Find an Xbox Security Bug? Microsoft Might Have Some Cash for You

Notice a software bug on your Xbox? You might be able to make some cash.

On Thursday, Microsoft launched a bug bounty program for the Xbox, meaning the company will reward you for reporting significant security vulnerabilities in the gaming platform.

If you uncover a bad, previously unknown flaw, you can earn as much as $20,000.

"Public bounty programs are a valuable approach which combine with ongoing internal testing, private programs and knowledge shared by partners to produce a secure ecosystem to play in," Chloe Brown, a program manager for Microsoft's security response center, wrote in the announcement.

The minimum payout is $500 for bugs that impact the Xbox platform's security.

So not just any repeatable glitch will do.

You'll also have to be the first one to report the bug to Microsoft, and demonstrate the flaw with a clear and concise write-up or video that tells the company's security staff how to reproduce the problem.

The bugs that receive the highest payout involve "remote code execution," in which you can remotely hijack someone's Xbox to run a program or execute an action.

The second most valuable bugs involve "elevation of privilege," or when a program already installed on the Xbox can exploit a flaw to gain greater access to the console's software.

Microsoft also notes it will pay bug bounty participants more than $20,000, depending on the vulnerability's severity and the report's quality.

However, the company is refraining from accepting bug bounties around Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks, which usually involve network traffic abuse.

Bug bounty participants will also need to avoid exploiting the flaws on unsuspecting users, otherwise they'll be disqualified from the reward.

Nintendo and Sony also have a bug bounties through the HackerOne platform.

Nintendo can pay between $100 to $20,000.

Sony, on the other hand, is only offering T-shirts and a "+1 count" to the Sony user profile as a reward through the program.

Notice a software bug on your Xbox? You might be able to make some cash.

On Thursday, Microsoft launched a bug bounty program for the Xbox, meaning the company will reward you for reporting significant security vulnerabilities in the gaming platform.

If you uncover a bad, previously unknown flaw, you can earn as much as $20,000.

"Public bounty programs are a valuable approach which combine with ongoing internal testing, private programs and knowledge shared by partners to produce a secure ecosystem to play in," Chloe Brown, a program manager for Microsoft's security response center, wrote in the announcement.

The minimum payout is $500 for bugs that impact the Xbox platform's security.

So not just any repeatable glitch will do.

You'll also have to be the first one to report the bug to Microsoft, and demonstrate the flaw with a clear and concise write-up or video that tells the company's security staff how to reproduce the problem.

The bugs that receive the highest payout involve "remote code execution," in which you can remotely hijack someone's Xbox to run a program or execute an action.

The second most valuable bugs involve "elevation of privilege," or when a program already installed on the Xbox can exploit a flaw to gain greater access to the console's software.

Microsoft also notes it will pay bug bounty participants more than $20,000, depending on the vulnerability's severity and the report's quality.

However, the company is refraining from accepting bug bounties around Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks, which usually involve network traffic abuse.

Bug bounty participants will also need to avoid exploiting the flaws on unsuspecting users, otherwise they'll be disqualified from the reward.

Nintendo and Sony also have a bug bounties through the HackerOne platform.

Nintendo can pay between $100 to $20,000.

Sony, on the other hand, is only offering T-shirts and a "+1 count" to the Sony user profile as a reward through the program.