As an ecommerce business owner running a site on Magento (Adobe Commerce), you handle valuable customer data that cybercriminals increasingly target for theft and abuse. Over the past 5 years, reported security incidents across Magento sites have risen over 125%. This trend shows no signs of slowing down.
Security researchers at CheckPoint recently analyzed over 2,000 live Magento sites and discovered:
- 63% contained high severity vulnerabilities
- 82% ran unsupported versions no longer receiving patches
- 47% still used default admin passwords
Attackers exploit such weaknesses to steal payment information, harvest customer email addresses for spam campaigns, and redirect site traffic to malicious pages hosting drive-by malware downloads.
Table 1 – Types of Attacks Targeting Magento Sites
| Attack Type | Description | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Credit Card Theft | Installation of sniffers on checkout pages to grab customer payment details | 37% |
| Spam Campaigns | Harvesting site visitor emails for bulk phishing lures | 27% |
| Ransomware Injection | Compromise of servers and encryption of crucial files | 19% |
| Complete Site Takeover | Defacements, scraping of catalog data, shutdown of stores | 14% |
A single vulnerability gives hackers the toehold they need to breach defenses and move laterally through systems connected to your site. Without quick detection, attackers may lurk for months mining data before getting discovered.
The business impact and recovery costs prove substantial:
- Average cost of a data breach: $4.35 million
- Average merchant revenue loss per hour of downtime: $300,000
- Legal and regulatory penalties for violation of privacy laws
So how do savvy merchants fight back?
While firewalls and access controls form the first line of protection, they cannot block every attack vector. That‘s why forward-thinking security teams employ vulnerability scanners that continuously probe environments for risks.
Scanners automate the process of checking sites for known security flaws, weak configurations, and malware. Regular scanning reveals threats before hackers actually penetrate outer defenses.
Specialized scanners tailored for the Magento platform focus on vulnerabilities specific to underlying components and popular extensions. These scanners understand nuances in how Magento code works and where criminals typically attempt exploitation.
I evaluated 7 of the top dedicated Magento scanners available…
1. MageReport – Detecting Known Magento Threats
MageReport brings focused detection of common Magento-based issues including remote code execution bugs, brute forcible admin accounts, malicious injections, and more.
Pros:
- Checks for missing security patches
- Verifies file integrity against clean versions
- Easy to use public interface
- Broad coverage despite free usage
Cons:
- No customer support channels
- Does not confirm actual malware payloads
- Cannot integrate withticketing workflows
The free service provides value for merchants running sites built on standard Magento OOTB code.
2. Sucuri SiteCheck – Malware Detection for Any Platform
Sucuri leverages a database of 500K+ infected sites to scan for malware payloads, defacements, hidden redirects, and other indicators of compromise.
Pros:
- Confirms real-world malware infections
- Site whitelisting to ignore false positives
- Available for any CMS platform
Cons:
- Misses Magento configuration issues
- Requires making site publicly reachable
Sucuri brings strong detection capabilities across CMSs, catching instances where hackers already breached perimeter defenses.
Sucuri Sample Malware Detection Report
3. Foregenix Webscan – Budget-Friendly Magento Scanning
Foregenix focuses on common vulnerabilities in the Magento framework itself as well as associated plugins. Their scanner checks for leaks of sensitive data and administrative access.
Pros:
- Specifies remediation guidance for findings
- Low pricing tier compared to competitors
- Tests integrity of imported databases
Cons:
- No ticketing integration options
- Limited coverage of general web bugs
- Email-based reporting
Foregenix brings strong value specifically for merchants running Magento 1 environments no longer receiving security patches from the core vendor.
4. Security Patch Tester – Validating Patch Status
As the name suggests, this scanner only checks whether recent patches addressing critical vulnerabilities in Magento have been deployed.
Pros:
- Specifically covers common exploits
- Fast one click testing
- Developer-oriented focus
Cons:
- Does not catch other misconfigurations
- Limited to testing 5 sites without subscription
- Only evaluates public patch status
Security Patch Tester provides a quick litmus test to confirm if patches were applied correctly after an upgrade.
5. Mage Scan – Internal Auditing for Advanced Users
Mage Scan runs locally on the server hosting a Magento site, enabling scanning of components not reachable externally.
Pros:
- Analyzes vulnerabilities missed by external scanners
- Open source tool with no usage costs
- Broad coverage of logical issues
Cons:
- Command line usage deters less technical users
- Complicated to interpret results
- No formal updates or support
Skilled system administrators can leverage Mage Scan to perform comprehensive audits of internal server configurations hosting Magento deployments.
6. Magento Security Scan – Official Scanner from Adobe Commerce
Magento Security Scan provides merchants an easy way to monitor sites from directly within their Adobe Commerce account.
Pros:
- Schedule recurring scans
- Access to latest threats before public disclosure
- Read-only probes to avoid side effects
Cons:
- Does not confirm actual infections
- Limited detailed remediation instructions
This scanner works well for merchants fully embracing Adobe’s cloud-based offerings and needing simple vulnerability coverage.
7. RIPS SaaS – Hybrid Engine Combining Static + Dynamic Scans
RIPS leverages both static code analysis and dynamic exploitation techniques to detect Magento vulnerabilities.
Pros:
- Tests randomized instances to avoid false negatives
- Low false positive rate
- Detailed remediation procedures
- Integrates findings into Jira and slack
Cons:
- No malware detection capability
- Higher pricing tier
RIPS brings a comprehensive hybrid approach to uncovering the most elusive logical flaws in custom Magento extensions.
Rather than choosing just one scanner, I recommend deploying multiple solutions that complement each other:
-
Broad external scanners that perform non-intrusive discovery of what vulnerabilities are exposed to the public internet
-
Malware detectors confirming whether adversaries have already managed to breach outer defenses
-
Internal network scanners finding risks invisible externally due to network segmentation
-
Source code analyzers evaluating custom extensions and interfaces between integrated systems
Combining results from this scanner “stack” provides the most complete coverage without unnecessary redundancy.
I suggest running external scans at least quarterly, with monthly malware checks on production systems:
| Scanner Type | Tool | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| External Vulnerability | MageReport or RIPS SaaS | Quarterly |
| Malware Detection | Sucuri SiteCheck | Monthly |
| Local Configuration Audit | Mage Scan | On Major Upgrades |
When budgeting for scanning software, consider available in-house expertise versus fully outsourcing to an MSSP. Factor in both subscription costs and personnel hours needed to configure assessments, analyze reports, and remediate findings.
By institutionalizing scanning as part of regular operations, ecommerce organizations can protect the business from adverse events related to security failures in the dynamic online retail landscape. Going beyond minimal compliance checklists to implement proactive scanning demonstrates true commitment to customers and establishes a foundation for future innovation.
