Falco vs KubeLinter

Falco is a free, open source runtime security project for Linux and self-hosted environments. It monitors hosts, containers, Kubernetes, and cloud environments for abnormal behavior, potential threats, and compliance violations in real time. Events are compared with built-in detection rules, and users can create rules for their own environments. Sources include Linux kernel system calls, Kubernetes audit logs, cloud events such as AWS CloudTrail, and events from GitHub and Okta. For kernel event monitoring, Falco uses an eBPF driver by default and offers a kernel module for wider compatibility. Installation options cover Linux hosts, Docker containers, and Kubernetes, including official Helm charts; supported architectures include x86_64 and ARM64. Falcosidekick can forward events to more than 50 systems, including email, chat, message queues, serverless functions, and databases. Falco is hosted by the CNCF as a graduated project. Detection depends on having appropriate rules in place, while resource use varies with server load and workload. The project recommends testing performance in the target environment.

KubeLinter is a free, open-source static analyzer for Kubernetes YAML files, Helm charts, and Kustomize manifests. It checks production-readiness and security practices, including non-root containers, least privilege, and keeping sensitive information in secrets. Users can enable or disable checks and create custom checks for organizational policies. Failed checks produce remediation recommendations and a non-zero exit code. KubeLinter can generate several output formats in one run, including SARIF and JSON, and supports pull request scanning. Documented installation methods include Go, release binaries, Homebrew or LinuxBrew, nix-shell, and Docker. Container images are signed with cosign, with a public verification key supplied. The project uses the Apache License 2.0 and lists no paid tiers. Its README identifies StackRox as creator and Red Hat as current maintainer. The README also warns that commands, flags, and configuration formats may change. The latest listed release is v0.8.3.