Skipfish Security Scanner for Web Apps
Google's online security teams has come out with a free security scanner for web apps, named Skipfish.
The command line tool acts as Web crawler and prepares an interactive sitemap for the targeted site. The Web app is then subjected to a number of nondisruptive security probes, such as for cross-site scripting (XSS), cross-site request forgery (XSRF) and server-side SQL injection. The software can probe websites developed under multiple technologies and frameworks.
Skipfish is written in C and, according to its developers, shows great performance: Internet requests can produce over 500 responses per second, LAN/MAN requests over 2,000 responses and local requests over 7,000 responses per second. The developers implemented a custom HTTP stack for Skipfish.
The Skipfish developers indicate that their tool digs up many relevant security vulnerabilities, but not all. As with many security scanners, permission to test the website is the prerequisite, unless you own it outright.
Skipfish is open source software under Apache 2.0 licensing. The Google Code site has its own Skipfish page, with downloads of a source tarball and online documentation.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
AUR Repository Still Under DDoS Attack
Arch User Repository continues to be under a DDoS attack that has been going on for two weeks.
-
RingReaper Malware Poses Danger to Linux Systems
A new kind of malware exploits modern Linux kernels for I/O operations.
-
Happy Birthday, Linux
On August 25, Linux officially turns 34.
-
VirtualBox 7.2 Has Arrived
With early support for Linux kernel 6.17 and other new additions, VirtualBox 7.2 is a must-update for users.
-
Linux Mint 22.2 Beta Available for Testing
Some interesting new additions and improvements are coming to Linux Mint. Check out the Linux Mint 22.2 Beta to give it a test run.
-
Debian 13.0 Officially Released
After two years of development, the latest iteration of Debian is now available with plenty of under-the-hood improvements.
-
Upcoming Changes for MXLinux
MXLinux 25 has plenty in store to please all types of users.
-
A New Linux AI Assistant in Town
Newelle, a Linux AI assistant, works with different LLMs and includes document parsing and profiles.
-
Linux Kernel 6.16 Released with Minor Fixes
The latest Linux kernel doesn't really include any big-ticket features, just a lot of lines of code.
-
EU Sovereign Tech Fund Gains Traction
OpenForum Europe recently released a report regarding a sovereign tech fund with backing from several significant entities.