HCL AppScan vs Kiuwan comparison

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HCL AppScan

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 8, 2024

HCL AppScan and Kiuwan compete in the application security category. Users indicate Kiuwan may have the upper hand due to its advanced features despite higher pricing.

Features: HCL AppScan offers extensive security testing capabilities, competitive pricing, and comprehensive support. Kiuwan provides advanced analysis features across coding languages, easy integration with workflows, and a robust feature set.

Room for Improvement: HCL AppScan could improve its integration options, loading speeds, and customization capabilities. Kiuwan needs better customization, enhanced reporting functionalities, and broader integration options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: HCL AppScan is noted for straightforward deployment, valuable support during setup, and reliable customer service. Kiuwan presents a more complex deployment but offers responsive service and thorough technical guidance.

Pricing and ROI: HCL AppScan is praised for cost-effectiveness and strong ROI, balancing cost with functional depth. Kiuwan, despite being more costly, provides strong ROI with its advanced features and long-term value satisfaction.

To learn more, read our detailed HCL AppScan vs. Kiuwan Report (Updated: December 2025).

HCL AppScan vs. Kiuwan

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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

HCL AppScan

Ranking in Application Security Tools

20th

Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

17th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

5.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) (4th)

Kiuwan

Ranking in Application Security Tools

29th

Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

25th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Application Security Tools category, the mindshare of HCL AppScan is 2.3%, down from 2.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Kiuwan is 1.1%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Security Tools Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
HCL AppScan	2.3%
Kiuwan	1.1%
Other	96.6%

Application Security Tools

Featured Reviews

Ravi Khanchandani

Founder Director at Techsa Services

Has improved identification of encryption and authentication issues across cloud and on-prem applications

During the learning curve of onboarding HCL AppScan, we learned that HCL has altered the portfolio and now offers HCL AppScan 360, which has a much better look and feel with an improved user interface. However, there is one feature called SCA, which stands for Software Composition Analysis, that could be improved. When I'm doing an application scan, HCL AppScan has the ability to generate information about what components are in use. For example, if I'm scanning a web application, it shows me the various components being used. It tells me whether I have Java libraries, .NET frameworks, or other log management libraries such as Log4j, and what versions of those specific components are present. I would like to see more detailed reports from the tool. Currently, you can find out the components belonging to a specific software, but if detailed reporting became available, you would be in a better position to identify vulnerabilities. For instance, I could identify that I had the Log4j vulnerability and know that I need to fix my application accordingly. If they add the features I'm describing, I would consider giving them a higher rating. However, I've only been experienced with the product for three months.

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Anshul Anshul

Sr. Manager at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees

Efficient and accurate scanning, and detailed analysis

In Kiuwan there are sometimes duplicates found in the dependency scan under the "insights" tab. It's unclear to me why these duplicates are appearing, and it would be helpful if the application teams could investigate further. Another issue I've encountered is that Kiuwan only looks at the version of components and doesn't take into account any workaround fixes that have been implemented at the code level. This can result in false positives being reported. Additionally, these issues are in the "insights" tab and not in the code base security aspect. Lastly, when muting findings that are false positives, there should be an option to see the only available at the code level rather than at the organization level because it can lead to missing vulnerabilities if they are muted at the org level. An additional feature that would be helpful is the ability to easily download reports from Kiuwan. Specifically, in the "insights" tab, we have been encountering an error when trying to download the PDF report. We are able to download the code-based security report, but not the insights report. This has been an ongoing issue for the past couple of months and would be beneficial if it could be resolved. My main recommendation would be to address the issues with downloading reports that we have been experiencing. Additionally, it would be helpful if Kiuwan could support a wider range of programming languages, as there are currently some that are not compatible with the tool. If the code of a particular application falls under the category which is not compatible with Kiuwan, then it will not be able to scan it.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"AppScan's most valuable features include its ability to identify vulnerabilities accurately, provide detailed remediation steps, and the newly introduced AI-powered features that enhance its functionality further."

"It highlights, with several grades of severity, the types of vulnerabilities, so we can focus on the most severe security vulnerabilities in the code."

"It is easy it is to use. It is quick to find things, because of the code scanning tools. It's quite simple to use and it is very good the way it reports the findings."

"It was easy to set up."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is the scanning or security part."

