Organizing Bug Bounty Notes in Obsidian: A Vault Structure for Beginners

By the end of this guide, you will have a working Obsidian vault structured for bug bounty research, with a reusable target template you can drop into every new target note instead of rebuilding structure from scratch each time.

Prerequisites

Obsidian installed (any OS). No prior Obsidian experience required.

Steps

1. Download Obsidian from obsidian.md and open it. The first screen gives you the option to create a new vault. Name it something dedicated to security research, such as security-notes, kept separate from your personal notes.
2. Click the new folder icon in the left sidebar and create three folders: Targets, Methodology, and Templates.
3. Create a note called Target Template inside Templates, and give it a reusable structure:

## Scope
- 

## Subdomains Found
- 

## Endpoints Tested
- 

## Findings
- 

## Status
- [ ] Recon
- [ ] Testing
- [ ] Reporting
- [ ] Submitted

1. Create a new note inside Targets for an actual target. Type [[ and Obsidian auto-pairs it to [[]], placing your cursor in the middle. Type the note name, Target Template, and select it from the dropdown. This creates a link: [[Target Template]].
2. Clicking that link navigates you away to the template note, which is not what you want for a reusable structure. Instead, use ![[Target Template]] to embed the full content directly into the new note.

Verification

The new target note shows the full template content inline, including headings, checklist, and sections, without needing to open a separate note.

Troubleshooting

1. Typing [[ auto-pairs to [[]]. This is expected, not an error; your cursor sits ready in the middle.
2. Clicking a [[link]] navigates away to the linked note, which is not what you want for a reusable template.

Fix

Use ![[Target Template]], with the exclamation mark and no space, to embed the note instead of linking to it.