Comparison
Automated AWS audit, manual audit, Prowler or Security Hub?
Four ways to assess an AWS account, each answering a different need. This comparison helps you choose, and combine them.
Four approaches, four uses
- The Silamir automated audit: a full review of one account, within the hour, with reports ready to present.
- A manual audit: a consulting engagement, run by consultants, which can go beyond the configuration (organisation, processes, interviews).
- Prowler: an open source security checking tool that your teams install and run themselves.
- AWS Security Hub: the AWS service that continuously assesses your accounts against the standards you enable.
The comparison in one table
| Criterion | Silamir automated audit | Manual audit | Prowler | AWS Security Hub |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nature | One-off, automated audit service with AI analysis | Consulting engagement | Open source command-line tool | AWS service, enabled continuously |
| Scope | 10 domains: FSBP and CIS v3.0 security, FinOps, resilience, IAM, networking, web security… | Defined in the contract | Security and compliance, several hundred checks | Controls of the enabled standards (FSBP, CIS, PCI DSS, NIST…) |
| Cost optimisation | Yes: Savings Plans, rightsizing, unused resources, savings in euros | Depends on the engagement | No, security-focused | No |
| Turnaround | Usually 30–60 minutes | Several days to several weeks | Fast run, then internal analysis time | Continuous, once enabled |
| Effort for your teams | Deploy a read-only role, choose the regions | Interviews, access, reviews | Install, run, triage and interpret the results | Enable per account and region, process findings as they come |
| Deliverables | 10 Word and PDF reports, kill chains, remediation plan, P0/P1/P2 Excel, executive summary and board deck | Written report and debrief | Raw results (CSV, JSON, HTML) | Findings and scores in the console |
| Prioritisation | Cross-domain attack scenarios: an action that breaks three of them is P0 | Expert judgement | Severity per check | Severity per control |
| Continuous monitoring | No: a snapshot at a given date, to be run again | No | If you automate it | Yes |
| Price | 299 USD per audit, billed by AWS | On quotation | Free as open source; paid SaaS offering | Pay as you go, based on the checks evaluated |
When to prefer a manual audit
- You need a view of organisation, processes and governance, not only of the configuration.
- You are preparing a certification (ISO 27001, SOC 2) with an accredited auditor.
- You want an application penetration test performed by a human.
- Your multi-account architecture requires interviews to understand flows and exceptions.
When Prowler is enough
- Your teams are comfortable with the command line and want repeated checks, for instance in a CI/CD pipeline.
- Your need is limited to security and compliance.
- You have time to analyse the results, prioritise them and write the debrief yourselves.
Why keep Security Hub
- Security Hub monitors continuously; an audit is a one-off. The two complement each other.
- When Security Hub is enabled, the Silamir audit reuses its FSBP and CIS results, deduplicates and prioritises them.
- Security Hub covers neither costs nor resilience, and produces no deliverables for management.
When to choose the Silamir automated audit
- You want a full review before a board meeting, a migration, an external audit or an acquisition.
- You need dated evidence for your risk management framework (DORA, internal audit).
- You want to cut the AWS bill and fix security with a single action plan.
- You want a fast starting point before focusing a manual audit on the topics that deserve it.
Choosing an AWS audit: frequently asked questions
Can these approaches be combined?
Yes, and that is often the most effective: Security Hub for continuous monitoring, the automated audit for a full, prioritised review, and a manual audit or penetration test on the topics that need human expertise.
Does the Silamir audit use Prowler?
No. Collection relies on read-only AWS CLI scripts and, when available, on Security Hub results. The analysis is done by Anthropic Claude models through Amazon Bedrock.
Can AI replace an auditor?
Not entirely. The AI analyses the collected configuration and writes the reports; each finding names the affected resource, and an automated check verifies that the ARNs cited actually exist in the collected data. It does not replace an expert's judgement on your organisation or business context.
Do I need to pay for Security Hub to use the audit?
No. Security Hub is not required: without it, the audit relies on direct collection of the configuration. When it is enabled, its results enrich the report.
Ready to audit your AWS account?
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