IoT Tools Every Cybersecurity Professional Should Know

As the Internet of Things (IoT) expands across homes, industries, and critical infrastructure, its security has become one of the most pressing concerns in the cybersecurity landscape. From connected lightbulbs to industrial PLCs, the attack surface has grown exponentially — and so has the need for purpose-built tools for testing and defending these systems.

This article dives into the essential tools and hardware used by professionals for IoT pentesting (red teaming) and blue teaming (defensive security). Whether you're assessing a smart thermostat or securing a SCADA system, these are the tools that help you gain visibility, control, and assurance.

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Offensive Tools: Pentesting IoT Environments

1. WiFi Pineapple (Hak5)

A staple in red teaming, the WiFi Pineapple allows penetration testers to:

• Perform rogue AP attacks

• Conduct man-in-the-middle (MitM) attacks on IoT devices

• Capture credentials over insecure IoT communication channels
  It supports automated recon and scripting, making it ideal for IoT environments relying on unsecured wireless.

2. Packet Squirrel (Hak5)

The Packet Squirrel is a covert inline network implant capable of:

• Network sniffing and packet capture (via tcpdump)

• DNS spoofing and credential harvesting

• Payload-triggered execution
  It's effective for assessing unmonitored or segmented IoT VLANs.

3. ESP8266/ESP32-Based Custom Implants

Open-source microcontrollers like ESP8266 and ESP32 are increasingly used to build:

• Fake access points

• WiFi deauthers

• Covert C2 implants for exfiltration
  They’re cheap, programmable, and perfect for low-profile network attacks.

4. RFID/NFC Tools (Proxmark3, Flipper Zero)

Many IoT and access control systems rely on RF:

• Proxmark3 allows replay, cloning, and sniffing of RFID/NFC tags

• Flipper Zero integrates RF, IR, GPIO, and RFID into a pocket-sized pentesting toolkit
  Ideal for testing smart locks, access cards, or sensor-based controls.

5. USB Rubber Ducky (Hak5)

IoT systems often include USB ports for debugging or maintenance. Rubber Ducky injects keystroke payloads instantly, simulating trusted human input — useful for:

• Deploying backdoors

• Extracting logs or credentials

• Disabling local monitoring

6. Shikra / Bus Pirate

Hardware hacking tools like the Shikra allow you to:

• Interface with UART, SPI, JTAG on IoT boards

• Extract firmware

• Analyze memory dumps and find hardcoded credentials
  This is where hardware meets offensive security — ideal for firmware analysis and backdooring.

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Defensive Tools: Monitoring and Securing IoT Systems

1. Zeek (formerly Bro)

Zeek is a powerful network analysis framework that can:

• Detect anomalies in IoT device traffic

• Identify insecure protocols or unexpected communication patterns

• Integrate with SIEMs for real-time alerts
  It’s particularly effective for behavioral monitoring of static IoT systems.

2. IoT Inspector

An open-source passive network scanner tailored to IoT:

• Automatically identifies devices on a network

• Detects vulnerabilities and misconfigurations

• Highlights insecure services (e.g., Telnet, HTTP)
  Great for initial assessments in corporate or home networks.

3. OpenVAS / Greenbone

These vulnerability scanners help detect known CVEs and configuration issues across IP-based IoT devices.

• Actively probe devices for open ports, insecure firmware, and misconfigs

• Map the risk surface across dynamic deployments

4. Wireshark + Custom Filters

When working with unknown IoT traffic:

• Build filters for specific MAC address ranges or IoT vendor ports

• Capture plaintext protocols like MQTT, CoAP, or Modbus

• Analyze handshake behavior to spot weak implementations

5. Suricata / Snort

Signature-based IDS/IPS systems that can:

• Flag suspicious traffic from IoT nodes

• Block anomalous packets or known exploit attempts

• Integrate with rule sets tailored to ICS/SCADA environments

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Hybrid Use Tools: Bridging Red and Blue

1. Firmware Analysis Toolkit (FAT)

Supports static and dynamic analysis of firmware from IoT devices:

• Emulates firmware in QEMU

• Identifies embedded web apps, credentials, and backdoors

• Useful for both exploit discovery and hardening

2. Binwalk / Ghidra / Radare2

Reverse engineering tools to analyze firmware images:

• Extract file systems

• Discover hardcoded secrets

• Audit binaries for buffer overflows or insecure functions

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Strategic Takeaway: Operationalizing IoT Security

The convergence of IoT and cybersecurity demands more than just theoretical understanding—it calls for actionable capability. As attack surfaces diversify, professionals must operationalize both offensive and defensive tools to validate assumptions, test resilience, and enforce continuous security controls.

Red team tools like the WiFi Pineapple, Flipper Zero, and ESP-based implants demonstrate just how exposed many consumer and enterprise IoT systems truly are. At the same time, blue team frameworks such as Zeek, Suricata, and Ghidra enable defenders to monitor, analyze, and reverse engineer IoT traffic and firmware with precision.

Ultimately, securing IoT infrastructure isn’t just about vulnerability discovery—it’s about visibility, adaptability, and discipline. As systems grow more autonomous and embedded, only those who deeply understand both the offensive and defensive dimensions will be able to secure what others can’t even see.