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Here's How Much Google Paid the Dude Who Bought Google.com

 & Angela Moscaritolo Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

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Remember the guy who managed to buy Google.com for one minute last year?

The researcher, Sanmay Ved, said he was putzing around Google Domains and discovered that Google.com was available for purchase. Naturally, he bought it — for just $12 — and owned the iconic domain name for all of one minute. After discovering what happened, Google's security team contacted Ved and offered him an undisclosed reward.

Now, the Web giant has revealed how much it forked over: $6,006.13.

That might seem like a super random figure, but take another look You may notice that the number actually spells out Google, numerically. Clever, huh?

While most would be thrilled to pocket more than $6,000, Ved instead asked that Google donate the money to the Art of Living India Foundation charity. So, the Web giant then doubled the prize amount and donated it to the organization's education program, which runs 404 free schools across 18 states in India.

Meanwhile, Google also this week revealed that it handed out more than $2 million in rewards last year to more than 300 researchers who discovered flaws and bugs within its web properties. The company in June extended its Vulnerability Reward Program to Android, and by year's end, it paid more than $200,000 to researchers for their work on the mobile platform, including its largest single payment of $37,500 to an Android security researcher.

Since launching its Vulnerability Reward Program in 2010, Google has paid out more than $6 million to bug finders.

This article originally appeared on PCMag.com.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade. 

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes. 

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app. 

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth. 

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light. 

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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