Ben Hawkes
Ben Hawkes is a computer security expert and white hat hacker from New Zealand, previously employed by Google as manager of their Project Zero.[1] [2]
Hawkes has been credited with finding dozens of flaws in computer software, such as within Adobe Flash,[1] Microsoft Office,[1][3] Apple's iOS[4] and the Linux kernel.[5][6] His role was acknowledged, for instance, in an Adobe 2015 security bulletin, which announced updates that addressed critical vulnerabilities that allowed hackers to take control of the affected system.[7] In 2019, he reported two vulnerabilities that could allow hackers to tap iPhone microphones and spy on calls.[8]
Before Hawkes became part of Project Zero, he was first part of the Google team tasked with the security of Google's product launches.[9] Hawkes regularly publishes research on his works, particularly on vulnerability analysis and software exploitation such as novel heap exploitation techniques on Windows.[9]
References
- ^ a b c Greenberg, Andy (15 July 2014). "Meet 'Project Zero,' Google's Secret Team of Bug-Hunting Hackers". Wired.com. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
- ^ "Ben Hawkes". usenix.org. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
- ^ Nichols, Shaun (9 June 2015). "It's 2015 and hackers can hijack your Windows PC if you watch a web video". The Register. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
- ^ Bock, Ken. "Jailbreak Exploit for iOS 10.1.1 to be Released Next Week". The Country Caller. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
- ^ Nestor, Marius. "Canonical Patches Multiple Kernel Vulnerabilities in All Supported Ubuntu OSes". softpedia. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
- ^ Nestor, Marius. "Canonical Patches Multiple OpenSSH Vulnerabilities in Supported Ubuntu OSes". softpedia. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
- ^ "Adobe Security Bulletin". helpx.adobe.com. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
- ^ Gatlan, Sergiu (8 February 2019). "Apple Patched Two Actively Exploited Zero-Days in iOS 12.1.4". BleepingComputer. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
- ^ a b "Ben Hawkes | USENIX". www.usenix.org. Retrieved 6 March 2019.