Nikto

Comprehensive Perl-based web server vulnerability scanner that detects misconfigurations and known exploits

Application Security Testing (SAST/DAST/SCA)

Nikto scans web servers for over 6,700 potentially dangerous files/CGIs, outdated software, and configuration issues, offering multiple output formats and Docker deployment for quick, automated security assessments.

Overview

Nikto is a Perl‑based web server scanner that probes for thousands of known vulnerabilities, outdated software versions, and insecure configurations. It is suited for security auditors, penetration testers, and DevOps engineers who need a fast, scriptable way to assess the security posture of HTTP/HTTPS services.

Features & Deployment

The tool ships with an extensive plugin database covering over 6,700 signatures and supports a wide range of command‑line options for tuning, evasion, and authentication. Results can be exported as plain text, HTML, CSV, XML, JSON, Nessus NBE, or Metasploit logs. Users may run Nikto directly from source on any system with Perl, or leverage the official Docker image for isolated, reproducible scans, including volume mounting for custom output locations. Its modular architecture also allows users to add custom plugins, extending detection capabilities beyond the default set.

Highlights

Extensive plugin database covering 6,700+ known vulnerabilities

Multiple output formats (HTML, CSV, XML, JSON, Nessus, Metasploit)

Flexible scanning options including evasion techniques and tuning levels

Official Docker image for isolated, reproducible execution

Pros

Broad vulnerability coverage across many web technologies
Highly configurable command‑line interface
Lightweight Perl script with minimal dependencies
Easy containerized deployment via official Docker image

Considerations

Perl runtime required for source execution
No built‑in GUI; command line only
Limited to known signatures; may miss zero‑day flaws
Output parsing may require post‑processing for large scans

Managed products teams compare with

When teams consider Nikto, these hosted platforms usually appear on the same shortlist.

Acunetix

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AppCheck

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Burp Suite

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Looking for a hosted option? These are the services engineering teams benchmark against before choosing open source.

Fit guide

Great for

Security auditors needing quick reconnaissance of web servers
DevOps teams integrating vulnerability checks into CI pipelines
Penetration testers requiring customizable scan parameters
Organizations that prefer scriptable, open‑source tools over commercial scanners

Not ideal when

Environments lacking Perl interpreter and cannot use Docker
Teams requiring real‑time interactive dashboards
Scenarios demanding advanced heuristic or AI‑driven detection
Large‑scale continuous monitoring where dedicated enterprise solutions are preferred

How teams use it

Pre‑deployment security audit

Identify outdated components and misconfigurations before a web application goes live.

CI/CD pipeline integration

Automatically scan built images for known web server vulnerabilities, failing builds on critical findings.

Incident response reconnaissance

Rapidly enumerate exposed files and scripts on a compromised host to guide remediation.

Compliance reporting

Generate HTML or CSV reports that satisfy audit requirements for web server hardening.

Tech snapshot

Perl95%

Roff4%

Dockerfile1%

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to install Perl to run Nikto?

Yes, the source version runs on any system with Perl 5.x; the Docker image provides a ready‑to‑run environment without separate installation.

How often are vulnerability databases updated?

Nikto includes a built‑in update command (`-update`) that fetches the latest plugins and signatures from CIRT.net.

What output formats are supported?

Nikto can produce plain text, HTML, CSV, XML, JSON, Nessus NBE, and Metasploit log files, selected with the `-Format` option or by file extension.

Is there a way to limit scan duration?

The `-maxtime` option sets a maximum testing time per host, and `-timeout` controls request timeouts.

Project at a glance

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Stars: 9,990
Watchers: 9,990
Forks: 1,399

Repo age13 years old

Last commit4 weeks ago

Primary languagePerl

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