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Tenable Nessus Pros and Cons: Top Advantages and Disadvantages

Quick AI Summary Based on G2 Reviews

Generated from real user reviews

Users value the accurate vulnerability detection of Tenable Nessus, enhancing their security management and remediation efforts. (18 mentions)
Users value the automated scanning capabilities of Nessus, optimizing vulnerability detection and streamlining security management. (15 mentions)
Users value the accurate vulnerability detection of Tenable Nessus, enhancing security management and risk assessment processes. (14 mentions)
Users appreciate the user-friendly interface of Tenable Nessus, enabling quick navigation and efficient usage. (13 mentions)
Users appreciate the comprehensive scanning and reporting features of Tenable Nessus, ensuring effective vulnerability management. (13 mentions)
Users experience slow scanning times, particularly in large environments, causing delays and potential production interruptions. (8 mentions)
Users find Tenable Nessus has limited features in the free version, restricting capabilities and increasing costs for advanced use. (6 mentions)
Users face challenges with false positives in Tenable Nessus, resulting in extra workload and confusion for security teams. (5 mentions)
Users find the complexity of initial setup and advanced features challenging, especially for beginners and large environments. (4 mentions)
Users experience slow performance during scans, often requiring extended downtime and affecting operational efficiency. (4 mentions)
Users find the inaccuracy in scan results of Tenable Nessus frustrating, affecting overall reliability and consistency. (3 mentions)
Users find the lack of automation in Tenable Nessus hampers efficiency and complicates asset management processes. (3 mentions)
Users experience update delays that lead to falling behind on crucial product updates and notifications. (3 mentions)
Users find the complex UI of Tenable Nessus challenging, making feature navigation and use case development difficult. (2 mentions)
Users find limited automation in Nessus, making it challenging to manage past scans and overall efficiency. (2 mentions)
Users find the time-consuming nature of vulnerability scanning and remediation a significant drawback of Tenable Nessus. (2 mentions)

Top Pros or Advantages of Tenable Nessus

1. Vulnerability Identification
Users value the accurate vulnerability detection of Tenable Nessus, enhancing their security management and remediation efforts.
See 18 mentions

See Related User Reviews

RISHAV K.
RK

RISHAV K.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"How Nessus helps in security audits"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus helps organizations during the auditing process by providing clear reports of the vulnerabilities as they are found during the scanning. The ag

Verified User
A

Verified User

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

4.5/5

"Essential Tool for Network Security Assessments"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus is easy to use, fast, and highly accurate. I like its wide vulnerability coverage, regular updates, and clear, detailed reports.

2. Automated Scanning
Users value the automated scanning capabilities of Nessus, optimizing vulnerability detection and streamlining security management.
See 15 mentions

See Related User Reviews

RISHAV K.
RK

RISHAV K.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"How Nessus helps in security audits"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus helps organizations during the auditing process by providing clear reports of the vulnerabilities as they are found during the scanning. The ag

JT

John T.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Tenable Nessus"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

Tenable Nessus has been the industry standard for many years. This is because it will do everything that you need it to do while scanning your infras

3. Vulnerability Detection
Users value the accurate vulnerability detection of Tenable Nessus, enhancing security management and risk assessment processes.
See 14 mentions

See Related User Reviews

RISHAV K.
RK

RISHAV K.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"How Nessus helps in security audits"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus helps organizations during the auditing process by providing clear reports of the vulnerabilities as they are found during the scanning. The ag

Verified User
A

Verified User

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

4.5/5

"Essential Tool for Network Security Assessments"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus is easy to use, fast, and highly accurate. I like its wide vulnerability coverage, regular updates, and clear, detailed reports.

4. Ease of Use
Users appreciate the user-friendly interface of Tenable Nessus, enabling quick navigation and efficient usage.
See 13 mentions

See Related User Reviews

DN

Divi N.

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

4.0/5

"Best free to use vulnerability scanner"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

-Free to use -Has community version where you can use Nessus for free to some extent -Great user interface -It also identifies miscofinguration in

DV

Deepsan V.

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

4.0/5

"Tenable Nessus professional"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus has one of the largest libraries of vulnerability and configuration checks, covering a wide range of systems, devices, and applications. Despi

5. Features
Users appreciate the comprehensive scanning and reporting features of Tenable Nessus, ensuring effective vulnerability management.
See 13 mentions

See Related User Reviews

RISHAV K.
RK

RISHAV K.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"How Nessus helps in security audits"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus helps organizations during the auditing process by providing clear reports of the vulnerabilities as they are found during the scanning. The ag

JT

John T.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Tenable Nessus"

What do you like about Tenable Nessus?

