Top 7 Nipper Alternatives and Competitors (Pros & Cons)

Nipper is a popular solution that helps organizations secure network devices like firewalls, routers, and switches. It’s a configuration auditing tool designed to help security professionals close pathways that could allow threat actors to change network configurations.

Although Nipper is designed to make audit scoping and configuration management easier, it’s not the only tool on the market that serves this need. It doesn’t support all operating systems and firewalls, and it’s not always clear what security standards Nipper is using when conducting vulnerability management analysis.

These issues might lead you to consider some of the top Titania Nipper alternatives on the market. Learn how these Nipper competitors stack up in terms of features, prices, pros, cons and use cases.

1. AlgoSec

2. Tufin

3. Skybox

4. FireMon

5. Palo Alto Networks Panorama

6. Cisco Defense Orchestrator

7. Tenable Vulnerability Management

AlgoSec automates network configuration changes and provides comprehensive simulation capabilities to security professionals. It’s designed to streamline application connectivity and policy deployment across the entire network. As a configuration management platform, it combines a rich set of features for managing the organization’s attack surface by testing and implementing data security policies.

Key features:

• Firewall Analyzer: This solution maps out applications and security policies across the network and grants visibility into security configurations.

• AlgoSec FireFlow: This module grants security teams the ability to automate and enforce security policies. It provides visibility into network traffic while flagging potential security risks. FireFlow supports most software and on-premises network security devices, including popular solutions from well-known vendors like Cisco, Fortinet, and Check point.

• CloudFlow: AlgoSec’s cloud-enabled management solution is designed for provisioning and configuring cloud infrastructure. It enables organizations to protect cloud-based web applications while supporting security policy automation across cloud workloads.

Pros:

• Installation: AlgoSec is easy to setup and configure, providing cybersecurity teams with a clear path to change management, vulnerability assessment, and automated policy enforcement. It supports feature access through web services and API automation as well.

• Ease of use: The dashboard is simple and intuitive, making it easy for experienced systems administrators and newcomers alike to jump in and start using the platform. It is compatible with all modern web browsers.

• Versatility: AlgoSec provides organizations with valuable features like firewall policy auditing and compliance reporting. These features make it useful for risk management, vulnerability scanning, and risk scoring while giving network administrators the tools they need to meet strict compliance standards like NIST, PCI-DSS, or ISO 27001.

• Simulated queries: Security professionals can use AlgoSec to run complex simulations of configuration changes before committing them. This makes it easy for organizations to verify how those changes might impact endpoint security, cloud platform authentication, and other aspects of the organization’s security posture.

Cons:

• Customization: Some competing configuration management tools offer more in-depth dashboard customization options. This can make a difference for security leaders who need customized data visualizations to communicate their findings to stakeholders.

• Delayed hotfixes: Users have reported that patches and hotfixes sometimes take longer than expected to roll out. In the past, hotfixes have contained bugs that impact performance.

Recommended Read: 10 Best Firewall Monitoring Software for Network Security

Tufin Orchestration Suite provides organizations with a network security management solution that includes change management and security policy automation across networks. It supports a wide range of vendors, devices, and operating systems, providing end-to-end network security designed for networks running on Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac OS, and more.

Key features:

Tufin stands out for the variety of tools it offers for managing security configurations in enterprise environments. It allows security leaders to closely manage the policies that firewalls, VPNs, and other security tools use when addressing potential threats. This makes it easier to build remediation playbooks and carry out penetration testing, among other things.

Pros:

• Pricing: Tufin is priced reasonably for the needs and budgets of enterprise organizations. It may not be the best choice for small and mid-sized businesses, however.

• Robustness: Tufin offers a complete set of security capabilities and works well with a variety of vendors and third-party SaaS apps. It integrates well with proprietary and open source security tools, granting security leaders the ability to view network threats and plan risk mitigation strategies accordingly.

• Scalability: This tool is designed to scale according to customer needs. Tufin customers can adjust their use of firewall configuration and change management resources relatively easily.

Cons:

• User interface: The product could have a more user-friendly interface. It will take some time and effort for network security professionals to get used to using Tufin.

• Performance issues: Tufin’s software architecture doesn’t support running many processes at the same time. If you overload it with tasks, it will start to run slowly and unpredictably.

• Customization: Organizations that need sophisticated network management features may find themselves limited by Tufin’s capabilities.

Skybox security suite provides continuous exposure management to organizations that want to reduce data breach risks and improve their security ratings. Its suite of cybersecurity management solutions includes two policy management tools. One is designed for network security policy management, while the other covers vulnerability and threat management.

Key features:

Automated firewall management: Skybox lets security leaders automate the process of provisioning, configuring, and managing firewalls throughout their network. This makes it easier for organizations to develop consistent policies for detecting and mitigating the risks associated with malware and other threats.

Network visibility and vulnerability control: This product includes solutions for detecting vulnerabilities in the network and prioritizing them according to severity. It relies on its own threat intelligence service to warn security teams of emerging threat vectors.

Pros:

• Threat intelligence included: Skybox includes its own threat intelligence solution, providing in-depth information about new vulnerabilities and active exploits detected in the wild.

• Scalability: Both small businesses and large enterprises can benefit from Skybox. The vendor supports small organizations with a limited number of endpoint devices as well as large, complex hybrid networks.

• Easy integration: Integrating Skybox with other platforms and solutions is relatively simple. It supports a wide range of intrusion detection tools, vulnerability management platforms, and other security solutions.

Cons:

• Complexity: Skybox is not the most user-friendly suite of tools to work with. Even experienced network security professionals may find there is a learning curve.

• Cost: Organizations with limited IT budgets may not be able to justify the high costs that come with Skybox.

