How to Build a Bug Bounty Target List That Actually Gets You Bugs (2025 Guide) 🤑💰

4 min readJun 23, 2025

Welcome back, legends. 🧠

So far, we’ve covered how to think like a hacker and what tools actually matter. But here’s the truth that most beginners miss:

If you pick the wrong targets, you’ll waste weeks and find nothing.

Today we’re getting surgical.

You’re going to learn how real bug bounty hunters choose their targets, spot gold mines, and build a personal target list that actually gets you results — without burning out.

Why Target Selection is Everything 🔍

Imagine using Burp, ffuf, Nuclei, Subfinder — everything — but on a dead or overhunted app.

That’s like fishing in a swimming pool. 🎣

You want to fish in the right ocean — one where:
• Bugs are more likely to exist
• Scope isn’t ultra-restricted
• There’s less competition

Here’s how to build a target list that works for you, not against you.

Step 1: Define Your Strengths (Or Build One) 🧠

Ask yourself:
• Do you enjoy APIs? Go for targets with mobile or Swagger docs.
• Like broken access control? Look for apps with user roles.
• Good at business logic bugs? Focus on startups and e-commerce apps.

Example:

If you’re good at API testing, focus on bug bounty programs that mention API documentation, Swagger/OpenAPI, or have mobile apps that interact with backend endpoints. These often expose parameter-rich APIs — a goldmine for testing things like IDORs, improper rate limiting, or logic flaws.

Step 2: Mine Targets From Top Platforms 🎯

Start by digging here:

HackerOne Directory

Filter by program responsiveness, newest launched, and bounty offered
Look for programs with few public reports (less competition)

Bugcrowd Programs

Use filters: Public, Rewarded, and Target Type: Web, API
Focus on web+API scope. Mobile can come later.

YesWeHack & Intigriti

Smaller platforms = fewer hunters = more low-hanging bugs

🧠 Pro Tip: Avoid chasing only $$$ programs. Focus on new, responsive, and under-hunted targets.

Step 3: Look for Juicy Scope Clues 🕵️‍♂️

Use this mental checklist to evaluate if a target is juicy:

✅ Has subdomains
✅ Includes APIs or mobile endpoints
✅ Offers wildcard scope (*.example.com)
✅ Mentions “business logic,” “access control,” or “rate limits”
✅ Recently launched or updated

🚫 Avoid:

“Out-of-scope” everywhere
No subdomains, no APIs
Deprecated platforms
Constant duplicates reported in public

🎯 Real-life:
I once found an IDOR on a tiny marketing subdomain that wasn’t even mentioned in the main scope. Why? Because the wildcard allowed it, and nobody else cared enough to check.

Step 4: Automate Target Monitoring ⚙️

Use these tools to track and monitor new programs:

📡 chaos.projectdiscovery.io

Fetch large subdomain datasets of bug bounty targets. Great for recon.

chaos-client -d example.com -key $CHAOS_KEY | httpx -silent

Use it to:

Enumerate scoped assets from public programs
Quickly filter alive hosts with httpx
Automate into your daily recon workflow

💡 Tip: Many wildcard programs on HackerOne/Bugcrowd have exposed dev/staging subdomains in Chaos — it’s low-hanging fruit with real payout potential.

📌 bounty-targets-data + Custom Script

Get instant alerts when new bug bounty programs go live on HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, and YesWeHack — before everyone else.

Use bounty-targets-data, an open-source repo that maintains updated JSON scope lists across all platforms.

curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/arkadiyt/bounty-targets-data/master/data/hackerone_data.json | jq '.[].program_url'

Pro Setup:
• Compare yesterday’s list with today’s
• Get notified via Telegram or desktop popup when a new program drops
• Auto-add fresh scopes into your recon pipeline

⚡🧠 Real Example: I landed a bounty on a fresh program just 8 hours after launch — because my script caught it before it was even indexed on the platform homepage.

🧙‍♂️ bounty-targets-data (by assetnote)

A goldmine JSON list of all public bug bounty programs. Great for scripting.

https://github.com/arkadiyt/bounty-targets-data

🔁 Schedule cronjobs:

subfinder on your targets
httpx to check what’s alive
nuclei to scan newly added stuff

You’re not just a hunter — you’re building your own recon radar.

🛑 Bonus: Avoid Scope Traps

Some platforms bait beginners with attractive rewards but super tight scopes.

🧨 Signs of a trap:
• Everything interesting = out of scope
• No real attack surface (e.g., only marketing sites)
• Discloses take forever or get marked NA

Focus on programs with active response teams, especially if you’re starting out.

🧪 Practice Makes Perfect

Pick 5–10 solid targets, learn their stack, test them deeply. Stick with those for 1–2 weeks.

It’s not about hitting 50 programs at once.

Real hackers go deep, not wide.
Your first bounty will likely come from a target you understood better than anyone else.

🧠 Final Thoughts

Your tools are important.
Your mindset is key.
But your target selection is the secret lever that changes everything.
Start treating your target list like your bug bounty portfolio. Curate it. Refine it. Protect your time.

You’re not just playing the game — you’re playing it smart.

🔮 What’s Next?

Tomorrow, we’re getting tactical again:

How to Master Recon Like a Pro Hacker in 2025
• Passive vs Active Recon
• Tools, combos, and automation
• Subdomain mining that actually works
• Real hacker recon scripts and workflows

Stay hungry. Stay focused.
See you tomorrow.

— Đeepanshu 🧢

If this helped, leave a comment, share with a fellow hacker, or follow me for tomorrow’s drop. 😊