Enterprise Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) Tool: Netsparker
Introduction
Do you believe if I say websites appeal to hackers to hack them? That may be overstating the case, but in the hyper connected digital world of today, it is unavoidable.
McAfee estimates that every day, 300,000 new pieces of malware are created by hackers, and on average, 30,000 new websites are compromised. Websites are, in actuality, simple targets. They are not just numerous, but they are typically created utilizing open source technology, which leaves them full of vulnerabilities that are simple to attack.
Most website owners are unaware of how exposed they are until they are attacked. A single breach may seriously harm a brand or even bring down a corporation since hackers are getting their hands on financial data, medical information, intellectual property, and more.
The open-source content management (CMS) industry is still dominated by WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal, but they also have the most security flaws. In fact, over 20% of all website attacks targeted these platforms in the 2020 Global Threat Intelligence Report [1] from Dimension Data, with WordPress accounting for the lion’s share.
Web security might seem like a never-ending game of “hide and seek,” regardless of the tools you’re using. Online application developers rush to address security gaps discovered by hackers in both contemporary and ancient web systems, and the cycle is repeated. However, the most serious flaws are frequently found in layers that website owners take for granted, like HTML5, Single Page Applications (SPA), and even password-protected online content.
Security is now a crucial component of every professional website or web application strategy for these reasons. In the past, doing this needed a pricey, multi-layered approach that included both hardware and expert services. However, now that Netsparker is available, you may automate your security procedures thanks to this potent yet user-friendly web application and website security tool.
In this article, we’ll look more closely at Netsparker and discuss how it may be used by website administrators to pinpoint service flaws. We’ll walk you through its crawling and scanning capabilities and show you how it’s made to support governance with domains, certificates, compliance, and more so you can keep ahead of dangers.
What is Netsparker?
You may scan websites, online applications, and web services for security problems with the automated but completely customizable Enterprise DAST (Dynamic Application Security Testing) tool Netsparker. Because it can scan any sort of online project, regardless of the platform or programming language used, Netsparker is very extensible.
The “Proof-Based Scanning” method used by Netsparker automatically evaluates discovered vulnerabilities and determines if they are false positives by exploiting them in a secure, read-only way. You don’t need to be an experienced security specialist to do complete scans thanks to Netsparker’s scanning technology and automated verification. You can always prioritize your reaction since you always know which results are real problems and not just false positives.
The goal of Netsparker’s design was to increase productivity. For instance, you may automatically assign vulnerabilities to developers and send out warnings, enabling you to patch web applications in real-time to maintain security. By avoiding pricey SecOps workers, you can execute routine scans more quickly and affordably, freeing up cybersecurity experts to work on more difficult problems.
Features of Netspeaker
There are many security tools available, but few are as efficient at detecting vulnerabilities at the web layer as Netsparker. It is simple to use and maintain and provides access to integrated data and insights for both individual users and business teams. One of the characteristics that distinguish Netsparker in the cybersecurity scene is its central repository, which we’ll explore in more detail when we discuss the product versions.
Let’s start by talking about some of the fundamental skills that really stand out.
Dashboard
Security data may get complicated very quickly. However, Netsparker excels in this area. You may view all of your websites, scans, and open vulnerabilities in a single window using their visual dashboard. Your team can monitor threat intensity, evaluate your overall danger level, and instantly classify the seriousness of your vulnerabilities thanks to intuitive graphs.
You can also set up security rules for your company from the dashboard, assign team members to certain security duties, and manage permissions for your users and groups.
Proof-Based Scanning™
As was already indicated, Netsparker’s “Proof-Based Scanning” automatically develops a proof-of-exploit or proof-of-concept to confirm that any vulnerabilities discovered are genuine and not false positives. Automated notifications that assign vulnerabilities to developers and fix web application firewalls in real-time to help maintain security and further expedite the process.
Vulnerability Scanning
The primary goal of any web vulnerability scanner is to find vulnerabilities. Netsparker can detect all varieties of online application flaws, including several iterations of the most prevalent flaws like SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS). You can be certain that these results do not represent false positives because the majority of direct-impact vulnerabilities are also automatically validated.
Vulnerability Details and Reporting
Netsparker offers a variety of cutting-edge web security solutions that are compatible with both contemporary and antiquated web languages and technologies to aid teams in maximizing scanning and manual testing.
Building HTTP Requests
The HTTP Request Builder lets you make custom HTTP requests and edit imported ones. This is quite helpful for manually assessing vulnerabilities and debugging complicated problems like locating logical weaknesses.
Tools for encoding and decoding
When manually creating and altering test payloads, text encoding and decoding are essential capabilities. Netsparker comes with a text encoder and decoder that supports a variety of encoding schemes, including URL, HTML, Base64, UTF7, MD5, SHA1, SHA256, SHA512, and others. This saves time during manual vulnerability assessments.
Using ViewState Viewer
In order to perform security checks on ASP.NET and contemporary.NET online applications, Netsparker generates HTTP requests and answers, from which ViewState data is extracted. The ViewState data is shown in a separate preview tab for simpler debugging.
Asset Recognition
Netsparker’s Asset Discovery service, another proactive security solution, continually crawls the Internet to find your assets based on a variety of criteria, such as IP addresses, top-level and second-level domain names, and even SSL certificate details.
How to Getting Started with Netsparker Web Application Security Scanner
You can refer to the below tutorial to get a comprehensive understanding of how to start working with Netsparker.
References:
[1]: https://services.global.ntt/nl-nl/insights/2020-global-threat-intelligence-report
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