> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.notatechguy.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # SpiderFoot OSINT tool trends on GitHub with 200+ modules - URL: https://www.notatechguy.com/spiderfoot-osint-tool-trends-on-github-with-200-modules/ - Published: 2026-10-27T10:53:19.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-27T10:53:19.000Z - Description: SpiderFoot, an OSINT automation tool with over 200 modules, is trending on GitHub as security teams map attack surfaces. - Author: Marcello Babbili - Tags: Technology & AI, AI Agents smicallef's SpiderFoot landed on GitHub's daily trending list today, collecting 84 new stars and lifting the 14-year-old OSINT tool's total to 23,880 [S¹](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot?ref=notatechguy.com). That is an unlikely surge for a project in its 14th year, not a fresh launch chasing attention. **A mature project surfacing now:** A tool this old does not trend by accident. Something in security tooling is driving people back to OSINT automation, though the trigger behind today's spike is not verifiable from the available data. GitHub star counts are ephemeral by nature. What is clear is that a scanner with a MIT licence and 3,742 commits [P⁴](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot/wiki/Release-Notes?ref=notatechguy.com) is mature infrastructure, not a weekend experiment. The dual-use framing matters: anyone pulling it down should know whether they are defending their own perimeter or probing someone else's. ### SpiderFoot automates public-data collection and correlation The project bills itself as an OSINT automation platform — software that gathers publicly accessible data about a given target and weaves the results into a map of what is exposed [S¹](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot?ref=notatechguy.com). OSINT, or open source intelligence, refers to pulling data from public channels such as domain registrations, social media profiles, leaked credentials, and exposed services. SpiderFoot bundles that workflow into more than 200 modules that execute automatically against a target, piping results through a YAML-configurable correlation engine with 37 pre-defined rules [S¹](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot?ref=notatechguy.com). The module count and rule set come from the maintainers' own documentation and have not been independently verified. The tool ships with both a web interface and a command-line mode, and requires Python 3.7 or higher [S¹](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot?ref=notatechguy.com). It is released under the MIT licence, one of the most permissive open-source licences available, which means organisations can fold it into internal workflows with minimal obligations [P²](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot/?ref=notatechguy.com). The repository has accumulated 3,793 forks and 347 open issues, according to the project's GitHub page [P²](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot/?ref=notatechguy.com). ### One scanner, offensive and defensive uses SpiderFoot's maintainers are explicit about the dual-use nature of the tool. It can be used offensively, for reconnaissance during red team exercises or penetration tests, and defensively, to identify what an organisation has accidentally exposed to the internet [S¹](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot?ref=notatechguy.com). Same capability set, pointed in different directions. A red teamer maps a target's attack surface before a simulated breach. A defender runs the same scan to find exposed assets before an attacker does. This connects to a broader shift in security operations. Automation is compressing the window between detection and response. SpiderFoot sits at the earlier stage, before detection, when the question is what an attacker could see if they started looking. ### A paid sibling sits alongside the free repository The open-source project has a paid sibling. SpiderFoot HX is a cloud-based, managed version that adds attack surface monitoring with change notifications and other enterprise features, according to the maintainers [S¹](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot?ref=notatechguy.com). These capabilities are described by the vendor and have not been independently tested. It is a separate commercial product, not part of the free repository. Anyone evaluating SpiderFoot for organisational use should check which version they actually need before assuming the open-source edition covers everything. The project's last major version tag, v4.0, was published in April 2022 [P³](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot/releases/tag/v4.0?ref=notatechguy.com), but the repository shows continued commit activity across 3,742 commits [P⁴](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot/wiki/Release-Notes?ref=notatechguy.com). A separate community catalogue of OSINT tools, created in July 2026, already lists agentic integrations alongside traditional tools [P⁵](https://github.com/oryon-osint/awesome-osint-repos?ref=notatechguy.com). For a security team evaluating attack surface exposure, the practical first step is to clone the repository, run a scan against your own domain, and review what SpiderFoot surfaces that you did not know was public. A blue-team analyst running SpiderFoot against their employer's domain for the first time will find leaked credentials and exposed services flagged by the tool's modules [S¹](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot?ref=notatechguy.com) — items that now sit on their desk for triage before the next external scan window opens. The GitHub trending list refreshes daily, so today's ranking will shift by tomorrow. --- *Sources: [S1 — smicallef/spiderfoot: SpiderFoot automates OSINT for threat intelligen](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P2 — smicallef/spiderfoot](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot/?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P3 — v4.0](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot/releases/tag/v4.0?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P4 — GitHub - smicallef/spiderfoot: SpiderFoot automates OSINT for threat i](https://github.com/smicallef/spiderfoot/wiki/Release-Notes?ref=notatechguy.com) · [P5 — osintshifu/awesome-osint-repos](https://github.com/oryon-osint/awesome-osint-repos?ref=notatechguy.com)* --- *Written from 5 sourced items, 4 of them primary.* ## More from Not A Tech Guy - [Medusa pitches commerce platform built for AI agents](https://www.notatechguy.com/medusa-pitches-commerce-platform-built-for-ai-agents/) - [Moonshot AI's Kimi Code CLI hits GitHub trending after subagent](https://www.notatechguy.com/moonshot-ai-s-kimi-code-cli-hits-github-trending-after-subagent-pullback/) - [GenOffice puts an AI agent inside real Office files, locally](https://www.notatechguy.com/genoffice-puts-an-ai-agent-inside-real-office-files-locally/)