Microsoft Breaks Bug Bounty Record with $20 Million in Payouts

Microsoft's Bug Bounty program has reached a new milestone, paying out a record $20 million to 562 security researchers. The payouts were made between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026, averaging about $35,000 per participant.

The company notes that the Microsoft Zero Day Quest research competition held at its Redmond campus contributed significantly to this result. During the event, participants searched for vulnerabilities in real-time, submitting nearly 700 reports with total rewards reaching $2.3 million.

Additionally, the expansion of the program's scope to include open-source software, third-party components, and cloud services led to over 300 additional reports and more than $800,000 in payouts for previously uncovered vulnerabilities.