This schoolboy breaks news about giant firms with 45mins of net surfing

Ishan Agarwal

For 16-year-old 'tech leaker', Ishan Agarwal, his biggest leak was sent to him as an anonymous tip. "I got images of the smartphone Google Pixel 3 XL, a few weeks before the launch and I posted them on my Twitter profile. I also received a picture of an unreleased OnePlus smartphone in December last year, which was widely discussed in the tech world." At a fairly young age, the Delhi boy has become a tech influencer for all those who want their phone news, well, much before it appears on the tech news sites. "I also leaked the official images of Samsung Galaxy S10 smartphones recently, which will launch on February 20 in San Francisco. I receive anonymous tips now since people have become aware of me."

The Standard X student, who lives in Gurgaon, and is getting ready for his board exams on March 7, is the son of a mechanical engineer and a software engineer. No wonder he wants to become a software engineer in the future. "School life is very normal and I like it that way. Not everyone knows about my involvement in the tech world, just a few close friends and classmates." And though it may appear as if 'leaking' and researching would take up most of his time, Agarwal tells us that's not the case. "It's at school and the coaching centre, where I spend most of my time. Then I have to do homework, study for tests as well, so I take out a limited amount of time and do it as a hobby. I don't spend hours on it, usually 45 minutes maximum on Twitter per day."

Agarwal joined Twitter
(@ishanagarwal24) in 2016 just to keep himself updated on the latest gadgets and technology news, but it was last year that he upped his productivity on it. But how does a 16-year-old, who says he can't be described as a hacker, unearth information and scoops long before mainstream news sites? Agarwal, who first started trying his hand with leaking last February, after he found out the stuff was easily available in "the public eye", is quite matter-of-fact about his methods.

"There are a lot of companies and brands that prematurely post information on the internet. Finding that does not require any kind of hacking skills at all, just a bit of practice and then you automatically understand how it all works. They don't announce the information, but it's there. Take, for example, Samsung, which is launching its 10th anniversary flagship phone on February 20. A lot of people are interested in it, including me. Many retailers got the product images earlier than the launch and they unknowingly posted it on the Internet. So, I just shared them." He makes it sound easy when he reveals his main tricks: surfing sites thoroughly, and an advanced use of Google.

But this could make him a target for trolls, or just at the receiving end of flak by the brands themselves. "No, I have not received any backlash. People always like it when they get information early on, and brands don't really hate it that much, due to the fact that it keeps them in the news and actually promotes their products most of the time."

But the teenager is quick to insist he is not a hacker, as he is not doing anything "illegal", and that's the reason his parents have no problem with it either. As he says, "Mostly, the images are there on the brand's official site. So, I just tweet it and let the world know about it. At the end of the day, it's all public information."

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