Indonesian Boy, 11, Finds Security Flaw in NASA System

A 6th-grade elementary school student from Boyolali, Central Java, Indonesia, has gained international attention for discovering a security flaw in a public system managed by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Ibrahim Al Abrar, known as Ibra, received official recognition from the U.S. space agency for his findings. Ibrahim, a student at SDN 3 Genengsari in Kemusu District, Boyolali Regency, is the second of three children. His father is a computer and network engineering teacher, while his mother is a homemaker. Ibra's interest in technology began with video games. With his parents' support, he began teaching himself coding and game development. Over the past six months, Ibrahim delved into cybersecurity, learning through YouTube, artificial intelligence resources, and various online platforms. He reported finding a "broken link hijacking" vulnerability on one of NASA's public domains. He submitted his findings through NASA's Vulnerability Disclosure Policy (VDP) program, which verifies and acknowledges such discoveries. According to his father, Aminuddin, Ibrahim had submitted several reports to NASA. Out of four submissions, one was accepted and resulted in the letter of appreciation, another was approved pending further action, one was rejected, and the fourth was a duplicate of a previously reported issue. The accepted finding was verified on July 9, 2026, earning him the certificate. Ibrahim aspires to become a professional in the cybersecurity field. His parents hope his achievement will motivate him to continue learning and inspire other children to use technology constructively, particularly in information and cybersecurity. They also hope this success might lead to future bug bounty rewards.

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Cybersecurity, I got advice from older online friends.