Tenable Nessus has been the industry standard for many years. This is because it will do everything that you need it to do while scanning your infras

Top Cons or Disadvantages of Tenable Nessus

1. Slow Scanning
Users experience slow scanning times, particularly in large environments, causing delays and potential production interruptions.
See 8 mentions

See Related User Reviews

SC

Sergio C.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Clean Interface and Simple Use."

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Only Downside can be the scan time, but that is also dependent on equipment and environment.

Jatin .
J

Jatin .

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

4.0/5

"One stop solution for Vulnerability Detection and Management"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

1. Nothing as such to complain of, as the major purpose is being handled in very efficient way, though scan time and results sometimes remain inconsis

2. Limited Features
Users find Tenable Nessus has limited features in the free version, restricting capabilities and increasing costs for advanced use.
See 6 mentions

See Related User Reviews

VK

Vivek K.

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

4.0/5

"Tenable Nessus Review"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Most of its features will be locked for normal public and it doesnot even comes with a professional suite .

DN

Divi N.

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

4.0/5

"Best free to use vulnerability scanner"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

-I have only used free community version and it has quite a few limitation with number of hosts and scans etc.

3. False Positives
Users face challenges with false positives in Tenable Nessus, resulting in extra workload and confusion for security teams.
See 5 mentions

See Related User Reviews

DV

Deepsan V.

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

4.0/5

"Tenable Nessus professional"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

While Nessus is known for its comprehensive vulnerability scanning capabilities, it can sometimes produce false positives, which can lead to unnecessa

Hemang D.
HD

Hemang D.

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

4.5/5

"Feedback regarding tenable support"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

ensure to have exhaustive scan so that one doesnt miss any true negative and also focus on minimizing false positives

4. Complexity
Users find the complexity of initial setup and advanced features challenging, especially for beginners and large environments.
See 4 mentions

See Related User Reviews

Verified User
U

Verified User

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Nessus Professional has the best price/coverage ratio of the industry"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus Professional need some good process OR automation to get the most of it as you dont have any 'quality of life' feature like dashboard, tracking

Verified User
A

Verified User

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

4.5/5

"Essential Tool for Network Security Assessments"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

The user interface can feel a bit outdated, and initial setup or scan tuning may be complex for beginners. Also, advanced features require a paid lice

5. Slow Performance
Users experience slow performance during scans, often requiring extended downtime and affecting operational efficiency.
See 4 mentions

See Related User Reviews

SC

Sergio C.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Clean Interface and Simple Use."

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Only Downside can be the scan time, but that is also dependent on equipment and environment.

RISHAV K.
RK

RISHAV K.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"How Nessus helps in security audits"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Sometimes when we are scanning the vulnerabilities in a large environment it takes time like 2-3 days to find all the vulnerabilities of the whole env

6. Inaccuracy
Users find the inaccuracy in scan results of Tenable Nessus frustrating, affecting overall reliability and consistency.
See 3 mentions

See Related User Reviews

Verified User
U

Verified User

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Good Product"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Not as thorough as we would have liked.

Jatin .
J

Jatin .

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

4.0/5

"One stop solution for Vulnerability Detection and Management"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

1. Nothing as such to complain of, as the major purpose is being handled in very efficient way, though scan time and results sometimes remain inconsis

7. Lack of Automation
Users find the lack of automation in Tenable Nessus hampers efficiency and complicates asset management processes.
See 3 mentions

See Related User Reviews

Verified User
U

Verified User

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Nessus Professional has the best price/coverage ratio of the industry"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus Professional need some good process OR automation to get the most of it as you dont have any 'quality of life' feature like dashboard, tracking

Verified User
A

Verified User

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Great Tool"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

The past scans can take up disk space. I haven't found a good way to automatically remove the old ones.

8. Update Delays
Users experience update delays that lead to falling behind on crucial product updates and notifications.
See 3 mentions

See Related User Reviews

PW

Paul W.

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)

4.5/5

"Tenable Nessus - great and flexible vulnerability assessment tool"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Sometimes we don't get notifications of updates to the prduct and therefore we fall behind latest updates.

GM

Gabe M.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

4.5/5

"as an industry standard software when it comes to vulnerability scanning."

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

offline updates can be difficult and can be troublesome.

9. Complex UI
Users find the complex UI of Tenable Nessus challenging, making feature navigation and use case development difficult.
See 2 mentions

See Related User Reviews

Verified User
U

Verified User

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

5.0/5

"Smooth Experience"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

There is nothing to like about it. Although the UI can be modernise

Verified User
A

Verified User

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

4.5/5

"Essential Tool for Network Security Assessments"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

The user interface can feel a bit outdated, and initial setup or scan tuning may be complex for beginners. Also, advanced features require a paid lice

10. Limited Automation
Users find limited automation in Nessus, making it challenging to manage past scans and overall efficiency.
See 2 mentions

See Related User Reviews

Verified User
U

Verified User

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Nessus Professional has the best price/coverage ratio of the industry"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus Professional need some good process OR automation to get the most of it as you dont have any 'quality of life' feature like dashboard, tracking

Verified User
A

Verified User

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"Great Tool"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

The past scans can take up disk space. I haven't found a good way to automatically remove the old ones.