• Inventory dependency: Skybox only works when the organization has an accurate inventory of devices and networks available. Improper asset discovery can lead to inaccurate data feeds and poor performance.

FireMon offers its customers a multi-vendor solution for provisioning, configuring, and managing network security policies through a centralized interface. It is a powerful solution for automating network security policies and enforcing rule changes in real-time.

Key features:

Network visibility: FireMon uses a distributed approach to alarm and response, giving security leaders visibility into their networks while supporting multi-vendor configurations and customized dashboards.

Service level agreement (SLA) management: Organizations can rely on FireMon’s SLA management features to guarantee the network’s integrity and security.

Automated analysis: Security practitioners can use FireMon’s automated analysis feature to reduce attack risks and discover network vulnerabilities without having to conduct manual queries.

Pros:

• Real-time reporting: The solution includes out-of-the-box reporting tools capable of producing real-time reports on security configurations and their potential impacts.

• Simplified customization: Upgrading FireMon to meet new needs is simple, and the company provides a range of need-specific customization tools.

• Cloud-enabled support: This product supports both private and public cloud infrastructure, and is capable of managing hybrid networks.

Cons:

• Accuracy issues: Some users claim that FireMon’s automated risk detection algorithm produces inaccurate results.

• Complicated report customization: While the platform does support custom reports and visualizations, the process of generating those reports is more complex than it needs to be.

• Expensive: FireMon may be out of reach for many organizations, especially if they are interested in the company’s need-specific customizations.

Palo Alto Networks is one of the cybersecurity industry’s most prestigious names, and its firewall configuration and management solution lives up to the brand’s reputation. Panorama allows network administrators to manage complex fleets of next-generation firewalls through a single, unified interface that provides observability, governance, and control.

Key features:

Unified policy management: Palo Alto users can use the platform’s centralized configuration assessment tool to identify vulnerabilities and address them all at once.

Next-generation observability: Panorama digs deep into the log data generated by Palo Alto next-generation firewalls and scrutinizes it for evidence of infected hosts and malicious behavior. For example, the platform can detect phishing attacks by alerting users when they send confidential login credentials to spoofed websites or social media channels.

Pros:

• Ease of use: Palo Alto Networks Panorama features a sleek user interface with a minimal learning curve. Learning how to use it will present a few issues for network security professionals.

• Industry-leading capabilities: Some of Palo Alto Network’s capabilities go above and beyond what other security vendors are capable of. Panorama puts advanced threat prevention, sandboxing, and identity-based monitoring tools in the hands of network administrators.

Cons:

• Vendor Exclusive: Panorama only supports Palo Alto Networks firewalls. You can’t use this platform with third-party solutions. Palo Alto Networks explicitly encourages customers to outfit their entire tech stack with its own products.

• Prohibitively expensive: Exclusively deploying Palo Alto Networks products in order to utilize Panorama is too expensive for all but the biggest and best-funded enterprise-level organizations.

Cisco Defense Orchestrator is a cloud-delivered security policy management service provided by another industry leader. It allows security teams to unify their policies across multi-cloud networks, enabling comprehensive asset discovery and visibility for cloud infrastructure. Network administrators can use this platform to manage security configurations and assess their risk profile accurately.

Key features:

• Centralized management: Cisco’s platform is designed to provide a single point of reference for managing and configuring Cisco security devices across the network.

• Cloud-delivered software: The platform is delivered as an SaaS product, making it easy for organizations to adopt and implement without upfront costs.

• Low-touch provisioning: Deploying advanced firewall features through Cisco’s policy management platform is simple and requires very little manual configuration.

Pros:

• Easy Policy Automation: This product allows network administrators to automatically configure and deploy security policies to Cisco devices. It provides ample feedback on the impacts of new policies, giving security teams the opportunity to continuously improve security performance.

• Scalability and integration: Cisco designed its solution to integrate with the entire portfolio of Cisco products and services. This makes it easy to deploy the Cisco Identity Services Engine or additional Cisco Meraki devices while still having visibility and control over the organization’s security posture.

Cons:

• Vendor exclusive: Like Palo Alto Networks Panorama, Cisco Defense Orchestrator only works with devices that run Cisco software.

• Rip-and-replace costs: If you don’t already use Cisco hardware in your network, you may need to replace your existing solution in order to use this platform. This can raise the price of adopting this solution considerably.

Tenable Vulnerability Management – formerly known as Tenable.io – is a software suite that provides real-time continuous vulnerability assessment and risk management services to organizations. It is powered by Tenable Nessus, the company’s primary vulnerability assessment solution, enabling organizations to find and close security gaps in their environment and secure cloud infrastructure from cyberattack.

Key features:

Risk-based approach: Tenable features built-in prioritization and threat intelligence, allowing the solution to provide real-time insight into the risk represented by specific vulnerabilities and threats.

Web-based front end: The main difference between Tenable Vulnerability Management and Tenable Nessus is the web application format. The new front end provides a great deal of information to security teams without requiring additional connections or configuration.

Pros:

• Unlimited visibility: Tenable’s risk-based approach to asset discovery and risk assessment allows network administrators to see threats as they evolve in real-time. Security teams have practically unlimited visibility into their security posture, even in complex cloud-enabled networks with hybrid workforces.

• Proactive capabilities: Tenable helps security teams be more proactive about hunting and mitigating threats. It provides extensive coverage of emerging threat identifiers and prioritizes them so that security professionals know exactly where to look.

Cons:

• Slow support: Many customers complain that getting knowledgeable support from Tenable takes too long, leaving their organizations exposed to unknown threats in the meantime.

• Complex implementations: Implementing Tenable can involve multiple stakeholders, and any complications can cause delays in the process. If customers have to go through customer support, the delays may extend even further.