Jacob Riggs (36) hacked into the site in less than two hours to demonstrate he had the expertise required for a rare visa given only to highly-skilled professionals.
The “ethical hacker”, from Bexley, south-east London, later received residency rights after alerting the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to a vulnerability on its website.
Mr Riggs is now preparing to relocate to Sydney within the next 12 months to work in cyber defence.
“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,” he said.
“It took roughly one hour and 50 minutes to identify the vulnerability.”
During the hack in July, Mr Riggs tested “multiple entry points” before identifying a weakness the department was not aware of.
“If the 858 [visa] asks for anything, it’s evidence that your efforts to master yourself have meant something,” he said.
I’m capable and committed to supporting Australia’s cybersecurity interests
“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 added: “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, formerly the Global Talent visa, is awarded to fewer than 1pc of applicants and requires them to show exceptional expertise.
It requires evidence of internationally recognised achievement, typically seen in Nobel Prize winners and Olympic medallists.
“A specific date isn’t set yet, but the move to Sydney is planned within the next 12 months,” Mr Riggs said.
“There’s a lot to consider when you move your entire life to another country.”
He added: “I also have a cat and he still needs convincing.”
Mr Riggs said a lifelong interest in computers led to a career in cybersecurity.
“I was interested in computers from a young age and that gradually evolved into a career in cybersecurity,” he said.
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