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IBM Guardium Vulnerability Assessment vs Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 27, 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

Zafran Security
Sponsored
Ranking in Vulnerability Management
17th
Average Rating
9.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.8
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM) (1st)
IBM Guardium Vulnerability ...
Ranking in Vulnerability Management
48th
Average Rating
6.0
Reviews Sentiment
8.1
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Qualys CyberSecurity Asset ...
Ranking in Vulnerability Management
8th
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
24
Ranking in other categories
Patch Management (5th), Cyber Asset Attack Surface Management (CAASM) (3rd), Attack Surface Management (ASM) (3rd), Software Supply Chain Security (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Vulnerability Management category, the mindshare of Zafran Security is 1.0%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Guardium Vulnerability Assessment is 0.5%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management is 1.2%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Vulnerability Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management1.2%
Zafran Security1.0%
IBM Guardium Vulnerability Assessment0.5%
Other97.3%
Vulnerability Management
 

Featured Reviews

Israel Cavazos Landini - PeerSpot reviewer
Weekly insights and risk analysis facilitate informed security decisions
I appreciate the weekly insights Zafran provides, which include critical topics for networks and IT security, allowing us to evaluate which insights apply to our environment. The organization score feature is valuable to keep the leadership team updated on how our infrastructure fares security-wise. The applicable risk level versus base risk level feature is beneficial because prior to Zafran, we only used the base risk level, but now understand that risk depends on the asset itself. Zafran is an excellent tool.
SL
Improvements sought in database optimization while benefiting from robust security monitoring
We use the analytical functionality of Guardium, but the analytical functionality is not so powerful or flexible because it does not include the application user ID. It only includes the database user ID. To identify risky users, it does not support end users, so IBM must incorporate this feature into the built-in analytical engine of the Guardium. There is only one problem I experienced while using Guardium: the internal database of the collector is MySQL, which is not so powerful or flexible. When you make a query in a MySQL database, it takes too much time to respond. IBM should replace this MySQL database with a more powerful internal database for the logging mechanism so that Guardium can collect logging data flexibly and ensure optimization. My overall experience with Guardium is good. The only problem is that IBM must replace the internal DB, MySQL, with a more powerful enterprise-level database because enterprises use it at an enterprise level, and MySQL does not support optimally.
Nicki Møller - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables automation and quick access to necessary information
One of the significant challenges Qualys is discovery, which I know Microsoft excels at. I can't recall how well Qualys performs this function; it seems I might be missing some details. However, if there's one key aspect to focus on, it's discovery—the ability to identify assets that you are not aware of, even when you can see they are present. Understanding what those assets are is crucial. With Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management, it was very difficult to extract detections from the system. The features within Qualys are limited to what they have developed. Sometimes a complete overview is needed to push to a Power BI dashboard, Splunk, ServiceNow, or other platforms. The export process is incredibly challenging. We needed a developer to write a hundred-line Python script that would loop over certain assets due to export limitations. Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management could improve its integration capabilities. While it generates substantial data, correlating it with other data sources can be challenging. The export process is difficult, and pre-built integrations with other tools could be enhanced for better process implementation.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We saw benefits from Zafran Security almost immediately after deploying it."
"Zafran has become an indispensable tool in our cybersecurity arsenal."
"Overall, we have seen about eighty-seven percent reduction of the number of vulnerabilities that require urgency to remediate, specifically the number of criticals."
"Zafran is an excellent tool."
"We are able to see the real risk of a vulnerability on our environment with our security tools."
"It helped with some of the regulatory requirements. It also helped with some of the security analytics and analysis. It was worthwhile from that perspective."
"The reporting features are good and there are many built-in reports that can be quickly configured."
"The Vulnerability Assessment feature is quite stable and helps identify numerous vulnerabilities in databases."
"The most valuable feature is that it provides a simple English recommendation on actions that you need to take once a vulnerability is discovered."
"Qualys CSAM is valuable for providing end-of-life and end-of-sale information. It gives me visibility into the number of products or hardware items that are end-of-life."
"The most valuable feature is the Management sensor, which helps identify gaps in policy agent availability, thereby improving agent utilization."
"I like the EASM part because it provides visibility into unmanaged assets that are public-facing."
"Our favorite features are the tagging and the ability to quickly find assets in the portal."
"The most valuable feature is the real-time visibility Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management provides into all assets across our development and operational environments."
"I would rate Qualys CSAM a ten out of ten."
"The scanning results are pretty good, and some insights are quite valuable."
"Tags are very useful for us since we can tag virus applications in infrastructure types such as databases, operating systems, or web platforms."
 

