List of the Top 35 Best Red Team Tools in 2025

Red Team Tools Buyers Guide

Red team tools are essential components used in cybersecurity to simulate realistic attacks against an organization’s infrastructure, systems, and applications. These tools are employed by skilled professionals, often referred to as red teamers, to test an organization’s defenses, identify vulnerabilities, and gauge the effectiveness of its security measures. Unlike traditional penetration testing, which focuses on identifying and exploiting technical vulnerabilities, red teaming assesses the entire security posture, including human elements, operational security, and incident response capabilities. This makes the suite of red team tools diverse, spanning a variety of functions from reconnaissance to post-exploitation.

Purpose of Red Team Tools

The primary goal of red team tools is to replicate the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) of adversaries in a controlled and ethical manner. By doing so, these tools help organizations identify weak points in their security and prepare for real-world cyberattacks. The tools also help test an organization’s blue team (defensive team) and how well they can detect and respond to advanced persistent threats (APTs), social engineering attacks, and other sophisticated techniques used by malicious actors.

Key Categories of Red Team Tools

Red team tools can be broadly classified into several categories based on their function. These categories cover the entire attack lifecycle, from the initial reconnaissance to privilege escalation and data exfiltration.

1. Reconnaissance Tools: Reconnaissance is the first phase of an attack, where red teamers gather information about their target. These tools are used to perform passive and active information gathering to identify potential entry points, vulnerabilities, and valuable assets.
   • DNS and IP Scanning: Tools that allow for scanning of domain names, IP addresses, and open ports to map the attack surface.
   • Open Source Intelligence (OSINT): Tools that collect data from publicly available sources like social media, websites, and databases to understand the organization's digital footprint.
   • Network Mapping: Tools used to map internal and external networks, showing the topology of the systems and services available.
2. Vulnerability Scanners: These tools automate the process of identifying known vulnerabilities in a target system. Red teamers use them to discover misconfigurations, outdated software, or poorly implemented security measures.
   • Port Scanning: Tools used to identify open ports and services running on a target machine, helping attackers pinpoint weaknesses.
   • Web Vulnerability Scanners: These tools scan web applications for common vulnerabilities such as cross-site scripting (XSS), SQL injection, and insecure authentication methods.
   • Configuration Checkers: These tools assess system configurations for errors that could lead to security vulnerabilities, such as weak password policies or unnecessary services running.
3. Exploitation Tools: Once vulnerabilities are identified, red teamers use exploitation tools to gain unauthorized access to systems. These tools are critical for testing how easily a real attacker could exploit discovered weaknesses.
   • Exploit Frameworks: Tools that automate the exploitation of known vulnerabilities. These frameworks are modular, allowing red teamers to craft and customize attacks based on their findings.
   • Web Application Exploits: Tools that focus on specific vulnerabilities in web applications, exploiting them to gain control of servers or databases.
   • Custom Payloads: These tools allow the creation of custom payloads that can be delivered through phishing attacks or other vectors to compromise systems.
4. Post-Exploitation Tools: After gaining access to a system, red teamers move into the post-exploitation phase, where they establish persistence, escalate privileges, and gather intelligence.
   • Privilege Escalation Tools: Tools that help red teamers gain higher-level privileges on a compromised system, such as administrative or root access.
   • Persistence Mechanisms: Tools used to create backdoors or maintain long-term access to the system without detection.
   • Data Exfiltration Tools: These tools facilitate the extraction of sensitive data from a target network, simulating what an actual attacker might do after breaching the system.
5. Lateral Movement and Pivoting Tools: Once inside a network, attackers typically attempt to move laterally to other systems and escalate their access. Lateral movement tools help red teamers pivot from the initial compromised system to other parts of the network.
   • Network Proxying: Tools that allow attackers to use the compromised machine as a gateway to access other internal systems.
   • Credential Harvesting: Tools designed to capture user credentials, enabling attackers to impersonate legitimate users and gain further access.
   • Remote Code Execution (RCE): Tools that allow for the execution of arbitrary code on remote systems, expanding the reach of the attack.
6. Command and Control (C2) Tools: Command and Control (C2) tools are used by red teamers to maintain control of compromised systems and coordinate their attacks. These tools allow attackers to issue commands, monitor compromised systems, and manage payloads.
   • C2 Frameworks: These provide a central platform for controlling compromised machines and sending instructions to them. They often include features for encryption, obfuscation, and stealth.
   • Beaconing Tools: Tools that allow infected systems to communicate back to the red teamer’s server, establishing a command channel.
   • Payload Delivery: Tools that enable the deployment of payloads (malware, scripts) to compromised systems over the C2 channel.

Conclusion

Red team tools are indispensable for simulating real-world cyberattacks and assessing an organization's resilience against sophisticated threats. These tools span a wide array of categories, covering every stage of an attack, from reconnaissance to post-exploitation. They provide a controlled way to evaluate security weaknesses, train blue teams, and refine incident response procedures. By leveraging these tools, organizations can proactively identify and address vulnerabilities, improving their overall security posture against modern cyber adversaries.