Compliance Scanning -- Tenable Alternatives
Compliance scanning assesses systems against established security benchmarks and regulatory standards including CIS Benchmarks, DISA STIGs, PCI DSS, HIPAA, and SOC 2. Unlike vulnerability scanning that focuses on known CVEs, compliance scanning evaluates system configurations, security policies, access controls, and operational settings against prescribed baselines. Organizations use compliance scanning to prepare for audits, maintain continuous compliance, and reduce the attack surface created by misconfigurations.
Determine which compliance frameworks apply to your organization based on industry, geography, and customer requirements. Common frameworks include CIS Benchmarks (general hardening), DISA STIGs (government/defense), PCI DSS (payment card processing), HIPAA (healthcare), and SOC 2 (service organizations). Map each framework to the systems and asset groups it covers.
Create compliance scan policies for each applicable framework. Select the appropriate benchmark version (e.g., CIS Windows Server 2022 Level 1), configure profile levels, and define any organizational exceptions or compensating controls. Use authenticated scanning to ensure the scanner can evaluate system configurations accurately.
Run initial compliance scans across all in-scope systems to establish a baseline compliance posture. Document the current compliance percentage for each framework and identify the most common compliance gaps. Prioritize findings by risk impact and remediation effort to build an efficient hardening plan.
Address compliance findings systematically, starting with the highest-risk gaps that affect the most systems. Use configuration management tools (Ansible, GPO, Intune) to deploy hardening configurations at scale. Test configuration changes in staging environments before production deployment to avoid service disruptions.
Schedule recurring compliance scans at intervals appropriate for your regulatory requirements — typically weekly or monthly. Configure alerts for compliance drift when previously compliant systems fall out of compliance. Generate audit-ready reports that document compliance posture over time and track remediation progress.
Custom pricing based on asset count / Typically from $3,000/year for small environments
The most comprehensive compliance scanning alternative with certified CIS benchmark content, PCI DSS scanning, and automated compliance reporting. TruRisk scoring adds business context to compliance findings, and integrated patching enables direct remediation of compliance gaps.
Custom enterprise pricing / Typically $30-50/endpoint/year
Unmatched for real-time compliance verification at enterprise scale. Tanium can assess compliance across hundreds of thousands of endpoints in seconds and immediately verify remediation, making it ideal for large organizations with strict compliance SLAs.
From $2.19/asset/month / Enterprise custom pricing
Strong policy assessment capabilities with remediation project tracking that helps teams systematically address compliance gaps. Integration with the Rapid7 Insight platform provides additional security context for compliance findings.
Free (open source) / Greenbone Enterprise appliances from $5,000/year
A cost-effective open-source option for basic CIS compliance checking with SCAP and OVAL content support. Best for organizations with Linux expertise that need compliance scanning on a budget.
Included with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint P2 / Standalone add-on $3/user/month
Provides security baseline assessment for Microsoft environments at no additional cost with Defender for Endpoint P2. Best for organizations primarily needing Windows configuration compliance in Microsoft-centric environments.
Cloud-native vulnerability management platform with integrated detection, prioritization, and patch management
Custom pricing based on asset count / Typically from $3,000/year for small environments
Organizations wanting an all-in-one cloud-based VM platform with integrated patching and asset inventory
Converged endpoint management platform with real-time vulnerability assessment at massive enterprise scale
Custom enterprise pricing / Typically $30-50/endpoint/year
Large enterprises needing real-time endpoint visibility and vulnerability assessment at massive scale with integrated remediation
Risk-based vulnerability management platform with live dashboards and remediation project tracking
From $2.19/asset/month / Enterprise custom pricing
Organizations wanting risk-based VM with strong remediation tracking and integration across the Rapid7 Insight platform
The most widely used open-source vulnerability scanner with 100,000+ network vulnerability tests
Free (open source) / Greenbone Enterprise appliances from $5,000/year
Security teams wanting a free, open-source vulnerability scanner with no licensing costs and full customization control
Microsoft's built-in vulnerability management integrated with Defender for Endpoint
Included with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint P2 / Standalone add-on $3/user/month
Microsoft-centric organizations wanting vulnerability management bundled with their existing Defender for Endpoint deployment
Tenable provides extensive compliance scanning support including CIS Benchmarks for operating systems, cloud platforms, databases, and network devices; DISA STIGs for government and defense environments; PCI DSS requirements; HIPAA technical safeguards; and custom audit policies. Tenable's compliance content is among the most comprehensive in the industry, regularly updated for new benchmark versions and platform releases.
Vulnerability scanning identifies known CVEs and software flaws that could be exploited by attackers. Compliance scanning evaluates system configurations against prescribed security baselines — password policies, service configurations, network settings, access controls, and encryption settings. A system can be fully patched (no vulnerabilities) but misconfigured (non-compliant). Both scanning types are essential for a comprehensive security assessment program.
Greenbone OpenVAS provides basic CIS compliance checking through SCAP and OVAL content. However, open-source compliance coverage is significantly narrower than commercial tools like Tenable or Qualys, which maintain dedicated compliance content teams that update benchmarks for new platform versions. For organizations with strict regulatory requirements and audit obligations, commercial compliance scanning tools provide more reliable and comprehensive coverage.
Scan frequency depends on your regulatory requirements and risk tolerance. PCI DSS requires quarterly external scans and annual internal assessments. Most organizations benefit from monthly compliance scans for standard environments and weekly scans for high-security zones. Real-time compliance monitoring through agents (Tenable, Qualys, Tanium) provides the most responsive detection of compliance drift and is recommended for critical systems.
Cloud-native vulnerability management platform with integrated detection, prioritization, and patch management
ComparisonConverged endpoint management platform with real-time vulnerability assessment at massive enterprise scale
ComparisonRisk-based vulnerability management platform with live dashboards and remediation project tracking
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