StackHawk HawkScan review
A developer-focused DAST scanner for authenticated, API-heavy environments.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
StackHawk HawkScan is a dynamic application security testing scanner for developers and security teams. It runs against live web applications and APIs, crawling routes and probing them for vulnerabilities. The product fits teams that want authenticated API testing within development workflows, especially where services use OpenAPI, GraphQL, gRPC, or SOAP. Its hybrid deployment model supports Windows, macOS, and Linux, with local command-line and Docker execution alongside CI/CD workflows.
Authentication is a central strength. HawkScan supports username and password credentials, tokens, cookies, OAuth, and custom scripts, allowing scans to reach protected application areas. Discovery can also start from HAR files, Postman, Cypress, Playwright, Selenium, and cURL, while browser-assisted AJAX crawling supports Chrome. This gives teams several ways to represent modern application paths rather than relying on a single API description. Custom authentication and scanning scripts add flexibility when standard discovery inputs do not match an application’s workflow.
The ecosystem fit is broad for teams already working in automated delivery pipelines. HawkScan integrates with GitHub Actions, GitLab CI/CD, Jenkins, Azure Pipelines, Bitbucket Pipelines, Buildkite, CircleCI, Harness, Spinnaker, and Travis CI. Jira, Slack, and Microsoft Teams integrations connect findings with issue tracking and team communication, while scan results are streamed to the StackHawk Platform for analysis and tracking. HawkScan is a strong choice for development and security teams prioritizing authenticated DAST across APIs and live web applications. Teams seeking testing beyond that scope should consider a broader security platform.
StackHawk HawkScan pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Scans OpenAPI, GraphQL, gRPC, and SOAP services
- Supports authentication with tokens, cookies, OAuth, and scripts
- Runs through Docker, CLI tools, and many CI/CD platforms
- Where it doesn't
- Results are streamed to the StackHawk Platform
- Browser-assisted discovery supports Chrome
- Its focus is limited to running web applications and APIs
StackHawk HawkScan fact sheet, pricing and score →
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