Contrast Security Protect vs Fortify Application Defender vs Veracode comparison

Contrast Security Protect

Read 200 Veracode reviews

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9,530 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

Fortify Application Defender

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Contrast Security Protect, Fortify Application Defender, and Veracode based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Sonar, Veracode, Checkmarx and others in Application Security Tools.

To learn more, read our detailed Application Security Tools Report (Updated: June 2025).

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Helped 858,649 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

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

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Application Security Tools category, the mindshare of Contrast Security Protect is 0.5%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortify Application Defender is 0.7%, down from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Veracode is 9.2%, down from 10.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Security Tools

Featured Reviews

ToddMcAlister

Lead Application and Data Security Engineer at a insurance company with 5,001-10,000 employees

It provides us with more in-depth visibility into ongoing attacks.

I rate Contrast Security Protect eight out of 10. Overall, it's a solid product, but I deduct a couple of points because of the interface and some shortcomings in the reporting. If you have a large enterprise where you're dealing with a lot of servers, then it makes sense not to use the internal MySQL database. You should use something like Oracle or Microsoft SQL, but if you don't have many transactions, the embedded MySQL database works great.

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Saroj-Patnaik

Software Development Engineer 3 at Ernst & Young

Reliable solution with excellent machine learning algorithms but expensive and lacking support

I primarily use Fortify Application Defender to assess whether our products can defend against applications Fortify Application Defender's most valuable features are machine learning algorithms, real-time remediation, and automatic vulnerability notifications. Fortify Application Defender gives…

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David-Robertson

Director Enterprise Architecture at Exeter Finance Corp.

Static scanning and software composition analysis are very helpful, but the usability needs improvement

Static scanning and software composition analysis are very helpful. My colleagues and I don't need to be experts on all of those ancillary things, so we can focus more on the business deliverables. They have a pretty good tool that allows me to run scans of my local integrated development environment. I can find a lot of those flaws a lot sooner than I would if I had to wait for these cloud-based scans. They've come out with some sort of automated fix feature. I haven't used it, but they gave us a demo of it, and that one looks promising. I don't know if it's ready for prime time yet.

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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

"The product gives a few false positives. We get 99 percent true positives."

"Protect provides us with more in-depth visibility into ongoing attacks."

"The solution has excellent real-time capabilities."

"Its ability to find security defects is valuable."

"The most valuable feature is that it analyzes data in real-time."

"The most valuable feature is the ability to automatically feed it rules what it's coupled with the WebInspect dynamic application scanning technology."

"Fortify Application Defender's most valuable features are machine learning algorithms, real-time remediation, and automatic vulnerability notifications."

"The product saves us cost and time."

"The tool's most valuable feature is software composition analysis. This feature works well with my .NET applications, providing a better understanding of library vulnerabilities."

"We are able to provide out customers with a secure application after development. They are no longer left wondering if they are vulnerable to different threats within the market following deployment."

"The solution helped us to improve the code quality of our organization."

More Fortify Application Defender pros

"Static analysis scanning engine is a key feature."

"The platform itself has a lot of AppSec best practices information, especially in the mitigation recommendation process."

"The one thing we really liked about Veracode when we got it was the consultation calls; that our developers are able to schedule them on their own, instead of going to a "gatekeeper." They upload their code, they have questions, they schedule it, they speak with someone on the other side who is an expert, they can speak developer-to-developers."

"One thing that I like about Veracode is that it is quite a good tool for dynamic application testing."

"It provides security of different Shadow IT activities in our environment, especially around application development and website hosting."

"It has given our management a view into issues with all of our product lines. We have three products and all of them were scanned. As a result, the project lead for each product has taken measures to improve things."

"When we expanded our definition of critical systems to include an internal application to be scanned by Veracode, we had initial scans that produced hundreds of vulnerabilities. We expected this, based on how the code was treated previously, but the Veracode platform allowed us to streamline our identification of these items and develop a game plan to quickly address them."

"We use it to get our scan results and see where our software is vulnerable or not vulnerable."

More Veracode pros

Cons

"Protect's reporting GUI is very basic. To get all statuses from the APIs, we needed to write our own KPI dashboard to provide reports."

"Contrast Security Protect needs to improve integration."

"There's room for improvement in the initial setup."

