Xbox gamers or even non-Xbox gamers who are interested in finding bugs withing the Xbox Live service will be able to cash in on their skills. Microsoft has launched a new bounty program that gives users the chance to become bounty hunters, to some extent. The company is offering significant payouts to those who can find security lapses or weaknesses indifferent parts of the Xbox Live service, including issues of lesser importance. People who find the most serious flaws will be able to earn as much as $20,000, depending on how severe the problem is to Microsoft.
This new program was announced on Thursday, and Microsoft laid out how the program will work and how people will be able to report different bugs. According to the company, bounty hunters will be able to make a lot of money ranging from $500 up to $20,000 for bugs and weaknesses. “The Xbox bounty program invites gamers, security researchers, and technologists around the world to help identify security vulnerabilities in the Xbox network and services, and share them with the Microsoft Xbox team through Coordinated Vulnerability Disclosure (CVD),” said the company. “Eligible submissions with a clear and concise proof of concept (POC) are eligible for awards up to US$20,000.”
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These bug bounties are open to anyone and everyone regardless of their location or educational background; however, people will have a much better chance of finding bugs if they have some technical know-how. Although, it’s completely possible for the average Xbox gamer to come across aservice-breaking bug or weaknesswhich can be reported for a decent payout.
A dedicated bounty hunting page on Microsoft’s official website lays out the details regarding the program. It clearly defines what the company is looking for and what kind of reports will be rewarded. Issues regarding the Remote Code Execution will pay out the highest amounts while Denial of Service issues are out of scope, so no rewards there. Even thoughDDOS attacks have plagued online serviceslike Xbox Live, PlayStation Network, Battle.net, etc. for a while, but it looks like Microsoft has gotten those issues under control by itself. Those who are interested in claiming some bounties can head over to the official page on Microsoft’s website to learn how to submit their findings in order to claim a reward.
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