A bounty is like a treasure hunt incentivized by developers or organizations. They announce a reward—monetary or otherwise—for discovering bugs that could threaten user funds, or for coding particularly needed features. This approach helps crowdsource security and innovation, encouraging community members to contribute specialized expertise.

Bounties can be found at all levels: from Bitcoin Core bug bounties to LN development or third-party services. Sometimes they’re sponsored by well-funded companies wanting to ensure code quality. The broader message: if you identify a flaw before bad actors exploit it, you could earn some BTC as a thank-you (and help keep the ecosystem safer).