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Strix

The open-source AI pentesting tool. Autonomous AI hackers that find and fix your app’s vulnerabilities.


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usestrix/strix | Trendshift

[!TIP] New! Strix integrates seamlessly with GitHub Actions and CI/CD pipelines. Automatically scan for vulnerabilities on every pull request and block insecure code before it reaches production - Get started with no setup required.


Strix Overview

Strix are autonomous AI penetration testing agents that act just like real hackers - they run your code dynamically, find vulnerabilities, and validate them through actual proofs-of-concept. Built for developers and security teams who need fast, accurate security testing without the overhead of manual pentesting or the false positives of static analysis tools.

Key Capabilities:

  • Full pentesting toolkit - reconnaissance, exploitation, and validation out of the box
  • Multi-agent orchestration - teams of AI pentesters that collaborate and scale
  • Real exploit validation - working PoCs, not false positives like legacy vulnerability scanners
  • Developer‑first CLI - actionable findings with remediation guidance
  • Auto‑fix & reporting - generate patches and compliance-ready pentest reports

Strix Demo

Use Cases

  • Application Security Testing - Detect and validate critical vulnerabilities in your applications
  • Rapid Penetration Testing - Get penetration tests done in hours, not weeks, with compliance reports
  • Bug Bounty Automation - Automate bug bounty research and generate PoCs for faster reporting
  • CI/CD Integration - Run tests in CI/CD to block vulnerabilities before reaching production

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites:

  • Docker (running)
  • An LLM API key from any supported provider (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, etc.)

Installation & First Scan

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# Install Strix
curl -sSL https://strix.ai/install | bash

# Configure your AI provider
export STRIX_LLM="openai/gpt-5.4"
export LLM_API_KEY="your-api-key"

# Run your first security assessment
strix --target ./app-directory

[!NOTE] First run automatically pulls the sandbox Docker image. Results are saved to strix_runs/<run-name>


☁️ Strix Platform

Try the Strix full-stack penetration testing platform at app.strix.ai - sign up for free, connect your repos and domains, and launch a pentest in minutes.

  • Validated findings with PoCs - every vulnerability includes a working proof-of-concept exploit and reproduction steps
  • One-click autofix - AI-generated security patches as ready-to-merge pull requests
  • Continuous pentesting - always-on vulnerability scanning that keeps pace with your deployments
  • DevSecOps integrations - GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Slack, Jira, Linear, and CI/CD pipelines
  • Continuous learning - AI that builds on past findings, adapts to your codebase, and reduces false positives over time

Start your first pentest →


✨ Features

Agentic Pentesting Tools

Strix agents come equipped with a comprehensive offensive security toolkit - the same tools used by professional penetration testers and ethical hackers:

  • HTTP Interception Proxy - Full request/response manipulation and analysis with Caido
  • Browser Exploitation - Automated browser for testing XSS, CSRF, clickjacking, and auth bypass flows
  • Shell & Command Execution - Interactive terminal for exploit development and post-exploitation
  • Custom Exploit Runtime - Python sandbox for writing and validating proof-of-concept exploits
  • Reconnaissance & OSINT - Automated attack surface mapping, subdomain enumeration, and fingerprinting
  • Static & Dynamic Code Analysis - SAST + DAST capabilities for comprehensive application security testing
  • Vulnerability Knowledge Base - Structured findings with CVSS scoring and OWASP classification

Comprehensive Vulnerability Scanner

Strix identifies, validates, and exploits a wide range of security vulnerabilities across the OWASP Top 10 and beyond:

  • Broken Access Control - IDOR, privilege escalation, auth bypass
  • Injection Attacks - SQL injection, NoSQL injection, OS command injection, SSTI
  • Server-Side Vulnerabilities - SSRF, XXE, insecure deserialization, RCE
  • Client-Side Attacks - XSS (stored/reflected/DOM), prototype pollution, CSRF
  • Business Logic Flaws - Race conditions, payment manipulation, workflow bypass
  • Authentication & Session - JWT attacks, session fixation, credential stuffing vectors
  • Infrastructure & Cloud - Misconfigurations, exposed services, cloud security issues
  • API Security - Broken authentication, mass assignment, rate limiting bypass

