Vulnerability Scanning Explained: What It Is & Why It’s Important for Compliance in 2025
This article is written and contributed by Red Sentry, a proud Secureframe partner.
As organizations navigate an increasingly complex threat and regulatory landscape, vulnerability scanners can help bolster an organization’s vulnerability management program. But what is a vulnerability scanner?
A vulnerability scanner is a tool that automatically identifies and reports on any vulnerabilities found. When used in conjunction with a compliance automation platform, a vulnerability scanner can help organizations enhance their security posture and meet compliance requirements.
Keep reading to learn what vulnerability scanning is, how it works, and what benefits it offers.
What is vulnerability scanning?
Vulnerability scanning uses automation to identify security weaknesses in computer systems, networks, and applications. For example, a vulnerability scanner can identify outdated software versions, missing patches, and misconfigurations, and validate compliance with or deviations from an organization’s security policy.
By conducting regular scans, organizations can proactively address vulnerabilities, reducing the risk of cyberattacks and data breaches. This can help demonstrate a commitment to data protection, instill confidence in stakeholders, and strengthen your overall security posture. It can also help organizations maintain compliance with industry regulations and security standards, as many frameworks require or strongly recommend vulnerability scanning.
To understand why vulnerability scanning can help meet requirements in SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, HIPAA, NIST CSF, and other frameworks, let's look at NIST SP 800-15, Technical Guide to Information Security Testing and Assessment. According to this special publication, vulnerability scanning is one of several technical target identification and analysis techniques that should be part of an information security assessment to determine how effective security controls are over time. Vulnerability scanning, like all types of technical target identification and analysis techniques, focuses on identifying active devices and systems on a network as well as their associated ports and services running on them and analyzing them for potential vulnerabilities.
However, unlike other techniques like port scanning, vulnerability scanning not only identifies active hosts, operating systems, ports, services, and applications that may be vulnerable to attack — it also attempts to identify the vulnerabilities and provide information on how to mitigate those discovered vulnerabilities instead of relying solely on human interpretation of the scanning results. NIST 800-15 does emphasize that vulnerability scanning still requires a high degree of human involvement to interpret results accurately. But while somewhat labor-intensive, vulnerability scanning is critical for ensuring that vulnerabilities are mitigated before they are discovered and exploited.
Before we dive deeper into the benefits of using a vulnerability scanning or how the process works, let’s clarify how vulnerability scanning relates to terms that are often used interchangeably.
Vulnerability scanning vs penetration testing
Vulnerability scanning and penetration testing are both forms of security testing designed to assess an organization’s security posture, but there are key differences.
A vulnerability scan is a high-level test that focuses on the identification, prioritization, and reporting of vulnerabilities using automated tools, whereas a pen test is a more in-depth test designed to not only discover but exploit vulnerabilities and potentially move deeper through your environment to discover additional threats.
A pen test can do this by using threat intelligence and modeling simulations to map out the application’s entire attack surface to identify possible attack entry points. Automated vulnerability scans, on the other hand, don’t necessarily consider the organization’s application business logic, which could lead to overlooked vulnerabilities or false positives.
That’s why a vulnerability scan is often just one part of the penetration testing process.
Recommended reading
Vulnerability Scanning vs Penetration Testing: Which Security Assessment Do You Need?
Vulnerability scanning vs vulnerability management
Vulnerability management is the overall process organizations use to identify, analyze, and manage vulnerabilities within their operating environment and it often consists of multiple components, including:
- Vulnerability scanning
- DAST scanning
- SAST scanning
- Risk assessment
- Employee training
- Penetration testing
So you can think of vulnerability scanning as a subset of vulnerability management.
Recommended reading
A Step-by-Step Guide to the Vulnerability Management Process [+ Policy Template]
How does vulnerability scanning work?
Vulnerability scanning works by using specialized software to systematically scan and analyze the operating systems and major software applications running on the host devices on a network. The software searches for outdated software versions, missing patches, misconfigurations, and other security weaknesses and matches them with with information on known vulnerabilities stored in the scanners’ vulnerability databases.
It then generates a detailed report highlighting the identified vulnerabilities and their severity levels.
Organizations can use this information to prioritize and address the vulnerabilities, applying patches, configuration changes, or other security measures to strengthen their defenses and reduce security risks.
