100 Essential Security and Penetration Testing Tools for Linux
Introduction
Security professionals need powerful tools for vulnerability assessment, penetration testing, and security monitoring. Here are 100 essential security tools.
📑 Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Network Scanning
- 1. Nmap
- 2. Masscan
- 3. Angry IP Scanner
- 4. Zmap
- 5. Unicornscan
- 6. RustScan
- 7. Netcat
- 8. hping3
- Vulnerability Scanners
- 9. OpenVAS
- 10. Nessus
- 11. Nikto
- 12. Nuclei
- 13. Trivy
- 14. Grype
- 15. Wapiti
- 16. WPScan
- Web Application Testing
- 17. Burp Suite
- 18. OWASP ZAP
- 19. sqlmap
- 20. XSStrike
- 21. Commix
- 22. ffuf
- 23. Gobuster
- 24. Dirb
- 25. Dirsearch
- 26. Feroxbuster
- 27. httpx
- 28. Arjun
- Password Cracking
- 29. John the Ripper
- 30. Hashcat
- 31. Hydra
- 32. Medusa
- 33. CrackMapExec
- 34. Ophcrack
- 35. Patator
- Wireless Security
- 36. Aircrack-ng
- 37. Kismet
- 38. Wifite
- 39. Reaver
- 40. Bettercap
- 41. Fern WiFi Cracker
- Exploitation Frameworks
- 42. Metasploit
- 43. Cobalt Strike
- 44. Empire
- 45. Sliver
- 46. Covenant
- 47. BeEF
- Network Analysis
- 48. Wireshark
- 49. tcpdump
- 50. tshark
- 51. NetworkMiner
- 52. Zeek
- 53. Snort
- 54. Suricata
- Reconnaissance
- 55. Recon-ng
- 56. theHarvester
- 57. Maltego
- 58. Shodan CLI
- 59. Amass
- 60. Subfinder
- 61. Sublist3r
- 62. dnsrecon
- 63. Fierce
- Forensics
- 64. Autopsy
- 65. Volatility
- 66. Sleuth Kit
- 67. foremost
- 68. Binwalk
- 69. bulk_extractor
- 70. Rekall
- SIEM and Log Analysis
- 71. Wazuh
- 72. OSSEC
- 73. Security Onion
- 74. Elastic SIEM
- 75. Graylog
- Secret Detection
- 76. Gitleaks
- 77. TruffleHog
- 78. detect-secrets
- 79. git-secrets
- 80. Talisman
- Container Security
- 81. Falco
- 82. Clair
- 83. Anchore
- 84. Sysdig
- 85. Aqua Security
- Reverse Engineering
- 86. Ghidra
- 87. Radare2
- 88. IDA Free
- 89. Cutter
- 90. Binary Ninja
- Social Engineering
- 91. SET
- 92. Gophish
- 93. King Phisher
- 94. Evilginx
- Miscellaneous
- 95. CyberChef
- 96. SecLists
- 97. PayloadsAllTheThings
- 98. Kali Linux
- 99. Parrot OS
- 100. BlackArch
- Conclusion
Network Scanning
1. Nmap
Network discovery and security auditing tool.
2. Masscan
Fast TCP port scanner.
3. Angry IP Scanner
Cross-platform network scanner.
4. Zmap
Fast single-packet network scanner.
5. Unicornscan
Asynchronous stateless TCP/UDP scanner.
6. RustScan
Modern fast port scanner written in Rust.
7. Netcat
Networking utility for reading/writing network connections.
8. hping3
Network tool for packet crafting.
Vulnerability Scanners
9. OpenVAS
Open-source vulnerability scanner.
10. Nessus
Comprehensive vulnerability scanner.
11. Nikto
Web server vulnerability scanner.
12. Nuclei
Fast vulnerability scanner with templates.
13. Trivy
Container and filesystem vulnerability scanner.
14. Grype
Vulnerability scanner for container images.
15. Wapiti
Web application vulnerability scanner.
16. WPScan
WordPress security scanner.
Web Application Testing
17. Burp Suite
Web application security testing platform.
18. OWASP ZAP
Open-source web application security scanner.
19. sqlmap
Automatic SQL injection tool.
20. XSStrike
Advanced XSS detection suite.
21. Commix
Command injection exploitation tool.
22. ffuf
Fast web fuzzer written in Go.
23. Gobuster
Directory/file and DNS bruteforcer.
24. Dirb
Web content scanner.
25. Dirsearch
Web path discovery tool.