Graph of Agents (Multi-Agent Pentesting)

Advanced multi-agent orchestration for comprehensive automated penetration testing:

  • Distributed Pentesting - Specialized AI agents for recon, exploitation, and post-exploitation
  • Scalable Security Testing - Parallel execution across multiple targets for fast, comprehensive coverage
  • Dynamic Coordination - Agents share discoveries, chain vulnerabilities, and collaborate like a red team

Usage Examples

Basic Usage

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# Scan a local codebase
strix --target ./app-directory

# Security review of a GitHub repository
strix --target https://github.com/org/repo

# Black-box web application assessment
strix --target https://your-app.com

Advanced Testing Scenarios

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# Grey-box authenticated testing
strix --target https://your-app.com --instruction "Perform authenticated testing using credentials: user:pass"

# Multi-target testing (source code + deployed app)
strix -t https://github.com/org/app -t https://your-app.com

# White-box source-aware scan (local repository)
strix --target ./app-directory --scan-mode standard

# Focused testing with custom instructions
strix --target api.your-app.com --instruction "Focus on business logic flaws and IDOR vulnerabilities"

# Provide detailed instructions through file (e.g., rules of engagement, scope, exclusions)
strix --target api.your-app.com --instruction-file ./instruction.md

# Force PR diff-scope against a specific base branch
strix -n --target ./ --scan-mode quick --scope-mode diff --diff-base origin/main

Headless Mode

Run Strix programmatically without interactive UI using the -n/--non-interactive flag - perfect for servers and automated jobs. The CLI prints real-time vulnerability findings and the final report before exiting. Exits with non-zero code when vulnerabilities are found.

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strix -n --target https://your-app.com

CI/CD (GitHub Actions)

Strix can be added to your pipeline to run a security test on pull requests with a lightweight GitHub Actions workflow:

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name: strix-penetration-test

on:
  pull_request:

jobs:
  security-scan:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v6
        with:
          fetch-depth: 0

      - name: Install Strix
        run: curl -sSL https://strix.ai/install | bash

      - name: Run Strix
        env:
          STRIX_LLM: ${{ secrets.STRIX_LLM }}
          LLM_API_KEY: ${{ secrets.LLM_API_KEY }}

        run: strix -n -t ./ --scan-mode quick

[!TIP] In CI pull request runs, Strix automatically scopes quick reviews to changed files. If diff-scope cannot resolve, ensure checkout uses full history (fetch-depth: 0) or pass --diff-base explicitly.

Configuration

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export STRIX_LLM="openai/gpt-5.4"
export LLM_API_KEY="your-api-key"

# Optional
export LLM_API_BASE="your-api-base-url"  # if using a local model, e.g. Ollama, LMStudio
export PERPLEXITY_API_KEY="your-api-key"  # for search capabilities
export STRIX_REASONING_EFFORT="high"  # control thinking effort (default: high, quick scan: medium)

[!NOTE] Strix automatically saves your configuration to ~/.strix/cli-config.json, so you don’t have to re-enter it on every run.

Recommended models for best results:

See the LLM Providers documentation for all supported providers including Vertex AI, Bedrock, Azure, and local models.

Enterprise Pentesting

Get the same Strix experience with enterprise-grade controls: SSO (SAML/OIDC), custom compliance-ready penetration testing reports (SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI DSS), dedicated support & SLA, custom deployment options (VPC/self-hosted), BYOK model support, and tailored AI pentesting agents optimized for your environment. Learn more.

Documentation

Full documentation is available at docs.strix.ai - including detailed guides for usage, CI/CD integrations, skills, and advanced configuration.

Contributing

We welcome contributions of code, docs, and new skills - check out our Contributing Guide to get started or open a pull request/issue.

Join Our Community

Have questions? Found a bug? Want to contribute? Join our Discord!

Support the Project

Love Strix? Give us a ⭐ on GitHub!

Acknowledgements

Strix builds on the incredible work of open-source projects like LiteLLM, Caido, Nuclei, Playwright, and Textual. Huge thanks to their maintainers!

[!WARNING] Only test apps you own or have permission to test. You are responsible for using Strix ethically and legally.