Enhanced Qualys Recommended Profiles – Update Summary

To further improve the quality of our Qualys products, we rolled out the final updates to existing and new Qualys Option profiles in March 2025. These updates are aligned with the best practices recommended by our Qualys Security Solution architects, in collaboration with Product Management, ensuring a more secure and optimized experience for you. 

Option Profile Roll-Out Plans:  

The Option Profile roll-out was planned in a phased manner below; the timelines of the events are captured here. 

Mid-January Release: The following Option Profile Setting changes were implemented to the New option profiles: 

• Purge old host data when the OS is changed 
• Scan Performance changes 
• Authentication Records 
• Dissolvable Agent 
• Asset Discovery Changes 

March 21 Release: The latest rollout includes the following setting changes to the Existing and the New Option Profiles: 

• Standard TCP Ports expanded from 1,900 to 2,800 
• Additional TCP Ports expanded from 12,500 to 20,500 

What are the benefits that customers can expect here?  

• Improved scan coverage and vulnerability detection
• Parallel Scanning enabled 
• Alignment with PCI DSS v4.0 requirements for authenticated scans 
• Reduced false positives and negatives  
• Streamlined option profile creation process

With the expansion of Standard TCP Port coverage from 1,800 to 2,800 ports, our scans will now detect a broader range of vulnerabilities. As a result, customers may notice a slight increase in scan duration, but this enhancement ensures more comprehensive security visibility across your environment. 

Previous Notifications: The Qualys team posted two notifications capturing all the above-mentioned settings. Kindly refer to these for additional details.   

• Qualys Recommended Option Profile – Upcoming Important Changes 
• Qualys Recommended Option Profile Release Updates