IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Facebook Pays $10,000 to 10-Year-Old Instagram Hacker

Social media giant Facebook has paid a $10,000 reward to a 10- year-old Finnish boy for finding a glitch in its picture sharing app Instagram.
A Facebook logo on an Ipad is reflected among source code on the LCD screen of a computer in this photo illustration
A Facebook logo on an Ipad is reflected among source code on the LCD screen of a computer, in this photo illustration. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic

Social media giant Facebook has paid a $10,000 reward to a 10-year-old Finnish boy for finding a glitch in its picture sharing app Instagram.

Jani, whose last name was not released for privacy reasons, is the youngest ever recipient of Facebook's "bug bounty," paid to users who find bugs or weaknesses in its platforms.

Read More: Facebook Hacker Accessed Nearly 800 Accounts

"I wanted to see if Instagram's comment field could stand malicious code. Turns out it couldn't," Jani told Finland's Iltalehti newspaper.

Facebook said the glitch was fixed in February and the reward was paid in March.

Jani, who is still too young to have a Facebook or Instagram account of his own, said he learned coding from Youtube videos and found a way to delete user comments from Instagram accounts.

Read More: Why the FBI Might Not Have to Share Their Secret iPhone Method

"I could have deleted anyone's comments from there. Even Justin Bieber's," he told Iltalehti.

He said he was thinking about a career in data security, but for now his plans include buying a new bike and a football with his reward money.