Darktrace vs IRONSCALES comparison

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Microsoft Logo
12,858 views|10,247 comparisons
97% willing to recommend
Darktrace Logo
423 views|346 comparisons
93% willing to recommend
IRONSCALES Logo
757 views|438 comparisons
100% willing to recommend
Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Darktrace and IRONSCALES based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Email Security solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
To learn more, read our detailed Darktrace vs. IRONSCALES Report (Updated: January 2024).
769,065 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"Our customers are satisfied with Defender for 365 because Microsoft products are easy to use and customize to meet the client's needs. Everything is in one place, so we can adjust policies as needed for phishing, DLP, ATP, or any other security features that our clients want to apply.""Microsoft Defender has a feature to protect each and every attachment. Even if it's an encrypted attachment, it will check for any potential threats.""It gives us visibility into threats and, for endpoints, it helps us to prioritize threats. We used to have a lack of visibility, but now our time to detect and respond has decreased.""Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is a stable solution.""Threat Explorer is one of the features that I very much like because it is a real-time report that allows you to identify, analyze, and trace security attacks.""There are several features that I consider valuable.""Since we have started using the solution, there have been fewer compromises.""The good part is that you don't have to configure it, which is very convenient."

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"The main valuable feature is that we don't need a lot of analysts. With few analysts, we have all the network monitored, 24/7.""I like the dashboards, which are cool. They are more user-friendly, in my experience. Its learning capabilities are really good.""I am impressed with the product's ability to give insights into network traffic.""The most valuable feature has been the behavioral analytics that allows us to monitor all the traffic.""Technical support is helpful and responsive.""The most valuable feature of Darktrace is the AI that detects abnormal network activity.""The Antigena feature is most valuable. Once it learns your environment, Antigena can step in and block a denial of service attack, a ransomware attack, or just about anything that doesn't belong in the environment. It can detect any type of attack that hits the environment because it understands what normal looks like for the network. It is very useful for an autonomous response.""The most valuable feature is the solution's ability to trim out the false positives and point your attention to the real important stuff."

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"There is buzz around phishing awareness training. When I make a campaign, all of a sudden people in our organization are talking, thinking, and wondering about it. Therefore, it keeps people on their toes. That is perfect because it does exactly what we want it to do.""I would say the most valuable feature is what they call Themis. It's like a virtual analyst that uses the decisions that system admins make to generate a score for whether an email is legitimate, spam, or phishing. It gets better based on the decisions that we make over time. The automation piece is great as well. The integrated approach of email security combined with employee awareness training is excellent.""The biggest benefit is that we get fewer phishing and spam emails, so using IRONSCALES has made our environment much safer.""For me, the mobile app is most valuable. All other features are also very useful, but the mobile app makes it really easy for me to manage on the go. I don't have to be at my desk. I could be at the shops, or it could be in the evening when I am out, and I can get a notification on my phone that there is an incident that has been raised. I can sort it out very quickly without having to be at my work PC.""The stability is good.""The report function through Gmail is probably the most valuable feature. The next most valuable features are simulation and training.""AI-driven phishing detection and incident remediation are valuable. It saves time from having to do manual analysis and investigation, and we also get alerts for phishing emails.""For what was being offered with IRONSCALES, I feel like we got an incredible deal."

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Cons
"The pre-sales cost calculations could be more transparent.""Microsoft Defender for Office 365 should be more proactive.""We need to be able to whitelist data at the backend.""The certification training for Defender for 365 needs to be deeper and incorporate Sentinel. I took all the security courses except one, and Sentinel isn't included.""Microsoft Defender for Office 365 must improve the overall management style, including the GUI. It also needs to change the filters so that it is easy to whitelist and blacklist data.""There needs to be an improvement in integrating the product to work across multiple operating systems, and to have better support for non-Microsoft file types.""The XDR dashboard has room for improvement.""You should be able to deploy Defender for every subscription without the need to add servers."

