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Security Tools

A comprehensive guide to smart contract security tools for static analysis, fuzzing, formal verification, and development best practices.

Quick Start

Get started with the essential security tools in under 5 minutes:

1
Install Foundry
curl -L https://foundry.paradigm.xyz | bash && foundryup
2
Install Slither
pip install slither-analyzer
3
Run Analysis
slither . --checklist
4
Run Fuzz Tests
forge test --fuzz-runs 10000

Static Analysis

Static analyzers examine your code without executing it, finding common vulnerability patterns.

Slither

Beginner

Trail of Bits static analysis framework for Solidity

GitHub
Installpip install slither-analyzer
Usageslither . --detect all
80+ detectorsPrinter utilitiesAPI for custom analysis

Mythril

Intermediate

ConsenSys symbolic execution tool for EVM bytecode

GitHub
Installpip install mythril
Usagemyth analyze contracts/Contract.sol
Symbolic executionTaint analysisControl flow analysis

Solhint

Beginner

Linting and style checking for Solidity code

GitHub
Installnpm install -g solhint
Usagesolhint "contracts/**/*.sol"
Style rulesSecurity rulesPlugin support

Fuzzing Tools

Fuzzers generate random inputs to find edge cases and unexpected behaviors in your contracts.

Echidna

Intermediate

Property-based fuzzer for Ethereum smart contracts

GitHub
Installbrew install echidna
Usageechidna-test . --contract MyContract
Property testingCorpus generationCoverage-guided

Foundry Fuzz

Beginner

Built-in fuzzing in Foundry test framework

GitHub
Installcurl -L https://foundry.paradigm.xyz | bash
Usageforge test --fuzz-runs 10000
Fast executionIntegrated with testsInvariant testing

Medusa

Intermediate

Parallelized, coverage-guided fuzzer based on Echidna

GitHub
Installgo install github.com/crytic/medusa@latest
Usagemedusa fuzz
Multi-threadedCoverage trackingCorpus mutation

Formal Verification

Formal verification mathematically proves that your code satisfies specified properties.

Certora Prover

AdvancedCommercial (free tier available)

Industry-leading formal verification for smart contracts

Website
CVL specification languageAutomatic counterexamplesCI integration

Halmos

AdvancedOpen Source

Symbolic bounded model checker for Ethereum smart contracts

GitHub
Foundry integrationSymbolic testingOpen source

KEVM

ExpertOpen Source

K Framework semantics of the EVM for verification

GitHub
Complete EVM semanticsReachability logicProof generation

Formal verification has a steep learning curve and is typically used for high-value contracts where mathematical guarantees are essential. Start with static analysis and fuzzing before diving into formal methods.

Development Tools

Essential tools for secure smart contract development.

Foundry

Full Framework

Blazing fast Ethereum development toolkit written in Rust

forge - testingcast - interactionsanvil - local nodechisel - REPL

Hardhat

Full Framework

Ethereum development environment with extensive plugin ecosystem

Task runnerLocal networkPlugin architectureTypeScript support

OpenZeppelin Contracts

Library

Secure, audited implementations of common patterns

Access controlToken standardsProxy patternsSecurity primitives

Tenderly

Platform

Web3 development platform with debugging and monitoring

Transaction debuggerGas profilerAlertingSimulations

Recommended Security Workflow

1

Linting

Run Solhint to catch style and basic security issues early

2

Static Analysis

Use Slither to find common vulnerability patterns

3

Fuzzing

Write property tests and fuzz with Echidna or Foundry

4

Manual Review

Have experts review for logic issues tools can't catch

Automated Security Analysis

ChainLens combines multiple security tools into one easy-to-use platform.

Try Free ScanLearn Auditing