Three New Tools Added in Kali Linux 2025.4
Kali Linux closed 2025 with version 2025.4, the distribution's final release for the year. The update delivers three new penetration testing tools, desktop environment improvements, and expanded hardware support through Wayland integration.
The release centers on three desktop environment updates. GNOME 49 brings updated themes, the Showtime video player, reorganized application folders, and new terminal hotkeys. More significantly, GNOME 49 drops X11 support entirely—the desktop now runs exclusively on Wayland. This shift enabled full support for virtual machine utilities in VirtualBox, VMware, and QEMU.
KDE Plasma received an update to version 6.5, adding improved window tiling, an enhanced screenshot tool, better clipboard access, and more flexible fuzzy search in KRunner.
Xfce now supports color themes, matching functionality already available in GNOME and KDE.
New Tools
The 2025.4 release adds three utilities to Kali's arsenal:
- bpf-linker — a static linker for BPF programs
- evil-winrm-py — a Python implementation for executing commands on remote Windows systems via WinRM
- hexstrike-ai — an MCP server enabling AI agents to run tools autonomously
NetHunter Updates
Kali NetHunter expanded device support to include Android 16 (Samsung Galaxy S10 and OnePlus Nord) and Android 15 (Xiaomi Mi 9). NetHunter Terminal restored compatibility with Magisk versions using interactive mode, preventing terminal sessions from closing when users press Ctrl+C.
The release includes a preview version of Wifipumpkin3, a framework for rogue access point attacks. The tool ships with phishing templates for Facebook, Instagram, iCloud, and Snapchat.
Distribution Changes
Additional updates in 2025.4:
- The Kali live image is now distributed exclusively via BitTorrent (the file size exceeds practical limits for HTTP downloads)
- Three new community mirrors were added in Asia and one in the USA
- Kali Cloud and Kali WSL received stability improvements and bug fixes