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"It's a very complex platform.""There is a high ratio of false positive information.""I think there is some MSSP missing.""One thing that I would like to look at going forward is to have a fully automated network infrastructure that is monitored automatically real-time, and that gives me this kind of capability where I would be able to look at my network at any given time and see the state of my network. With Darktrace, at the moment, I have to almost put in a date and tell them that want you to give me data from this date to this date. I don't want that. I want a fast solution in which it doesn't matter when I log into the application. Whenever I log in, I must be able to see my network and run a report. In other words, if I go in now and I say, "Give me a full report of what happened today, it must be able to give me that. It mustn't just be limited to a seven-day period, for argument's sake. It must be able to give me real-time and day-to-day tracking of what has happened within my network.""Darktrace is a closed technology, meaning we know very little about how it works, including the architecture, which is significant. As a result, when we implement the system and find we're getting many false positives, we have minimal insight into why it's happening and what we can do to fix it. We don't know how the solution is configured, the criteria for threats to be determined, or the product's inner workings. We understand that they have to ensure privacy and their copyright, but we want to see some documentation or public research into the security Darktrace provides.""The user interface and the configuration are a bit complex and should be improved or simplified.""It is expensive, but everything else has been great so far.""In terms of improvements, fine-tuning is the area where we have to spend some time because it works on unsupervised machine learning. It would be good if they can improve their algorithm or technical functionality to reduce the fine-tuning effort. They can also come up with something at the endpoint level. So far, Darktrace has been a network detection response (NDR) solution. It does not offer much at the endpoint level or on user-client devices or servers. There should be more visibility at the endpoint level. It would be good to have the detection and response at the endpoint level by Darktrace. It should also have integration with an agile environment so that we can have continuous development and continuous integration in the application development environment. This is currently not there. It should also have internet-facing platform visibility, which is currently missing. They also need to improve the reporting and management dashboards. Currently, these are not so easy for a non-technical person. All these features would make Darktrace much better, and they would also be helpful in selling more solutions."

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"There's room for improvement in the campaign management. IRONSCALES has many built-in templates that I use, but you can also build templates from scratch. However, the interface for creating custom templates needs to be updated.""The simulation and training piece could be improved by having more granularity in terms of scheduling how campaigns are run and allowing people to directly take the training rather than having to go through an official campaign. That's not available yet.""The only thing that I could say is that some of the reporting features could be better.""The integration with Google Suite needs to be better. it's something they can work on.""Even though they have been continuously improving it, it is not 100% there. We have had a few incidents where legitimate emails were getting blocked, and we had to manually remove those emails from quarantine. It is 90% effective or accurate because, on rare occasions, some emails from customers were not getting delivered. In one or two instances, their emails got blocked by IRONSCALES, and we had to manually remove the emails from quarantine. I would like them to improve their algorithm to avoid flagging genuine emails as malicious. I would also like to be able to whitelist certain email addresses. I'd love to be able to whitelist a particular customer.""I would like it if IRONSCALES had some sort of reminder mechanism, meaning IRONSCALES knows if a user completed the training or not. As long as it hasn't been completed, it keeps reminding every so often, alerts the manager, etc. Right now, it is all in the hands of the employee, and not all of them continue the process, which is a shame.""There is a feature called Account Takeover, which isn't what I want it to be able to do. I know that they're working on that, but when they first started the Account Takeover feature in incident management, it didn't have much information. It didn't have any usability to it. I already had tools in place that were better.""IRONSCALES should bundle more features together instead of separating them and charging additional licensing fees."

