Security tools are computer programs that help us identify software flaws. They’re used by malicious people to obtain illegal access to information systems, corporate networks, and even personal computers. Security researchers, on the other hand, employ these techniques to uncover software bugs so that they may be fixed before they are exploited. Both the bad guys and penetration testing pros employ a variety of open source security solutions. We’ve gathered a list of 15 Best Open Source Security Tools that are popular in computer security and related industries nowadays.
Top 15 Best Open Source Security Tools To Protect Your System
Some security solutions are primarily used for raising security privileges, while others are designed to give defensive capabilities in the face of such breaches. Our editors have chosen their favorites from both sides so that you can get a comprehensive picture of common security issues. Let’s have a look at the list given below.
1. Metasploit
It is the first name on the list of Best Open Source Security Tools. Without a doubt, the Metasploit Project is one of the best security efforts of our time. The Metasploit framework is at its core, a robust tool that allows users to easily manage and maintain their security operations. The fundamental solution is open source and available on GitHub. As a result, curious individuals can look at the source code and learn more about how it works. Due to its large amount of features and capabilities, most penetration testers choose this framework to do professional security auditing jobs.
2. Nmap
Nmap is a powerful network scanner that is used by both security experts and malevolent individuals. We can use it to scan hosts for open ports, susceptible services, and operating systems. Most hackers would start their attack with Nmap since it gives them the knowledge they need to take down distant systems. Although it is a command-line utility, Zenmap has a great graphical user interface. A vast number of Nmap commands also aid in the discovery of sensitive data about remote users and networks.
3. OSSEC
The Open Source Host-based Intrusion Detection System, or OSSEC, is a modern-day IDS that assist professionals in identifying security issues in enterprise servers. It lets users examine system logs, run integrity checks, and keep track of the Windows registry, among other things. OSSEC also provides strong alerting mechanisms and allows us to detect the presence of any potential rootkits. Because of its wide capabilities and rich feature set, many organizations have begun to adopt OSSEC for detecting difficult-to-find faults.
4. OWASP ZAP
OWASP ZAP, also known as Zed Attack Proxy, is a great security scanner for modern web applications. A group of internationally acknowledged security specialists created and maintains it. Using Zed Attack Proxy, administrators can discover a huge number of typical security flaws. It is written in Java and has both graphical and command-line interfaces. Furthermore, you do not need to be trained security professional to use this software because it is simple enough for even complete beginners to use.
5. Security Onion
Because of its extensive feature set and powerful monitoring features, Security Onion is one of the best security systems for enterprise environments. It’s a self-contained Linux distribution designed for intrusion detection, log management, and security testing. NetworkMiner, Logstash, and CyberChef are just a few of the open-source security technologies included with Security Onion. Because of its ease of use, our editors especially enjoyed this security-focused Linux distribution. It is the ideal choice for companies that want to enforce security standards.
6. OpenVAS
OpenVAS is a security testing package that includes a variety of services and tools for assessing vulnerabilities. It began as a Nessus fork but has now evolved into a full-fledged vulnerability scanning framework. The ability to manage demanding security services from a web-based dashboard is an important selling point of this software bundle. When it comes to detecting weaknesses in network servers and infrastructures, OpenVAS performs admirably. Furthermore, the framework’s open-source nature ensures that users can use it without restriction.
7. Wireshark
Wireshark is a free, open-source packet analyzer that lets you see network streams in great detail. Due to its practical use cases, it is one of the greatest open source security tools for network troubleshooting and analysis. Wireshark is frequently used by malicious individuals to collect network packets and analyze them for sensitive data. It’s a cross-platform program with pre-built packages for a variety of Linux and BSD variants. Overall, for folks who use tools like tcpdump or tshark, it’s a future-proof improvement. This app is amongst the Best Open Source Security Tools.
8. Nikto
Nikto is a powerful web server scanner that has gained a lot of traction since its introduction. It’s a command-line application that lets administrators check for things like server misconfigurations, obsolete packages, and malfunctioning CGIs. Nikto’s success has mostly been due to its lightweight nature. This app is frequently used by modern penetration testers as an alternative for larger server scanners such as Zed Attack Proxy (ZAP). It is developed in Perl and operates on most Unix-like computers without a hitch.
9. W3af
W3af is a modern-day web application security testing framework with a lot of power. It’s a Python-based open-source project that allows developers to customize it to their liking.SQL injections, cross-site scripting, CSRF, OS commands, and stack-based buffer overflows are among the more than 200 types of security flaws that W3af can detect. It’s actually cross-platform software that’s quite simple to extend. One of the key reasons for its growing popularity among security professionals is this.
10. Wapit
Wapiti is yet another incredibly powerful web-based application security scanner. It does black-box scans to compile a list of all potential URLs, and after that’s done, it uses payload injection to try to discover susceptible scripts.
As a result, it also serves as a Fuzzer. Wapiti can detect a variety of web vulnerabilities, including cross-site scripting (XSS), server-side request forgery (SSRF), database injection, and file disclosures. Overall, it’s a powerful program that can quickly identify a big number of flaws.
11. CipherShed
CipherShed is a modern encryption program that originated as a fork of the now-defunct TrueCrypt Project. It strives to give your sensitive data top-notch protection and may be used to safeguard both personal and corporate networks. All major operating systems, including Linux and FreeBSD, are supported by this cross-platform program. Furthermore, because this project is open-source, developers can readily access and edit the source code if they like.
12. Wfuzz
Wfuzz is one of the most successful open source security tools for effectively brute-forcing web-based applications. It’s written in Python and has a straightforward command-line interface for controlling the application. SQL injections, LDAP injections, and cross-site scripting are just a few of the vulnerabilities that Wfuzz can disclose.
This program is frequently used by penetration testers to brute force HTTP GET and POST parameters, as well as too fuzzy web forms. Wfuzz may be a suitable option if you’re seeking a lightweight vulnerability scanner for web apps.
13. OSQuery
OSQuery is a modern-day system application for monitoring, instrumenting, and analyzing changes in operating systems. It is the creation of Facebook’s engineering team and uses the SQL querying language to display changes in security events.
You can use this app by administrators to keep track of low-level system data like ongoing processes, network streams, kernel modules, hardware modifications, and even file hashes. This tool’s source code is publicly available on GitHub. As a result, developers can tweak it to meet enterprise needs. It might be lower on our list of Best Open Source Security Tools, but still a decent option.
14. SonarQube
Because of its extensive feature set and high performance, SonarQube is one of the top open-source security testing tools for security experts. It’s written in Java and helps researchers to identify some of the most frequent dangers to online applications.
Cross-site scripting vulnerabilities, Denial of Service (DoS) threats, and SQL injections are all detected by this software. It can check websites for coding issues and works well with other tools such as Jenkins. Overall, it’s a useful tool for security professionals as well as web app developers.
15. Snort
Cisco presently maintains Snort, which is a sophisticated intrusion detection technology. Security testers can use it to capture and analyze network data in real-time. It can detect a variety of web vulnerabilities, such as stealth scanning, semantic URL assaults, buffer overflows, and OS fingerprinting, to name a few. For folks who are new to packet analyzing in general, it provides good documentation. As a result, you can quickly set it up and begin looking for network issues. It is the last name in our list of Best Open Source Security Tools.
Conclusion:
We have created a list of the Best Open Source Security Tools that you download whenever you want. Would you please send us your suggestions and feedback? Goodbye!
