Orca Security vs Tenable
Beyond identity. Full-stack cloud, code, and AI security in one platform.
Tenable Cloud Security was built around identity and entitlement management, and it does that well. Modern cloud risk also spans workloads, APIs, data, code, and AI. Orca connects every one of those into complete attack paths, so boards see the full picture from day one.
cloud visibility across AWS and Azure from day one
Source: Lionbridge Case Study
audit-ready in weeks, not months — agentless compliance mapping
Source: Hunters Case Study
CCPA and PCI compliance gaps surfaced in hours
Source: CHEQ Case Study
Identity-first by design, so the rest of the attack surface runs shallow
- Tenable Cloud Security is anchored in CIEM and identity, its strongest capability
- Cloud Exposure and Hexa AI add runtime context, but not the full agentless workload depth that comes from a single SideScanning pass
- API security isn’t integrated, so a primary cloud attack surface stays outside the risk picture
See every risk, connected into attack paths
- Orca reads cloud APIs directly to surface workload vulnerabilities, network exposure, data risk, API security gaps, and identity issues across every major cloud, including Alibaba and Tencent, and connects them in one queryable graph. Identity is one dimension. Orca shows how it chains with the rest to reach your crown jewels.
Attack paths limited to single-asset toxic combinations
- Tenable’s attack path analysis focuses on toxic combinations within a single asset, largely role-to-resource relationships
- It does not model multi-stage lateral movement across misconfigurations, identities, workloads, and data
- Crown jewel assets and MITRE ATT&CK context are not surfaced in the path
Multi-stage attack path analysis with crown jewel mapping
- Orca maps how a vulnerability chains through your environment across misconfigurations, identities, workloads, APIs, and data to reach crown jewels such as databases, secrets, and PII stores, aligned to MITRE ATT&CK.
How Orca compares to Tenable
Capability by capability, across the dimensions that matter most to cloud security teams.
Security Solutions
Cloud
- Complete CSPM, CIEM, DSPM, API security, vulnerability management, CWPP, container, and Kubernetes coverage correlated in a single platform with a Unified Data Model
- Rich, multi-stage attack paths confirm which exposures are actually reachable and exploitable helping you prioritize by real impact rather than isolated severity
- Orca is powered by patented agentless SideScanning™ technology, giving you get deep, accurate, and actionable context for which risks matter, and which to fix first
- Strong CIEM and identity security from the Ermetic heritage, DSPM from the Eureka acquisition, and multi-cloud coverage only across AWS, Azure, GCP, and OCI
- The gap is depth and correlation: no integrated API security, and attack paths stay at single-asset toxic combinations, so workload and data risk aren’t chained into multi-stage paths to the crown jewels
Code
- Complete application security coverage across SAST, SCA, secrets detection, IaC scanning, SCM posture, malicious-package detection, and container image scanning, correlated in one platform
- By connecting every finding to live cloud assets, Orca confirms real-world exposure and reachability, so prioritization reflects what’s actually exploitable rather than what’s merely flagged
- Powered by AI and unified cloud context, Orca seamlessly guides teams from discovery to in-code fixes that eliminate risk at the root and stop new risk before it ever hits production
- Shift-left stops at IaC scanning. No native SAST, no SCA, no secrets detection, and no code-to-runtime tracing
- Application security depends on a separate toolchain and code risk never inherits the cloud context that shows which findings are reachable
AI
- End-to-end AI coverage in one platform, from an AI-BOM inventory of every model, dataset, and pipeline to AI-SPM posture, sensitive-data access, exposed-key detection, and runtime threat monitoring
- Orca knows which models are internet-exposed, which can reach sensitive data, and which run in production and ranks accordingly
- Agentless discovery and the Orca Sensor connect build to runtime, flagging prompt injection, model exfiltration, and drift as they happen, so teams govern every AI system before it becomes a liability
- Hexa AI applies AI to security operations rather than to securing AI itself
- No defined posture solution for AI models, pipelines, and data, so the AI your teams are deploying sits outside the risk picture as an unmonitored attack surface.
Explore the Orca platform
Self-guided tours tailored to your role. No form, no sales call.
Teams that adopted Orca
From organizations that evaluated and chose Orca.
I’ve used Trend Micro, Qualys, and Tenable… Tenable and Qualys both felt like they loosely bolted their legacy enterprise products onto the cloud. That doesn’t work well because you still have to deal with agents.”
Jeremy Turner
Senior Cloud Security Engineer, Paidy
I appreciate Orca Security because I can see CSPM, KSPM, and DSPM, and it works with major security frameworks such as NIST and CIS, allowing me to see comprehensive insights on my cloud environment, with CI/CD integration and shift-left configuration that helps me improve cloud maturity and DevSecOps maturity as a complete CNAPP platform with the most capabilities to work with cloud security.”
Cybersecurity Architect Lead
Being able to consolidate tool sets creates efficiency, not just in cost but in how you manage all this stuff.”
Tony Wilson
General Manager, Information Security, Latitude Financial
Validated by peers and analysts
Independent recognition from practitioners and industry analysts.
PeerSpot reviews
“The best feature is Orca Side-Scanning. Because of this feature, the platform does not need to use agents for the detection of virtual machines, containers, and hosts.”
Cyber Security Consultant
“Orca Security goes beyond just basic vulnerability detection when analyzing risks contextually and holistically. I think it adds a strong contextual understanding.”
Cyber Security Analyst
Analyst recognition
Leader — CNAPP
Top-rated agentless CNAPP on G2. High scores for ease of use and time to value.
CNAPP market presence
Recognized in Gartner’s CNAPP market analysis for agentless architecture and unified visibility.
Cloud Security ROI Report
Independent analysis of ROI from real-world Orca deployments.
Related reading
Research and analysis to help you evaluate your options.
Attack Path Analysis Datasheet
Attack paths represent the toxic risk combinations that attackers can exploit to endanger your high-value cloud assets. The Orca Cloud…
CIEM Datasheet
Instead of providing identity and access privilege management in a siloed solution, the Orca Cloud Security Platform combines identity risks…
Best Vulnerability Management Tools and Software in 2026
Key Takeaways The best vulnerability management tool fits your environment and ranks findings by real exposure, not by how many…
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Because Orca deploys agentlessly through API connections, teams can stand up Orca alongside an existing Tenable Cloud Security instance without any configuration conflicts. Most teams complete a side-by-side evaluation within a few weeks and compare findings directly.
Orca uses its own risk engine and Unified Data Model, so it doesn’t import Tenable’s policy configurations. Instead, teams typically map their compliance and risk priorities into Orca’s framework during onboarding, which takes less setup time than a rules migration would.
Yes. Orca supports six major clouds: AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, Oracle Cloud (OCI), Alibaba Cloud, and Tencent Cloud. That extends beyond Tenable’s current multi-cloud footprint, and every cloud is covered from one agentless connection with the same depth.
AI security is built into the core Orca platform rather than sold as a standalone add-on. Teams get AI-BOM inventory, posture management, and runtime monitoring alongside cloud, workload, and code coverage in the same graph, so AI risk isn’t managed in a separate tool.
Orca’s vulnerability management is built for cloud workloads and containers specifically, correlated with identity, network, and data context. For organizations using Tenable Nessus or Tenable.io for on-premises or endpoint vulnerability scanning outside the cloud, Orca is typically evaluated as a replacement for Tenable Cloud Security rather than for on-prem scanning use cases.
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