Netsparker

Netsparker is a leading web vulnerability management software tool used by information technology, security operations, and development teams worldwide. Netsparker is a fully configurable Enterprise Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) tool.  A DAST tool  communicates with a web application using the web front-end in order to identify potential security vulnerabilities in the web application. DAST tools run automated scans that simulate external attacks on an application. DAST enables security operations teams to scan websites, web applications, and web services to identify security vulnerabilities. 

Netsparker automatically scans custom web applications for Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), SQL Injection, and other types of vulnerabilities. Netsparker can scan all types of web apps, independent of the platform or language in which they are coded. Netsparker can be integrated within the software development lifecycle (SDLC) or can operate on a standalone basis.  

Netsparker can be integrated with many of the leading CI/CD software environments and issue trackers.  This enables you to use Netsparker in your DevOps and SecOps environments. Netsparker helps you enable the best practice characterized as the “shift-left” paradigm so that you can test earlier in the development cycle and more often. By eliminating security vulnerabilities as early as possible in the development cycle, teams will save resources, avoid bigger problems later, and add considerable resiliency.

Netsparker automation exploits identified website security vulnerabilities and, as a result,  produces a proof of exploit. Teams can immediately see the impact of the identified web application vulnerability and validate that it is not a false positive. This eliminates the need to waste time on manual penetration testing to verify scan results. 

Netsparker on-premises and hosted editions use a unique black-box (DAST) scanning technology. Netsparker has been optimized to handle complex applications based on JavaScript/Ajax. The Netsparker scanner identifies thousands of the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) Top-10 vulnerabilities in web pages, web apps, web services, and APIs. These may include SQL Injections, Cross-site Scripting (XSS), command injection, remote file inclusion, and more. 

Netsparker also checks for misconfigurations. Netsparker runs tests on both commercial and open-source web servers such as Apache and Nginx on Linux, and IIS on Microsoft Windows. The goal is to identify misconfigurations that might lead to security issues. Misconfiguration is a common source of vulnerabilities that have increased in prevalence over the past few years as applications have migrated to the cloud.

Netsparker helps you scan all of your organization’s web pages, so you can gain deeper visibility into your applications and potential vulnerabilities. Any type of webpage or web app can be scanned. They can be based upon any technology set, language, or framework. 

Generally, competitive application security testing solutions utilize only one type of scanning. They may utilize DAST or Interactive Application Security Testing (IAST). IAST analyzes code for security vulnerabilities while the application is run. This may be done using automated tests, human (manual) testers, or a combination of both.  IAST reports vulnerabilities in real-time. Most application security testing solutions rely on a single type of scanning. By using both DAST and IAST technologies, Netsparker can often find subtle or less obvious vulnerabilities.

Netsparker can help minimize the backlog of tasks through automation and workflow features. These features can streamline the process of security task management and assignment. That’s an immediate source of return on investment, as your security teams can free up time for other important tasks. Reduction of false positives, the automated assignment of confirmed vulnerabilities to developers, and detailed documentation on the location and nature of the vulnerabilities all help save time and make developers more productive.

It is critical to catch vulnerabilities sooner rather than later. Once the code has shipped to the customer, and you identify a vulnerability, the level of effort to remediate this grows substantially and places pressure on your developers, security team and customer support organization. By integrating security into the development process and workflows of the SDLC, considerable effort is saved. Netsparker provides rapid feedback on the code, so developers can address it immediately and reduce the vulnerabilities present in any code release. Developers also benefit in that the feedback helps them write more secure code in the future. 

Key Netsparker Features

High Accuracy. Netsparker’s technology automatically exploits identified vulnerabilities to determine that they are not false positive results. False positives can waste a significant amount of time.

Extended Visibility. Netsparker’s asset discovery can locate all of the websites, services, applications, and application program interfaces (APIs) that should be scanned. Netsparker can also find and list the technologies used in web applications, determine which are out of date, and then track the update status.

Integration & Automation. Netsparker’s REST API enables the rapid integration with automated web vulnerability scanning. This can happen at any stage of the SDLC.  It is important to note that Netsparker includes integration support for Jira, Gitlab, and other issue tracking systems. Discovered vulnerabilities are automatically posted as they are discovered.

Alerts. Alerts may be configured in response to the detection of new vulnerabilities. This can be done via SMS, email, and will also integrate with most leading issue tracking systems. 

Team Collaboration. Netsparker Enterprise enables all team members to collaborate and communicate more effectively about status and resolution of discovered vulnerabilities. 

In summary, Netsparker is an excellent tool to use with your bug bounty program and other manual pen testing efforts. Netsparker adds a layer of security that can help prevent risks and vulnerabilities. Netsparker fits in well with your SDLC processes to reduce risk, save time, gain efficiency, and improve customer satisfaction.

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