Are you excited to start your bug bounty journey but not sure where to begin? You’re not alone.

Many new ethical hackers make the mistake of diving straight into tools and payloads without understanding the core concepts of web application security. If you want to become a successful bug bounty hunter, the first and most important step is to learn how websites work—and how they can be broken.

In this post, we’ll walk through Step 1 of bug bounty for beginners: mastering the basics of web security.



Understand How the Web Works (Before You Hack It)

Before you can test a website for bugs, you need to understand how it functions. This might sound boring, but it’s actually really fun—and absolutely essential.


The Request-Response Cycle

Every time you visit a webpage:

  • Your browser sends an HTTP request to a server.
  • The server processes it and sends back an HTTP response.
  • These interactions are the core of how the internet works. Learn to read and understand:
  • HTTP methods like GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE
  • Status codes like 200 OK, 403 Forbidden, 404 Not Found, and 500 Internal Server Error
  • If you want to find security flaws, you need to see how data flows through this cycle.


🍪 Cookies and Sessions

Cookies store information about your session—like whether you’re logged in. Understanding how cookies and session tokens work is vital to finding vulnerabilities like Session Hijacking or Cross-Site Scripting (XSS).


Learn the Most Common Web Vulnerabilities

One of the biggest mistakes beginners make is not learning the common web vulnerabilities that appear across thousands of applications. Thankfully, the OWASP Top 10 makes it easy to focus on what really matters.


Here are a few vulnerabilities you’ll likely encounter (and exploit) early in your bug bounty hunting:


1. 🔥 Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)

  • XSS is one of the most common and beginner-friendly bugs.
  • What it is: Injecting malicious JavaScript into a page that gets executed in the browser of another user.
  • Why it matters: You can steal cookies, hijack sessions, or deface pages.
  • Example: Posting <script>alert('XSS')</script> in a comment box.


💡 Pro Tip: Start with Reflected XSS—it’s easier to learn and great for beginners.


2. 💣 SQL Injection (SQLi)

  • SQL injection is an attack where you manipulate a website's database by injecting SQL code.
  • Why it matters: It can let attackers access, modify, or delete data—even take over admin accounts.
  • Example: Input ' OR 1=1-- in a login field and bypass authentication.


3. 🎯 Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)

  • CSRF tricks a logged-in user into performing unwanted actions.
  • Example: You send a hidden form that transfers money when the victim is logged in to their bank.
  • Why it’s dangerous: It abuses the trust a site has in your browser.


4. 🔓 Insecure Direct Object Reference (IDOR)

  • IDOR happens when you can access other people’s data just by changing a URL parameter.
  • Example: If you visit example.com/user/123 and change it to 124 and get someone else’s profile—that’s an IDOR.


💡 Beginner tip: Always test changing IDs, filenames, and numbers in URLs. You’d be surprised how often this works.


🎓 Best Free Resources to Learn Web Security (Hands-On)

Ready to learn web security the fun way? Here are some beginner-friendly platforms you should explore:


✅ PortSwigger Web Security Academy – Hands-on labs for every vulnerability
✅ TryHackMe – Web Fundamentals – Learn HTTP, cookies, and attacks interactively
✅ OWASP Juice Shop – A deliberately insecure app to practice everything you learn
✅ HackerOne Hacktivity – Real-world bug reports with full write-ups


🧠 Shift Your Mindset: Think Like a Developer and a Hacker

As a bug bounty beginner, your biggest strength is curiosity. Start asking questions like:


  • “What happens behind the scenes when I submit this form?”
  • “Can I change this value in the URL?”
  • “Is the input I give here reflected back to me?”


Understanding how developers build websites will help you find where they might have made a mistake.


💡 Final Thoughts: Start Small, Think Big

Bug bounty isn’t about knowing everything. It’s about learning one thing at a time and constantly asking “What if…?”

Step 1 is simple but powerful: Understand how the web works and learn the common vulnerabilities.

That alone can help you find real bugs and start earning your first bounties.

Up next, we’ll go into Step 2: Building Your Bug Bounty Toolkit—where we’ll explore the tools every ethical hacker should have on their system.


🗨️ Got Questions?

Have you just started your bug bounty journey? Drop your biggest challenge below—I’d love to help or share more resources.

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