11. Time-Consuming
Users find the time-consuming nature of vulnerability scanning and remediation a significant drawback of Tenable Nessus.
See 2 mentions

See Related User Reviews

RISHAV K.
RK

RISHAV K.

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

5.0/5

"How Nessus helps in security audits"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Sometimes when we are scanning the vulnerabilities in a large environment it takes time like 2-3 days to find all the vulnerabilities of the whole env

Verified User
U

Verified User

Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)

4.0/5

"One of the best vulnerability scanners on the market"

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

I wish Nessus had a vulnerability remediation option. Finding all the detailed vulnerabilities is only half the battle, researching the vulnerability

Tenable Nessus Reviews (295)

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Tenable Nessus Reviews (295)

View 1 Video Reviews
4.5
295 reviews
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Lavesh K.
LK
L1 NOC Engineer
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Nessus Review"
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

Tenable Nessus is versatile and flexible to use. This software can be used to security scans, network scanning, vulnerability assessment and scanning. It's interface is user friendly and anyone can use it very easily. It has ability to automate scanning and reporting tasks. This software can help to organization for identifying vulnerability, threats to their systems and networks. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

It can be expensive and it may use in larger organization that requires high functionality and support. It is designed for user friendly interface but still it requires a knowledge or training to get useful. It consumes more time for scanning. It up to individual decision whether they require this software or not on the basis of their software requirements. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Verified User in Hospitality
UH
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Leading and best vulnerability scanning tool"
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

1. Tenable Nessus is always up-to-date with the vulnerabilities database which scans for all the latest vulnerabilities.

2. They provide decent customer support.

3. It solves the implementation in 2 ways - agent-based and credentials-based.

4. It provides an interactive and nice GUI as well along with easy integration with other tools. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

It cannot pull asset tags itself. We need to set up a whole different automation to ingest custom asset tags into Tenable nessus. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Vidhi P.
VP
Cyber Security Analyst
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Nessus scanner"
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

Tenable nessus scanner is user friendly and the UI of this tool is soo easy to use that anyon can understand and use it effectively. It is best vulnerability scanning and network scanning tool. The scanning and reporting task can be automated which is the best feature. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Sometimes it uses more time for the scanning and reporting otherwise this is the best for vulnerability scanning and network scanning. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

PS
Systems Administrator
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Tenable Nessus Pro works well to help us achieve PCI-DSS compliance"
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

Tenable Nessus Pro works well to help us achieve PCI-DSS compliance. We scan our servers monthly and remediate any vulnerabilities as needed. When it comes to our annual PCI-DSS audit we provide the Nessus Pro reports to our QSA. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

There is nothing to dislike about Tenable Nessus Pro. It gives us all the information needed to find and remediate any vulnerabilities on our development and production servers. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Brijveer S.
BS
SOC Analyst
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Tenable Nessus"
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

Tenable Nessus is very efficient and effective tool which is used for security, network, vulnerability scanning and managing. Its interface is very user friendly. The scanning and reporting is automated which increases the productivity. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Sometimes we have to fetch report for a longer period then scanning and reporting takes lot of time. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

JE
Information Technology Security Specialist
Security and Investigations
Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)
"Nessus pro"
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

Able to scan any type of device with IP. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

We canot do Mobile applications testing. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

PW
Project Manager
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Tenable Nessus - great and flexible vulnerability assessment tool"
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

Pluggins are updated very frequently to include latest vulnerabilities with suggestions of how to address them.

API and interfaces to export the scan results works well. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Sometimes we don't get notifications of updates to the prduct and therefore we fall behind latest updates. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Verified User in Information Technology and Services
UI
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
""Nessus review - One of the best tool for on-prem VM""
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

I think Nessus is a best and versatile vulnerability assessment tool that helps organizations to manage their security risks. With comprehensive coverage, advanced scanning techniques, it provides accurate vulnerability detection. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Nessus in the Pro version is limited to one user. Not follow up or comparison between latest scan and recent." Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

VK
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Tenable Nessus Review"
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

The Advance scan functionality is best and does a deep scan and it is more in depth than a normal scan. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Most of its features will be locked for normal public and it doesnot even comes with a professional suite . Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Abhishek Kumar G.
AG
Associate Consultant
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Tenable Nessus"
What do you like best about Tenable Nessus?

1. Portability: Install on Laptop and use any where required.

2.Quick: Quickly completes scan.

3.Easy to use.

4. Cost effective. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Tenable Nessus?

Lesser options for reports and dashboards. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

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