinger.next will be delivered in three phases:
• “Speed: Deliver sub-second query response times
• Scale: The only SQL interface to Hadoop designed for queries that scale from gigabytes to terabytes and petabytes
• SQL: Enable transactions and SQL:2011 Analytics for Hive”
“Hive has always been the de facto standard for SQL in Hadoop, and these advances will surely accelerate the production deployment of Hive across a much wider array of scenarios,” wrote senior product manager Raj Bains and Hortonworks cofounder Alan Gates on the company’s blog.
CORESense launches Web Services API
Cloud-based e-commerce software provider CORESense has launched a new Web Services API for developers to extend applications and integrate third-party services.
The CORESense API gives developers access to the company’s CORESense v7 enterprise retail platform and data, enabling developers to integrate third-party e-commerce shopping carts and applications. The Web-based service is designed to facilitate development and management of point-of-sale, e-commerce websites, merchandising, order management and fulfillment, and CRM software.
More information can be found in the CORESense announcement.
President Obama names new U.S. CTO
The White House has confirmed that Megan Smith will succeed Todd Park as the U.S. Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Smith’s most recent post was vice president at Google X.
“Megan has spent her career leading talented teams and taking cutting-edge technology and innovation initiatives from concept to design to deployment,” said President Obama in a statement. “I am confident that in her new role as America’s Chief Technology Officer, she will put her long record of leadership and exceptional skills to work on behalf of the American people. I am grateful for her commitment to serve, and I look forward to working with her and with our new Deputy U.S. CTO, Alexander Macgillivray, in the weeks and months ahead.”
Megan Smith (photo courtesy of Sascha Baumann/Getty Images)
As U.S. CTO, Smith will lead the Administration’s information-technology policy and initiatives, and continue the work of her predecessors.
