Use Cases

Subdomain Enumeration

One of the primary use cases for MerkleMap is subdomain enumeration. By leveraging MerkleMap's extensive database of subdomains collected from Certificate Transparency logs, you can efficiently discover subdomains associated with a target domain. This is particularly useful for:

• Identifying potential attack surfaces: Subdomains often represent additional entry points into an organization's infrastructure. By enumerating subdomains, you can uncover hidden or forgotten assets that may be vulnerable to attacks.
• Mapping an organization's online presence: Subdomain enumeration helps you gain a comprehensive understanding of an organization's online footprint. It allows you to identify various services, applications, and resources associated with the target domain.
• Conducting reconnaissance for penetration testing and bug bounty hunting: Before launching an attack or searching for vulnerabilities, it's crucial to gather as much information as possible about the target. MerkleMap's subdomain enumeration capabilities provide a valuable starting point for reconnaissance efforts.

Certificate Transparency Monitoring

Certificate Transparency (CT) is a framework that enables the monitoring and auditing of SSL/TLS certificates. MerkleMap leverages CT logs to provide powerful certificate search capabilities. This is useful for:

• Identifying misused or unauthorized certificates: By monitoring CT logs, you can detect certificates that have been mistakenly issued or obtained by unauthorized parties. This helps in identifying potential security breaches and mitigating the risk of man-in-the-middle attacks.
• Tracking certificate issuance and expiration: MerkleMap allows you to keep track of when certificates are issued and when they are set to expire. This information is crucial for maintaining the security and validity of your own certificates and ensuring timely renewals.
• Investigating phishing and fraudulent websites: Attackers often use fraudulent SSL/TLS certificates to create convincing phishing websites. By searching for certificates associated with suspicious domains, you can identify and investigate potential phishing attempts.

Infrastructure Discovery

MerkleMap's combination of subdomain enumeration and certificate search capabilities makes it a powerful tool for infrastructure discovery. By exploring the subdomains and certificates associated with a target organization, you can:

• Identify web servers, mail servers, and other network services: MerkleMap helps you discover various servers and services running within an organization's infrastructure. This information is valuable for understanding the attack surface and potential vulnerabilities.
• Uncover cloud assets and third-party services: Many organizations rely on cloud platforms and third-party services to host their applications and data. MerkleMap can help you identify subdomains and certificates associated with these external services, providing a more comprehensive view of an organization's infrastructure.

Threat Intelligence and Investigations

MerkleMap's vast database of subdomains and certificates serves as a valuable resource for threat intelligence and investigations. By querying MerkleMap, you can:

• Investigate suspicious domains and certificates: If you come across a suspicious domain or certificate, MerkleMap can help you gather additional information about its subdomains, IP addresses, and certificate details. This information can aid in determining the legitimacy and potential threats associated with the domain.
• Monitor for domain squatting and typosquatting: Attackers often register domains that are similar to legitimate ones, hoping to deceive users or exploit brand reputation. By searching for subdomains and certificates that closely resemble your own domain, you can detect and mitigate domain squatting and typosquatting attempts.
• Identify malicious infrastructure: MerkleMap's data can be used to uncover malicious infrastructure used by attackers. By searching for subdomains and certificates associated with known malicious domains or IP addresses, you can map out the infrastructure used in various attack campaigns.

Research and Analysis

MerkleMap's extensive dataset provides a rich resource for researchers and analysts interested in studying the internet and its underlying infrastructure. Some research applications include:

• Studying the adoption and usage of SSL/TLS certificates: MerkleMap's certificate data allows researchers to analyze trends in certificate issuance, examine the distribution of certificate authorities, and study the adoption of different SSL/TLS versions and cryptographic algorithms.
• Investigating the structure and organization of the internet: By analyzing subdomain and certificate data, researchers can gain insights into the hierarchical structure of domains, the relationships between different organizations, and the overall topology of the internet.
• Identifying trends and patterns in web technologies: MerkleMap's data can be used to study the prevalence of various web technologies, frameworks, and content management systems across different subdomains and sectors.

These are just a few examples of the many use cases for MerkleMap. Whether you're a security professional, researcher, or developer, MerkleMap provides a powerful tool for exploring and understanding the vast landscape of subdomains and certificates on the internet. By leveraging MerkleMap's API and CLI, you can integrate its capabilities into your own workflows, automate tasks, and build custom tools to suit your specific needs.