Azure Firewall vs Microsoft Defender Threat Intelligence [EOL] comparison

Azure Firewall is a user-friendly, intuitive, cloud-native firewall security solution that provides top-of-the-industry threat protection for all your Azure Virtual Network resources. Azure Firewall is constantly and thoroughly analyzing all traffic and data packets, making it a very valuable and secure fully stateful firewall as a service with built-in high availability and unrestricted cloud scalability. Azure Firewall allows users to create virtual IP addresses and provides for secure DDoS protection for the virtual machines on your network. It also provides fast and efficient east-west and north-south traffic security.

Azure Firewall is a managed, cloud-based network security service built to protect your Azure Virtual Network resources. It is a fully stateful firewall as a service with built-in high availability and unrestricted cloud scalability.

Azure Firewall has two significant offerings, Standard and Premium.

Azure Firewall Standard works directly with Microsoft Cyber Security and supplies excellent L3-L7 filtering and threat awareness. The proactive real-time threat awareness will quickly alert you and immediately deny all traffic to and from any known problematic or suspicious domains or IP addresses. Microsoft Cyber Security is updated continually to protect against all new and known potential threats at all times. To learn more about Azure Firewall Standard, click here.

Azure Firewall Premium provides everything the standard version does, and additionally adds extra levels of data encryption, network intrusion detection, extended URL filtering, and Web category filters. To learn more about the added features of Azure Firewall Premium, click here.

Key Benefits and Features of Azure Firewall:

• High availability - You do not need load balancers with Azure Firewall; it's already built in and ready to go.
• Self-scalability - Azure Firewall is intuitive and will auto-scale as needed based on traffic flow to be ready for peak traffic times.
• Threat awareness - Using Microsoft Cyber Security to filter traffic, Azure Firewall will deny any known problematic threats to keep your network safe.
• Additional IP addresses - You can securely add up to 250 public IP addresses with Azure Firewall
• Improved web category filtering - You can set up specific protocols to allow or deny categories within websites that are deemed inappropriate for use within your network. You have the ability to organize categories based on a defined set of descriptions.

What our real users have to say:

Many PeerSpot users found Azure Firewall to be very user-friendly and easy to use. They liked that it offers seamless integration to the cloud and were especially pleased with the threat filtering options.

Regarding integration and threat intelligence, our users wrote:

“The most valuable feature is the integration into the overall cloud platform.”

“The most valuable feature is threat intelligence. It is based on filtering and can identify multiple threats.”

“I think that one of the best features is definitely the premium version, along with the IDPs in terms of the intrusion detection and prevention system.”

Microsoft Defender Threat Intelligence [EOL] offers comprehensive security by integrating with Microsoft platforms, retaining data within tenants, and providing real-time threat detection and collaboration. It's designed for both enterprise and SMB environments.

Microsoft Defender Threat Intelligence enhances cybersecurity operations by integrating with Azure Sentinel and Microsoft products like Intune and Azure. Its capabilities in endpoint, email, and cloud security ensure robust protection against a wide range of threats. With global threat data, anti-spam features, and customization options, it addresses threat prevention and vulnerability management. Seamless scaling and proactive incident prevention make it a reliable choice for enterprises looking for collaborative, efficient security management.

• Integration with Microsoft Products: Enhances usability by working seamlessly with Intune and Azure.
• Real-time Threat Detection: Quickly identifies and responds to emerging threats.
• Email and Cloud Security: Protects critical communication channels and cloud environments.
• Global Threat Data: Offers extensive threat intelligence from various regions.
• Comprehensive Reporting: Provides detailed insights into security activities and incidents.
• Automation and Insights: Streamlines threat management with advanced automation capabilities.

• Proactive Incident Prevention: Reduces the risk of breaches by anticipating threats.
• Seamless Deployment: Ensures efficient integration within existing infrastructure.
• Customization: Flexible settings to meet specific security requirements.
• Collaboration Across Regions: Enables coordinated defense strategies globally.
• Efficient Security Management: Improves operations through automated and integrated systems.

Microsoft Defender Threat Intelligence is crucial for industries that value data retention and comprehensive threat analyses in safeguarding their operations. Financial institutions, healthcare providers, and technology firms implement this solution to secure their environments by updating security protocols and ensuring compliance with various industry standards. The focus on integration and customization helps these organizations adapt to evolving cybersecurity threats effectively.