Hack a secure Redact text message, get $15,000

Redact app — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Who doesn’t like to be given the opportunity to earn some cold, hard cash? What if we told you that we knew of a way you could earn yourself $15,500? It’s simple. All you have to do is hack a super secure messaging service.

Redact, a messaging service that lets users send texts that delete themselves (like Snapchat), is so confident in its claim that no one can intercept its messages sent between two devices, it’s offering $15,000 if someone can pull it off. Not only does a person have to intercept a message, but he or she will also have to decrypt it and discover what it actually says.

The intercepted message has to be one sent between the company’s two challenge phones, which will be sending texts back and forth from two separate locations. Again displaying its over-the-top confidence, the company will even disclose the locations of the two phones to those who apply for the challenge.

But before you get all excited, be warned: only 20 people will actually be invited to participate. Those who are interested will have to fill out an application by June 1. If you are one of the chosen few, Redact will be in touch for a brief interview, and then assign your challenge date and let you know the location of the two phones you need to intercept.

The company warns non-chosen people not to try to attempt any covert operations; even if you manage to crack the code on two non-challenge phones, you won’t be eligible for the money. Not as fun, right?

Redact is an app currently only available on iOS devices. You can download the app here for $6. Redact claims the app is “coming soon to Android, Windows Phone 8, and Desktops.”

Ready. Set. Hack!

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