British hacker wins Australian visa after exposing government website vulnerability

A British cybersecurity expert has secured an Australian visa after identifying a vulnerability in one of the country’s government websites, demonstrating the skills required for the nation’s highly selective 858 visa.

Jacob Riggs, 36, from Bexley, south-east London, completed the hack in under two hours and alerted the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) to the security flaw, later receiving residency rights, The Daily Telegraph writes.

While describing the hack, Riggs said: “While I was aware of the significance for my visa application, I approached it as a routine security assessment and simply applied the same methodology I use professionally. It took roughly one hour and 50 minutes to identify the vulnerability.”

Riggs tested “multiple entry points” during the July operation before discovering a weakness the department had not detected. He added: “If the 858 [visa] asks for anything, it’s evidence that your efforts to master yourself have meant something. For me, that meant demonstrating the value of my work in a way the system could actually recognise: by helping protect the nation assessing my application.”

He acknowledged the role the hack may have played in his visa approval, saying: “I can’t say how much this tiny additional evidence influenced the outcome of my 858 application, if at all, but I’d like to think it helped demonstrate, in a small and perhaps practical way, that I’m capable and committed to supporting Australia’s cybersecurity interests. Whatever part it played, the journey led here.”

The 858 visa, previously known as the Global Talent visa, is awarded to fewer than one percent of applicants and requires demonstration of exceptional expertise. Riggs plans to relocate to Sydney within the next 12 months to work in cyber crime prevention.

“A specific date isn’t set yet, but the move to Sydney is planned within the next 12 months. There’s a lot to consider when you move your entire life to another country. I also have a cat and he still needs convincing,” he said.

Riggs, who has had a lifelong interest in computers, said this early fascination gradually evolved into a career in cybersecurity.

By Aghakazim Guliyev