By finding Safari bugs, he does make the world a better place. But he can't live like that, so he has to stop looking for Safari bugs.
Since Safari undoubtedly has bugs, this means someone else is going to find them. That someone else could be a criminal, but you can't blame the guy for not wanting to do work that doesn't pay. In the end, Safari's security is Apple's problem, not Charlie Miller's.
I understand that he has to eat. But making enough money to eat is not that hard.
And it isn't just Apple's problem (or just Microsoft or just Google). It's my problem, too. It's my mom's problem, too.
Think about the case where a user's data is compromised.
With great power comes great responsibility, and whatever other cheesey statement you want to make. I would feel personally responsible if I found an exploit and later that exploit was used to compromise someone's bank account or private correspondence.
My conscience is more important than my stomach. I can find other ways to eat.
I would feel personally responsible if I found an exploit and later that exploit was used to compromise someone's bank account or private correspondence.
Which is why he's not even looking for exploits anymore. He is leaving it to Apple's QA team, since it is really their job.
3) Can I feed myself?
By finding Safari bugs, he does make the world a better place. But he can't live like that, so he has to stop looking for Safari bugs.
Since Safari undoubtedly has bugs, this means someone else is going to find them. That someone else could be a criminal, but you can't blame the guy for not wanting to do work that doesn't pay. In the end, Safari's security is Apple's problem, not Charlie Miller's.