Parrot OS

Overview

Parrot Security OS is a free, open-source Linux distribution based on Debian Stable, designed for cybersecurity, privacy, and development. Developed by the Parrot Security team, it uses the MATE desktop environment by default (with support for other environments such as Xfce). Parrot OS offers a Security Edition (for penetration testing and red team operations), a Home Edition (for daily use and development), an IoT Edition (for embedded devices), a Cloud Edition (for cloud environments and virtual machines), and an Architect Edition (for minimal customization). It comes pre-installed with over 700 penetration testing tools (such as Metasploit, Burp Suite, and Nmap), privacy tools (such as Tor and AnonSurf), and development tools (such as VSCodium and Python). It supports amd64, arm64, and armhf architectures and is compatible with Raspberry Pi and Docker.

Core Features:

• Penetration Testing: Provides tools such as Metasploit, Burp Suite, SQLmap, and Aircrack-ng for vulnerability assessment, network analysis, and red team operations. - Privacy Protection: Built-in Tor, AnonSurf, and encryption tools (such as GPG and Zulucrypt) protect user anonymity.
• Digital Forensics: Includes tools such as Autopsy, Volatility, and Wireshark for forensics and incident response.
• Development Support: Pre-installed development environments such as Python, Node.js, Go, and Java are suitable for developing custom tools.
• Lightweight and Efficient: Optimized resource usage, with a minimum requirement of 256MB RAM and 1GB storage (2GB RAM and 20GB storage recommended).

History and Development

• Origins:
  • April 10, 2013: Created by Lorenzo Faletra as part of the Frozenbox Community Forum, with the original goal of providing security experts with a lightweight, powerful penetration testing platform.
  • Based on Debian Testing (later migrated to Debian Stable), using the MATE desktop.
• Development History:
  • June 2017: Considered migrating to Devuan (avoiding systemd), but ultimately stayed with Debian.
  • 2019: Gradually phased out 32-bit (i386) support, focusing on amd64 and arm64.
  • August 2020: Added Xfce desktop support and optimized lightweight performance.
  • 2023: Parrot 5.0 released, introducing the Linux 6.1 kernel, MATE 1.26, and adding Airgeddon and Beef-XSS.
  • July 2025: The latest version, Parrot 6.4, was released. It is based on Debian 12 "Bookworm" and Linux kernel 6.12.32, and includes updates to Metasploit (6.4.71), Caido (0.48.1), and Empire (6.1.2). It also adds the Rocket tool (for organizing penetration testing environments), paving the way for Parrot 7.
• Community and Support:
  • Managed by Parrot Security CIC (a UK registered community company), the GitHub repository (github.com/ParrotSec) and forum (community.parrotsec.org) are active.
  • Tutorial videos, HTB Academy integration, and bi-monthly live broadcasts are available on Discord and YouTube.
  • A Reddit user commented, "Parrot OS is more suitable for daily use than Kali, being lightweight and offering strong privacy protection."
• Open Source Licenses:
  • GPL v2 (core components), MIT (some tools).

Key Features

Parrot OS is built with security, privacy, and development at its core, making it suitable for penetration testing, forensics, and development. Here are its key features:

1. Rich Penetration Testing Tools
   • Pre-installed with over 700 tools, covering information gathering (Nmap, Maltego), vulnerability scanning (OpenVAS), exploitation (Metasploit, Burp Suite, SQLmap), Wi-Fi testing (Aircrack-ng), and password cracking (John the Ripper, Hashcat).
   • Application: Run Metasploit or Burp Suite on a Raspberry Pi for vulnerability testing.
2. Privacy and Anonymity
   • Built-in Tor and AnonSurf support anonymous browsing and system-wide Tor routing.
   • Supports OnionShare for secure file sharing via Tor.
3. Digital Forensics and Incident Response
   • Includes Autopsy (forensic analysis), Volatility (memory forensics), Wireshark (network analysis), and ExifTool (metadata extraction). 4. Lightweight and Efficient
   • The default MATE desktop (Xfce optional) consumes approximately 400-600MB of RAM, making it suitable for low-spec devices.
   • Supports Raspberry Pi, Docker, and virtual machines (VirtualBox, VMware).
4. Developer-Friendly
   • Pre-installed VSCodium, Geany, Python, Node.js, Go, and Java, with support for Snap and Flatpak.
5. Security and Updates
   • Network services are disabled by default to reduce exposure.
   • Rolling updates for rapid vulnerability fixes.

Advantages and Limitations

Advantages

• Rich Security Tools:
  • 700+ pre-installed tools covering penetration testing, forensics, and privacy, surpassing the versatility of Raspberry Pi OS.
  • X's post claims, "Parrot 6.4's Rocket tool makes penetration testing more efficient."
• Privacy Protection:
  • Built-in Tor, AnonSurf, and GPG.
• Lightweight and Efficient:
  • Minimum 256MB of RAM, suitable for Raspberry Pi and older devices.
• Development Support:
  • Pre-installed VSCodium and Python.
• Community and Documentation:
  • Active forums, HTB Academy integration.

Limitations

• Learning Curve:
  • Security Edition requires Linux experience and is not as beginner-friendly as Home Edition.
• Resource Usage:
  • The MATE desktop consumes more RAM than Puppy Linux (100-200MB).
  • Solution: Use the Lite edition or Xfce.
• Kali Linux Competition:
  • Kali is backed by Offensive Security, and its certification (OSCP) is more industry-recognized.

Summary

Parrot Security OS is a free, open-source Linux distribution based on Debian Stable, designed for cybersecurity, privacy, and development. Its latest version, 6.4 (July 2025), features Linux kernel 6.12.32, the MATE desktop, and comes pre-installed with over 700 penetration testing tools (Metasploit, Burp Suite), privacy tools (Tor, AnonSurf), and development tools (VSCodium, Python). It supports amd64, arm64, and armhf architectures and is compatible with Raspberry Pi, Docker, and virtual machines. Parrot OS is available in Security, Home, IoT, Cloud, and Architect editions. It is suitable for penetration testing, digital forensics, and development.