Installation

Download a release or build from source, including the Windows App-Bound Encryption build.

HackBrowserData ships as a self-contained binary for each supported OS and architecture, with no language runtime to install. Pick the path that suits you:

• Prebuilt binaries — download a release archive and run it.
• Homebrew — install and update with Homebrew on macOS and Linux.
• Build from source — compile it yourself with Go.
• Windows App-Bound Encryption build — the build that decrypts Chrome 127+ cookies on Windows.

#Prebuilt binaries

Grab the latest release(opens in a new tab) for your operating system and architecture, then unpack it. Each archive bundles the binary alongside README.md and LICENSE.

macOS and Linux archives are .tar.gz; Windows archives are .zip. The Windows amd64 release embeds the App-Bound Encryption extractor. Windows arm64 is a standard build because the ABE payload is amd64-only.

#Verify the checksum

Each release includes checksums-vVERSION.txt, generated with SHA-256. Download it next to the archive, calculate the archive’s digest, and compare it with the matching line before running the binary:

# macOS
shasum -a 256 hack-browser-data-osx-arm64.tar.gz

# Linux
sha256sum hack-browser-data-linux-64bit.tar.gz

On Windows, run Get-FileHash .\hack-browser-data-windows-64bit.zip -Algorithm SHA256 in PowerShell. The calculated digest must exactly match the value in the checksum file.

#Make it runnable

On macOS and Linux, mark the binary executable. On macOS, also clear the quarantine flag Gatekeeper sets on downloaded files:

chmod +x hack-browser-data
# macOS only: clear the quarantine flag
xattr -d com.apple.quarantine hack-browser-data

On Windows, unzip the archive and run hack-browser-data.exe from a terminal.

#Homebrew

The project’s own tap, moonD4rk/homebrew-tap(opens in a new tab), is updated by the release workflow with every release and installs the official release binaries on macOS and Linux. Homebrew keeps the binary on your PATH and updates it with brew upgrade:

brew install moond4rk/tap/hack-browser-data

The formula is also in Homebrew Core(opens in a new tab), which Homebrew builds from source; it can trail a new release by a little:

brew install hack-browser-data

#Build from source

Building requires Go 1.20 or newer. Clone the repository and build the CLI:

git clone https://github.com/moond4rk/HackBrowserData.git
cd HackBrowserData
go build ./cmd/hack-browser-data/

Or install straight from the module path:

go install github.com/moond4rk/hackbrowserdata/cmd/hack-browser-data@latest

Note

The Go module path is lowercase hackbrowserdata, while the GitHub repository is HackBrowserData. Use the lowercase form with go install.

#Cross-compile for another OS

Set GOOS/GOARCH to target a different platform:

# Windows (standard build, no ABE cookies)
GOOS=windows GOARCH=amd64 go build ./cmd/hack-browser-data/
# Linux
GOOS=linux GOARCH=amd64 go build ./cmd/hack-browser-data/
# macOS (Apple Silicon)
GOOS=darwin GOARCH=arm64 go build ./cmd/hack-browser-data/

This produces the standard build. It decrypts everything except Chrome 127+ App-Bound (v20) cookies on Windows — for those, use the ABE build below.

#Windows App-Bound Encryption build

Chrome 127+ encrypts new cookies with App-Bound Encryption (the v20 scheme), which binds the key to the browser’s application identity. The standard build leaves affected cookie values blank; decrypting them needs a build that embeds a native key extractor. This applies to Chrome, Chrome Beta, Edge, Brave, and CocCoc, and is Windows-only (amd64).

The prebuilt Windows release already includes this build, so most users never compile it. To build it yourself, run one of these from the repository root.

The repository tracks the extractor’s C source, not a compiled payload. Install Zig(opens in a new tab) — the release workflow uses 0.16.0; brew install zig on macOS, scoop install zig on Windows, or use the official download(opens in a new tab) — then run:

make build-windows

make build-windows first compiles internal/abe/native/ into internal/abe/payload/abe_extractor_amd64.bin, then cross-compiles hack-browser-data.exe (GOOS=windows GOARCH=amd64) with the abe_embed build tag. To build or verify the payload separately:

make payload
make payload-verify

The resulting hack-browser-data.exe decrypts Chrome 127+ v20 cookies. (MinGW-w64 gcc can compile the C sources instead of Zig, but you must invoke it manually rather than using make payload.)

Note

Self-built and downloaded Windows binaries may be flagged by Windows Defender or other antivirus — reading browser secrets is exactly what credential-stealing malware does, so heuristics trip. The source is open; review or build it yourself.

#Verify the install

Confirm the build and that browser detection works:

# version, commit, and build date
hack-browser-data version
# detected browsers and profiles
hack-browser-data list

list shows detected browser display names, profiles, and paths. Use the canonical --browser key from Supported Browsers when targeting a command.

Warning

On macOS 26.4 or later, Safari passwords may fail to export. Other categories still export; see the Safari troubleshooting notes.

#Next steps

• Getting Started — run your first extraction.
• Supported Browsers — coverage by OS and data category, including App-Bound Encryption.
• How It Works — why App-Bound Encryption needs a dedicated build.