Alternatives to 42Crunch at Series A startups

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What middleBrick covers

  • Black-box scanning with no agents or code access
  • Risk scoring and prioritized findings
  • OWASP API Top 10 (2023) aligned detection
  • OpenAPI 3.0/3.1/Swagger 2.0 spec analysis
  • Authenticated scans with domain verification
  • Continuous monitoring and integration options

Black-box scanning without agents or code access

Unlike tools that require code changes or runtime instrumentation, this scanner operates as a black-box solution. You submit an API endpoint and receive a risk score with prioritized findings. It supports any language, framework, or cloud stack and uses only read-only methods (GET and HEAD) plus text-only POST for LLM probes. Scan completion typically occurs under a minute, enabling rapid feedback during development or pre-deployment checks.

Detection aligned to OWASP API Top 10 (2023) and common compliance frameworks

The scanner maps findings to OWASP API Top 10 (2023), covering categories such as Authentication, BOLA, BFLA, Property Authorization, Input Validation, Rate Limiting & Resource Consumption, Data Exposure, Encryption, SSRF, Inventory Management, Unsafe Consumption, and LLM / AI Security. It also supports PCI-DSS 4.0, SOC 2 Type II, and helps you prepare for audits aligned with security controls described in HIPAA where vulnerability discovery is relevant.

Authenticated scanning and domain verification for safe credential use

For authenticated scans, the tool supports Bearer tokens, API keys, Basic auth, and Cookies. A domain verification gate (DNS TXT record or HTTP well-known file) ensures only the domain owner can scan with credentials. The scanner forwards a restricted allowlist of headers, limiting exposure while still validating authenticated paths.

OpenAPI spec analysis and runtime correlation

The scanner parses OpenAPI 3.0, 3.1, and Swagger 2.0 documents with recursive $ref resolution. It cross-references spec definitions against runtime findings to highlight undefined security schemes, sensitive fields, deprecated operations, and missing pagination. This helps teams align implementation with documented contracts without requiring intrusive testing.

Continuous monitoring and integration options

With Pro tier, you can schedule rescans every six hours, daily, weekly, or monthly. The system detects diffs across scans, including new findings, resolved findings, and score drift. Alerts are rate-limited to one email per hour per API and support HMAC-SHA256 signed webhooks that auto-disable after five consecutive failures. Integration options include a web dashboard, CLI via an npm package, GitHub Action CI/CD gates, and an MCP server for AI coding assistants.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Does this scanner perform active exploitation like SQL injection or command injection?
No. The scanner focuses on detection and reporting with remediation guidance. It does not send destructive payloads or perform active SQL injection or command injection tests.
Can it detect business logic vulnerabilities or blind SSRF?
It does not detect business logic vulnerabilities, which require domain understanding, nor blind SSRF that relies on out-of-band infrastructure. The scope is limited to detectable surface areas using safe methods.
What happens to my scan data after I cancel?
Customer scan data is deletable on demand and purged within 30 days of cancellation. It is never sold and is not used for model training.
How are false positives handled in findings?
Findings include contextual details and remediation guidance to help you validate and triage efficiently. Manual review remains necessary to confirm impact specific to your application.

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