George "GeoHot" Hotz, 22, doesn’t get a lot of love from Apple, Inc. (AAPL) chief executive Steven P. Jobs, who has long bemoaned the efforts of phone jailbreakers like GeoHot.  However, he has a lot more in common with Mr. Jobs than one might think.

Much like Mr. Jobs -- or Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) co-founder Bill Gates, for that matter -- GeoHot grew up hacking hardware and software at a young age.  And much like Mr. Gates and Mr. Jobs, GeoHot now has entered the corporate world of electronics.

GeoHot, who once wanted to be a neuroscientist "hacking the brain", updated his personal Facebook page to reveal that he had been working for the social network giant since May 9.

Mr. Hotz is fresh of a recent settlement with Sony Corp. (TYO:6758) in a lawsuit disputing Mr. Hotz's jailbreaking of the PS3 console.  While the Library of Congress recently ruled that jailbreaking phones was legal, jailbreaking game consoles remains a grey area of the law. 

The young hacker is not the first digital rebel to be hired by Facebook.  The company in 2004 hired Sean Parker, co-founder of the file-sharing service Napster and convicted computer criminal (1996), as its first president, giving him a significant amount of stock.  That hire didn't turn out so well -- Mr. Parker was forced to depart in 2005 when he was arrested on suspicion of cocaine possession.

Facebook also hired Chris Putnam, a famous hacker of Facebook profiles.  Apple hired another former hacker -- iOS hacker Peter Hajas.  Ashley Towns, creator of the first iOS worm, was recently hired to a lucrative job by Australian iPhone app developer Mogeneratio.  

Famed Twitter hacker Michael Mooney obtained a job at exqSoft Solutions, a web app company.  Recent reports indicate that one in four former hackers are now on government payrolls as well.

A few years back we compiled a list of hackers whose exploits landed them fame and fortune -- and those who weren't so lucky.