Pentera vs Clone Systems
Enterprise automated security validation compared with automated penetration testing you can buy online today.
Pentera is an enterprise security validation platform founded in 2015 and headquartered in Burlington, Massachusetts, with more than 1,200 enterprise customers by its own account. Clone Systems is an independent security testing company since 1998 and a PCI Approved Scanning Vendor since 2007 that sells automated external and internal penetration testing online. The two serve different buyers. This page says plainly where each fits, using only what each company publishes about its own products.
Where Pentera is strong
Pentera is built for large security teams that want to test continuously. Its platform runs agentless against internal networks (Pentera Core), internet-facing assets (Pentera Surface), and cloud environments on AWS and Azure (Pentera Cloud), emulating real attack techniques in live production under customer-controlled guardrails, with ransomware emulation and credential exposure testing. It integrates with enterprise tooling and is sold through a sales process with a live demo. For a company with a security operations team, a large estate, and an enterprise budget, it is a category leader.
Where Clone Systems is different
- Bought online, starts today. Clone Systems publishes every price and sells online with no sales call. Pentera's site offers a demo and a conversation with its team; the only published price we found is its AWS Marketplace listing at $120,000 for a 12-month contract.
- Sized for a normal business. A Clone Systems external test is $1,995 for one target over 30 days, and an internal test is $2,995 for up to 25 hosts. Pentera is sold as an enterprise platform.
- A defined 30-day window with a dated report. Many buyers need one test with a report dated this year for an auditor, an insurer, or a customer. Clone Systems is built around that. Pentera is built around continuous validation.
- A PCI Approved Scanning Vendor. Clone Systems has been on the PCI Council's ASV list since 2007 and sells the ASV scan in the same cart. We found no Approved Scanning Vendor claim on Pentera's site; Pentera uses "ASV" to mean automated security validation.
- Engineers when you need them. If your auditor wants a person to run the test, a Clone Systems engineer can perform it on the same platform, or you can move to a full managed penetration test.
Feature comparison
| Capability | Clone Systems | Pentera |
|---|---|---|
| Automated external penetration test | Yes (Pentera Surface) | |
| Automated internal network penetration test | Yes (Pentera Core) | |
| Cloud environment testing | Cloud identity and configuration within the test | Yes (Pentera Cloud, AWS and Azure) |
| Ransomware emulation | - | |
| Continuous validation | Annual program available | |
| Published price with online checkout | - (AWS Marketplace listing only) | |
| Buy without a sales call | - | |
| One-time 30-day test | - | |
| PCI Approved Scanning Vendor | Not found | |
| PCI ASV scan in the same cart | - | |
| Human-led penetration test available | - | |
| Executive and technical reports |
Published pricing, side by side
| Test | Clone Systems | Pentera |
|---|---|---|
| One external target, 30 days | $1,995 | Not offered |
| Ten external targets, 30 days | $3,495 (includes authenticated web app testing) | Not offered |
| Internal network, 25 hosts | $2,995 | Not offered as a unit |
| Internal network, 250 hosts | $12,995 | Not published |
| Annual program | From $5,995 a year | $120,000 for a 12-month contract (AWS Marketplace listing); private offers on request |
| PCI ASV scan | $185 a year (1 IP or domain) | Not offered |
Prices as published by each vendor, checked October 6, 2026. Pentera does not publish prices on its own website; the figure shown is its public AWS Marketplace listing. Scope is counted differently on each side, so this table compares how each is bought rather than matched sizes.
Who should choose which
Choose Pentera if you run a security operations team, want continuous validation across a large internal, external, and cloud estate, and buy enterprise software through procurement.
Choose Clone Systems if you need a penetration test this month with a report you can hand to an auditor, insurer, or customer, you want to buy it online for a few thousand dollars, or you need a PCI Approved Scanning Vendor.
If your auditor or customer is asking
Most requests for a penetration test ask for one thing: an independent test, with evidence of real exploit attempts, and proof that what was found was fixed, dated within the last year. Both platforms attempt real exploitation. The difference is that Clone Systems packages that as a single purchase with a 30-day window and a report at the end, while Pentera packages it as a continuous enterprise program. See what is in a Clone Systems report and the note you can send your auditor first.
Frequently asked questions
Prices and product details are taken from each vendor's public website and AWS Marketplace listing, checked October 6, 2026. Pentera is a trademark of Pentera. Clone Systems is not affiliated with Pentera. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we will update it.
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