With the rise in the Internet, hacking activities and instances have also leaped. Every other day, a report related to the website getting hacked or being a victim of a data breach is filed. With the advancement of technology, hacking has also made its space. Just like the digital world is growing, hacking techniques are also on move. People learn and use these techniques to threaten small and large businesses.

Hence, it is vital to take measures that will keep your website and web applications safe from malicious activities. All you need to do is look for some interesting security testing tools that will help identify and measure the risk of security issues for your websites.

The main role of these security testing tools is to conduct functional testing under observance, run multiple security checks, and detect possible security issues that might result in hacking. To perform all these actions, you no longer require access to the source code.

Here, we have listed one of the best open-source security testing tools – Arachni, that will help in the faster detection of vulnerabilities present in your web application. We have highlighted its features, pros, and cons. 

Learn more about the pricing plans of Arachni and a few alternative solutions that offer similar features and results. 

What is Arachni?

Arachni is a free security scanner used by developers for Web applications. Its development has been slow, but the tool has been in practice for a long time. Administrators most commonly use the tool for development testing.

Features of Arachni

• REST API
• SQL injection
• Code injection
• NoSQL injection 
• File inclusion
• Helps uncover invalidated redirect
• High-performance Ruby framework
• Supports cookie-string
• Custom header
• Supports SSL 
• User-Agent spoofing
• Detects Custom 404 page
• CSRF detection
• Path traversal 
• Response splitting
• Unvalidated DOM redirects
• DOM XSS script context
• Supports multiple plugins
• Enable/disable the bundled components
• Administrators can automatically log out detection and re-login at the time of scanning
• Supports proxy authentication for SOCKS4A, SOCKS5, HTTP/1.1, HTTP/1.0, and SOCKS4
• Supports Command-line and Web User Interface
• Configurable local storage data

Why do we recommend it?

Arachni stands out for its comprehensive set of features that allows for in-depth vulnerability scanning in web applications. It supports a range of technologies like HTML5, DOM, AJAX, and JavaScript, making it versatile and effective for modern web security needs.

The open-source project was started by Tasos Laskos about ten years ago as a series of batch files. Over the years, Laskos struggled to get the product on the market and gain everyone’s attention. In 2017, it was released with version 1.5.1. However, by 2020, the project was abandoned. But recently, a piece of news related to the development and support for Arachni was released by Laskos on its official website.

The best part about Arachni is it is free and compatible with all operating systems, including Linux, MS Windows, and Mac OS X. Administrators can create automated security reports and conduct multiple security checks using this tool.

Arachni is a fascinating tool and supports a command-line interface and a Web GUI. It also comprises a wide range of features that make it a good option. Using a single command, administrators can launch the tool and run penetration tests. It works great and carries no bugs unlike other vulnerability scanning tools of similar age.

It might not sound like the best bet looking at its growth graph when choosing a vulnerability management system for your Web assets, but Arachni offers positive results.

Going through Arachni’s history, most of you would want to move straight to the alternative section, but before moving forward, let’s look at its features, benefits, and drawbacks.

Who is it recommended for?

Arachni is best suited for web developers and IT administrators who need a thorough, customizable vulnerability scanner for web applications. Despite its slow development and lack of updates, it remains a robust tool for those who can navigate its features and are looking for a cost-effective, open-source solution.

Pricing

Arachni is one of the best security testing tools implemented as batch files to conduct a series of penetration testing exercises. It allows admins to discover loopholes and flaws of a web application and fix them before things get worse or out of hand. Arachni is a free tool that helps businesses protect their applications against malware and other threats.

With the help of the free, open-source security scanner, admins can also test if the application includes an encoded security code or not. Its history and last release reports work against it, but still, the tool carries various features that make it worth investing in. 

Try the free tool to improve the security of your web applications and fix issues in the initial stage of development. The best part about Arachni is it is available for free. As a result, you won’t regret it even if it doesn’t fulfill your requirement.

However, its features and benefits reveal that the tool is worth a try and can save from unexpected breakdowns. 

Website Link: https://www.arachni-scanner.com/ 

The Best Arachni Alternatives

Developed as a student project, Arachni has turned into a commercially viable tool over the years. However, the developers failed to manage its framework and keep it alive. As a result, admins are looking for alternatives. No doubt, Arachni is a fascinating tool but considering it as a viable tool in a commercial environment at the current stage is inappropriate. 

So, we have listed a few alternate solutions that will help in vulnerability scanning or production testing of Web applications.

Methodology for Selecting Arachni Alternative Tools

Arachni is a security scanner mostly used by companies for development testing. It is a free tool that supports SSL and offers features like Rest API, SQL injection, CSRF detection, Response Splitting, etc. It is compatible with various operating systems and supports a command-line interface as well as GUI. It might not sound like a perfect solution when selecting a vulnerability management system due to its limitations, but there are many other tools that fill the void.

Here are a few factors that one must consider when selecting Arachni Alternatives.

• Check if the alternative is a self-installing package.
• Does the selected tool offer a graphical interface?
• Does it constantly look for Web application exploits, focusing majorly on the OWASP Top 10?
• Can a system administrator with zero technical knowledge or expertise in cyber security utilize the service?
• Is the tool capable of vulnerability screening and development testing?
• Does it offer a fully maintained, regularly updated, commercial-grade service that keeps the tool useful and cost-effective?