26. Feroxbuster
Fast recursive content discovery.
27. httpx
Fast HTTP toolkit for probing.
28. Arjun
HTTP parameter discovery suite.
Password Cracking
29. John the Ripper
Password cracker supporting many hash types.
30. Hashcat
Advanced password recovery with GPU support.
31. Hydra
Fast network login cracker.
32. Medusa
Parallel password brute-forcer.
33. CrackMapExec
Post-exploitation tool for Windows/AD.
34. Ophcrack
Windows password cracker using rainbow tables.
35. Patator
Multi-purpose brute-forcer.
Wireless Security
36. Aircrack-ng
WiFi security auditing suite.
37. Kismet
Wireless network detector and sniffer.
38. Wifite
Automated wireless attack tool.
39. Reaver
WPS PIN brute-force attack tool.
40. Bettercap
Network attack and monitoring framework.
41. Fern WiFi Cracker
GUI-based wireless security tool.
Exploitation Frameworks
42. Metasploit
Penetration testing framework.
43. Cobalt Strike
Adversary simulation platform.
44. Empire
Post-exploitation framework.
45. Sliver
Open-source adversary emulation framework.
46. Covenant
.NET command and control framework.
47. BeEF
Browser exploitation framework.
Network Analysis
48. Wireshark
Network protocol analyzer.
49. tcpdump
Command-line packet analyzer.
50. tshark
Terminal-based Wireshark.
51. NetworkMiner
Network forensic analyzer.
52. Zeek
Network security monitor.
53. Snort
Network intrusion detection system.
54. Suricata
High performance network IDS/IPS.
Reconnaissance
55. Recon-ng
Web reconnaissance framework.
56. theHarvester
Email and domain reconnaissance.
57. Maltego
Open source intelligence and forensics.
58. Shodan CLI
Search engine for internet-connected devices.
59. Amass
Network mapping and attack surface discovery.
60. Subfinder
Subdomain discovery tool.
61. Sublist3r
Fast subdomain enumeration.
62. dnsrecon
DNS enumeration script.
63. Fierce
DNS reconnaissance tool.
Forensics
64. Autopsy
Digital forensics platform.
65. Volatility
Memory forensics framework.
66. Sleuth Kit
File system forensic analysis.
67. foremost
File recovery tool.
68. Binwalk
Firmware analysis tool.
69. bulk_extractor
Digital forensics tool for extracting features.
70. Rekall
Memory forensic framework.
SIEM and Log Analysis
71. Wazuh
Security monitoring platform.
72. OSSEC
Host-based intrusion detection.
73. Security Onion
Network security monitoring distribution.
74. Elastic SIEM
Security analytics with Elasticsearch.
75. Graylog
Log management platform.
Secret Detection
76. Gitleaks
Git secret scanning.
77. TruffleHog
Credential scanner for Git repositories.
78. detect-secrets
Secrets detection in code.
79. git-secrets
Prevents committing secrets.
80. Talisman
Git hook for secret detection.
Container Security
81. Falco
Runtime security for containers.
82. Clair
Static analysis of container vulnerabilities.
83. Anchore
Container image analysis.
84. Sysdig
Container visibility and security.
85. Aqua Security
Cloud native security platform.
Reverse Engineering
86. Ghidra
NSA reverse engineering framework.
87. Radare2
Reverse engineering framework.
88. IDA Free
Interactive disassembler.
89. Cutter
Free reverse engineering platform.
90. Binary Ninja
Binary analysis platform.
Social Engineering
91. SET
Social Engineering Toolkit.
92. Gophish
Phishing simulation toolkit.
93. King Phisher
Phishing campaign toolkit.
94. Evilginx
Man-in-the-middle attack framework.
Miscellaneous
95. CyberChef
Web app for encoding and analysis.
96. SecLists
Security testing wordlists.
97. PayloadsAllTheThings
Payload cheat sheets.
98. Kali Linux
Penetration testing distribution.
99. Parrot OS
Security-focused Linux distribution.
100. BlackArch
Arch-based penetration testing distribution.
Conclusion
These 100 security tools provide comprehensive coverage for penetration testing and security assessment. Always ensure you have proper authorization before using these tools.
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About Ramesh Sundararamaiah
Red Hat Certified Architect
Expert in Linux system administration, DevOps automation, and cloud infrastructure. Specializing in Red Hat Enterprise Linux, CentOS, Ubuntu, Docker, Ansible, and enterprise IT solutions.