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har-capture

PyPI version Downloads codecov License: MIT AI Assisted

Capture and sanitize HAR (HTTP Archive) files with deep PII removal. Perfect for support diagnostics, security reviews, and test fixtures.

Quick Start

Windows

  1. Install Python from the Microsoft Store or python.org
  2. Open PowerShell and run:
pip install har-capture[full]
python -m har_capture https://example.com

macOS / Linux

pip install har-capture[full]
har-capture https://example.com

Already have a HAR file?

pip install har-capture
har-capture sanitize myfile.har --patterns network-device

Why har-capture?

Chrome DevTools now sanitizes cookies and auth headers, but HAR files contain much more sensitive data: IP addresses, MAC addresses, emails, passwords in form bodies, serial numbers, device names, WiFi credentials, session tokens, and API keys.

How har-capture compares:

Feature har-capture DevTools Google/Cloudflare
Deep sanitization (IPs, MACs, emails) ✅ ❌ ❌
Correlation-preserving hashes ✅ ❌ ❌
Interactive review ✅ ❌ Varies
Custom patterns ✅ ❌ Limited
Local + CLI automation ✅ No CLI Varies

Key benefits:

  • Zero dependencies - Core sanitization uses only Python stdlib
  • Format-preserving hashes - Track the same device across requests without exposing real values
  • One-command workflow - Capture, sanitize, and compress in a single step
  • Interactive browser flows preserved - Handle browser auth, popups, and dialogs while still recording the resulting traffic

See detailed comparison with all tools →

See It In Action

1. Sanitization report — 84 values auto-redacted across 9 PII categories:

Sanitization Report

2. Flagged values for review — passwords, fields, WiFi SSIDs, and phone numbers detected automatically:

Flagged Values for Review

3. Interactive redaction picker — high-confidence items pre-selected, you choose the rest:

Redact Picker

Installation

# Core only (sanitization - zero dependencies)
pip install har-capture

# With browser capture support
pip install har-capture[capture]
playwright install chromium

# Full installation (recommended)
pip install har-capture[full]

Usage

Command Line

# Capture and sanitize a network device (cable modem, router, AP)
har-capture https://192.168.100.1 --patterns network-device

# Sanitize an existing HAR with universal PII rules only (no device domain)
har-capture sanitize capture.har --patterns base

# Validate for PII leaks
har-capture validate capture.har --patterns network-device

--patterns is required as of 0.9.0 — pick network-device for cable modems/routers/APs, base for generic web/API captures, or a custom JSON path. Run har-capture patterns for the full list.

Full CLI reference →

Python API

from har_capture.sanitization import sanitize_html, sanitize_har_file
from har_capture.sanitization.report import HeuristicMode

# Sanitize HTML (correlation-preserving by default)
clean_html = sanitize_html(raw_html)

# Sanitize with consistent salt (correlate across captures)
clean_html = sanitize_html(raw_html, salt="my-secret-key")

# Enable heuristic detection for WiFi, SSIDs, device names
clean_html = sanitize_html(raw_html, heuristics=HeuristicMode.REDACT)

# Sanitize HAR file
sanitize_har_file("capture.har")  # → capture.sanitized.har

# Custom patterns (e.g., modem serials, customer IDs)
custom = {"patterns": {"modem_sn": {"regex": r"SN[0-9]{10}", "replacement_prefix": "MODEM"}}}
sanitize_har_file("capture.har", custom_patterns=custom)

# Redact device-specific credential FIELD NAMES (not just value patterns).
# See docs/CUSTOM_PATTERNS.md#extending-sensitive-field-detection.
device_fields = {"fields": {"auto_redact_patterns": ["pws"]}}
sanitize_har_file("capture.har", custom_patterns=device_fields)

Documentation

Use Cases

  • Support diagnostics - Users submit sanitized HAR files without exposing credentials
  • Security review - Validate HAR files for PII leaks before sharing
  • Test fixtures - Generate reproducible traffic captures
  • Modem debugging - Capture router/modem traffic with sensitive data removed

What Gets Sanitized

Category Examples Output
Network IPs, MACs 192.168.1.1 → 10.255.42.17
Personal Emails, phones user@example.com → user_a1b2@redacted.invalid
Credentials Passwords, tokens password=secret → password=PASS_a1b2c3d4
Device Serials, WiFi, SSIDs SN123456 → SERIAL_a1b2c3d4
HTTP Auth headers, cookies Cookie: session=xyz → Cookie: session=TOKEN_a1b2

See complete PII categories list →

Platform Support

Component Windows macOS Linux
Sanitization ✅ ✅ ✅
Validation ✅ ✅ ✅
CLI ✅ ✅ ✅
Capture ✅ ✅ ✅

Contributing

Contributions welcome! See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.