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Cortex Xpanse vs Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 16, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Cortex Xpanse
Ranking in Attack Surface Management (ASM)
8th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Qualys CyberSecurity Asset ...
Ranking in Attack Surface Management (ASM)
4th
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
21
Ranking in other categories
Vulnerability Management (11th), Patch Management (8th), Cyber Asset Attack Surface Management (CAASM) (2nd), Software Supply Chain Security (7th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Attack Surface Management (ASM) category, the mindshare of Cortex Xpanse is 4.3%, down from 4.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management is 2.7%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Attack Surface Management (ASM)
 

Featured Reviews

Ali Mohamed - PeerSpot reviewer
Proactively manages security and identifies vulnerabilities with good alerts
We use Cortex Xpanse as a security control for attack surface management in our organization When there is an alert from Cortex Xpanse regarding a certificate or surface, it prompts us to take immediate action. It checks vulnerabilities periodically, ensuring they are addressed, which helps in…
Revathi VeeraRaghavan - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides comprehensive visibility and covers the complete attack surface
For some of the software, there was no life cycle or general information. We wanted them to give details in the database as and when the software comes. I raised a ticket for that, and after that, they updated the details for more than one million software. They should address the false positives generated in EASM. It is fetching assets that have Infosys as the keyword. They should fix that. When we click on the web application, it only shows potential web assets. The application details are not there. Overall, CSAM has matured a lot. These are the few enhancements that need to be done.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Cortex Xpanse is a strong solution for attack surface management, including digital brand protection and continuous monitoring."
"The most valuable aspect is its ability to catch trojans and malware."
"When there is an alert from Cortex Xpanse regarding a certificate or surface, it prompts us to take immediate action."
"As an attack surface manager, I highly recommend Cortex Xpanse, especially if there are many services exposed publicly on the internet."
"The most valuable aspect is its ability to catch trojans and malware."
"The most valuable features of the solution are its firewall and antivirus."
"Cortex Xpanse has an easy-to-use user interface."
"The integration with different third-party tools, such as cloud providers like Azure and AWS, and asset management tools like CMDB systems, is valuable."
"I recommend Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management due to its superior asset information collection capabilities, including comprehensive hardware and software inventorying."
"The best feature is asset discovery through their cloud agent or IP-based scanning."
"The scanning results are pretty good, and some insights are quite valuable."
"When you implement a dynamic tag using a query, you do not need to manually tag all the servers. It categorizes all the servers that come under that query. The tagging part is automatically done within a few minutes. It reduces the effort."
"Overall, I would give Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management a nine out of ten."
"I would rate Qualys CSAM a ten out of ten."
"The most valuable feature is the Management sensor, which helps identify gaps in policy agent availability, thereby improving agent utilization."
 

Cons

"It's challenging to confirm the absolute coverage and penetration of Cortex Xpanse into the Dark Web. The solution lacks comprehensive intelligence on adversaries and risks, which other competitors might provide."
"Cortex Xpanse needs to add dark-web scanning."
"Some improvements are needed in the user interface."
"Cortex Xpanse should offer better customization and configuration options on its dashboard."
"Some improvements are needed in the user interface. It may require more enhancements."
"Cortex Xpanse should offer better customization and configuration options on its dashboard."
"There is an issue with the old versions of Cortex, and so when we have an older one with Windows or any OS, we have a problem with its connectivity with the cloud."
"The deployment is somewhat complicated and could be made more user-friendly for most users."
"The Qualys CAPS service requires further exploration and improvement, particularly in its handling of protocols and reactivity with MAC and IP addresses for CAP agents."
"The scanning function could be improved."
"Qualys CSAM is not super responsive, and there can be delays sometimes, especially with the network passive sensor. You might see duplicate objects which eventually disappear but it takes time. If that can be done faster, it will be great."
"Qualys could improve by enhancing its dynamic tagging and role-based access control features, and by refining its user interface for a more intuitive and efficient user experience."
"Further research and development are needed to enhance integration with other cloud agents and products, particularly improving communication with external products and vendors."
"The Qualys CAPS service requires further exploration and improvement, particularly in its handling of protocols and reactivity with MAC and IP addresses for CAP agents."
"There can be further simplification to reduce the overall noise and provide ESAM-related data."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Cortex Xpanse is cheaper than other solutions."
"The tool's cost is too high."
"Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management can be expensive, especially if we already have VMDR."
"It is cost-effective because, in a single tool, we are getting everything. All the solutions come in a single license or price."
"Qualys is competitively priced for its features. Its pricing is suitable for large organizations with more than 4,000 assets, but for smaller organizations with few assets, such as banks, the costs might be high. They should come up with packages that are suitable for small organizations."
"The pricing is market-competitive."
"The pricing is fair. I would love to see the price come down a little bit, but we do get a lot of value out of it. We are squeezing every ounce of value we can out of the tool."
"The pricing for Qualys CSAM is nominal."
"Qualys offers excellent value for money."
"The Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management pricing is well-aligned with our usage."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
23%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Government
9%
Retailer
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cortex Xpanse?
Cortex Xpanse has an easy-to-use user interface.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cortex Xpanse?
Cortex Xpanse is a bit expensive compared to other market solutions like FortyRicoh and RiskIQ, making it more suitable for enterprise companies.
What needs improvement with Cortex Xpanse?
It's challenging to confirm the absolute coverage and penetration of Cortex Xpanse into the Dark Web. The solution lacks comprehensive intelligence on adversaries and risks, which other competitors...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management?
The Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management pricing is well-aligned with our usage.
What needs improvement with Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management?
Qualys is continually developing, adding new features each year. Previously, there was no on-demand scan feature in a cloud agent, but multiple features have since been added to my cloud agent modu...
What is your primary use case for Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management?
I have been working with Qualys for approximately two and a half years. I have used this module to manage security postures in cloud environments, and it is essentially used for hybrid management s...
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Cortex Xpanse vs. Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
842,672 professionals have used our research since 2012.