Flag Mastery: The Flags That Run Every Engagement

The --write-out (-w) flag in cURL is incredibly powerful and versatile, especially when used by penetration testers. It allows users to extract specific information from the request/response cycle after a transfer has completed. Here's an expanded explanation of how it works and why it's so valuable:

Basic Usage

The -w flag takes a format string where you can specify various pieces of data that cURL will output upon completion. For example, %{http_code} gives you the HTTP status code.

bash
 
1curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}\n" http://localhost:8080

This command:

• Runs silently (-s).
• Discards the body of the response (-o /dev/null).
• Outputs only the HTTP status code.

Useful Variables for Pentesters

Here's a more comprehensive list of variables that are particularly useful in penetration testing:

1. HTTP Status Code:

   • %{http_code}: Returns the HTTP status code (e.g., 200, 404).

2. Response Headers:

   • %{response_header_size}: Size of the response headers

Read the full article at InfoSec Write-ups - Medium

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