The article discusses how vulnerability assessment helps organizations identify and understand potential risks in their computer systems. By using active or passive scanning techniques, organizations can determine the vulnerabilities that hackers could exploit to access sensitive information. The two main methods of vulnerability scanning involve either penetrating a system to prove its vulnerability or using available information to assess its status. Both approaches have their advantages and drawbacks. Overall, vulnerability assessment scanners can simulate attacks, providing valuable insights into how attackers might compromise a system.