Bug › Module 1 › Lesson 1
What Bounty Is
Bug bounty pays for valid reports on programs YOU joined — methodology literacy on $SCOPE_HOST / $LAB_HOST, not random hacking.
Visual · bounty_what_is
Bounty = report valid bugs under program rules. $SCOPE_HOST / $LAB_HOST only. Original Cyberlium.
Opening
Bug bounty is not a license to scan the internet. It is disciplined research on programs you joined.
Bug bounty hunting rewards security researchers who find and responsibly disclose vulnerabilities in assets covered by a vendor's program policy. Researchers read scope, validate findings with minimal proof, write clear reports, and wait for triage — they do not treat every reachable website as homework or spray payloads on strangers. Cyberlium Topic 20 teaches bounty methodology literacy on programs YOU enrolled in — placeholder $SCOPE_HOST — or intentional practice labs at $LAB_HOST. You will NOT scan classmates' projects, sweep café Wi-Fi, or test trending SaaS domains because a tutorial did. You will NOT confuse bounty hunting with authorization to harm out-of-scope hosts. Next: Legal/Safe Harbor Literacy.
1. Find, validate, report — under program rules
Bounty workflow follows program policy: read scope, recon within limits, validate findings with minimal impact, write reproducible steps, submit through the platform, and respond to triage. Each phase produces evidence program owners can act on — not trophy screenshots from unauthorized targets.
Bounty literacy means understanding the workflow on assets named in a program YOU joined at $SCOPE_HOST, or on disposable labs you control at $LAB_HOST. Attackers hope you skip scope and treat curiosity as permission — you won't.
Command guide
Try these commands — Find, validate, report — under program rules
═══ TOOLS & WEBSITES ═══ Browse / read these (authorized learning only — stay in YOUR lab / program scope)
HackerOne — https://www.hackerone.com/ (platform literacy) Bugcrowd — https://www.bugcrowd.com/ (program rules) Disclosure policy — read BEFORE testing
═══ INSTALL ═══
Linux (Debian/Ubuntu):
Command — copy this
sudo apt install curl sudo apt install python3
macOS:
Command — copy this
brew install python3
Windows: Built-in (PowerShell: Invoke-WebRequest) Download https://python.org/downloads/
═══ LINUX / macOS ═══
Command — copy this
python3 -c "print('Bug bounty = authorized testing on joined program scope only')"
curl -sS https://www.hackerone.com/ | head -8Primary tools to practice this lesson: curl, python3. Reference sites: HackerOne (https://www.hackerone.com/); Bugcrowd (https://www.bugcrowd.com/); Disclosure policy. Run every command in the box — install first, then the usage lines — only on YOUR lab / program scope.
2. Bounty requires programs you actually joined
Legitimate bounty work requires enrollment: a HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, or vendor VDP page you accepted, with in-scope assets listed. A responsive website does not grant permission. A YouTube title saying 'hack any site' is not authorization.
Cyberlium labs assume either a program asset at $SCOPE_HOST you enrolled in, or an intentional practice lab at $LAB_HOST you can revert. If the target is not in your program scope or lab notes, offensive tools stay closed.
3. What this topic will never call practice
Recon sweeps on dorm /24, payload tests against café ordering sites, scanning classmate deploy URLs, or probing employer production without a program listing. Those harm strangers and violate law or policy — not homework.
Ship a sentence: bounty literacy here means methodology on MY $SCOPE_HOST program or MY $LAB_HOST practice lab under written program rules. Next lesson covers legal safe harbor literacy.
4. What you ship: bounty definition that excludes random targets
Write bounty = find/validate/report under program rules. Dest = $SCOPE_HOST you joined OR $LAB_HOST you control. NEVER random sites, café Wi-Fi, classmate deploys. Notes chmod 600.
5. What you record before the next lesson
Date (UTC). Bounty vs misuse. Program = $SCOPE_HOST enrolled OR lab = $LAB_HOST you own. NEVER stranger hosts, café Wi-Fi, classmate URLs. Path: $HOME/cyberlium-lab/t20-m01-l01-what-bounty.txt chmod 600.
6. Wrong vs right: random sites vs in-scope program
Worked failure — same MSF word, opposite target. Right never needs a café Wi-Fi or classmate laptop.
Wrong
Scan a trending shop domain 'to learn bounty.' Test payloads on a classmate's hackathon URL. Share out-of-scope targets in Discord.
Right
Define bounty workflow and enrolled assets. Name $SCOPE_HOST or $LAB_HOST as the only dest. Next: Legal/Safe Harbor Literacy.
Mission: define bounty as authorized program research
1) Write find/validate/report in one paragraph. 2) Write a NEVER list (random sites, café Wi-Fi, classmate deploys, out-of-scope hosts). 3) Name $SCOPE_HOST or $LAB_HOST as your placeholder. Never test hosts outside programs you joined.
Stuck? Ask Cyberlium AI Mentor
Ask Mentor: 'Hint only: what is bounty scope?' — not how to scan a dorm /24.
Knowledge Check
APPLY: Bug bounty hunting on Cyberlium means:
Multiple choice
Knowledge Check
APPLY: True or False: Curiosity about a neighbor's website authorizes bounty testing.
True or False
Knowledge Check
APPLY: A bounty hunter produces evidence mainly to:
Multiple choice