Go to Google (or Bing, which supports inurl: partially) and type:
inurl:view index.shtml best
Expected results: You will see a list of URLs like:
| Component | Meaning | Technical Implication |
|-----------|---------|------------------------|
| inurl: | Google search operator – finds URLs containing the specified string | Searches within the URL path, not the page content |
| view | Often appears in directory listing pages (e.g., "Index of /view") | Suggests a parent directory named "view" or a parameter |
| index | Default directory index file or folder name | May indicate an "index" folder or a custom index page |
| shtml | File extension for HTML with Server Side Includes (.shtml) | Indicates dynamic server-side processing (e.g., <!--#include virtual="..." -->) |
| best | Likely user-added keyword | Could refer to a file like best.shtml, best_practices.shtml, or a comment in the page | inurl view index shtml best
Interpreted Query: Find all URLs that contain the words view, index, and shtml in the URL path, with an emphasis on results that also include best.
In the world of cybersecurity, SEO, and digital forensics, search engines are more than just tools for finding cat videos or news articles. They are, in fact, massive databases of the world’s public information. Advanced operators—often called "Google Dorks"—allow researchers to drill down into this data with surgical precision. Go to Google (or Bing, which supports inurl:
One such powerful, yet often overlooked, query is: inurl:view index.shtml best
At first glance, this string looks like a random jumble of code. However, for penetration testers, bug bounty hunters, and system administrators, this specific search query is a goldmine. It reveals live web server statistics, real-time visitor logs, and sometimes, sensitive configuration pages that were never meant to be seen by the public. If you are a system administrator and you
This article will break down every component of this search query, explain why it works, show you how to use it ethically, and teach you how to protect your own servers from being exposed by it.
If you are a system administrator and you just ran inurl:view index.shtml against your own domain—and found results—you need to act immediately.
If the view directory does not require an index.shtml to exist, remove it. In Apache, edit .htaccess:
Options -Indexes
In Nginx:
autoindex off;