Similarities And Weaknesses Of Vulnerability Scanners

Comparison of Vulnerability Scanners Introduction With the advancements in information technology, the security concern of the users in the network is increasing drastically. Various approaches have been adopted to protect respective network from un-authorized users. New innovative methods have been presented in order to identify potential discrepancies that can damage the network. Most commonly used approach for this purpose is vulnerability assessment. Vulnerability can be defined as the potential flaws in the network that make it prone to possible attack by un-authorized user. Assessment of these vulnerabilities provides a way to identify as well as develop innovative strategies in order to protect the network. Numbers of software†¦show more content†¦Accessing as well as eliminating the all vulnerabilities requires in depth understanding and sound knowledge about them. It becomes essential to have basic idea behind the working of these vulnerabilities like the way in which they appear in any system. One must be aware of the flaws needed to be corrected in order to free the whole system from vulnerabilities, alternatives can also be devised for this purpose and how to reduce the risk of them in a proactive manner [2]. Various methods have been introduced for the identification of these vulnerabilities. Some of the methods include attack graph generation, static analysis and vulnerability scanners. This work presents a detailed study of the vulnerability scanners. It also analysis number of vulnerability scanners and make comparison of them based on their identification abilities. Vulnerability Scanners A Vulnerability scanner can have access to a variety of vulnerabilities across complete information systems including network systems, software applications, computers and operating systems. It must be able to identify the vulnerabilities that could have originated from system administrator activities, vendors or even everyday user activities. Possible examples of these vulnerabilities include software bugs, web applications, insecure default configurations, lack of password protection or even failure to run virus scanning