Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

HackerTarget.com VS Shodan

Compare HackerTarget.com VS Shodan and see what are their differences

HackerTarget.com logo HackerTarget.com

Security Vulnerability Scanning based on Open Source Tools.

Shodan logo Shodan

Shodan is the world's first search engine for Internet-connected devices.
  • HackerTarget.com Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-23
  • Shodan Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-16

HackerTarget.com features and specs

  • Variety of Tools
    HackerTarget.com offers a wide range of online security scanning tools. These include port scanners, vulnerability scanners, DNS lookup tools, and more, providing a broad spectrum of options for different security needs.
  • Ease of Use
    The platform has a user-friendly interface, making it accessible to both beginners and experienced users in cybersecurity. The straightforward layout and explanation of tools make it easy to conduct various scans.
  • Free Tools Availability
    HackerTarget.com provides a selection of free tools that users can access without a subscription, allowing individuals and small businesses to perform basic security checks at no cost.
  • Educational Resources
    The website offers tutorials, guides, and other educational materials that help users understand cybersecurity concepts and the use of their tools, enhancing the learning experience.

Possible disadvantages of HackerTarget.com

  • Limited Free Usage
    While some tools are free, there are limitations on the number and frequency of scans that can be performed without a paid subscription, which may not be sufficient for extensive testing needs.
  • Privacy Concerns
    Using online tools for scanning could raise privacy issues, as some users may be uncomfortable with sharing their data with third-party services over the internet.
  • Scope and Depth
    The tools provided may not offer the depth and advanced features found in more comprehensive, dedicated security software, potentially limiting their effectiveness for professional needs.
  • Reliance on Internet Connectivity
    Being an online platform, HackerTarget.com requires a stable internet connection to access and use its tools, which might not be suitable in environments with limited or unreliable internet access.

Shodan features and specs

  • Comprehensive Data Collection
    Shodan extensively scans the internet, collecting data from a wide range of devices and services, which provides users with a thorough overview of their network exposure.
  • Security Awareness
    It helps organizations identify and address security vulnerabilities by revealing exposed devices and services that might otherwise go unnoticed.
  • Automation Capabilities
    The platform offers an API that allows users to automate searches and integrate Shodan data into their own tools and workflows.
  • Detailed Search Filters
    Shodan provides advanced search filters that allow users to narrow down results based on specific criteria such as geographic location, device type, or operating system.
  • Real-Time Monitoring
    Users can set up real-time alerts to monitor for new exposures, ensuring timely response to potential threats.

Possible disadvantages of Shodan

  • Ethical and Legal Concerns
    Shodan can be used by malicious actors to identify and exploit vulnerabilities, raising ethical and legal questions about its use and data collection practices.
  • Complex UI
    The user interface can be overwhelming for beginners due to its complexity and the vast amount of data available, making it difficult to navigate without prior experience.
  • Subscription Costs
    While Shodan offers a free tier, accessing advanced features and extensive search capabilities requires a subscription, which might be costly for some users.
  • Potential for False Positives
    The data collected by Shodan might include false positives, where benign devices are flagged as vulnerabilities, thus requiring users to manually verify each finding.
  • Privacy Concerns
    Since Shodan indexes devices connected to the internet, this can include personal and residential hardware, leading to privacy concerns for individuals whose devices are inadvertently exposed.

Analysis of Shodan

Overall verdict

  • Shodan can be a valuable tool when used appropriately. It is particularly beneficial for cybersecurity experts seeking to analyze and secure networked devices. However, it can also be used for malicious purposes if accessed by individuals with harmful intent. Therefore, ethical considerations and legal compliance must guide its use.

Why this product is good

  • Shodan is often considered useful because it acts as a search engine for Internet-connected devices. It allows cybersecurity professionals to discover and assess the exposure of Internet of Things (IoT) devices and networks. Shodan's extensive database enables users to gather information on devices' IP addresses, operating systems, open ports, and potential vulnerabilities. This data can be instrumental in cybersecurity research and in developing strategies to protect against potential threats.

Recommended for

  • Cybersecurity professionals
  • Network administrators
  • Security researchers
  • IoT developers seeking to understand device exposure
  • Organizations conducting security audits

HackerTarget.com videos

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Shodan videos

Searching the Internet with Shodan (Seen in Mr. Robot)

More videos:

  • Review - Bestech Shodan Unboxing & First Impressions
  • Review - Bestech Shodan FULL Review

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to HackerTarget.com and Shodan)
Cyber Security
46 46%
54% 54
Security
17 17%
83% 83
Monitoring Tools
0 0%
100% 100
Web Application Security
17 17%
83% 83

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Shodan seems to be a lot more popular than HackerTarget.com. While we know about 92 links to Shodan, we've tracked only 2 mentions of HackerTarget.com. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

HackerTarget.com mentions (2)

  • VPN attacks from IPs owned by CDNs
    Then create a threat feed in our Fortigate using the API at https://hackertarget.com/ using that ASN. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Pen Testing and Vulnerability Testing For an 100% Azure Infrastructure
    So far, I found things like https://pentest-tools.com/, https://hackertarget.com/, and https://www.intruder.io/. Does anyone have any experience with these (or any other) tools? If so, would you consider any of them a valid tool to check the "Have you conducted any penetration testing" box and maybe highlight some areas where we are lacking? Source: almost 3 years ago

Shodan mentions (92)

  • Introducing OSINT Template Engine: An open source OSINT Tool.
    Transform OSINT sources such as shodan, bgpview & urlscan into templates which you can use to query & store any and each of the API endpoints they provide. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Some outgoing ports (e.g, port 22) are blocked
    I'm a little surprised you're asking this but as you don't know - if you set the rulebase correctly, you won't get hammered by "public". A lot of people (of course not people here) don't do that which is why shodan.io is full of servers with SSH exposed to the world. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Does anyone want to vet this job opportunity?
    Eh, request a full demo before signing anything. If they make you buy before you can try, move on. Just be advised that data they collect from your site may be used in a database that puts a target on your back. Similar to how shodan.io works. I would probe them on how they handle customer data and if data is shared, partitioned, or isolated to ensure safety from a platform leak. They want to be a security... Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Security issue or coincidence?
    My network is being hit by China and Russia many times per hour. Make sure your firewall is up-to-date and not have any services available on the Internet (WAN). Look at shodan.io which shows you _everything_ is searched on the Internet. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Onion sites crawling: Weird mass "HTTP/1.1 200 " HTTP status line returning?
    In the cases of nginx or apache, I suspect they may be acting as proxies to some backend that also chooses not to send a reason phrase back. Searching for "Reason Phrase" yields a number of bug reports/frameworks that may omit it, and shodan.io shows apache tomcat and a few other services/software that omit the code as well. Source: almost 2 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing HackerTarget.com and Shodan, you can also consider the following products

SubdomainRadar.io - Use SubdomainRadar to find and explore subdomains of any target domain. Perfect for subdomain discovery and domain research.

Acunetix - Audit your website security and web applications for SQL injection, Cross site scripting and other...

Sublist3r - Sublist3r is a python tool designed to enumerate subdomains of websites using OSINT.

Censys - Censys helps organizations, individuals, and researchers find and monitor every server on the Internet to reduce exposure and improve security.

OWASP Amass - An advanced open source tool to help information security professionals perform network mapping of attack surfaces and external asset discovery using open source information gathering and active reconnaissance techniques!

Intruder - Intruder is a security monitoring platform for internet-facing systems.