Wallarm for M&A due diligence audit

What middleBrick covers

  • Black-box API scanning without agents or code access
  • Risk scoring from A to F with prioritized findings
  • Detection of OWASP API Top 10 (2023) categories
  • Authenticated scanning with header allowlist
  • Scheduled continuous monitoring and diff detection
  • Integration options via CLI, dashboard, webhooks, and MCP Server

Scope and objectives of M&A due diligence API testing

During M&A due diligence, you need a repeatable, low-friction way to surface technical risk across a target’s public and partner-facing APIs. The objective is not to perform an exhaustive penetration test, but to quickly identify high-impact weaknesses that could affect security posture, compliance evidence, or operational continuity. This workflow favors non-intrusive methods that do not require code or agent deployment and that complete in under a minute per endpoint.

How middleBrick maps to audit frameworks and risk prioritization

middleBrick maps findings to OWASP API Top 10 (2023), helping you prepare for SOC 2 Type II evidence collection and aligning with security controls described in PCI-DSS 4.0. Each scan produces a risk score from A to F and a prioritized list of findings, enabling the diligence team to focus on authentication bypass, authorization flaws, data exposure, and injection-related issues that commonly trigger remediation during transactions.

Black-box scanning characteristics and operational fit

As a black-box scanner, middleBrick requires no agents, SDKs, or code access and works with any language, framework, or cloud. It uses read-only methods such as GET and HEAD, and text-only POST for LLM probes, which minimizes operational risk during due diligence. Scan times remain under a minute, and sensitive infrastructure like private IPs, localhost, and cloud metadata endpoints are blocked at multiple layers.

Authentication support and domain verification requirements

Authenticated scanning is available from the Starter tier onward, supporting Bearer tokens, API keys, Basic auth, and cookies. Before credentials are accepted, the domain owner must complete a verification gate using a DNS TXT record or an HTTP well-known file. Only a limited set of headers is forwarded, including Authorization, X-API-Key, Cookie, and X-Custom-* headers, reducing the chance of credential misuse during audits.

Continuous monitoring and reporting for diligence timelines

With Pro tier or higher, you can schedule rescans at intervals such as every 6 hours, daily, weekly, or monthly to track score drift across negotiation periods. Diff detection highlights new findings and resolved items, while email alerts are rate-limited to one per hour per API. HMAC-SHA256 signed webhooks deliver findings to integration pipelines, and customer data can be deleted on demand within 30 days of cancellation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can middleBrick replace a human pentester for an M&A audit?
No. The tool does not detect business logic vulnerabilities or blind SSRF, and it is not a substitute for a human expert assessing high-stakes audit scenarios.
Does the tool perform intrusive testing like SQL injection or command injection?
No. It does not send destructive payloads or perform active SQL injection or command injection, as those methods fall outside its non-intrusive scope.
What compliance mappings are provided during due diligence?
Findings map directly to OWASP API Top 10 (2023) and support audit evidence for SOC 2 Type II and PCI-DSS 4.0. Other frameworks are referenced only as alignment guidance.
How are credentials handled during authenticated scans?
Credentials are accepted only after domain verification via DNS TXT or HTTP well-known file, and only specific headers are forwarded to limit exposure.
Is scan data retained or used for model training after the audit?
No. Data is deletable on demand and purged within 30 days of cancellation, and it is never sold or used for model training.