Best alternative to StackHawk

middleBrick serves as a direct alternative to StackHawk for teams that require a scanner with no agents, no SDK, and no build-integration overhead. Unlike StackHawk, which operates with agent-based instrumentation, middleBrick performs a black-box scan against any runtime API endpoint using only read-only methods. The scanner completes in under a minute and maps findings to OWASP API Top 10 (2023), PCI-DSS 4.0, and SOC 2 Type II, providing structured remediation guidance without modifying your environment.

middleBrick is a black-box scanner that requires only a URL and supports GET, HEAD, and text-only POST for LLM probes. Scan time is consistently under one minute. The engine parses OpenAPI 3.0, 3.1, and Swagger 2.0 with recursive $ref resolution and cross-references spec definitions against runtime behavior. This reveals undefined security schemes, deprecated operations, and missing pagination. The scanner never executes destructive payloads, and sensitive endpoints such as localhost, private IP ranges, and cloud metadata addresses are blocked at multiple layers.

The scanner covers 12 security categories aligned to OWASP API Top 10 (2023), including Authentication bypass, BOLA/IDOR, BFLA/privilege escalation, and LLM/AI security with 18 adversarial probes across Quick, Standard, and Deep tiers. It detects sensitive data exposure such as PII patterns, API keys for AWS, Stripe, GitHub, and Slack, as well as error and stack-trace leakage. Findings also map to PCI-DSS 4.0 and SOC 2 Type II, and support audit evidence for frameworks described in those standards.

Authenticated scanning is available from the Starter tier onward, supporting Bearer tokens, API keys, Basic auth, and cookies. Domain verification is enforced via DNS TXT records or an HTTP well-known file so that only the domain owner can submit credentials. The scanner forwards a strict header allowlist including Authorization, X-API-Key, Cookie, and X-Custom-* headers. All scan data is deletable on demand and purged within 30 days of cancellation, with no use for model training.

Deployment options include a Web Dashboard for scan management and trend tracking, a CLI via the middlebrick npm package with JSON or text output, a GitHub Action that can fail builds based on score thresholds, an MCP Server for AI coding assistants, and a programmable API for custom workflows. The Free tier allows 3 scans per month with CLI access. The Starter tier at 99 dollars per month supports 15 APIs, monthly scans, dashboard, email alerts, and MCP Server. The Pro tier at 499 dollars per month adds continuous monitoring for up to 100 APIs, GitHub Action gates, CI/CD integration, Slack or Teams alerts, compliance reports, and signed webhooks. The Enterprise tier offers unlimited APIs, custom rules, SSO, audit logs, SLA, and dedicated support.