Hunting in the Cyber World: Effective Recon Strategies for a Successful Bug Bounty

### **Introduction: What is Bug Bounty and Recon?**

— **Bug Bounty** programs are initiatives where companies and organizations offer rewards to security researchers who find vulnerabilities in their systems.
— **Recon** (reconnaissance) is the process of gathering information about a target to identify potential vulnerabilities.

### **Why is Recon Important?**
— Effective recon is the foundation of a successful bug bounty hunt. Without thorough reconnaissance, many critical vulnerabilities could go unnoticed.

### **Recon Process and Tools**
#### **A. Passive Recon**
— This phase involves collecting information about the target without direct interaction. It relies on third-party resources and publicly available data.

**Tools:**
1. **Google Dorking:**
— Use Google’s search operators to find indexed information about the target.
— Example usage: `site:example.com inurl:admin`

2. **Shodan:**
— Shodan is a search engine for discovering devices connected to the internet. It helps gather information about the target’s infrastructure.
— Use it to find open ports and exposed services of a target by searching its IP.

3. **Censys:**
— Like Shodan, Censys helps discover internet-connected devices, providing details about SSL certificates and domain information.

4. **Whois and DNS Enumeration:**

— **Whois:** Retrieves domain ownership, registration dates, and contact information.
— **DNS Lookup (DNSdumpster, Nslookup):** Gathers DNS records, subdomains, and email server information.

#### **B. Active Recon**
— In this phase, you interact directly with the target to gather detailed information about its infrastructure and potential vulnerabilities.

*Tools:**
1. **Nmap:**
— Nmap scans open ports and identifies running services and their versions on a target.
— Example usage: `nmap -sV example.com`.

2. **Sublist3r:**
— Sublist3r is used to discover subdomains of the target domain, which might expose overlooked vulnerabilities.
— Example usage: `sublist3r -d example.com`

3. **Amass:**
— Amass performs extensive subdomain enumeration and DNS analysis with API integration for richer results.
— Example usage: `amass enum -d example.com`

4. **Dirbuster/Dirsearch:**
— These tools perform directory and file brute-forcing to discover hidden or default directories on a web application.
— Example usage: `dirsearch -u https://example.com -e php,html`

5. **Aquatone:**
— Aquatone discovers subdomains and takes screenshots of web services running on these domains for quick visual inspection.
— Example usage: `aquatone-discover`

#### **C. Vulnerability Research**
— After collecting information, the next step is to analyze the data and search for vulnerabilities.

*Tools:**
1. **Nikto:**
— Nikto is a web server scanner that detects common vulnerabilities.
— Example usage: `nikto -h https://example.com`

2. **Burp Suite:**
— Burp Suite is a powerful tool for manual and automated web application testing, helping you find XSS, SQL Injection, and other vulnerabilities.
— Example usage: Configured as a web proxy to intercept HTTP requests for manual testing.

3. **OWASP ZAP:**
— OWASP ZAP is an alternative to Burp Suite, ideal for both automated and manual vulnerability scanning in web applications.

4. **SQLmap:**
— SQLmap automates the process of detecting and exploiting SQL Injection vulnerabilities.
— Example usage: `sqlmap -u “http://example.com?id=1" — dbs`

### **Post-Recon: Analyzing Findings**
— After completing the recon process, it’s important to categorize and analyze the collected data. During this phase, potential vulnerabilities should be closely examined and reports prepared for submission.

### **Conclusion: Tips for a Successful Recon Process**
— **Combine tools:** Use multiple tools in combination to ensure a comprehensive reconnaissance process.
— Stay up-to-date with new tools and vulnerabilities, as the security landscape evolves rapidly.

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