Cons

"I think the ability to have some enhanced reporting capabilities is something they can improve on, as they have good reports but we have asked for some specific reporting enhancements."
"Initially, we were somewhat concerned about the scalability of Zafran due to our large asset count and the substantial amount of information we needed to process."
"The dashboarding and reporting functionality of Zafran Security is an area that definitely could use some improvements."
"There is only one problem I experienced while using Guardium: the internal database of the collector is MySQL, which is not so powerful or flexible."
"Building policies is not that easy. There are some things that are turned off by default, for example, displaying values."
"It was not as easy to use. The user-friendliness of it was somewhat lower than what I was expecting. It was also lacking in terms of the ease of the setup. There should be an automatic agent for deployment."
"The interface could be improved by having sub-groups of tests, ultimately making the process of collecting tests faster."
"Some areas that would be helpful are more comprehensive tagging and the ability to set up better dynamic rules."
"In my opinion, the area that needs improvement is the role-based access control (RBAC). The access privilege management needs to be more robust and streamlined to enhance user access management."
"With Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management, it was very difficult to extract detections from the system."
"From the user experience perspective, we need a simpler interface and reduced complexity in certain features, particularly with the Qualys Query Language."
"They should address the false positives generated in EASM. It is fetching assets that have Infosys as the keyword. They should fix that."
"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."
"Currently, whenever the agent is running, it consumes over ten percent of my CPU, indicating that CPU consumption is another area Qualys needs to address."
"In our reporting, we faced a challenge syncing with cloud devices."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"One thing not advantageous for it was that it was a little bit more expensive. I would rate it one out of five in terms of pricing."
"The pricing for Qualys CSAM is nominal."
"The pricing is reasonable relative to the features provided, as it collects all module data and operates as a main, centralized inventory, making it a cost-effective solution."
"The pricing is market-competitive."
"The Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management pricing is well-aligned with our usage."
"Qualys offers excellent value for money."
"The pricing for Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management is reasonable, with an annual subscription costing around $1,000 per year or a monthly subscription starting at approximately $72 per month, depending on the specific package and features included."
"It is cost-effective because, in a single tool, we are getting everything. All the solutions come in a single license or price."
"Though the solution is considered expensive, if bundled with other services such as VMDR or cloud agents, its value would significantly increase. It is currently a bit costly, but with bundling, it could become attractive to more customers."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
Financial Services Firm
37%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Insurance Company
7%
Performing Arts
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise16
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zafran Security?
Since we stood Zafran Security up in our private cloud, we handle the maintenance on our side. As we opted not to use...
What needs improvement with Zafran Security?
In terms of areas for improvement, Zafran Security is doing a really great job as a new and emerging company. Oftenti...
What is your primary use case for Zafran Security?
My use cases for Zafran Security revolve around two primary areas. One is around vulnerability management and priorit...
What needs improvement with IBM Guardium Vulnerability Assessment?
We use the analytical functionality of Guardium, but the analytical functionality is not so powerful or flexible beca...
What is your primary use case for IBM Guardium Vulnerability Assessment?
We are still using IBM Guardium Vulnerability Assessment. We only use IBM Guardium Data Protection and monitoring, da...
What advice do you have for others considering IBM Guardium Vulnerability Assessment?
We do not use IBM Guardium Vulnerability Assessment for data encryption or any other tool for analytics, or identity ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management?
We are currently using a cheaper solution, and I sometimes get the feeling that our solution is less stable. When thi...
What needs improvement with Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management?
One of the significant challenges Qualys is discovery, which I know Microsoft excels at. I can't recall how well Qual...
What is your primary use case for Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management?
We are using Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management for daily activities such as identifying new assets through networ...
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Guardium Vulnerability Assessment vs. Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,760 professionals have used our research since 2012.