Azure Web Application Firewall vs Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance comparison

Azure Web Application Firewall vs. Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Azure Web Application Firewall

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

22nd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Web Application Firewall (WAF) (12th)

Microsoft Purview Communica...

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

30th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

GRC (8th), Digital Risk Protection (5th)

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Azure Web Application Firewall is 2.0%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance is 0.3%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Microsoft Security Suite

Featured Reviews

Mano Senaratne

Management Consultant at a consultancy with 201-500 employees

Comprehensive suite simplifies configuration while frequent updates require management

Mainly, it comes with the complete suite of Microsoft services. I can use it in conjunction with the best options and other features that come with it. Configuration is much easier than using different platforms. For example, if I have hosted the application in AWS and am using the Application Firewall from Azure, there are certain additional steps to follow when configuring them. With Microsoft, everything is within a single suite, making it easier to configure and plan. Azure continually upgrades platforms and sends us messages to upgrade to the next version, simplifying the process. Later, it's much easier if I want to upgrade the software platform, scale it, or move it to a different application host as the whole suite comes together. The return on investment is good. If I am doing applications for clients, I can invoice them for better costs. Most applications that I run and use have a better return on investment.

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Rey Vazquez

Vice President of Technology at Park Avenue Finance

Creates robust rules for communication and data security, boosting compliance measures

I was talking with some engineer from Microsoft about how we can audit our web page. They create or add to Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance that part, the Layer seven of the OSI model, to check the application and maintain a good practice of coding. I've tried the web page part, and it works great. However, monitoring and compliance for web applications could be improved.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"Azure WAF is extremely stable."

"The most valuable feature is that it allows us to publish our applications behind the firewall."

"It's a good option if you want a solution that's ready to go and easy for your team to learn. It's cloud-based, so you don't need to buy or maintain any hardware infrastructure."

"We have found the most valuable features to be the web application, minimal skills required for management, control through policies, and automation."

"The most valuable feature of Azure Web Application Firewall is its ability to filter requests and block false positives by using custom rules and the OWASP rule set."

"It's quite a stable product and works well with Microsoft products."

"The solution has good dashboards."

"Configuration is much easier than using different platforms."

More Azure Web Application Firewall pros

"Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance helps with extra collaboration and ensures communication is within the framework."

"The features I appreciate the most in Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance include the ability to build cases, give them dates, and find them based on the notes that I left behind."

"The time it saves is very useful."

"Customer support is excellent."

Cons

"Deployment should be simplified so that a non-techie can handle it."

"The management can be improved."

"The support for proxy forwarding could improve."

"The knowledge base could be improved."

"From a reporting perspective, they could do more there."

"Upgrading the platform regularly is necessary for security, however, frequent updates every six months or year from Azure can be a maintenance overhead."

"Some Azure applications, like the web application firewall, require a certain level of SKU for hosting setup. The basic setup does not allow me to use the web application firewall and other additional services."

"The documentation needs to be improved."

More Azure Web Application Firewall cons

"Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance can be improved by having more tutorials available for those who aren't used to using this platform."

"The product should incorporate more automation with the help of AI."

"Monitoring and compliance for web applications could be improved."

"Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance can be improved by having more tutorials available for those who aren't used to using this platform."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Azure WAF has price advantages over other WAF solutions. The pricing model is flexible because you pay on a scale based on the level of protection you need."

"The price is for this solution is fair and there is a license needed."

"The price of the solution depends on your architecture and how you manage it. You can control the cost in Azure quite well. The costs do not directly correlate to expenses in the features we are using."

"I give the pricing a nine out of ten."

"The price is reasonable. It is approximately $2,000 US per month."

"We have an enterprise agreement with Microsoft and the pricing is good."

Information not available

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

18%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Government

Computer Software Company

18%

Financial Services Firm

14%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Azure Web Application Firewall?

The integration it has with GitHub is great.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Web Application Firewall?

The pricing is okay at the moment. Sometimes, when opting for a higher SKU, it's not the WAF itself that's costly but the additional requirements. A higher SKU application hosting platform adds to ...

What needs improvement with Azure Web Application Firewall?

While using it, I identified certain areas where it would have been good to have additional features. Right now, I can't recall any specific instances. Seamless integration is good, yet having mult...

What do you like most about Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance?

Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance helps with extra collaboration and ensures communication is within the framework.

What needs improvement with Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance?

What advice do you have for others considering Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance?

Overall, I rate Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance at a nine. I highly recommend it to anyone due to its robust system and valuable resources for IT security, risk assessment, and data mana...

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Product Reports

Azure Web Application Firewall

Download Azure Web Application Firewall product report

GRC

Download Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance product report

Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance report

Overview

Azure Web Application Firewall (WAF) provides centralized protection of your web applications from common exploits and vulnerabilities. Web applications are increasingly targeted by malicious attacks that exploit commonly known vulnerabilities. SQL injection and cross-site scripting are among the most common attacks.

To learn more about our solution, ask questions, and share feedback, join our Microsoft Security, Compliance and Identity Community.

Microsoft

Communication Compliance is an insider risk solution in Microsoft 365 that helps minimize communication risks by helping you detect, capture, and act on inappropriate messages in your organization. Pre-defined and custom policies allow you to scan internal and external communications for policy matches so they can be examined by designated reviewers. Reviewers can investigate scanned email, Microsoft Teams, Yammer, or third-party communications in your organization and take appropriate actions to make sure they're compliant with your organization's message standards.

Communication Compliance policies in Microsoft 365 help you overcome many modern challenges associated with compliance and internal and external communications, including:

-Scanning increasing types of communication channels
-The increasing volume of message data
-Regulatory enforcement and the risk of fines

Additionally, there may be a separation of duties between your IT admins and your compliance management team. Communication Compliance supports the separation between configuration of policies and the investigation and review of messages. For example, the IT group for your organization may be responsible for setting up communication compliance role permissions, groups, and policies and investigators and reviewers may be responsible for message triage, review, and mitigation actions.

To learn more about our solution, ask questions, and share feedback, join our Microsoft Security, Compliance and Identity Community.

Microsoft

Azure Web Application Firewall vs. Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance