Earlycatch Scanner

About

Earlycatch Scanner is a lightweight Chrome extension that enables developers and security professionals to perform static code analysis directly within GitLab. It works on merge requests (MRs) and single-file views, highlighting potential vulnerabilities in real time.

Key Features:

MR & File Scan: Scan merge request diffs or full file views on GitLab.
Custom Rules: Add your own rules using regex patterns to customize your scan needs.
Inline Highlights: Detected vulnerabilities are highlighted directly in the GitLab UI for quick review.
Rule Management: Easily add, edit, delete the regex.
Lightweight & Fast: Fully runs in your browser with no server setup required.

Ideal for: Security engineers, pentesters, code reviewers, and developers who want faster visibility into potential security issues during code review.

Running a Scan:

Navigate to a GitLab merge request (MR) or a single file view.
Click the Early Catch icon in the toolbar.
Select the file extension.
Diff Scan (MR): Scans only the changed lines in the MR.
File Scan (Blob): Scans the entire file.
Click Run Scan.
Matches will be highlighted inline.

Managing Rules:
Click Saved Regex in the popup to open the regex options pane.
Add a Rule:
Enter a regex pattern(s).
Click Save Rule.
Edit or Delete: Click Edit or Delete next to an existing rule.

Tips for Effective Scanning:

Use clear and precise regex patterns to reduce false positives.
Use severity levels to prioritize which issues to address first.
For large files or MRs, prefer Diff Scan to save time.

Notes & Limitations:

Currently optimized for GitLab.com. Self-hosted GitLab may require selector adjustments.
Highlights are added in-browser; no code is modified in GitLab.
Performance may decrease for very large files; incremental scanning is recommended in future updates.