CERT-X-GEN

A Polyglot Execution Engine for Vulnerability Detection

Write security checks as real code — Python, Rust, Go, C, Shell, or YAML — and run them safely, reproducibly, and at scale.

What is it • Install • Quick Start • Templates • Docs • Template Repo

What is CERT-X-GEN

Modern security scanning has outgrown static templates. Today's vulnerability detection often requires real programming logic, protocol-level control, data processing, and reuse of existing scripts — yet most scanners force everything into YAML-only abstractions.

CERT-X-GEN is a different kind of scanner. It is a polyglot security execution engine that treats vulnerability detection as code, not configuration. You write detection logic in the language that fits the problem — CERT-X-GEN handles orchestration, sandboxing, and output.

What this means in practice:

# Run a Python template for stateful protocol checks
cxg scan --scope 192.168.1.100:25 --templates smtp-open-relay.py

# Run a Go template for high-performance database probing
cxg scan --scope db.example.com:5432 --templates postgresql-default-credentials.go

# Mix multiple languages in one scan
cxg scan --scope targets.txt --templates redis*.py,docker*.go,system*.sh

Highlights

• A language-agnostic runtime for vulnerability detection logic
• A unified execution layer for security checks across 12 languages
• A bridge between research scripts and production scanners
• A scanner designed for CI, automation, and agentic systems

Why This Matters

Real-World Examples

Installation

Homebrew (macOS/Linux)

brew tap bugb-technologies/cxg
brew install cxg

Quick Install Script

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Bugb-Technologies/cert-x-gen/main/install.sh | bash

Docker

docker run --rm ghcr.io/bugb-technologies/cert-x-gen:latest --help

# Scan with Docker
docker run --rm ghcr.io/bugb-technologies/cert-x-gen:latest scan --scope example.com

From Source

git clone https://github.com/Bugb-Technologies/cert-x-gen.git
cd cert-x-gen
make install

Using Cargo

cargo install --git https://github.com/Bugb-Technologies/cert-x-gen.git

Download Binary

Download pre-built binaries from GitHub Releases:

• cxg-linux-amd64 — Linux x86_64
• cxg-linux-arm64 — Linux ARM64
• cxg-darwin-amd64 — macOS Intel
• cxg-darwin-arm64 — macOS Apple Silicon
• cxg-windows-amd64.exe — Windows x86_64

Verify Installation

cxg --version
cxg template update  # Downloads official templates

Quick Start

Basic Scanning

# Scan a single target
cxg scan --scope example.com

# Scan with specific ports
cxg scan --scope example.com --ports 22,80,443,3306,5432,6379

# Scan a network range
cxg scan --scope 192.168.1.0/24 --top-ports 100

# Scan targets from a file
cxg scan --scope targets.txt --templates redis*.py

Template Operations

# List available templates
cxg template list

# Search templates
cxg template search redis

# Validate a template
cxg template validate my-template.py

# Get template info
cxg template info smtp-open-relay.py

Output Formats

# JSON output
cxg scan --scope target.com --format json -o results.json

# HTML report
cxg scan --scope target.com --format html -o report.html

# SARIF for CI/CD
cxg scan --scope target.com --format sarif -o results.sarif

Templates

Templates are maintained in a separate repository for community contributions:

github.com/Bugb-Technologies/cert-x-gen-templates

Templates auto-download on first scan. Update with cxg template update.

Writing Templates

All templates follow a simple contract:

1. Read CERT_X_GEN_TARGET_HOST and CERT_X_GEN_TARGET_PORT from environment
2. Perform detection logic
3. Output JSON with findings array

Python example:

#!/usr/bin/env python3
# @id: redis-unauth
# @name: Redis Unauthenticated Access  
# @severity: high

import socket, json, os

host = os.environ['CERT_X_GEN_TARGET_HOST']
port = int(os.environ.get('CERT_X_GEN_TARGET_PORT', '6379'))

sock = socket.socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_STREAM)
sock.settimeout(5)
sock.connect((host, port))
sock.send(b'INFO\r\n')
response = sock.recv(4096).decode()

if 'redis_version' in response:
    print(json.dumps({"findings": [{
        "id": "redis-unauth",
        "severity": "high",
        "host": host,
        "port": port
    }]}))

Design Principles

• Code over configuration — use real languages for real logic
• Deterministic execution — same input, same output
• Sandboxed by default — templates run with strict resource limits
• Composable scans — mix languages, reuse logic across templates
• Automation-first — built for CI, pipelines, and agentic systems

Features

Execution Engine

• 12 supported languages (Python, Go, Rust, C, C++, Java, JavaScript, Ruby, Perl, PHP, Shell, YAML)
• Sandboxed execution with configurable resource limits
• Compilation caching for compiled languages
• Parallel template execution with rate limiting

CLI

• Unified --scope for targets (single, file, CIDR, URL)
• Smart --templates selection (glob patterns, tags, severity)
• Multiple output formats (JSON, HTML, CSV, Markdown, SARIF)
• Built-in template management and validation

Integration

• Git-based template repositories with auto-update
• CI/CD friendly (exit codes, SARIF output)
• Configurable via CLI, config file, or environment variables

Documentation

Contributing

We welcome contributions. See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

Priority areas:

• New detection templates (any language)
• Protocol handler improvements
• Documentation and examples

# Development setup
git clone https://github.com/Bugb-Technologies/cert-x-gen.git
cd cert-x-gen
cargo build
cargo test

License

CERT-X-GEN is licensed under Apache License 2.0.

Security

Report vulnerabilities to [email protected]. See SECURITY.md.

Built with Rust · Templates · Discussions