Network Security

Student (temporarily) buys Google domain for $12

A student perusing Google's website-buying service managed to find and buy the Google.com domain name for $12.

Sammy Ved, who attends Babson College, said in his LinkedIn blog that on September 29, while taking a look at the Google Domains interface, he inadvertently discovered Google.com was up for sale.

“I clicked the add to cart icon beside the domain (which should not appear if the domain is not available for sale). The domain actually got added to my cart as seen by the green check-box, and the domain appeared in my cart,” Ved wrote in his blog.

The transaction lasted almost a minute before Google caught on and canceled the deal. However, the company was so impressed with Ved that it offered him a cash reward for finding the security opening that allowed its name to be sold for less than it costs to buy a 12-pack of beer. Ved has donated the reward to charity.

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