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Katana, a powerful web crawling tool by ProjectDiscovery, allows users to extract multiple default fields directly without needing custom regex patterns. This feature simplifies data extraction and enhances efficiency during reconnaissance and web scraping tasks.
You Should Know:
1. Installing Katana
To get started with Katana, install it using the following command:
go install github.com/projectdiscovery/katana@latest
Or download the pre-built binary from the official GitHub repository.
2. Default Extractable Fields
Katana supports extracting the following fields by default:
- URLs (All discovered links)
- Forms (HTML form inputs and actions)
- JavaScript files (External and inline scripts)
- Endpoints (API endpoints, AJAX calls)
- Document metadata (Titles, headers, comments)
3. Basic Crawling with Field Extraction
Run Katana to extract default fields from a target domain:
katana -u https://example.com -o output.txt
To extract only JavaScript files:
katana -u https://example.com -j -o js_files.txt
4. Advanced Extraction with Pipelines
Combine Katana with other tools like `httpx` and `nuclei` for deeper analysis:
katana -u https://example.com | httpx -silent -status-code
5. Extracting Forms for Security Testing
To dump all form details for penetration testing:
katana -u https://example.com -f -o forms.txt
6. Automating Recon with Katana
Use Katana in a bash script for automated reconnaissance:
!/bin/bash echo "Running Katana scan..." katana -u $1 -o katana_results.txt echo "Scan completed. Results saved in katana_results.txt."
What Undercode Say:
Katana simplifies web crawling by eliminating the need for complex regex patterns, making it ideal for bug bounty hunters, penetration testers, and security researchers. By leveraging its default field extraction capabilities, users can quickly gather critical data for analysis.
For further exploration, check out the Katana GitHub repo and integrate it into your workflow for efficient reconnaissance.
Prediction:
As web applications grow more complex, tools like Katana will become essential for automated reconnaissance, reducing manual effort in data extraction and vulnerability discovery.
Expected Output:
A structured report containing extracted URLs, forms, JavaScript files, and endpoints, ready for further security analysis.
IT/Security Reporter URL:
Reported By: Projectdiscovery Katana – Hackers Feeds
Extra Hub: Undercode MoN
Basic Verification: Pass ✅
