Censys Search API
Censys provides an API for searching internet-facing hosts and TLS certificates — useful for certificate history, infrastructure mapping, and exposure analysis. This page explains where Censys fits in an OSINT stack, primary use cases, and integration and compliance considerations.
- reviewed
- Apr 24, 2026
How this source is shaped
Excellent for certificate and infrastructure intelligence. Like Shodan, it should be framed defensively and used with authorization-aware UX.
- Source type
- Security Intel
- Access model
- Freemium
- Pricing model
- Account/API Access; Commercial Tiers Available
- API available
- Yes
- Requires account
- Yes
- Risk level
- Restricted
- Sensitivity
- Highly Sensitive
Review dimensions
Each dimension is graded on a 0–10 scale. The overall score is a weighted aggregate.
Weighted aggregate across the eight review dimensions.
Where this source fits
What analysts use it for, and — just as important — where it does not belong.
- certificate_intelligence
- asset_exposure
- domain_infrastructure_mapping
- security_teams
- researchers
- brand_protection_teams
- unauthorized_targeting
- offensive_reconnaissance_guides
Editorial take
Our qualitative read on the source — tone, framing and trust posture.
Probably more enterprise-aligned than casual. Strong for premium domain reports.
Ethics and compliance
Access, licensing and sensitive-data considerations for this source.
Avoid enabling targeting of unrelated third-party infrastructure.
Review API terms and create clear user authorization language.