Network Scanning Software
Gain greater visibility into managed networks with network scanning software
Discover and manage devices on your network with active network discovery
Regardless of the size and complexity of your customers’ networks, your MSP can benefit from network scanning software. A key to providing a high quality of service to your customers is to have a clear, comprehensive overview of everything that goes on within your managed networks. N‑able™ RMM can help.
N‑able RMM comes with a robust network discovery feature that allows you to discover and manage devices as they appear on customer networks. You can search for devices on any subnet and easily import device details for anything connected to each managed subnet. Built-in remote monitoring and default monitoring templates help you manage devices more effectively.
Protect against new and emerging threats with network security scanning software
Today’s MSPs face incredible challenges to network security. As networks grow more complex with distributed workforces and new technologies, cybersecurity needs also grow. With new and sophisticated cyberattacks constantly emerging, MSPs must increase efforts to protect their customers. The network security scanning software offered by N‑able RMM comes with deep vulnerability scans that help you find your managed networks’ greatest risks and manage them before a threat impacts your customers.
The program’s lightweight, host-based scans allow you to run deep scans across workstations, servers, and networks. N‑able RMM vulnerability scans are more intelligent, powerful, and nuanced because they incorporate data from the Common Vulnerability Scoring System database. The integrated endpoint detection and response feature scans for abnormal behavior and resolves issues before they can multiply and affect your customers. N‑able RMM also uncovers unpatched software across your networks, a crucial source of intelligence as you work to protect commonly exploited technologies.
Uncover PII with robust risk intelligence capabilities
When it comes to handling large quantities of data, MSPs must be especially vigilant about protecting personally identifiable information (PII). This can include information like names, addresses, phone numbers, and social security numbers, which can be valuable to cybercriminals and harmful to businesses if exposed. When running network scanning software, you might find that your networks host a wide variety of both sensitive and non-sensitive PII. Network scanning software helps you organize and secure this data.
To protect sensitive data, the first step is to locate and identify it. With the risk intelligence capabilities embedded in N‑able RMM, you can execute deep PII scans to uncover sensitive PII that’s scattered across workstations and devices, no matter where it’s hidden.
Regulate permissions to mitigate internal threats
Sometimes data breaches aren’t malicious—they can often be caused by employee accidents. Luckily, many internal threats can be prevented by limiting user access to PII and reducing vulnerabilities with appropriate permissions. It all starts with knowing who has access to what data. N‑able RMM with Risk Intelligence is built to help.
With Risk Intelligence’s permissions discovery capabilities, you can perform network-wide scans to uncover who has access to sensitive data, including those who shouldn’t. You can also find unsecured payment data that sales associates may have collected.
Integrated endpoint detection and response with RMM also uses behavioral AI engines to analyze data points and identify potential threats. By discovering suspicious activity before issues arise, the tool allows you to prevent leaks and respond effectively to threats.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is network scanning?
What is network scanning?
Network scanning is the process of identifying active devices on a network by using a variety of network protocols to signal devices and wait for a response.
For example, IP network scanning tools typically send a ping to each possible IP address in a specific range. If the IP address receives the ping and responds, another protocol can obtain data from the IP address and paint a more complete picture of your network.
Network scanning software is also used to identify current network users, measure the health and status of devices on the network, and create a continuously updated inventory of network elements.
What are the different types of network scanning?
What are the different types of network scanning?
Network scanning can be done in a variety of ways, but the three most common types are:
- Standard Network Scanning: This is the conventional approach, used to detect and list IP addresses.
- Port Scanning: Port scanning is used to list open ports and services within a network. Port scanning techniques can be divided further into three different categories based on protocol type: scanning ICMP devices, scanning TCP network devices, and scanning UDP network devices.
- Vulnerability Scanning: Vulnerability is a subsection of network scanning that is solely devoted to security. Powered by network security scanning software, this type of scanning is used to discover internal and external vulnerabilities within your managed networks.
What is the purpose of network scanning?
What is the purpose of network scanning?
It can be helpful to think of network scanning as information gathering. Network scanning tools collect information and use it for security assessment, routine system maintenance, and more. Network scanning is important because it offers you greater visibility into your managed networks, which helps you understand what devices are on your network, see how they’re performing, and respond to threats as necessary.
The best network scanning tools can:
- Catalog all devices on the network
- Find the operating systems in use by analyzing responses
- Pinpoint available TCP and UDP network services
- Recognize filtering systems
- Detect personally identifiable information (PII)
- Perform deep vulnerability scans
- Help determine the overall health of the network
What is the difference between active network scanning vs. passive scanning?
What is the difference between active network scanning vs. passive scanning?
If network scanning can be thought about as information gathering, active scanning (or active monitoring) and passive scanning are two different ways to collect the relevant information to stay ahead of potential cyber events.
Active monitoring works by scanning the network to directly look for specific answers. This makes it possible to find the necessary information in an efficient and comprehensive manner and translate the data into actionable information. However, active monitoring has a mixed reputation because it can cause device malfunctions and expensive production stoppages on sensitive networks.
On the other hand, passive monitoring works by “eavesdropping” on the network and taking a sample of the information that happens to pass by. While passive monitoring may not allow you to gather the appropriate information right away, it can provide you with a good sampling of information that can be analyzed and turned into action.
What types of vulnerabilities are caught in vulnerability scans?
What types of vulnerabilities are caught in vulnerability scans?
There are several broad classes of vulnerability that most vulnerability scanners should be able to check for, which include:
- Vulnerable Software: As the largest class of vulnerabilities, this category looks for known weaknesses in third party software and hardware. These are typically weaknesses in certain versions of a particular technology that have been uncovered by security researchers.
- Common Mistakes and Misconfigurations: This class of vulnerabilities looks for commonly made mistakes such as incorrectly configured software or a failure to follow security best practices. Examples might include a web server configured to reveal sensitive information.
- Encryption Weaknesses: Encryption configurations are used to protect data in transit, but there’s room for error in these configurations. Vulnerability scans in this category will check for things like the use of weak encryption ciphers or the use of unencrypted services like FTP.
- Web Application Vulnerabilities: These are vulnerabilities via weaknesses in your web applications that bad actors could exploit to gain access to information or attack end users. These weaknesses could include cross-site scripting or SQL injection.
These are by no means all the different vulnerabilities that scanners will check for (and some scanners will only check for a particular class of vulnerabilities) but a comprehensive vulnerability scanner should be able to handle all of the above and more.
Other solutions
Dig deeper into managed networks with network scanning software
- Perform deep vulnerability scans to help protect sensitive data
- Get a comprehensive overview of elements on customer networks
- Regulate permissions to help prevent internal threats