Softwr

Cybersecurity · head to head

Acunetix vs Cosign

Acunetix logo

Acunetix

Cybersecurity

Web application security testing made easy

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Cosign logo

Cosign

Cybersecurity

Signs and verifies container images and artifacts, with or without managing keys

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Cosign has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Acunetix pricing available by quote only; no transparent pricing published online; Cosign keyless signing inherits every weakness of the identity provider behind it. Sigstore’s own threat model states that if an identity provider is compromised, Sigstore will issue certificates to those identities, so a compromised account produces perfectly valid signatures.
  • They diverge on capability: Acunetix covers DAST scanning, Cosign covers Keyless signing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Acunetix and Cosign actually diverge.

Attributes where Acunetix and Cosign differ
AttributeAcunetixCosign
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsDesktop, Web, ApimacOS, Linux, Windows, Docker
Founded2005Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Acunetix

  • DAST scanning
  • IAST technology
  • AcuSensor
  • JavaScript security
  • SQL injection testing
  • XSS detection
  • OWASP Top 10
  • API security testing

Only in Cosign

  • Keyless signing
  • Key and KMS signing
  • Registry-native storage
  • In-toto attestations
  • Offline verification
  • Trusted root and signing config

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Acunetix

  • Scanning web applications for security vulnerabilitiesnot Cosign
  • Testing APIs for exploitable weaknesses and threatsnot Cosign
  • Automating dynamic application security testing (DAST)not Cosign
  • Finding and validating security issues in production environmentsnot Cosign

Cosign

  • Signing container images in a build pipeline without managing long-lived private keysnot Acunetix
  • Attaching a signed bill of materials to a release so consumers can verify its provenancenot Acunetix
  • Meeting a customer or regulatory requirement for signed artifactsnot Acunetix
  • Verifying third-party images before they enter an internal registrynot Acunetix

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Acunetix

  • Pricing available by quote only; no transparent pricing published online
  • Requires per-application licenses for comprehensive coverage
  • Scanning speed and feature depth depend on subscription tier
  • Advanced features like API security testing may require higher-tier plans

Cosign

  • Keyless signing inherits every weakness of the identity provider behind it. Sigstore’s own threat model states that if an identity provider is compromised, Sigstore will issue certificates to those identities, so a compromised account produces perfectly valid signatures.
  • A signature proves who signed, never whether they should have. The documentation is explicit that Sigstore cannot determine authorisation, so every consumer must write and maintain their own identity and issuer policy or verification means nothing.
  • Nothing is enforced without an admission controller. Signing changes what you can prove, not what runs, and the official policy controller has a small maintainer base for a component sitting in a cluster admission path.
  • Upgrades break pipelines. Version 3 changed defaults, version 4 is announced as removing legacy functionality and roughly half the command line flags, and two official client libraries still lacked support for the new log format as of mid 2026.
  • Signatures do not expire. An artifact signed before a maintainer account was compromised and one signed after are indistinguishable unless somebody is actively monitoring the transparency log, and almost nobody is.

Pricing, plan by plan

Acunetix

On request
  • StandardFree
    • Single user
    • 5 targets
    • Scheduled scans
  • PremiumFree
    • Multiple users
    • Unlimited targets
    • CI/CD integration
  • Acunetix 360Free
    • Enterprise features
    • SDLC integration
    • Custom workflows

Cosign

Free
  • CosignFree
    • Apache-2.0
    • Public Sigstore infrastructure free to use
    • No usage limits published

Which should you pick?

Choose Acunetix if

  • You need dast scanning.
  • You work on Desktop, Web, Api.
  • You also want iast technology.
Acunetix review

Choose Cosign if

  • You need keyless signing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker.
  • You also want key and kms signing.
Cosign review

Questions people ask

Is Acunetix or Cosign better?
Neither clearly leads. Acunetix starts at On request and Cosign at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Acunetix or Cosign?
Cosign has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Acunetix and Free for Cosign.
Does Acunetix or Cosign run on more platforms?
Acunetix runs on Desktop, Web, Api. Cosign runs on macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker.
Can I use Cosign for free?
Yes. Cosign has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Acunetix starts at On request.
What is Acunetix best used for?
Acunetix is most often used for scanning web applications for security vulnerabilities, testing apis for exploitable weaknesses and threats, automating dynamic application security testing (dast), finding and validating security issues in production environments. Of those, scanning web applications for security vulnerabilities and testing apis for exploitable weaknesses and threats are not what Cosign is typically brought in for.
What can Acunetix do that Cosign cannot?
Acunetix covers DAST scanning, IAST technology, AcuSensor, JavaScript security. Cosign covers Keyless signing, Key and KMS signing, Registry-native storage, In-toto attestations.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Acunetix: How much does Invicti (formerly Acunetix) cost?

Invicti pricing is available by quote based on your organization's needs, application count, and required features. The platform offers 8x faster scanning compared to competitors and detects 99.98% of exploitable vulnerabilities. Contact Invicti sales for a custom pricing proposal.

Source
Cosign: Does Cosign tell me if an image is vulnerable?

No. It has no vulnerability knowledge whatsoever. It can carry an SBOM as a signed attestation but never reads it. Pair it with a scanner.

Cosign: Is signing alone enough?

No. Verification is a command somebody runs. Without an admission controller enforcing it, an unsigned image still runs.

Cosign: What does a bare cosign verify actually prove?

Very little. Without a pinned certificate identity and OIDC issuer, it accepts a valid signature from any identity at all.

Cosign: What is the risk of keyless signing?

Your OIDC provider becomes the root of trust. Compromise of that account yields genuine, verifiable signatures, so account security is the control that matters.

Cosign: Should we expect breaking changes?

Yes. Version 4 is announced to remove roughly half the flags, and a post-quantum migration is named as a further breaking change after that.

Share

Related pages

More on Acunetix

More on Cosign

Keep looking

Other head to heads