Cowrie
5.8#10 in honeypot softwareFree planFree planLinuxSelf-hosted
VisitCowrie vs OpenCanary
OpenCanary
6.5#2 in honeypot softwareFree planFree planLinuxmacOSSelf-hosted
VisitWhat both publish
| Fact | Cowrie | OpenCanary |
|---|---|---|
| Deployment | Cowrie can be installed using pip, Docker or a Git checkout, and its documentation lists Python 3.11+ and python-virtualenv as local requirements. | The project documents installation on Ubuntu and macOS, plus Docker deployment on Linux hosts using host networking. |
| Support | The project links users to community Slack and Discord channels. | Bug reports are requested through GitHub, security vulnerabilities through the project security policy, and feature requests through the project tracker. |
Cowrie plans
- CowrieFree
OpenCanary plans
- OpenCanaryFree
Pick Cowrie if…
Cowrie is aimed at security researchers, CERTs, and defenders who want to observe SSH and Telnet activity. It requires self-hosting and the listed local software requirements.
Pick OpenCanary if…
It suits administrators who want a self-hosted decoy for detecting interactions with network services. Linux provides the widest module options; macOS lacks SMB monitoring, and portscan monitoring is limited to Linux and disabled in Docker.