Lightning Bounties FAQ's
Need answers? Check out our FAQs. Get quick solutions and make the most of our Lightning Bounties.
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Need answers? Check out our FAQs. Get quick solutions and make the most of our Lightning Bounties.
Last updated
Was this helpful?
Lightning Bounties is a Bitcoin-powered bug bounty platform that seamlessly integrates with GitHub’s familiar workflows, allowing developers to earn Bitcoin for fixing bugs and contributing to open-source projects.
Getting started is simple—no installations or complicated setups required. Just visit , log in with your GitHub account, and you’re ready to post or solve bounties instantly. Lightning Bounties makes it easy for anyone to contribute their skills, support open-source innovation, and get rewarded in Bitcoin.
Lightning Bounties caters to two primary groups: developers and organizations.
Developers can showcase their skills, earn Bitcoin, and contribute to the growth of open-source technology.
Organizations can tap into a talented pool of developers to improve the quality and security of their software projects.
See GitHub Auth & Lightning Bountiesfor More Detailed info:
TLDR: Linking your GitHub account streamlines bug hunting, promotes collaboration, and ensures proper reward distribution.
Nope. Bitcoin is the best currency for Lightning Bounties because it’s decentralized, secure, and globally accessible. It aligns with our ethos of empowering developers without relying on speculative tokens.
Users post bounties for GitHub issues, developers solve them, and once a pull request is merged, the contributor is instantly rewarded in Bitcoin via the Lightning Network.
No installations are required. Simply log in with your GitHub account to get started.
Anyone with a GitHub account can use Lightning Bounties to post or solve bounties—no restrictions based on location or experience level.
Visit app.lightningbounties.com and browse the "Available Bounties" section. You can filter bounties by:
Technology/programming language
Reward amount
Time commitment
Repository popularity
Find an issue that matches your skills and interests, then click to view details about the task and reward.
Fork the GitHub repository containing the issue
Create a branch for your solution
Make your changes and commit them
Submit a Pull Request referencing the issue number
Once merged by the repository maintainer, your reward will be automatically processed
Once your pull request is merged, the GitHub API acts as an oracle to verify your contribution. The Lightning Bounties platform then automatically sends the reward to your account, where you can withdraw it to your Lightning wallet.
Visit your Lightning Bounties account dashboard
Click on "Withdraw"
Generate a Lightning invoice from your wallet
Paste the invoice into the withdrawal field
Confirm the withdrawal
Receive funds instantly in your Lightning wallet
If your solution is rejected, the bounty remains open for you or others to attempt again. The repository maintainer typically provides feedback on why the solution wasn't accepted, giving you an opportunity to improve and resubmit.
Yes! You can work on as many bounties as you'd like simultaneously. There are no restrictions on the number of bounties you can tackle at one time.
Nope, you don't need to run a node to use the Lightning Network. You can simply use a lightning wallet app to send and receive payments.
Popular Lightning Network wallets include:
Phoenix
Muun
Breez
Wallet of Satoshi
Blue Wallet
Cash App
Any Lightning-compatible wallet that supports BOLT-11 invoices will work with Lightning Bounties.
After withdrawing to your Lightning wallet, you can:
Transfer to an exchange that supports Lightning Network deposits
Convert to your local currency on the exchange
Withdraw to your bank account
Alternatively, some Lightning wallets offer direct conversion features.
Lightning Network transactions can fail for a few common reasons:
Not having enough funds in your channel to cover the payment
Routing issues in the Lightning Network
Using an expired invoice
Network congestion
Keep approximately 2% of your withdrawal amount in your account to cover Lightning Network routing fees.
TLDR: Log in with your GitHub account, copy-paste the issue URL, set a reward amount in Bitcoin, and post it in just a few clicks.
Log in to Lightning Bounties with your GitHub account
Click "Post a Bounty"
Enter the URL of the GitHub issue
Set the reward amount in sats
Define the lock time period
Submit the bounty
TLDR: Yes, you can increase the reward for an open bounty at any time by adding more sats (Bitcoin micropayments).
This is useful if you want to attract more attention to a high-priority issue or if the complexity turned out to be greater than initially estimated.
If no one solves your issue, you can manually expire the bounty after the lock time ends and reclaim your funds.
You'll review solutions through GitHub's standard pull request workflow:
Receive a notification when a PR is submitted
Review the code changes
Request changes or approve and merge the PR
Once merged, the reward is automatically processed by Lightning Bounties
Log into your Lightning Bounties account
Navigate to the "Deposit" section
Generate a Lightning invoice in your Lightning Bounties account
Pay the invoice using your Lightning wallet
Funds will be credited to your account instantly
TLDR: A lock time guarantees that the reward remains available for a set period (e.g., two weeks) while developers work on solving the issue.
The lock time ensures that funds stay committed to the bounty, giving developers confidence that they'll be paid for their work once completed.
Yes! Lightning Bounties supports crowdfunding for bounties. Multiple users can contribute sats to increase the reward for a single issue, making it more attractive to potential solvers.
Yes! You can specify requirements in the GitHub issue description, such as:
Required tests
Performance criteria
Documentation standards
Compatibility requirements
Code style guidelines
These requirements will be visible to developers considering your bounty.
Yes! You can post bounties for any open-source project on GitHub, even if you're not the project owner.
You can only expire a bounty and reclaim funds after the initial lock time has passed. This protection ensures developers have the promised time to work on solutions without the bounty being unexpectedly withdrawn.
Anonymous Rewards allows logged-in users to contribute sats to bounties privately, ensuring their identity remains hidden while still supporting open-source development. This feature enables users to fund bounties discreetly while maintaining full control over their contributions[4].
The Collaborative Funding feature allows multiple users to contribute sats (Bitcoin microtransactions) to fund a single bounty. This enables community-driven funding for important issues and helps bounties grow faster by allowing multiple contributors[5].
No. Posting or solving a bounty requires no plugins, no installations on your computer, and no changes to your GitHub account. Simply log in with your GitHub account to get started[5][1].
This feature uses the GitHub API to automatically verify when solutions are accepted. Rewards are automatically sent to contributors once their pull request is successfully merged, preventing fraudulent claims[5].
Rewards are locked for a set period (e.g., two weeks) to ensure bounty hunters know the reward will be available when they submit their solution. This lock time guarantees that the reward remains available while developers work on solving the issue[5][1].
After the lock time ends, you can manually expire the bounty and reclaim your funds if priorities change or the issue is resolved elsewhere. If no one solves your issue, you can reclaim your funds after the lock time expires[5][1].
Yes! You can post bounties on issues from popular open-source projects like VSCode, Django, or React-even if you're not the project owner. This allows you to support any open-source project on GitHub[5][1].
Add Without Login enables anyone to contribute sats to existing bounties without needing to create an account or log in. This makes it easier for non-developers or those without GitHub accounts to get involved. The feature leverages Branta's address verification for security[4].
Yes! Lightning Bounties operates globally with Bitcoin, bypassing region-restricted payment processors like Stripe. Anyone with a GitHub account can use Lightning Bounties to post or solve bounties-no restrictions based on location or experience level[5][1].