If you are looking for a vulnerability scanner or development testing tool, make sure to check the above-listed pointers and select the one that provides professional support and matches the functionality of Arachni.

Keeping various factors in mind, we have jotted down the list of some trustable application security testers and vulnerability scanners matching the functionality of Arachni:

1. Netsparker

Netsparker is one of the popular Web Vulnerability Scanners that use proof-based scanning techniques to find Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), SQL Injection, and more vulnerabilities in a web application. Netsparker allows users to automatically verify the identified vulnerabilities and generates a Proof of Exploit.

All stakeholders can quickly scale up processes and manage the long-term security of applications using this popular tool. It is an enterprise-class solution that provides real-time monitoring and saves time by automating security tasks.

If you are looking for an alternate solution to Arachni, go for Netsparker. It supports a dynamic + interactive (DAST+IAST) scanning approach and offers full visibility into web assets. 

Reduce the risk of attacks, and identify real and false vulnerabilities faster using Netsparker.

2. Acunetix

Acunetix is another alternative option that provides end-to-end web security and scans all vulnerabilities in less time. Stand one step ahead of your malicious intruders by pinpointing all network weaknesses and prioritizing high-risk vulnerabilities using Acunetix.

You no longer have to spend all day looking after application security with Acunetix. It supports the DAST + IAST scanning approach and allows users to detect 7000+ vulnerabilities, including SQL injections, XSS, misconfigurations, OWASP Top 10, out-of-band vulnerabilities, etc.

You also have full access to schedule one-time or recurring scans and pinpoint exact lines of code that require fixing. Install Acunetix to resolve all vulnerabilities and eliminate false positives faster than other tools.

3. Invicti

If you are looking for a web security scanner that provides automated security throughout your SDLC, invest in Invicti. One can secure thousands of web assets using the tool and reduce the risk of attacks. It helps identify the vulnerabilities that matter the most and assigns them for further remediation.

No matter if you run an AppSec, DevOps, or DevSecOps program, the tool offers full visibility into apps and aids businesses in discovering lost web assets.

Most DevOps recommend Invicti as it helps in every stage of building Web applications and checks on live systems. It also supports 50+ integrations and combined signature and behavior-based testing.

Get access to real-time monitoring and risk management using the popular tool. It provides the current status of your remediation efforts, allows controlling permissions for unlimited users, makes sure that no vulnerability goes unnoticed, and detects vulnerabilities faster without sacrificing speed and accuracy.

4. Detectify Deep Scan

Detectify Deep Scan is ideal for integration into a CI/CD pipeline and is recommended by most DevOps. It provides deeper coverage to your web assets and scans custom-built apps automatically. One can also decide on assets and customize scans using the tool.

It is also used for development testing or vulnerability scanning.

Discover the latest vulnerabilities with recurring weekly scans or schedule them as per need and convenience. You can also set up Trello, Splunk, PagerDuty, Slack, Jira, OpsGenie, and Webhooks integrations directly into the workflow with the help of Detectify Deep Scan.

The Detectify Crowdsource system constantly updates the deep scan knowledge base with the contributed discoveries and allows users to test various input options and application reactions. You can also automate test launches and feedback paths using Detectify Deep Scan.

Further, the tool allows us to overview all vulnerabilities, prioritize, and fix them using expert advice.

5. W3af

W3af is an open-source web security scanner that helps exploit all web application vulnerabilities and secures applications. It is an interesting tool with multiple extensions. The extensions like Keep-Alive, Gzip, Logging, etc., allow users to transfer HTTP requests at lightning speeds. 

Also, it is easy to integrate them into your code. Another feature of W3af is it stores all vulnerabilities, information disclosures, and anything valuable identified by a plugin in a knowledge base.

It immediately updates admins on detecting security vulnerabilities in the web applications for further use in penetration testing engagements. There is also a provision for saving scan reports in the form of text files using W3af.

 

Conclusion

As hacking activities are increasing day by day, organizations need to install tools that will help quickly detect security vulnerabilities in web applications and secure crucial information from a data breach.

With the help of security testing tools, one can run multiple security checks, detect possible security issues responsible for hacking, conduct functional testing, etc. 

Arachni is one of the best open-source security testing tools for your web applications but has been in practice for a long time. But, after its last release in 2017, the project got abandoned. It can be a reason why most businesses and development teams look for alternatives.

However, the tool comprises various benefits and is free and compatible with all operating systems. Administrators can launch the tool and run penetration tests with a single command using Arachni. Look for the features, benefits, and drawbacks before making any final decision.

We have also listed some of its alternatives that can be a good choice for you. Netsparker, Acunetix, Detectify Deep Scan, and W3af are a few alternate solutions that we have discussed in detail.

Netsparker uses proof-based scanning techniques to find Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), SQL Injection, and more vulnerabilities. While Acunetix supports DAST + IAST scanning approach and allows users to detect 7000+ vulnerabilities.

Similarly, if you are planning to invest in Detectify Deep Scan, it is also a great choice. You can run recurring weekly scans or schedule them as per need and convenience for discovering the latest vulnerabilities.

Each above-listed alternate solution has its feature and benefit that makes it a great option. Make sure to compare each web application security scanner before investing. 

Compare the above-listed web security scanner tools with Arachni and then make a final call. Arachni got abandoned earlier, but as per the 2022 update, Laskos recommenced development and support for Arachni.