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Nessus 5.2 Released

Paul Asadoorian Paul Asadoorian
April 23, 2013
2 Min Read

Tenable is excited to announce a new release of the Nessus vulnerability scanner! This is a major release (moving from 5.0.3 to 5.2.0) which provides several new features and enhancements, including:

  • IPv6 is now supported on all platforms (including Windows)
  • Nessus server support for Windows 8 and Windows 2012
  • Add attachments within scan result reports
  • Mac OS X preference pane
  • Digitally-signed Nessus RPM packages for supporting distributions
  • Smaller memory footprint and reduced disk space usage
  • Faster, more responsive web interface (uses less bandwidth)
The above video describes the new features included in version 5.2 of the Nessus vulnerability scanner. Be certain to check out all of our videos on the Tenable Network Security YouTube Channel.

Several key features are described in detail below, including examples of the new MAC OS X preference pane and the new attachments feature:

Add Attachments to Scan Results

Information collected during the scan can now be included in the results as an attachment. The first iteration of attachments will be screenshots, but any attachment type can be included.

Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP)

If Nessus discovers Remote Desktop Protocol on a target, a screenshot is taken. This can reveal information such as the operating system version and the currently-logged-on user.

VNC

If Nessus discovers a target is running VNC without a password to restrict access, a screenshot is included in the results. The above example shows the system using a web browser to visit the www.tenable.com website.

Websites

For Internet-connected web servers, Nessus will take a screenshot of the website as if you visited the website using a web browser. This feature is useful to identify the applications you are testing, including making sure you are testing the correct virtual host.

Mac OS X Preference Pane

The addition of a Nessus server preference pane in OS X allows the user to stop and start the Nessus server process and configure whether or not Nessus is started at boot time.

Getting Nessus 5.2

New users may download and evaluate Nessus free of charge by visiting the Nessus home page. Current customers can download 5.2 from the Tenable Support Portal. Detailed instructions and notes on upgrading are located in the Nessus 5.2 Installation and Configuration Guide.

Nessus ProfessionalFeed and Perimeter Service customers: Please contact Tenable Support (support -at- tenable.com) with any questions regarding the upgrade to Nessus 5.2.0. Users may also visit the Tenable Discussion Portal for more information.

Paul Asadoorian

Paul Asadoorian

As founder and CEO of Security Weekly, Paul remains one of the world’s foremost experts on all things cybersecurity. Security Weekly is a one-stop resource for podcasts, webcasts and other content, informing community members about penetration testing, vulnerability analysis, ethical hacking and embedded device testing. Previously, Paul served as a lead IT security specialist for Brown University, and as an instructor with The SANS Institute.

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