"It identifies all the URLs and domains on its own and then performs tests and provides the results."

"The most valuable feature of HCL AppScan is scanning QR codes."

More HCL AppScan pros

"We are using this solution to increase the quality of our software and to test the vulnerabilities in our tools before the customers find them."

"I have found the security and QA in the source code to be most valuable."

"We use Kiuwan to locate the source of application vulnerabilities."

"I personally like the way it breaks down security vulnerabilities with LoC at first glance."

"I like that I can scan the code without sending it to the Kiuwan cloud. I can do it locally on my device. When the local analyzer finishes, the results display on the dashboard in the cloud. It's essential for security purposes to be able to scan my code locally."

"The solution has a continuous integration process."

"I like that it provides a detailed report that lets you know the risk index and the vulnerability."

"The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is quick when processing and giving an output or generating a report."

More Kiuwan pros

Cons

"IBM Security AppScan needs to add performance optimization for quickly scanning the target web applications."

"There is one feature called SCA, which stands for Software Composition Analysis, that could be improved."

"There are so many lines of code with so many different categories that I am likely to get lost. "

"Visibility is an issue for us. Our partners do not know we have integrations with some of IBM products."

"The penetration testing feature should be included."

"HCL AppScan needs to improve security."

"AppScan needs to improve its handling of false positives."

"The solution often has a high number of false positives. It's an aspect they really need to improve upon."

More HCL AppScan cons

"I would like to see better integration with Azure DevOps in the next release of this solution."

"DIfferent languages, such Spanish, Portuguese, and so on."

"The configuration hasn't been that good."

"I would like to see better integration with the Visual Studio and Eclipse IDEs."

"The product's UI has certain shortcomings, where improvements are required."

"The solution seems to give us a lot of false positives. This could be improved quite a bit."

"In Kiuwan there are sometimes duplicates found in the dependency scan under the "insights" tab. It's unclear to me why these duplicates are appearing, and it would be helpful if the application teams could investigate further."

"Perhaps more languages supported."

More Kiuwan cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is moderately priced."

"The price is very expensive."

"The solution is cheap."

"With the features, that they offer, and the support, they offer, AppScan pricing is on a higher level."

"Our clients are willing to pay the extra money. It is expensive."

"The product has premium pricing and could be more competitive."

"The price of HCL AppScan is okay, in my opinion. You just buy HCL AppScan and don't pay anything anymore, meaning it is just a one-time purchase."

"The product is moderately priced, though it's an investment due to extensive code analysis needs."

More HCL AppScan pricing and cost advice

"This solution is cheaper than other tools."

"Check with your account manager."

"Kiuwan is an open-source solution and free to use."

"The price of Kiuwan is lower than that of other tools on the market."

"Nothing special. It's a very fair model."

"It follows a subscription model. I think the price is somewhere in the middle."

"I recommend contacting a sales person who will create the best plan payment plan for you, as we did."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

13%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

13%

University

11%

Financial Services Firm

Performing Arts

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	14
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	31

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	16
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	6

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about HCL AppScan?

The most valuable feature of HCL AppScan is its integration with the SDLC, particularly during the coding phase.

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What needs improvement with HCL AppScan?

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What is your primary use case for HCL AppScan?

I'm currently working with BigFix and HCL AppScan. At least three people in my company are using HCL AppScan. Since we are a reseller, we run it in both lab environments and live production applica...

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Product Reports

HCL AppScan

Download HCL AppScan product report

Download Kiuwan product report

Also Known As

IBM Security AppScan, Rational AppScan, AppScan

No data available

Overview

IBM Security AppScan enhances web application security and mobile application security, improves application security program management and strengthens regulatory compliance. By scanning your web and mobile applications prior to deployment, AppScan enables you to identify security vulnerabilities and generate reports and fix recommendations.

HCLSoftware

Software analytics technology with a breadth of third party integrations that takes into account the wealth of applications your teams are currently using.

We facilitate and encourage work between unlocalized teams. We understand the complexity of working on multi technology environments, constantly striving to increase the number of programming languages and technologies we support.

Sample Customers

Essex Technology Group Inc., Cisco, West Virginia University, APIS IT

DHL, BNP Paribas, Zurich, AXA, Ernst & Young, KFC, Santander, Latam, Ferrovial

HCL AppScan vs. Kiuwan