Go to the web GUI link and login with the username and password. It also supports plugins, proxies, different output formats and multiple scan options. It scans Web Server’s configurations such as HTTP allowed methods, default directories and files.

It also scans Web Server’s version to check for version related problems. Nikto is a simple, free and Open Source Scanner which is able to perform scanning for more than 6400 potentials threats and files. sC : Scan using all default scripts Nikto A : Aggressive scan, scans for everything There are a lot of other options available in Nmap such as: Nmap comes pre-installed with a lot of vulnerability scanning scripts which can be used using “–script” command. Nmap has its own scripting engine “nse” in which you can write your own vulnerability scanning scripts. We’ll try nessus on Ubuntu, for that we’ll download. It has its own scripting language which can be used to write plugins and extensions. It can automatically scan remote/local servers and web application for vulnerabilities. It has continuous commercial and community support and is update regularly. A limited freeware ‘Nessus Home’ version is also available, but this version doesn’t have all of its features and can be used only for home networks. Now, its professional version costs around $2,190 per year according to their website, which is still much cheaper that as compared to its competitors’ products. It was a freeware and open source product initially, but then in 2005 it was close sourced and removed from open source projects. It has a Graphical User Interface and is compatible with almost every operating system including Windows, MAC and Unix like Operating systems. Nessus is the most famous and effective cross-platform vulnerability scanner. There are a lot of Open source and Proprietary vulnerability scanners in the market but we’ll discuss some popular and capable vulnerability scanners available. These are used by companies that have large corporate networks and web applications which normally can’t be tested manually. They maintain a database of vulnerabilities to scan for potential exploits in a system or application. Vulnerability scanning tools automate the process of vulnerability scanning. A vulnerability refers to as a threat that can result into system compromise or data loss. The process of recognition, categorization and mitigation of vulnerabilities present in a network or application is called vulnerability scanning or assessment.

How to use nessus on local network