checksec

name	checksec
description	Use the pwntools-provided checksec CLI for authorized ELF hardening review, mitigation checks, and binary triage evidence.

checksec

Use the checksec CLI provided by the bundled pwntools installation to inspect ELF hardening and mitigation settings for provided or task-scoped binaries. This skill documents a pwntools-provided entrypoint, not a separately installed package.

Help First

Before constructing commands, run the installed help output and use it as the source of truth:

checksec --help
pwn checksec --help

Usage Rules

• Work only on provided binaries or build outputs in scope.
• Treat mitigation output as triage evidence, not proof of exploitability.
• Pair results with file, readelf, gdb, or runtime testing when the finding matters.
• Treat checksec as part of the pwntools toolchain; do not install another checksec implementation or apt package.
• Use this skill for mitigation triage; use the pwntools skill only when exploit scripts, process interaction, packing, cyclic patterns, or shellcraft are needed.
• Save batch output to files and report paths instead of streaming large tables.

Common Workflows

Inspect one ELF binary:

file ./binary
checksec --file=./binary
readelf -h ./binary

Save batch results for multiple binaries:

for bin in ./build/*; do
  test -f "$bin" || continue
  checksec --file="$bin" >> checksec.txt
done

Use readelf -lW ./binary when PIE, RELRO, GNU_STACK, or loader details need independent confirmation.

Output

Report binary path, command used, architecture when known, protection status, risk-relevant observations, and output path.