"The biggest complaint that I have heard concerns additional platform support because right now, it only supports applications that are written in .NET and Java."

"The solution could improve the time it takes to scan. When comparing it to SonarQube it does it in minutes while in Fortify Application Defender it can take hours."

"The false positive rate should be lower."

"The product should integrate industry-standard code review tools internally with its system. This would streamline the coding process, as developers wouldn't need multiple tools for code review and security checks. Many independent and open-source tools are available, from Apache to various libraries. Using multiple DevOps pipeline tools can slow the turnaround time."

"Fortify Application Defender could improve by supporting more code languages, such as GRAAS and Groovy."

"I encountered many false positives for Python applications."

"Support for older compilers/IDEs is lacking."

"The solution is quite expensive."

More Fortify Application Defender cons

"Veracode's ease of use could be improved. I would also like to see more online videos and tutorials that could help us understand the product better. It would also be helpful if Veracode created a certification program for DevSecOps staff to learn about their product and get certified. This kind of training would raise the company's profile within the industry."

"From the usability perspective, it is not up to date with the latest trends. It looks very old. Tools such as Datadog, New Relic, or infrastructure security tools, such as AWS Cloud, seem very user-friendly. They are completely web-based, and you can navigate through them pretty quickly, whereas Veracode is very rigid. It is like an old-school enterprise application. It does the job, but they need to invest a little more on the usability front."

"All areas of the solution could use some improvement."

"I think for us the biggest improvement would be to have an indicator when there's something wrong with a scan."

"In the last month or so, I had a problem with the APIs when doing some implementations. The Veracode support team could be more specific and give me more examples. They shouldn't just copy the URL for a doc and send it to me."

"Ideally, I would like better reporting that gives me a more concise and accurate description of what my pain points are, and how to get to them."

"I would like Veracode to also have the ability to fix these flaws in a future release."

"It's very expensive for a small organization."

More Veracode cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"Fortify Application Defender is very expensive."

"The licensing is very complex, it's project based and can range from $10,000 to $200,000+ depending on the project type and size."

"The base licensing costs for the SaaS platform is about $900 USD per application, per year."

"The product’s price is much higher than other tools."

"The price of this solution could be less expensive."

"I rate the solution's pricing a five out of ten. It comes as an annual cloud subscription. The tool's pricing is around 50 lakhs."

"Negotiate some, but their prices are reasonable."

"Users in some forums mentioned that pricing for this solution can be quite high."

"From a cost perspective, it seems okay, although we will probably evaluate alternatives next time it's up for renewal because for us, it's a relatively high cost, and we want to make sure that we are using our resources most appropriately."

"Without getting too specific, I'd say the average yearly cost is around $50,000. The costs include licensing and maintenance support."

"To my knowledge, licensing for Veracode Static Analysis is paid yearly by my company."

"There is a fee to scale up the solution which I consider expensive."

"Licensing cost is on a yearly basis and there are no additional costs, the pricing is straightforward."

"Veracode's pricing is on the higher end, but it is acceptable."

More Veracode pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Application Security Tools solutions are best for your needs.

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858,649 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

27%

Computer Software Company

13%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Insurance Company

Financial Services Firm

20%

Manufacturing Company

16%

Computer Software Company

13%

Government

10%

Computer Software Company

17%

Financial Services Firm

16%

Manufacturing Company

Insurance Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Contrast Security Protect?

The product gives a few false positives. We get 99 percent true positives.

What needs improvement with Contrast Security Protect?

Contrast Security Protect needs to improve integration.

What is your primary use case for Contrast Security Protect?

We use the product for DevSecOps.

What do you like most about Fortify Application Defender?

I find the configuration of rules in Fortify Application Defender useful. Its integration is also easy.

What needs improvement with Fortify Application Defender?

The product should integrate industry-standard code review tools internally with its system. This would streamline th...

What is your primary use case for Fortify Application Defender?

We use the solution for fast code review. It is integrated into our DevOps pipeline.

Which gives you more for your money - SonarQube or Veracode?

SonarQube is easy to deploy and configure, and also integrates well with other tools to do quality code analysis. Son...

What do you like most about Veracode?

The SAST and DAST modules are great.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Veracode?

The product’s price is a bit higher compared to other solutions. However, the tool provides good vulnerability and da...

SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) vs Contrast Security Protect

Comparisons

Compared 32% of the time

Mend.io vs Contrast Security Protect

Compared 24% of the time

OpenText Core Application Security vs Contrast Security Protect

Compared 14% of the time

Sonatype Lifecycle vs Contrast Security Protect

Compared 11% of the time

Acunetix vs Contrast Security Protect

Compared 10% of the time

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Checkmarx One vs Fortify Application Defender

Compared 22% of the time

SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) vs Fortify Application Defender

Compared 14% of the time

Qualys Web Application Scanning vs Fortify Application Defender

Compared 13% of the time

Coverity vs Fortify Application Defender

Compared 13% of the time

Snyk vs Fortify Application Defender

Compared 9% of the time

More Fortify Application Defender Competitors

SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) vs Veracode

Compared 19% of the time

Checkmarx One vs Veracode

Compared 10% of the time

GitHub Advanced Security vs Veracode

Compared 7% of the time

OpenText Core Application Security vs Veracode

Compared 5% of the time

Snyk vs Veracode

Compared 4% of the time

More Veracode Competitors

Product Reports

Download Contrast Security Protect product report

Download Fortify Application Defender product report

Download Veracode product report

May 2025

Also Known As

Contrast Protect

HPE Fortify Application Defender, Micro Focus Fortify Application Defender

Crashtest Security , Veracode Detect

Overview

Contrast Security is the world’s leading provider of security technology that enables software applications to protect themselves against cyberattacks, heralding the new era of self-protecting software. Contrast's patented deep security instrumentation is the breakthrough technology that enables highly accurate assessment and always-on protection of an entire application portfolio, without disruptive scanning or expensive security experts. Only Contrast has sensors that work actively inside applications to uncover vulnerabilities, prevent data breaches, and secure the entire enterprise from development, to operations, to production.

Contrast Security

Micro Focus Security Fortify Application Defender is a runtime application self-protection (RASP) solution that helps you manage and mitigate risk from homegrown or third-party applications. It provides centralized visibility into application use and abuse while protecting from software vulnerability exploits and other violations in real time.

OpenText

Veracode is a leading provider of application security solutions, offering tools to identify, mitigate, and prevent vulnerabilities across the software development lifecycle. Its cloud-based platform integrates security into DevOps workflows, helping organizations ensure that their code remains secure and compliant with industry standards.

Veracode supports multiple application security testing types, including static analysis (SAST), dynamic analysis (DAST), software composition analysis (SCA), and manual penetration testing. These tools are designed to help developers detect vulnerabilities early in development while maintaining speed in deployment. Veracode also emphasizes scalability, offering features for enterprises that manage a large number of applications across different teams. Its robust reporting and analytics capabilities allow organizations to continuously monitor their security posture and track progress toward remediation.

What are the key features of Veracode?

Static Analysis (SAST) - Scans source code for vulnerabilities before deployment.
Dynamic Analysis (DAST) - Examines applications in a running state to detect flaws in real-time.
Software Composition Analysis (SCA) - Identifies risks in open-source libraries and third-party components.
Manual Penetration Testing - Offers expert analysis for more complex vulnerabilities.
Integrations with DevOps tools - Seamlessly integrates with CI/CD pipelines for automated security checks.

What benefits should users consider in Veracode reviews?

Early detection of vulnerabilities - Helps developers fix security issues early in the development process.
Scalability - Supports organizations with large-scale application portfolios.
Compliance support - Ensures applications meet various security standards and regulations.
Developer training - Provides tools for educating developers on secure coding practices.
Comprehensive reporting - Offers detailed reports that track remediation and risk trends.

Veracode is widely adopted in industries like finance, healthcare, and government, where compliance and security are critical. It helps these organizations maintain strict security standards while enabling rapid development through its integration with Agile and DevOps methodologies.

Veracode helps businesses secure their applications efficiently, ensuring they can deliver safe and compliant software at scale.

Sample Customers

Williams-Sonoma, Autodesk, HUAWEI, Chromeriver, RingCentral, Demandware.

ServiceMaster, Saltworks, SAP

Manhattan Associates, Azalea Health, Sabre, QAD, Floor & Decor, Prophecy International, SchoolCNXT, Keap, Rekner, Cox Automotive, Automation Anywhere, State of Missouri and others.