AutoAttack vs Nessus Professional
| AutoAttack Can an attacker reach your objective? | Nessus Professional Which vulnerabilities need attention? | |
|---|---|---|
| Setting up | Supply an objective, scope and exclusions. Deploy a campaign container on a dedicated Linux host with rootful Docker. AutoAttack quickstart | Choose scan targets and a template or policy. Supply credentials when you want authenticated checks. Nessus scan templates |
| During the assessment | Chain real attacks at machine speed, using each new credential or foothold to pursue the objective. | Run the selected vulnerability and audit checks. Credentialed patch audits inspect missing updates; policy audits check configuration against a baseline. Credentialed and audit checks |
| What you review | The access achieved and its dependencies. Subscribers can inspect target identities, captured evidence and recommended fixes. AutoAttack's campaign report | Vulnerability findings, risk scoring and configurable reports to support remediation work. Nessus Professional capabilities |
| Assessment question | What access did this campaign establish toward the objective? | What exposures did the selected checks identify? A scan's output depends on its policy, credentials and reachable targets. |
Use the result your decision requires.
Nessus fits vulnerability assessment and configuration auditing. AutoAttack fits testing an access objective and inspecting the route that the campaign established. An organization can use both as part of its assessment work.
This comparison covers Nessus Professional. Features of other Nessus editions and the wider Tenable platform may differ.
We tested both from the same GOAD snapshot.
Each tool started without credentials from the same network position. Nessus ran a vulnerability scan with safe checks enabled; AutoAttack pursued Domain Admin. Their outputs measure different capabilities.
Test the access that matters to you.
Run a free campaign and read its narrative with masked identities. A subscription reveals target names, captured evidence and fixes.
See annual per-host pricingPrepared by AutoAttack using the linked Tenable documentation, reviewed on . The GOAD results use one tested configuration; the research also records a separate credentialed scan.