Conducting vulnerability scanning regularly can therefore help maintain a proactive security stance, ensuring that new vulnerabilities are promptly detected and mitigated to safeguard critical data and assets. Let's take a closer look at these benefits below.
Benefits of vulnerability scanning
Organizations of all sizes can use vulnerability scanners to proactively detect and address security weaknesses. In fact, small businesses are often more vulnerable to cyberattacks due to resource limitations and potentially weaker defenses.
With vulnerability scanning, organizations can effectively bolster their cybersecurity efforts, safeguard critical data, and mitigate the heightened risk of cyber threats that could lead to operational disruptions and reputational damage. Let’s take a closer look at these benefits below.
1. Early detection of weaknesses
Vulnerability scanners allow you to identify security weaknesses and flaws in your systems, networks, and applications before they are exploited by hackers and other malicious actors. This proactive approach enables timely mitigation, reducing the risk of cyberattacks and data breaches.
2. Efficient risk management
By providing detailed reports on vulnerabilities and their severity levels, vulnerability scanners help your business prioritize security efforts. This allows you to allocate resources more effectively to address the most critical vulnerabilities first, thereby reducing your overall risk exposure.
3. Compliance and regulatory adherence
Many industry regulations and standards require organizations to conduct regular vulnerability assessments. For example, SOC 2, ISO 27001, and PCI DSS all require regular internal and external vulnerability scanning (usually quarterly).
By using vulnerability scanners, your organization can demonstrate compliance with these requirements, avoiding potential penalties and legal consequences.
4. Time and cost savings
Automated vulnerability scanning significantly reduces the time and effort required to identify security weaknesses manually. This translates into cost savings by minimizing the potential impact of security incidents and streamlining security operations.
5. Enhanced security posture
Regular use of vulnerability scanners helps organizations maintain a strong security posture by continuously monitoring for new vulnerabilities and changes in the environment. This proactive stance can help you stay ahead of potential threats and maintain a vigilant approach to security.
Overall, vulnerability scanners are valuable tools for identifying, prioritizing, and addressing security vulnerabilities, contributing to a more secure and resilient digital infrastructure.
Types of vulnerability scans
There are several types of vulnerability scans, each designed to address specific aspects of security:
Network vulnerability scans
Internal network vulnerability scans are conducted within the organization's network, typically from behind the firewall. They help identify vulnerabilities that could be exploited by an insider or by malware that has already breached the perimeter.
Network vulnerability scans can also be performed from outside the organization's network, targeting the public-facing components like web servers, firewalls, and other perimeter defenses. They identify vulnerabilities that could be exploited by external attackers.
Web application scans
These scans focus on identifying web application vulnerabilities, such as SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and insecure configurations. They’re are crucial for organizations that rely heavily on web applications for their operations or customer interactions.
Database vulnerability scans
Database vulnerability scans specifically targets databases, assessing them for security flaws like weak passwords, default configurations, missing patches, and SQL injection risks. Since databases often store sensitive data, securing them is critical.
Operating system vulnerability scans
These scans assess the operating system of a device or server for known vulnerabilities. This includes checking for missing patches, outdated software, and insecure configurations. The focus is on the OS level security.
Wireless network scans
This type of vulnerability scan analyzes wireless network security for potential vulnerabilities such as weak encryption protocols, rogue access points, and misconfigurations. With the increasing use of Wi-Fi networks, securing them is vital to prevent unauthorized access.
Credentialed vs. non-credentialed scans
Credentialed scans have access to the system's credentials (e.g., administrator or root access) and can perform a deeper assessment. They are more thorough, identifying vulnerabilities that are not visible from the outside.
Non-credentialed scans are performed without any credentials, simulating an attack by an outsider. They are less detailed but useful for identifying vulnerabilities that could be exploited by an unauthenticated attacker.
Compliance scans
Compliance scans focus on checking systems and networks against specific regulatory standards and frameworks, such as PCI DSS, HIPAA, or GDPR, to ensure that the organization meets all required security and compliance guidelines.
Host-based scans
These scans target individual devices or servers, assessing them for vulnerabilities related to installed software, operating systems, and configurations. Host-based scans can identify issues like outdated software versions or unpatched vulnerabilities.
