Modal Mini PC bekas Hingga Belajar Coding dari YouTube, Bocah Boyolali Ini Raih Pengakuan Resmi NASA

TRIBUNSOLO.COM - From a modest home in Genengsari Village, Kemusu District, Boyolali, Central Java, who would have thought that a 12-year-old boy would achieve such a feat? His nimble fingers moving across the keyboard of a used mini PC caught the attention of the United States Space Agency (NASA) and even sent him an official letter of recognition. This is the story of Ibrahim Al Abrar. Ibrar, a sixth-grade student at Genengsari 3 Elementary School, successfully discovered a security vulnerability in one of NASA's digital systems and received a Letter of Recognition (LOR) through the NASA Vulnerability Disclosure Policy (VDP) program on the Bugcrowd platform. The letter of recognition was sent on July 9, 2026. Behind this achievement, Ibrahim's daily life is not much different from other children his age. After school, he is seen sitting on a small stool in a semi-squatting position in front of his laptop, his school uniform still on. His face looked serious, his fingers occasionally clicking on the keyboard keys as if unraveling an unseen problem. In the corner of the room stood a fan, while a simple mini PC witnessed the beginning of his journey into the world of technology. Ibrahim's father, Aminudin Salas (36), said his son's interest in technology began with his love of playing games. However, this habit was later redirected into a more productive activity through learning to code. "Initially, I learned to code. Then, in early 2026, I became interested in learning cybersecurity," Aminudin said, Friday (July 17). Self-Taught Coding According to Aminudin, Ibrahim began self-taught coding when he was in fourth grade. He utilized various learning videos on YouTube and discussions with artificial intelligence (AI) services to deepen his understanding. He has been delving into cybersecurity for the past six months. Interestingly, Aminudin admitted to having no special skills in programming or cybersecurity. As a Computer and Network Engineering (TKJ) teacher at Kemusu State Vocational School, he simply supported his son's growing interest. "My background is in networking, IT networking. I understand a little coding because I was taught it in college. But I don't know anything about cybersecurity. So he's completely self-taught, and he's also been taught tutorials by online tutors," he said. At first, Ibrahim only used his cell phone. The limited screen size made the learning process uncomfortable. Seeing his son's dedication, his parents bought him a used mini PC worth around Rp 2 million so he could study more freely. "His parents supported him; the most important thing is positive support," said Aminudin. Equipped with this simple device, Ibrahim began exploring various websites and trying to understand how digital security works. Eventually, he discovered a security vulnerability, a type of broken link hijacking, on one of NASA's official websites.