Apple hides 'secret' job, to attract the best talent!
What's the story
It's an open secret. Crack it and you have a lucrative job waiting for you at one of the biggest tech firms in the world. So, how do you go about it? Well, you have to look closely, like how cybersecurity reporter Zack Whittaker did. Hidden messages to recruit talent is an old ploy. But, Apple aced it, this time around. Here's more.
Data
This is what Apple did
Apple was apparently on the lookout for "a talented engineer to develop a critical infrastructure component." To find a suitable candidate, a message was kept hidden as part of a data stream on their website, for those worthy to discover. Zack Whittaker, while analyzing the data sent from iPhone apps, noticed there was something different about it. It was connecting to a different URL.
Job
Once you find it, there's a job waiting for you
It was listed under "us-east-1.blobstore.apple.com," and he was greeted with a message, which said "Hey there! You found us." It informed him that there is a job opening at Apple and that he could be the ideal candidate for it, as he has managed to find the message. If you're searching, the link is no longer there. Apple must have moved it elsewhere.
Code
This is not the first time
Searching for talent via hidden messages is not that uncommon. There have been several instances of tech firms using puzzles or challenges to get suitable employees. British firm Dyson had hidden four challenges inside a YouTube video in 2016. A year before, as a part of its recruitment drive, GCHQ had spray-painted cryptic graffiti on pavements of UK cities.
Looking for jobs?
Even Apple's frenemy Google uses such offbeat methods to recruit from time to time. In 2015, Max Rosett wrote that while looking for a career change, he was searching a series of programming terms online. His Google search results showed him a box, asking if he was "up for a challenge". After solving a series of problems, he was given a job at Google.