The Information Security Office provides Nessus Vulnerability Scanner to individuals responsible for the security of University-owned devices for assessment of computers, computer systems, networks, or applications for weaknesses. Weakness can be defined as:

• Vulnerabilities that allow a remote hacker to control or access sensitive data on a system
• Misconfiguration (e.g. open mail relay, missing patches, etc.)
• Default passwords, a few common passwords, and blank/absent passwords on some system accounts
• Denials of service against the TCP/IP stack by using mangled packets
• Preparation for PCI DSS audits