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "It's a user-base subscription."
  • "From the pricing point of view, like any other product in the market, there is scope for negotiation."
  • "Defender is a little bit more expensive as compared to others. We are in the manufacturing environment. So, we don't have a high budget for all of our endpoint devices. Its cost is a major concern for us."
  • "For licensing, it's usually a yearly package for customers who are subscribed to Office 365, but they can also pay on a monthly basis."
  • "Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is an add-on to the Office license. Many customers are purchasing this solution."
  • "Microsoft Defender for Office 365 comes with Microsoft Windows. It is free with the operating system."
  • "The solution saves money so we have seen a return on investment."
  • "Defender for 365 comes in various plans and licenses, along with other Microsoft security solutions. Purchasing this kind of package or security bundle gives good value for money, and that's what I recommend."
  • More Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "It is inexpensive considering what it can do and the competition."
  • "The pricing is a little high compared to the competition."
  • "Our customers feel that the price of Darktrace is quite high compared to other solutions."
  • "The pricing is very flexible for Darktrace. Sometimes, a customer does not have the appropriate budget, but Darktrace can handle that. They offer monthly payments, so the customer can acquire the solution very easily."
  • "When it comes to large installations, it can be expensive, but for small accounts it's fine."
  • "It is a very expensive product."
  • "It is expensive. I don't have the price for other competitors."
  • "This solution is expensive."
  • More Darktrace Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "There is an installation cost. Since we have this as a managed service, we pay for licensing and the managed service itself. Other than that, there are no additional costs."
  • "They are pretty much the same as all the other competitors in the market."
  • "We pay $3000 plus a little more a year for the number of employees we have, and we're not even that big. The solution is at the higher end in terms of cost. It's not the most expensive product, but I would say it's worth the price if you have a high volume of email traffic. In our case, the solution has inspected over 162,000 emails between three and four months. It saved us a lot of time and money. It's a worthwhile investment because a bad actor only has to succeed once; we must defend against everything in our business. IRONSCALES offers a sense of security and confidence from being well protected."
  • "I don't know about its pricing because I don't run the budget or pay the bills, but if it was extortionate, we probably would be looking to scrap it, and because we are not, I assume its price is okay."
  • "Considering the value it provides, it is definitely worth the cost. We don't have to do manual analysis and remediation of phishing emails, which saves us a lot of hours. Its licensing is based on the number of users being supported and the number of email addresses being protected. I'm not aware of any additional costs."
  • "As compared to everything else we looked at, it was good. It was the best value for the dollars."
  • "IRONSCALES is an expensive solution."
  • More IRONSCALES Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Threat Explorer is an invaluable tool for me, and it plays a crucial role in helping me discern the origins of various… more »
    Top Answer:The product must provide better malware detection. The detection algorithms don't perform the way I hope they would.
    Top Answer:Both of these products perform similarly and have many outstanding attributes CrowdStrike Falcon offers an amazing… more »
    Top Answer:Which solution is better depends on which is more suitable specifically for your company. Darktrace, for example, is… more »
    Top Answer:A very useful feature in Darktrace for real-time threat analysis is the packet inspection that analyzes the packet… more »
    Top Answer:The solution captures a bit more of the unknown, quantifies it, and applies intelligence to it to pick out and stop a… more »
    Top Answer:IRONSCALES is an expensive solution. The solution has certain add-on features, and its pricing depends on how you scale… more »
    Top Answer:IRONSCALES should bundle more features together instead of separating them and charging additional licensing fees. The… more »
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    MS Defender for Office 365
    Learn More
    Overview

    Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is a comprehensive security solution designed to protect organizations against advanced threats in their email, collaboration, and productivity environments. It combines the power of Microsoft's threat intelligence, machine learning, and behavioral analytics to provide real-time protection against phishing, malware, ransomware, and other malicious attacks.

    With Microsoft Defender for Office 365, organizations can safeguard their email communication by detecting and blocking malicious links, attachments, and unsafe email content. It employs advanced anti-phishing capabilities to identify and prevent sophisticated phishing attacks that attempt to steal sensitive information or compromise user credentials.

    This solution also offers robust protection against malware and ransomware. It leverages machine learning algorithms to analyze email attachments and URLs in real-time, identifying and blocking malicious content before it reaches users' inboxes. Additionally, it provides advanced threat-hunting capabilities, allowing security teams to proactively investigate and respond to potential threats.

    Microsoft Defender for Office 365 goes beyond email protection and extends its security features to other collaboration tools like SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams. It scans files and documents stored in these platforms, ensuring that they are free from malware and other malicious content. It also provides visibility into user activities, helping organizations detect and mitigate insider threats.

    Furthermore, this solution offers rich reporting and analytics capabilities, providing organizations with insights into their security posture and threat landscape. It enables security administrators to monitor and manage security incidents, track trends, and take proactive measures to enhance their overall security posture.

