How I Earned $5,000 from a Single Bug Report 💰🚀

Have you ever wondered what it feels like to earn $5,000 in a single shot just by finding a security flaw? That’s exactly what happened to me, and today, I’m breaking down the entire journey — from discovery to payout! Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced bug hunter, this real-world case study will give you insider insights into how you, too, can land high-paying bug bounties. 🙌

The Moment I Stumbled Upon Gold 🏆

It all started on a lazy Sunday afternoon. I was casually scrolling through HackerOne when I noticed a new bug bounty program from a well-known tech company. Their critical vulnerabilities were paying up to $10,000, so I knew I had to dig deeper.

🔹 Target: A popular web application used by millions.
🔹 Bounty Range: Up to $10,000 for critical bugs.
🔹 Approach: Focused on business logic vulnerabilities (an underrated area!).

I immediately signed up and started reconnaissance (a fancy term for gathering intel). My plan? Look for flaws in how user roles and permissions were handled.

Finding the Bug: A Simple but Costly Flaw 💀

Most people chase after XSS and SQL injection bugs, but I wanted something unique — something that others might have overlooked. After a few hours of manual testing, I discovered something shocking: