“Because GraphQL APIs deserve a security audit that’s more thorough than your code reviews.” 😎
The GraphQL Security Problem Nobody Talks About
GraphQL is everywhere. It’s powering modern APIs at scale, from startups to Fortune 500 companies. It’s flexible, powerful, and developer-friendly. It’s also a security nightmare waiting to happen.
Traditional security scanners struggle with GraphQL. REST API tools don’t understand schemas. Most developers enable introspection in production. Nested queries can bring down your servers. Authentication logic gets complex fast. And let’s not even talk about the mutation security problems.
Meet GraphQL Hunter: A comprehensive security testing tool that hunts down vulnerabilities in GraphQL APIs with the precision of a caffeinated security researcher at 3 AM.
GitHub: https://github.com/kamakauzy/graphql-hunter
What GraphQL Hunter Tests For
Introspection Analysis
Checks if you left the schema documentation wide open. Spoiler: you probably did. GraphQL Hunter verifies introspection exposure and analyzes what attackers can learn about your API structure.
Information Disclosure
Finds those helpful stack traces and error messages you’re leaking to attackers. Tests for verbose errors, debug information exposure, and overly detailed responses that reveal implementation details.
Authentication & Authorization
Tests if your “auth” is more like a suggestion than a requirement. Validates:
- Unauthenticated access to protected queries
- Horizontal and vertical privilege escalation
- Token bypass techniques
- Authorization logic flaws
Injection Testing
SQL injection, NoSQL injection, command injection, LDAP injection… basically all the injections. GraphQL Hunter tests input sanitization across:
- Query arguments
- Mutation parameters
- Variable inputs
- Nested object fields
Denial of Service (DoS) Vectors
See how many nested queries it takes to make your server cry. Tests for:
- Query depth attacks
- Query complexity explosions
- Circular references
- Resource exhaustion vectors
Batching Attacks
Tests if attackers can spam your API like it’s 2010. Validates rate limiting, request batching limits, and API abuse prevention.
Aliasing Abuse
Checks if you’re multiplying vulnerabilities like rabbits. GraphQL’s aliasing feature can turn one request into thousands of database queries.
Mutation Security
Because deleteEverything shouldn’t be publicly accessible. Tests mutation authorization, input validation, and state-changing operations.
Features That Make Security Testing Easy
Beautiful Terminal Output
Color-coded results in your terminal:
- 🔴 Red means panic (CRITICAL findings)
- 🟡 Yellow means pay attention (HIGH findings)
- 🟢 Green means celebrate (no vulnerabilities)
- Real-time progress reporting
- Detailed finding descriptions with CWE references
Professional HTML Reports
Generate beautiful, executive-ready reports:
- Modern design with gradients and visual appeal
- Severity-based classification
- Detailed remediation guidance
- Print-friendly layouts for documentation
- CWE and OWASP Top 10 mapping
JSON Export
Machine-readable output for automation and CI/CD integration. Perfect for:
- Build pipeline integration
- SIEM ingestion
- Custom reporting dashboards
- Vulnerability management platforms
Quick Start
# Clone and install (the usual dance)
git clone https://github.com/kamakauzy/graphql-hunter.git
cd graphql-hunter
pip install -r requirements.txt
# Run a basic scan (prepare for bad news)
python graphql-hunter.py -u https://api.example.com/graphql
# Authenticated scan (pretend you're a real user)
python graphql-hunter.py -u https://api.example.com/graphql -t YOUR_TOKEN
# Deep scan with HTML report
python graphql-hunter.py -u https://api.example.com/graphql -p deep --html report.html
# Safe mode (skip DoS tests, your ops team will thank you)
python graphql-hunter.py -u https://api.example.com/graphql --safe-mode
Flexible Scan Profiles
Quick Scan
The fast food of security scans. Tests the most critical vulnerabilities in minutes. Perfect for CI/CD pipelines.
Standard Scan (Default)
The Goldilocks option. Comprehensive coverage without excessive test time. Balances thoroughness and speed.
Deep Scan
Hold my coffee, this’ll take a minute. Exhaustive testing of every possible vulnerability. Use before major releases.
Stealth Scan
Ninja mode activated 🥷. Slow, careful scanning with delays to avoid detection. Perfect for red team engagements.
Advanced Features
Safe Mode
Skip potentially destructive tests like DoS and mutation testing. Test production APIs without causing incidents.
Custom Headers
Bring your own authentication tokens, API keys, and custom headers. Test authenticated endpoints properly.
Rate Limiting
Be a polite hacker. Configure delays between requests to avoid triggering rate limits or WAF rules.
Proxy Support
Route traffic through Burp Suite, OWASP ZAP, or any HTTP proxy. Capture requests for manual analysis.
Selective Scanning
Enable or disable specific test modules. Skip scanners that aren’t relevant to your target or assessment type.
Real-World Use Cases
Pre-Production Security Validation
Run GraphQL Hunter before deploying to production. Catch vulnerabilities before they become headlines.
Continuous Security Testing
Integrate into CI/CD pipelines. Every commit gets a security scan automatically.
Penetration Testing
Use GraphQL Hunter as part of comprehensive pen testing engagements. Generate professional reports for clients.
Bug Bounty Hunting
Find vulnerabilities faster with automated scanning. Let GraphQL Hunter do the tedious work while you focus on chaining exploits.
Security Awareness Training
Show developers what can go wrong. Use GraphQL Hunter to demonstrate GraphQL security concepts.
Integration Examples
CI/CD Pipeline Integration
# GitHub Actions example
- name: GraphQL Security Scan
run: |
python graphql-hunter.py \
-u https://staging.example.com/graphql \
-p quick \
--safe-mode \
-o security-report.json
# Fail build on CRITICAL findings
if grep -q '"severity": "CRITICAL"' security-report.json; then
echo "Critical vulnerabilities found!"
exit 1
fi
Burp Suite Integration
# Route through Burp for manual analysis
python graphql-hunter.py \
-u https://api.example.com/graphql \
--proxy http://127.0.0.1:8080 \
-p standard
Automated Weekly Scans
# Cron job for weekly security checks
0 2 * * 1 python /path/to/graphql-hunter.py \
-u https://api.example.com/graphql \
-t $API_TOKEN \
-p deep \
--html /reports/weekly-$(date +\%Y\%m\%d).html
What GraphQL Hunter Finds
Based on real-world testing, GraphQL Hunter typically discovers:
- Introspection Enabled in 80%+ of tested APIs
- No Query Depth Limits in 60%+ of APIs
- Verbose Error Messages leaking implementation details
- Missing Authorization Checks on sensitive mutations
- Injection Vulnerabilities in poorly sanitized inputs
- No Rate Limiting allowing API abuse
Technical Details
Technology Stack:
- Python 3.8+ for modern async capabilities
- Requests library for HTTP handling
- Jinja2 for HTML report generation
- Colorama for terminal output
- Modular scanner architecture
Requirements:
- Python 3.8 or higher
- Internet access to target APIs
- Optional: Valid authentication tokens for protected endpoints
Security Best Practices
GraphQL Hunter helps you verify these critical security controls:
- Disable introspection in production
- Implement query depth limiting
- Enforce query complexity analysis
- Use proper authentication on all endpoints
- Validate authorization on field and object level
- Sanitize all inputs against injection
- Implement rate limiting
- Limit batching and aliasing
- Use allow lists for queries in production
- Disable verbose error messages
Why GraphQL Security Matters
GraphQL’s flexibility is its security weakness:
- Attackers can craft arbitrarily complex queries
- Schema introspection reveals your entire API surface
- Traditional WAFs struggle with GraphQL traffic
- Authorization logic is easy to get wrong
- One vulnerable field can compromise the entire API
The bottom line: If you’re not testing your GraphQL API security, you’re gambling with your data.
Get Started Today
GraphQL Hunter is available now on GitHub with complete documentation and example targets:
🔗 GitHub: https://github.com/kamakauzy/graphql-hunter
# Quick start
git clone https://github.com/kamakauzy/graphql-hunter.git
cd graphql-hunter
pip install -r requirements.txt
# Test against the demo API
python graphql-hunter.py -u https://countries.trevorblades.com/graphql
# Scan your own API
python graphql-hunter.py -u https://your-api.com/graphql --html report.html
Contributing
Found a new attack vector? Built a cool scanner module? We welcome:
- Bug reports and issues
- New scanner modules
- Detection improvements
- Documentation enhancements
- Real-world testing feedback
Disclaimer
GraphQL Hunter is designed for authorized security testing only. Always obtain proper permission before scanning systems you don’t own. Unauthorized testing is illegal and unethical.
Stop guessing if your GraphQL API is secure. Start testing with GraphQL Hunter.
Tags: graphql security, api security, penetration testing, vulnerability scanning, graphql testing, security automation, python security tools, injection testing, dos testing