Ankit Fadia (born 24 May 1985)[1] is an Indian former hacker, author, and television host known for his work related to computer security.[2] In his early career, he provided tips and tutorials on operating systems and networking, as well as offering proxy websites.[3][4][5]
His claims of hacking claims have since been discredited by professionals within the cybersecurity community and media.[6][7]
Early life and career
Ankit Fadia was born in Delhi, India.[8] He developed an interest in computer hacking after receiving a computer at age 10 and reading a newspaper article on the topic.[9][10] He soon started a website hackingtruths.box.sk where he wrote hacking tutorials.[9][2][11][12] At the age of 15, Fadia authored An Unofficial Guide to Ethical Hacking which made him the youngest author published by Macmillan India.[8][10] The work, however, faced accusations of plagiarism.[13][14] Fadia later graduated from Stanford University with a degree in Management Science and Engineering.[15]
Following his initial publication, Fadia wrote additional books on computer security, spoke at seminars across schools and colleges in India,[16] and launched his own training courses, including the "Ankit Fadia Certified Ethical Hacker" (AFCEH) program.[17] In 2009, Fadia stated that he was working as an internet security consultant for "prestigious companies" in New York.[18] He also endorsed the Flying Machine jeans brand of Arvind Mills.[19]
Some security and cryptography professionals have characterized Fadia as a self-proclaimed expert whose claims lack substance.[13] Fadia has dismissed the critics who question his credibility as an expert, saying "If I had been fake, my growth would have stopped 10 years ago".[8]
In September 2015, a certificate was posted on Fadia's official Facebook page announcing his appointment as a brand ambassador for the Indian Prime Minister's Digital India initiative. This followed a government announcement that it would select young tech entrepreneurs for the role.[20] However, government sources later clarified that there was "no such move to appoint a brand ambassador as reported."[21]
Hacking claims
In 2002, Fadia claimed to have defaced the website of the Indian edition of CHIP magazine at age 17, asserting that the editor subsequently offered him a job.[2][22] However, in 2012, the Forbes India executive editor Charles Assisi, who was the editor of CHIP India at the time, denied that the incident ever occurred after consulting with his predecessor and successor.[23] Fadia also stated in a 2002 interview that a year ago, he had thwarted an attempt by Kashmiri separatist hackers to deface an Indian website.[9] He claimed to have gathered information on the attackers, infiltrated their online chats, and sent the details to a US intelligence agency for which he was working.[24] The name of the organization was not disclosed for security reasons.[2] In response, the Pakistani hacker group Anti-India Crew (AIC) questioned his abilities by hacking the Indian government website epfindia.gov.in and dedicating the defacement to Fadia.[25] AIC also publicly challenged him to prevent them from defacing the CBEC website within two days; Fadia was unsuccessful.[26]
In 2003, Fadia claimed to have infiltrated a hacker group and alleged that Pakistani intelligence agencies were paying "westerners" to deface Indian websites.[14]
Fadia's own website has been compromised on multiple occasions.[13] After a 2009 defacement, he attributed the breach to a vulnerability in his web host's servers. However, independent security experts contended that the issue was a loophole within his own website's code. His website was also hacked by an Indian hacker, Himanshu Sharma, after accepting a challenge from Fadia.[27] In 2012, his site was defaced twice by hackers who disputed his claims and accused him of misleading the public.[28]
Television and web hosting
MTV What the Hack
In 2008 he started a television show on MTV India called MTV What the Hack!, which he co-hosted with José Covaco. In October 2009 MTV India announced the launch of Fadia's new TV show on MTV, where Fadia gave tips on how to make use of the Internet, and answered people's questions.[29] Internet users could email their problems to MTV India, and Fadia gave them a solution on the show.[30]
Unzipped By Dell
In 2012, Dell India partnered with Ankit Fadia to create a series of nearly 50 videos, each of one minute duration, to show tips and tricks for the use of computers and mobile phones. These videos were shown on the Dell India Facebook page with an average of one video per week. People also had the opportunity to ask tech queries of Fadia on topics like photography, video making, music composing, navigation assistance, gaming, messaging and others.[31][32]
Geek on the Loose
In 2013, Ankit Fadia started the YouTube show Geek on the Loose, in collaboration with PING networks, where he shared technology-related tips, tricks and apps.[33] The show was based on situations mentioned in his book FASTER: 100 Ways To Improve Your Digital Life.[34]
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