Checking a Python Environment with pip-audit

As this course focuses on security testing for Python, an essential first step is to assess your environment for known vulnerable dependencies. A practical tool for this purpose is pip-audit.

pip-audit scans installed Python packages and compares them against publicly disclosed vulnerabilities from trusted advisory databases. It helps you identify packages with known security issues so that you can update, replace, or remediate them as part of your security testing process.

What pip-audit Does — and Does Not Do¶

pip-audit analyses dependency trees, not source code. It identifies known vulnerabilities in package versions, but it does not perform static code analysis and does not examine your application logic.

It is important to understand its limitations:

• It does not protect you from malicious packages.

• It does not guarantee that all dependency resolutions can be analysed statically.

• It should not be considered a “secure alternative” to installing dependencies.

• It may not detect vulnerabilities in external components (for example, a vulnerable shared library used by a Python package), particularly where there is no clear version linkage in advisory databases.

• It does not guarantee the detection of every possible transitive exposure if that exposure is not formally associated with the Python package version itself.

pip-audit is first and foremost an simple and fast test tool for auditing tool for known vulnerabilities in Python packages.

Installation¶

Install pip-audit into your Python environment:

python -m pip install pip-audit

Basic Usage¶

First, activate your virtual environment (recommended for security testing to avoid contaminating your system environment).

Then run:

pip-audit

This will:

• Inspect all installed packages in the current environment

• Identify known vulnerabilities

• Report affected versions

• Provide information about available fixed versions (where applicable)

Auditing a Requirements File¶

To audit dependencies defined in a requirements file:

pip-audit -r requirements.txt

This checks the resolved dependency set similarly to installing the requirements, but in an isolated context to minimise conflicts with your current environment.

Using pip-audit in Security Testing¶

Within a security testing workflow, pip-audit should be used:

• During development, to detect vulnerable dependencies early

• In CI/CD pipelines, to prevent introducing known vulnerable packages

• During periodic security reviews of existing projects

• Before release, as part of a security validation checklist

It is best combined with:

• Static code analysis tools

• Dependency pinning and reproducible builds

• Software composition analysis (SCA) processes

• Regular dependency updates

In short, pip-audit helps you identify known risks in your dependency tree, but it should be part of a broader, defence-in-depth security testing strategy rather than relied upon as a single line of defence.