A must-have tool for every security researcher, penetration tester, or bug bounty hunter who cares about security headers and misconfigurations.
Introduction
In the world of web security, response headers play a crucial role. Whether it’s enforcing HTTPS, preventing clickjacking, or blocking XSS, headers act as the unsung guardians of your web application’s perimeter.
But how often do they change silently between requests?
How do you know if a deployment, load balancer, or misconfigured cache layer introduced a subtle yet dangerous security issue?
That’s where Header Change Notifier comes in.
What is Header Change Notifier?
Header Change Notifier is a professional Burp Suite extension I built to monitor and detect real-time changes in HTTP response headers right inside Burp Suite.
It detects changes between repeated requests to the same URL and flags them based on risk level. Think of it as a security-focused diff tool for headers automated and efficient.
Why It Matters
Security headers are often your first line of defense but they’re also easy to misconfigure or forget entirely. If one vanishes or changes in production, it could silently open the door to attacks.
Header Change Notifier helps you answer:
Did a CSP suddenly get weaker?
Did a Set-Cookie lose its HttpOnly or Secure flag?
Did X-Frame-Options disappear entirely?
You’ll know. Instantly.
Key Features
- Real-time Monitoring of HTTP response headers
- Pre-configured Security Focus with high-value headers tracked by default
- Risk Assessment Engine categorizes changes into Critical/High/Medium/Low
- Custom Header Tracking — choose exactly what you care about
- Clean UI integrated inside Burp Suite
- CSV Export for audit logs and reporting
- Burp Suite Alerts — integrates directly with the issue tracker
- Performance Optimized — efficient and lightweight
- Default Security Headers Tracked
Note:You can easily modify this list or add custom headers that matter to your application.
Real-World Use Cases
- Pentesting: Catch unsafe header changes during auth flows, redirects, or content transitions
- Bug Bounty Hunting: Detect subtle changes that signal security weaknesses
- DevOps Testing: Ensure headers stay consistent across staging and production
- Compliance Monitoring: Prove header stability across audits
- Red Team Engagements: Watch for infrastructure shifts during prolonged operations
Installation
Manual Installation:
- Download HeaderChangeNotifier.py from GitHub
- Open Burp Suite
- Navigate to Extensions → Installed → Add
- Choose Python, then load the .py file
You’ll find a new tab: Header Change Notifier
Coming Soon: BApp Store
We’re submitting the tool to the official Burp BApp Store — stay tuned!
How to Use
- Browse your target app normally
- The extension tracks headers silently in the background
- View changes and alerts in the Header Change Notifier tab
- High-risk changes appear in Burp’s issue tracker
Configuration
- Use the Settings tab to add or remove headers
- Add custom headers if needed
- Save your configuration with one click
Want to report findings? Just click Export CSV and generate a clean log with timestamped changes and severity.
Final Words
Header misconfigurations are real, common, and exploitable.
Don’t wait for a bug bounty report to tell you your headers disappeared.
Monitor them yourself easily, visually, and professionally with Header Change Notifier.
If you find this tool helpful, please star the repo on GitHub and comment.
