HEAD-TO-HEAD · FACTS ONLY
Censys vs Defender EASM: exposure management facts side by side
SHORT ANSWER
Censys describes 3 of the five tool types on the pages we read and Defender EASM describes 2; they differ on exposure validation. On proof, Censys describes exploitability checks but not attack-style testing and Defender EASM does not describe exploit testing on the pages we read. We do not score either; the right choice depends on your estate, current platform, WAFs and capacity to fix.
By The Exposure Desk · Exposure Management Finder · Published 2026-10-11
Desk research from public vendor pages read in September 2026, updated 2026-10-11. Profiles follow our published method; we did not run the products.
How do their shapes compare?
- Censys ASM
- Microsoft Defender EASM
- Outer point: described on the vendor's pages we read
- Inner point: not in our sources (it may exist; we did not find it)
What are the facts, side by side?
| Fact | Censys ASM | Microsoft Defender EASM |
|---|---|---|
| Positioning | Censys's external exposure management product, built on first-party scanning of all 65K ports and the Censys Internet Map. | Microsoft's external attack surface management service, run as an Azure resource, with a prebuilt inventory, recursive discovery from seeds and billing on the Azure bill. |
| Deployment | Discovery expands from seeds the customer adds in the console or through the API; assets found beyond the seeds appear under a Found by Censys tab. Source: Censys docs: seed your attack surface · Read 27 Sep 2026 | An Azure resource. Cross-tenant resource access, including Azure Lighthouse, is not supported. Source: Microsoft Learn: Defender EASM overview · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| EASM discovery | Described First-party scanning across all 65K ports finds services on nonstandard ports and hosts with self-signed certificates. Source: Censys external exposure management · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Described A prebuilt inventory for many organisations plus recursive discovery from seeds you supply. Source: Microsoft Learn: what is discovery · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Exposure validationDiffers | Described Confirms reachability and applies EPSS and KEV; active exploitation testing is not described. Source: Censys external exposure management · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Not in our sources |
| Exposure management platforms | Not in our sources | Not in our sources |
| CTEM programme support | Described Discovery, prioritisation with EPSS and KEV, rapid response alerts and remediation tasks; exploit validation is not described. Source: Censys external exposure management · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Described Covers discovery and inventory with dashboards for vulnerabilities, compliance and hygiene; remediation happens downstream through Log Analytics and Azure Data Explorer. Source: Microsoft Learn: data connections · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| WAF posture | Not in our sources | Not in our sources |
| Subsidiary and owner attributionDiffers | Not in our sources | Partly Every asset carries a state (Approved Inventory, Dependency, Monitor Only, Candidate, Requires Investigation) based on connection strength and confidence; cross-tenant access is not supported. Source: Microsoft Learn: what is discovery · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Internal as well as external assets | Not in our sources | Not in our sources |
| Cloud connections namedDiffers | Matches Names AWS, Google Cloud and Azure among its integrations. Source: Censys integrations · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Partly Runs as an Azure resource; connections to other clouds are not described. Source: Microsoft Learn: data connections · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Exploitability checkedDiffers | Partly Reachability confirmation and EPSS and KEV scoring, not exploitation. Source: Censys external exposure management · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Not in our sources |
| Attack-style testing | Not in our sources | Not in our sources |
| Works through your WAF or edge | Not in our sources | Not in our sources |
| WAF coverage across several vendors | Not in our sources | Not in our sources |
| Retests after a fix | Not in our sources | Not in our sources |
| Routes findings to owners and ticketsDiffers | Matches Auto-creates, routes and tracks remediation tasks. Source: Censys external exposure management · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Partly Data connectors to Log Analytics and Azure Data Explorer trigger remediation actions downstream. Source: Microsoft Learn: data connections · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Applies a compensating control | Not in our sources | Not in our sources |
| Price or pricing basis published | Partly ASM is contact sales; a free platform account exists and credits start at $100. Source: Censys pricing · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Partly Billable assets are defined (approved host:IP combinations, domains and IP addresses) and charged on the Azure bill; Microsoft's pricing page showed no rate when we read it. Source: Microsoft Learn: understanding billable assets · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Trial or self-serve startDiffers | Partly A free Censys platform account exists; ASM itself is sold through sales. Source: Censys pricing · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Matches A 30-day free trial, then Azure billing. Source: Microsoft Learn: understanding billable assets · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Platform it extends | None | Native to Azure, billed on the Azure bill, with a Security Copilot integration in preview. Source: Microsoft Learn: Defender EASM documentation · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Integrations | Webex, Slack, Jira, ServiceNow ITSM, Tenable VM, Google Security Operations, Microsoft Sentinel, ServiceNow CMDB, Axonius, Brinqa, AWS, Google Cloud and Azure. Source: Censys integrations · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Data connections to Log Analytics and Azure Data Explorer, and a Security Copilot integration in preview. Source: Microsoft Learn: data connections · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Price | ASM: contact sales. A free Censys platform account exists, and credits start at $100. Source: Censys pricing · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Billed through Azure on billable assets (approved host:IP combinations, domains and IP addresses) after a 30-day free trial. Microsoft's pricing page did not show a rate when we read it; check it for the current figure. Source: Microsoft Learn: understanding billable assets · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
Where do they differ?
- Exposure validation: Censys describes it; Defender EASM is not in our sources.
- Subsidiary and owner attribution: Censys is not in our sources; Defender EASM partly matches.
- Cloud connections named: Censys matches; Defender EASM partly matches.
- Exploitability checked: Censys partly matches; Defender EASM is not in our sources.
- Routes findings to owners and tickets: Censys matches; Defender EASM partly matches.
- Trial or self-serve start: Censys partly matches; Defender EASM matches.
Choose Censys if
- Your team hunts threats and wants raw internet scan evidence
- You need findings in ServiceNow CMDB, Microsoft Sentinel or Tenable VM
Choose Defender EASM if
- You are on Azure and want to start without a sales call
- You want a discovery baseline before buying validation
Which limits should you check?
Censys
- Discovery starts from seeds you supply.
- No exploit validation or mitigation is described on the pages we read.
Defender EASM
- No exploit validation is described.
- No built-in remediation workflow, and no cross-tenant resource access for groups with several Azure tenants.
Questions readers ask
Is Censys or Defender EASM better?
Neither is scored on this site. Censys describes 3 of five tool types and Defender EASM 2 on the pages we read, and they differ on 6 recorded facts. Which fits depends on your estate, current platform, need for proof, WAFs and capacity to fix; the finder checks those.
Which of the two proves exploitability?
Censys: exploitability checked: Partly; attack-style testing: Not in our sources. Defender EASM: exploitability checked: Not in our sources; attack-style testing: Not in our sources.
Do Censys or Defender EASM publish prices?
Censys: ASM: contact sales. A free Censys platform account exists, and credits start at $100. Defender EASM: Billed through Azure on billable assets (approved host:IP combinations, domains and IP addresses) after a 30-day free trial. Microsoft's pricing page did not show a rate when we read it; check it for the current figure.