Nessus log monitoring with Log360

Overview

Nessus is one of the most widely used vulnerability scanners, identifying misconfigurations, missing patches, and compliance violations across enterprise assets. By integrating Nessus logs with ManageEngine Log360, you can convert raw scan data into actionable threat intelligence within your SIEM ecosystem.

With the centralized monitoring of Nessus vulnerability and compliance reports, Log360 enables security teams to prioritize remediation, reduce risk exposure, and simplify audits. From tracking critical vulnerabilities to correlating exploits with asset-level activity, Log360 empowers proactive threat response and vulnerability lifecycle management.

How Log360 collects and analyzes Nessus logs

Log360 supports multiple methods for ingesting vulnerability and compliance scan data from Nessus, enabling organizations to integrate risk insights into their broader security operations.

Collection methods

• Manual file upload: Nessus scan results in .nessus or XML format can be manually uploaded via the Log360 web console.

Custom log parsing (when required)

Log360 provides built-in support for standard Nessus scan result formats. Custom parsing is only required when:

• Reports are modified or reformatted by third-party tools.
• Field names are altered, obfuscated, or localized.
• Additional context, such as asset tags or compliance metadata, is embedded into the reports.

Log processing pipeline

Once imported, Nessus logs are parsed, normalized, and enriched with contextual information such as asset identifiers, vulnerability categories, and compliance controls. Findings are classified based on CVSS scores, severity levels, exploitability, and regulatory impact. This structured data feeds into Log360’s dashboards, alerting system, and compliance reporting modules—empowering security teams to prioritize remediation, correlate vulnerabilities with network activity, and enhance overall risk posture.

Monitoring capabilities

Log360 collects and analyzes Nessus logs from two major report categories:

Vulnerability reports: Tracks vulnerability details, such as:

• CVE ID, plugin ID, vulnerability name
• Affected host, port, and protocol
• Exploitability, solution references (e.g., MSKB, vendor patch URLs)
• CVSS base score, risk rating (Critical, high, medium, low, info)
• Discovery timestamp and last scan timestamp

Compliance reports: Monitor adherence to security benchmarks:

• Configuration issues, misalignments with CIS, DISA STIG, or custom benchmarks
• Rule-level compliance results (pass/fail/unknown)
• Compliance family, rule ID, and rationale
• Operating system and platform-specific non-compliance instances

Critical Nessus events monitored

Log360 extracts and highlights vital security indicators from Nessus scan reports, such as:

• Detection of critical vulnerabilities with public exploits or remote code execution potential
• Recurrence of vulnerabilities over multiple scans
• Non-compliance to essential regulatory standards (the PCI DSS , HIPAA, CIS Controls)
• Risk-prioritized asset exposure based on CVSS scores and exploitability

Key benefits of integrating Nessus with Log360

Log360 adds significant value to Nessus vulnerability data by enabling:

• Centralized visibility: View all Nessus scan results across environments from one dashboard.
• Correlated threat insights: Cross-reference Nessus findings with system logs, user activity, and attack patterns.
• Risk-based prioritization: Identify the most critical vulnerabilities based on threat context, asset sensitivity, and known exploits.
• Automated compliance tracking: Map compliance violations to specific benchmarks with audit-ready reports.
• Streamlined remediation: Track vulnerability trends, patch status, and recurring issues over time.

Addressing Nessus reporting and vulnerability management challenges

ManageEngine Log360 effectively resolves common challenges faced in Nessus reporting and vulnerability management. Here's how:

The Log360 advantage: Beyond Nessus logs

Log360 doesn’t just monitor Nessus scans—it elevates vulnerability intelligence across your SIEM:

• Cross-log correlation: Connect Nessus vulnerability findings with endpoint exploits, lateral movement, and privilege escalation from other sources.
• Integrated threat analytics: Match CVEs and IOCs from Nessus logs with threat feeds and blacklists to identify ongoing attacks.
• Visual risk posture dashboards: Use advanced dashboards to view vulnerability trends by asset, risk severity, and scan date.
• UEBA integration: Detect behavior anomalies from compromised systems flagged in Nessus scans.