Following the historic launch of the open source code of the Android version of Aarogya Setu mobile application yesterday, the Government of India has launched a unique reward programme for those who can help further improve the app. National Informatics Centre (NIC) has announced a bug bounty programme to incentivise researchers finding flaws in the app. The goal of the Aarogya Setu Bug Bounty Programme is to partner with security researchers and Indian developer community to test the security effectiveness of Aargoya Setu and also to improve or strengthen its security and build user’s trust. There’s a ₹1 lakh reward up for grabs for anyone who can find a valid way to improve the COVID-19 tracking app. Meanwhile, ₹3 lakh is up for grabs if someone can point out a security issues.
The government wants to lay to rest any acquisitions or claims about how the data its take from users’ phone can be misused. The open-source code for the contact tracing app has been leased on Github and developers are being encouraged to track down any loopholes that they can find. The ‘bug bounty’ programme is open to Indians as well as foreign nationals. However, only Indians are eligible to claim the money reward offered under the scheme. The government has also promised that any updates to the app will also be made open-source through the same repository. The App has been under the spotlight ever since Elliot Alderson real name, Robert Baptiste pointed out that there is a security issue with the app earlier this month. The makers of the app however denied all such claims stating that the app is safe and they are regularly testing and upgrading their systems.