A solo dev built an auto-pentest tool — found 10 bugs, 1 critical, in their own app
A developer spent a year building a tool that automatically scans your website for security weaknesses. When they ran it on their own app, it uncovered 10 problems, including one serious enough to be exploited by attackers. For solo operators who can't afford a professional security audit, this kind of tool could fill a real gap.
Security testing (called a pentest) normally means hiring specialists to try to break into your site — expensive and slow. This tool automates that process so you can run it yourself without needing expert knowledge. The creator tested it on their own application and found 10 security issues; one was rated 'critical', meaning it could realistically be used by a real attacker to cause harm.
For solo web or app business owners, security often gets skipped because it feels costly and complicated. An automated tool like this — if it works reliably — could serve as a quick health check before a launch or after a major update. That said, this is still a side project, so it's worth testing yourself to judge how accurate the results are and whether it flags too many false alarms.
Key points
- Solo developer released an auto-pentest tool after a year of building
- Found 10 security issues in their own app, including 1 critical-severity flaw
- Designed to let non-experts scan their own site without hiring a specialist
- Useful as a quick security check before launching or shipping major changes
- Still a side project — test it yourself to gauge accuracy and false-positive rate
Quick term guide
- build
- A chosen set of in-game abilities or items a player equips for their character.
- audit
- A thorough check of code to find mistakes or ways to make it better.
- testing
- The process of checking that software does what it's supposed to do, usually by running it and looking for errors.
- pentest
- Short for penetration test — probing your own website the way a hacker would, to find security gaps before someone else does.
- business
- An activity where you provide value to others in exchange for money.
- Owner
- The top account role that can usually change almost every setting.
- side project
- A small project someone builds outside their main job or main business.
- ping
- The time (in milliseconds) it takes for a signal to travel from your device to another and back — lower means faster response.