HCL AppScan vs Synopsys Defensics comparison

The compared HCLSoftware and Black Duck solutions aren't in the same category. HCLSoftware is ranked #15 in AS , with an average rating of 7.9, and holds a 2.7% mindshare in the category. Black Duck is ranked #5 in FTT , and holds a 20.3% mindshare. Additionally, 83% of HCLSoftware users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Black Duck users who would recommend it.

HCL AppScan

Read 43 HCL AppScan reviews

4,123 Views
3,144 Comparison Views

83% willing to recommend

Synopsys Defensics

Read 4 Synopsys Defensics reviews

132 Views
87 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

HCL AppScan

Synopsys Defensics

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between HCL AppScan and Synopsys Defensics based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Sonar, Veracode, Checkmarx and others in Application Security Tools.

To learn more, read our detailed Application Security Tools Report (Updated: December 2024).

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Application Security Tools

December 2024

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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

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Security Tools (15th), Static Application Security Testing (SAST) (12th), Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) (1st)

Synopsys Defensics

Average Rating

8.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Fuzz Testing Tools (5th)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Quality Assurance solutions, they serve different purposes. HCL AppScan is designed for Application Security Tools and holds a mindshare of 2.7%, down 2.8% compared to last year.
Synopsys Defensics, on the other hand, focuses on Fuzz Testing Tools, holds 20.3% mindshare, up 12.2% since last year.

Application Security Tools

Fuzz Testing Tools

Featured Reviews

AnshulTomar

Cyber Security Architect and Presales Consultant at Kyndryl

Scalable platform with efficient static and dynamic testing features

We use the product for Static Application Security Testing (SAST) and Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST). By integrating AppScan into our CI/CD pipelines, aligned with Agile methodologies, we ensure that security testing becomes an integral part of the software development lifecycle The…

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it_user508521

Senior Lead Engineer - Product Security at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Helps us complete testing more quickly by eliminating many unwanted test cases

Sometimes, when we are testing embedded devices, when we trigger the test cases, the target will crash immediately. It is very difficult for us to identify the root cause of the crash because they do not provide sophisticated tools on the target side. They cover only the client-side application, and from that we can generate automated test cases, but what happens on the target device, what is the reason for the crash, for that we have to do manual debugging. They do not have diagnostic tools for the target side. Rather, they have them but they are very minimal and not very helpful. They can improve a lot on that.

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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 is stable."

"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."

"The security and the dashboard are the most valuable features."

"Compared to other tools only AppScan supports special language."

"For me, as a manager, it was the ease of use. Inserting security into the development process is not normally an easy project to do. The ability for the developer to actually use it and get results and focuses, that's what counted."

"You can easily find particular features and functions through the UI."

"Usually when we deploy the application, there is a process for ethical hacking. The main benefit is that, the ethical hacking is almost clean, every time. So it's less cost, less effort, less time to production."

"We use it as a security testing application."

More HCL AppScan pros

"We have found multiple issues in our embedded system network protocols, related to buffer overflow. We have reduced some of these issues."

"Whatever the test suit they give, it is intelligent. It will understand the protocol and it will generate the test cases based on the protocol: protocol, message sequence, protocol, message structure... Because of that, we can eliminate a lot of unwanted test cases, so we can execute the tests and complete them very quickly."

"The product is related to US usage with TLS contact fees, i.e. how more data center connections will help lower networking costs."

Cons

"They should have a better UI for dashboards."

"I would like to see the roadmap for this product. We are still waiting to see it as we have only so many resources."

"They could add a software component analysis tool."

"AppScan is too complicated and should be made more user-friendly."

"The pricing has room for improvement."

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

"Sometimes it doesn't work so well."

"We would like to integrate with some of the other reporting tools that we're planning to use in the future."

More HCL AppScan cons

"Codenomicon Defensics should be more advanced for the testing sector. It should be somewhat easy and flexible to install."

"Sometimes, when we are testing embedded devices, when we trigger the test cases, the target will crash immediately. It is very difficult for us to identify the root cause of the crash because they do not provide sophisticated tools on the target side. They cover only the client-side application... They do not have diagnostic tools for the target side. Rather, they have them but they are very minimal and not very helpful."

"It does not support the complete protocol stack. There are some IoT protocols that are not supported and new protocols that are not supported."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I rate the product's price a seven on a scale of one to ten, where one is low, and ten is high. HCL AppScan is an expensive tool."

"AppScan is a little bit expensive. IBM needs to work a little bit on the pricing model, decreasing the license cost."

"The solution is cheap."

"I would rate the product's pricing a nine out of ten. The product's pricing is expensive compared to the features that they offer."

"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 has premium pricing and could be more competitive."

"Pricing was the main reason that we went ahead with this solution as they were the lowest in the market."

"The solution is moderately priced."

More HCL AppScan pricing and cost advice

"Licensing is a bit expensive."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

19%

Financial Services Firm

14%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

20%

Manufacturing Company

17%

Financial Services Firm

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

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.

See all answers

What needs improvement with HCL AppScan?

AppScan needs to improve its handling of false positives. It also requires enhancements in customer support, similar to what Veracode provides. Regularly scheduling calls with clients to discuss fe...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for HCL AppScan?

The primary use case for AppScan is for security purposes. I compare AppScan with other tools such as Veracode. We use AppScan for vulnerability detection and auto-remediation of vulnerabilities wi...

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Also Known As

IBM Security AppScan, Rational AppScan, AppScan

Defensics, Codenomicon Defensics

Learn More

HCLSoftware

Black Duck

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.

Defensics® fuzz testing is a comprehensive, powerful, and automated black box solution that enables organizations to effectively and efficiently discover and remediate security weaknesses in software. By taking a systematic and intelligent approach to negative testing, Defensics allows organizations to ensure software security without compromising on product innovation, increasing time to market, or inflating operational costs.

Sample Customers

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

Coriant, CERT-FI, Next Generation Networks

Buyer's Guide

Application Security Tools

December 2024

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