DAST evaluates an application by simulating real attacker behavior without requiring access to source code. It operates externally, making it useful for pentesters who rely on knowledge of attacker tactics to uncover runtime vulnerabilities. While effective at identifying unpredictable or abnormal application behavior under attack, DAST cannot pinpoint the exact lines of code causing issues. It can also be time‑consuming depending on scan depth. Its primary purpose is to detect security weaknesses that appear only during execution, helping teams understand how an application responds under real‑world attack scenarios.

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