Cloud vulnerability scans
Designed to assess cloud environments, including Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS), these scans look for misconfigurations, insecure APIs, and other cloud-specific vulnerabilities.
Continuous vulnerability scans
Unlike traditional scans that are performed periodically, continuous monitoring tools run constantly, providing real-time detection of vulnerabilities as they emerge.
Recommended reading
7 Benefits of Continuous Monitoring & How Automation Can Maximize Impact
Vulnerability scanning tools
Vulnerability scanning tools are automated tools that scan web applications and networks to look for and report vulnerabilities such as cross-site scripting, SQL injection, command injection, path traversal and insecure server configuration.
Here are some possible criteria to use when evaluating vulnerability scanning tools:
- Types of environments: A vulnerability scanning tool can analyze different environments: internal, external, and cloud. Ensure you pick a tool that can analyze the environments you have. You may need one tool that can scan all three.
- Actionable reporting: A vulnerability scanning tool should provide comprehensive reports that show you what's wrong, where it's wrong, and how to fix it.
- Size of database and frequency of updates: When evaluating vulnerability scanning tools, determine how large its database of known vulnerabilities is and how often it’s updated. This can help provide assurance that it’s finding and reporting the latest identified exploits and vulnerabilities.
- False positive rate: The best vulnerability scanning tools strike a balance between quantity and quality of vulnerabilities so they identify as many vulnerabilities as possible while minimizing false positives and negatives. Look for a vulnerability scanning tool with a low false positive rate.
Using a vulnerability scanner in conjunction with an automated compliance platform
Vulnerability scanners play a pivotal role in safeguarding digital assets by proactively identifying security weaknesses. They help organizations stay ahead of potential threats, enabling timely mitigation and reducing the risk of cyberattacks and data breaches.
While vulnerability scanners are powerful tools in themselves, pairing them with compliance automation platforms can further streamline the vulnerability management process as well as the often complex task of maintaining security and privacy compliance. For example, Secureframe is an automated compliance platform designed to help companies achieve and maintain rigorous security standards, such as SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, and PCI DSS. It streamlines the compliance process by offering deep integrations that connect with your tech stack to automate evidence collection, risk management, vendor and personnel management, asset inventory management, remediation efforts for failing tests, and more.
The synergy between Red Sentry’s vulnerability scanner and Secureframe’s compliance automation platform ensures that not only are vulnerabilities promptly addressed, but also that the organization's overall security posture aligns with industry standards. Together, these tools offer a comprehensive and proactive approach to cybersecurity and regulatory compliance.
FAQs
What is a vulnerability scanner?
A vulnerability scanner is a tool that automatically scans systems, networks, or applications to identify known security weaknesses. These scanners compare your assets against databases of known vulnerabilities, such as CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures), and flag any matches that could be exploited by attackers.
Why is vulnerability scanning important?
Vulnerability scanning is a testing technique used to identify security weaknesses in computer systems, networks, and applications. When done regularly, vulnerability scanning is critical for proactively identifying and addressing vulnerabilities. This helps organizations reduce the risk of cyberattacks and data breaches and maintain compliance with industry regulations and security standards, as many frameworks require or recommend vulnerability scanning.
What is an example of vulnerability scanning?
An example of vulnerability scanning is using a tool like AWS Inspector or Github Dependabot to scan a company’s network for outdated software or misconfigured systems. For instance, the scanner might detect that a server is running an outdated version of Apache with a known security flaw (e.g., CVE-2021-41773). The scan would flag this vulnerability, assign a severity rating, and recommend updating the software to a patched version to reduce the risk of exploitation.
How does vulnerability scanning work?
Vulnerability scanning works by scanning devices, systems, and applications for known flaws and misconfigurations. The scanner identifies active hosts and open ports, analyzes software versions and configurations, and compares this information against vulnerability databases. Once complete, the scan provides a report of discovered issues, typically prioritized by severity, to guide remediation efforts.
What is the difference between a vulnerability scan and a security scan?
A vulnerability scan focuses specifically on identifying known vulnerabilities in systems, applications, and networks that could be exploited. A security scan is a broader term that may include vulnerability scans, but also covers compliance checks, configuration assessments, malware scans, and other security evaluations. In short, vulnerability scanning is one component of a broader security scan.