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I hacked the Dutch government T-shirt

Generated render Report

I hacked the Dutch government T-shirt

AI studio impression of the NCSC reward T-shirt: a black tee with two lines of white text, 'I hacked the Dutch government and all I got was this lousy t-shirt', and a small NCSC sleeve mark

Generated render

Object details

Category
Apparel
Material
Cotton
Year
2013
Design
Screen-printed text, sleeve print
Colour
Black, white
Origin
Official merch
Sources & image credits
ReferenceNCSC Wall of Fame 2025: official blogNationaal Cyber Security Centrum
ReferenceReport a vulnerability (CVD): NCSCNationaal Cyber Security Centrum
ReferenceHacker Frank (15) wilde maar één ding: dat ‘lousy’ T-shirt verdienenNRC
Social postNCSC reward T-shirt: recipient post@RuneRaido on X
Render referenceAtomgoods AI studio · product reference: @RuneRaido and @__jeewan_ on X

The story

The Dutch National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) sends this shirt to researchers once a vulnerability they reported in central-government systems has been fixed. Black tee, two lines of white text across the chest: "I hacked the Dutch government and all I got was this lousy t-shirt". On the sleeve is a white vertical bar with the crest and "National Cyber Security Centre / Ministry of Justice and Security". You can't buy it. It ships with a letter from NCSC-NL. Variants: a white version with dark text, a hoodie for repeat reporters, and since 2022 a yearly "I am on the [year] Wall of Fame of NCSC" hoodie for the jury's picks.

What stands out

Self-mockery works because the reward is honest about being small. One sentence turned a government thank-you into one of the most coveted shirts in security.

For your next brief

What could you give the people who help you for free that they'd wear because of the story, not the logo?