Chapter 36 Key Takeaways: Bug Bounty Hunting

Core Concepts

  1. The bug bounty ecosystem is a meritocracy. Platforms like HackerOne, Bugcrowd, and Intigriti reward skills and results, not credentials or geography. Santiago Lopez earned $1M without formal education. The field is accessible to anyone with determination and an internet connection.

  2. Scope is law. Always read and strictly adhere to program scope before testing. Out-of-scope testing can result in platform bans and legal consequences. When in doubt, ask the program team before testing.

  3. Methodology beats talent. Systematic reconnaissance, content discovery, and vulnerability testing produce more consistent results than sporadic, unstructured hacking. Build and refine a personal methodology that covers each phase.

  4. Reconnaissance is the foundation. Thorough subdomain enumeration, content discovery, JavaScript analysis, and historical URL gathering uncover the attack surface that most researchers overlook. Automate your recon workflow and run it regularly.

  5. Report quality determines outcomes. Clear titles, detailed reproduction steps, impactful PoCs, and professional communication directly affect acceptance rates and bounty amounts. Invest as much time in your report as in finding the vulnerability.

  6. Vulnerability chaining multiplies impact. Individual low-severity findings can be combined into high-impact attack chains. An open redirect plus an OAuth misconfiguration becomes account takeover. Always think about how findings connect.

  7. The bug bounty field rewards specialization. Develop deep expertise in 2-3 vulnerability types or target domains. API security, SSRF, race conditions, and mobile application testing are areas where specialization pays well.

  8. Bug bounty hunting is a viable career path. Full-time hunting requires financial planning, time management, and sustainable work practices. The skills translate directly to penetration testing, application security, and security research careers.

Practical Skills

  • Automate reconnaissance with subfinder, httpx, and nuclei
  • Perform content discovery with ffuf and historical URL tools
  • Test for IDOR, XSS, SSRF, race conditions, and subdomain takeover
  • Write effective bug reports with clear reproduction steps and impact analysis
  • Chain vulnerabilities for maximum impact
  • Manage bug bounty workflow efficiently with time tracking and target management
  • Navigate platform features, reputation systems, and triage communication

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Testing outside of defined program scope
  • Submitting automated scanner output without manual validation
  • Writing reports without clear reproduction steps
  • Overinflating vulnerability severity
  • Accessing, storing, or exfiltrating real user data
  • Publicly disclosing vulnerabilities before authorization
  • Spending too long on heavily tested targets without switching
  • Neglecting report quality in favor of submission volume

Key Tools

  • Burp Suite: Primary web testing proxy and scanner
  • Subfinder/Amass: Subdomain enumeration
  • httpx: HTTP probing and technology detection
  • ffuf: Content discovery and fuzzing
  • Nuclei: Template-based vulnerability scanning
  • gau/waybackurls: Historical URL discovery
  • Platforms: HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack