The Security Lifecycle
Understanding the automated multi-stage process WSHawk uses to uncover vulnerabilities.
Heuristic Discovery
WSHawk begins by establishing a baseline connection. It monitors initial handshakes and outgoing messages to infer the message protocol (JSON, XML, Protobuf) and schema structure.
1[*] Initializing baseline connection to ws://target.com/api [*] Analyzed message: {'user_id': 101, 'action': 'get_profile'} [+] Format detected: JSON (Dynamic Schema)Smart Payload Evolution
Once fields are identified, the Smart Payload Evolution (SPE) engine generates mutated variations. It uses genetic algorithms and real-time feedback from server status codes and timing heuristics to bypass WAFs and intrusion detection systems autonomously.
Genetic Mutation
Evolving 22,000+ base vectors into successful, target-specific exploits.
WAF Evasion
Automatically pivots strategies if blocking patterns are detected.
OAST & Out-of-Band Probing
For blind vulnerabilities, WSHawk deploys "Beacons" that trigger callbacks to our OAST provider. This allows detection of vulnerabilities like blind XXE and SSRF that don't result in immediate console errors.
1# WSHawk OAST Trigger # Payload: <img src='https://interact.sh/callback?id=XSS_123'> # Result: [ALERT] XSS Callback Received from Proxy IP 1.2.3.4Headless Verification
To eliminate false positives, suspected XSS or DOM injections are validated in a Playwright-driven headless browser. Only if the script actually executes is it reported as a verified finding.
Enterprise Integration
Post-scan, WSHawk v3.0 automatically pushes critical findings to platforms like Jira and DefectDojo, while sending real-time severity alerts to Slack, Discord, or Microsoft Teams.