atomicvulns — a web security lab with one vulnerability per app (OWASP Top 10 2021, open source)
atomicvulns is an open-source educational project providing a collection of small, intentionally vulnerable web applications, each demonstrating a single OWASP Top 10 2021 vulnerability. It includes 38 isolated apps ('atoms'), each with a vulnerable and fixed version, plus walkthroughs for exploitation and remediation. The project is designed for pentest and AppSec learners to study and practice exploiting and fixing common web vulnerabilities in a focused, hands-on manner. It is not a vulnerability or exploit itself but a learning tool.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
atomicvulns is a web security lab project that isolates one vulnerability per small web application, covering all OWASP Top 10 2021 categories with 38 distinct apps. Each app includes a vulnerable version, a fixed version, a commented diff, and a step-by-step exploit walkthrough. The project is intended for pentesting and application security education, emphasizing clarity and focus on individual flaws rather than large monolithic vulnerable apps. It is open source under the MIT license and uses Docker for easy local deployment. The project does not represent a security threat or vulnerability in itself but serves as a training resource.
Potential Impact
There is no direct security impact or threat from atomicvulns itself, as it is a controlled educational environment meant to be run locally and not exposed to the internet. The project facilitates learning about vulnerabilities but does not introduce new vulnerabilities into production environments.
Mitigation Recommendations
No mitigation is required as atomicvulns is an educational tool designed to be run locally for learning purposes. Users should ensure they do not expose these intentionally vulnerable apps to untrusted networks or the internet. Follow best practices by running the apps only on localhost as recommended.
atomicvulns — a web security lab with one vulnerability per app (OWASP Top 10 2021, open source)
Description
atomicvulns is an open-source educational project providing a collection of small, intentionally vulnerable web applications, each demonstrating a single OWASP Top 10 2021 vulnerability. It includes 38 isolated apps ('atoms'), each with a vulnerable and fixed version, plus walkthroughs for exploitation and remediation. The project is designed for pentest and AppSec learners to study and practice exploiting and fixing common web vulnerabilities in a focused, hands-on manner. It is not a vulnerability or exploit itself but a learning tool.
Reddit Discussion
I spent the last few months building a personal project and it just hit v1.0, so I figured I'd share it here.
atomicvulns is a collection of intentionally vulnerable web apps, but with a different idea: each app isolates a single vulnerability, nothing more. Instead of one big app full of flaws (like DVWA or Juice Shop), each exercise here is small and focused — you read the code, see the cause, exploit it, and compare it against the fixed version sitting right next to it. Short enough to finish one in a single sitting.
Each "atom" ships with the vulnerable app, the fixed app, a commented diff between the two, and a step-by-step walkthrough of the exploit. v1.0 covers all 10 OWASP Top 10 2021 categories — 38 atoms total.
It's aimed at people studying pentest / AppSec who already know the HTTP and terminal basics. Burp Suite is the primary tool across all the walkthroughs.
A few details:
- Open source (MIT).
- Bilingual — all docs in English and Portuguese (I couldn't find focused material like this for PT-BR learners, so I wrote both).
- Solo project, built by me. The goal was a place where each flaw is clear and isolated — the material I wish I'd had while learning web pentest.
- Built with AI as a pair, with every atom validated by me running the exploit by hand.
Built it for myself, but now that it's done, if it helps someone else along the way, great.
🔗 https://github.com/doretox/atomicvulns
Feedback welcome — happy to hear what's missing or what could be clearer.
Links cited in this discussion
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
atomicvulns is a web security lab project that isolates one vulnerability per small web application, covering all OWASP Top 10 2021 categories with 38 distinct apps. Each app includes a vulnerable version, a fixed version, a commented diff, and a step-by-step exploit walkthrough. The project is intended for pentesting and application security education, emphasizing clarity and focus on individual flaws rather than large monolithic vulnerable apps. It is open source under the MIT license and uses Docker for easy local deployment. The project does not represent a security threat or vulnerability in itself but serves as a training resource.
Potential Impact
There is no direct security impact or threat from atomicvulns itself, as it is a controlled educational environment meant to be run locally and not exposed to the internet. The project facilitates learning about vulnerabilities but does not introduce new vulnerabilities into production environments.
Defensive Guidance
No mitigation is required as atomicvulns is an educational tool designed to be run locally for learning purposes. Users should ensure they do not expose these intentionally vulnerable apps to untrusted networks or the internet. Follow best practices by running the apps only on localhost as recommended.
Technical Details
- Source Type
- Subreddit
- ExploitDev+pwned+hacking
- Reddit Score
- 0
- Discussion Level
- minimal
- Content Source
- reddit_link_post
- Post Type
- link
- Newsworthiness Assessment
- {"score":41,"reasons":["external_link","newsworthy_keywords:vulnerability,rce","established_author","recent_news"],"isNewsworthy":true,"foundNewsworthy":["vulnerability","rce"]}
- Has External Source
- true
- Trusted Domain
- false
Threat ID: 6aa50a7f55bf5e2cf50e0257
Added to database: 09/12/2026, 08:17:03 UTC
Last enriched: 09/12/2026, 08:17:09 UTC
Last updated: 09/13/2026, 03:31:35 UTC
Views: 18
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