cryptcat
Lightweight version netcat extended with twofish encryption
Platforms: Linux · Last verified September 6, 2026
Cryptcat is a simple Unix utility which reads and writes data across network connections, using TCP or UDP protocol while encrypting the data being transmitted. It is designed to be a reliable “back-end” tool that can be used directly or easily driven by other programs and scripts. At the same time, it is a feature-rich network debugging and exploration tool, since it can create almost any kind of connection you would need and has several interesting built-in capabilities.
Only use this tool against systems you own or are explicitly authorized to test — see the disclaimer.
Getting started
Install on Kali Linux with `sudo apt install cryptcat`. See the official Kali tool page and upstream homepage linked above for full usage and configuration details.
