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First Security Scan

This guide walks you through running your first security scan with Cyberstrike, from launching the TUI to interpreting results.

🎬 GIF: first-scan.gif

Running first security scan

Launching Cyberstrike

Start Cyberstrike in your target directory:

Terminal window
cd /path/to/target
cyberstrike

The terminal user interface (TUI) displays:

  • Input prompt at the bottom for commands
  • Response area in the center for AI output
  • Status bar showing model and token usage

Selecting an Agent

Choose a specialized agent for your assessment:

Terminal window
# Web application testing
cyberstrike --agent web-application
# Cloud infrastructure
cyberstrike --agent cloud-security
# Network penetration testing
cyberstrike --agent internal-network
# Bug bounty reconnaissance
cyberstrike --agent bug-hunter

Or switch agents during a session with /agents.

Basic Reconnaissance

Start with information gathering:

> Perform reconnaissance on example.com

The agent will:

  1. Enumerate subdomains
  2. Identify technologies
  3. Discover endpoints
  4. Map the attack surface

Web Application Scan

For web application testing:

> Launch the browser and scan https://target.com for vulnerabilities

The agent will:

  1. Launch browser with traffic capture
  2. Spider the application
  3. Test for common vulnerabilities
  4. Report findings with evidence

Example Session

> Navigate to https://target.com/login and test for SQL injection
[Launching browser...]
[Navigating to login page...]
[Testing username field...]
[Testing password field...]
FINDING: SQL Injection
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
WSTG-ID: WSTG-INPV-05
Location: POST /api/login
Parameter: username
Payload: admin' OR '1'='1 --
Severity: High (CVSS 8.6)
Evidence: Response contains SQL error message

Quick Scan Mode

Run a single command without entering interactive mode:

Terminal window
cyberstrike run "scan example.com for open ports and services"

With file attachment:

Terminal window
cyberstrike run "analyze this code for vulnerabilities" -f src/auth.ts

Understanding Output

Finding Format

Cyberstrike reports findings in a structured format:

FINDING: [Vulnerability Name]
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
WSTG-ID: [Testing Guide Reference]
Location: [Where found]
Severity: [Critical/High/Medium/Low]
CWE: [Weakness Enumeration]
Evidence: [Proof of vulnerability]
Remediation: [How to fix]

Severity Levels

LevelCVSSDescription
Critical9.0-10.0Immediate exploitation risk
High7.0-8.9Significant security impact
Medium4.0-6.9Moderate risk
Low0.1-3.9Minor security concern
Info0.0Informational finding

Saving Results

Export Session

/share

Creates a shareable link to the session.

Export HAR File

For browser-based testing:

> Export the captured traffic to HAR file

Memory Storage

Save important findings to memory:

> Remember that the target uses PostgreSQL 14.2 on port 5432

Common Scan Types

Subdomain Enumeration

> Enumerate all subdomains for target.com

Port Scanning

> Scan 10.0.0.0/24 for open ports

Vulnerability Scanning

> Run nuclei templates against https://target.com

API Testing

> Test the REST API at https://api.target.com for OWASP Top 10

Next Steps

After your first scan:

  1. Review Security Agents for specialized testing
  2. Learn about Tools for manual testing
  3. Configure Permissions for automation
  4. Set up MCP servers for extended capabilities

Tip

Use /compact to summarize long sessions and continue testing without losing context.