    Darktrace is a leading cybersecurity solution that leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to provide advanced threat detection, response, and risk management capabilities. Many reviewers find Darktrace's AI and machine-learning capabilities to be valuable. They appreciate its ability to detect anomalies and threats that might go unnoticed by traditional security tools. Overall, the general sentiment towards Darktrace from reviewers is positive. Users seem to appreciate its scalability, stability, AI capabilities, visibility, and ease of use.

    Darktrace offers a proactive and intelligent approach to cybersecurity. It utilizes AI algorithms to learn and understand the 'pattern of life' for every user and device within a network. This understanding enables it to detect anomalies that could signify a cyber threat, from subtle insider threats to more obvious ransomware attacks.

    Its adaptability, autonomous response features, and comprehensive network visibility make it a top-tier solution for different sizes of organizations and across many industries. It was named one of TIME magazine’s ‘Most Influential Companies’ in 2021 and protects over 8,800 organizations globally from advanced cyber threats.

    Darktrace Cyber AI Loop

    The Darktrace Cyber AI Loop introduces an advanced artificial intelligence-based system for cybersecurity, designed to build a self-improving defense mechanism. This system functions like a closed loop, where each stage feeds information and insights into the next, amplifying the overall effectiveness of the platform.

    The key components of the loop are:

    • DETECT - An AI engine that monitors your network and endpoints for anomalous activity, constantly learning the normal behavior of your users and devices. It identifies suspicious patterns and potential threats in real-time, even from never-before-seen attacks.
    • PREVENT - This proactive arm analyzes vulnerabilities and identifies weaknesses in your IT infrastructure. It prioritizes patching and configuration changes to harden defenses before attackers can exploit those vulnerabilities.
    • RESPOND - When DETECT identifies a threat, RESPOND takes immediate action to contain and neutralize it. This can involve isolating compromised devices, disrupting attacker activity, and automatically escalating critical incidents to human analysts.
    • HEAL - This newest addition to the loop focuses on post-incident recovery. It automatically restores compromised systems, cleans infected files, and helps to prevent the attack from spreading further.

    Darktrace's AI algorithms can identify threats that traditional security tools might miss. It continuously learns and updates its understanding of what is normal for each environment, ensuring that it can quickly detect and respond to unusual activities that could indicate a breach. Darktrace's Antigena module can autonomously respond to threats in real time. This is particularly crucial in containing fast-moving threats like ransomware, where every second counts. 

      Darktrace's solution provides unparalleled visibility into all parts of the network, including cloud services, IoT devices, and industrial control systems. This comprehensive coverage ensures that no part of the network is left unprotected. However, while the Darktrace Cyber AI Loop offers a robust solution, it is not a complete cure-all and requires careful implementation and integration with existing security frameworks.Darktrace offers a comprehensive and unified approach to cybersecurity. It provides continuous protection against known and unknown threats, regardless of where they emerge. Darktrace's solutions provide visibility into your cloud infrastructure, continuous monitoring of application usage and communication patterns (e.g., identification of suspicious actions like unauthorized data access), comprehensive email security that goes beyond traditional spam and phishing filters, real-time protection for endpoints, and continuous monitoring of network traffic and device activity.

      Darktrace also provides specialized coverage to secure your zero-trust architecture. Identifies compromised identities, unauthorized access attempts, and risky data exfiltration within a least-privilege environment. Finally, it has a dedicated solution for safeguarding industrial control systems and critical infrastructure. Monitors communication patterns, device behavior, and physical access within OT environments, protecting against operational disruptions and cyberattacks.

      IRONSCALES is a leading email security platform that combines human intelligence with machine learning to detect and respond to phishing attacks.

      It offers a comprehensive suite of tools, including email threat intelligence, incident response, and automated phishing remediation. 

      With its unique self-learning technology, IRONSCALES can quickly identify and mitigate phishing threats, reducing the risk of data breaches and financial losses. 

      The platform also provides real-time alerts and actionable insights to help organizations proactively defend against evolving email threats. 

      With its user-friendly interface and seamless integration with existing email systems, IRONSCALES is a powerful solution for businesses of all sizes looking to enhance their email security.

      Sample Customers
      Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
      Irwin Mitchell, Open Energi, Wellcome Trust, FirstGroup plc, Virgin Trains, Drax, QUI! Group, DNK, CreaCard, Macrosynergy, Sisley, William Hill plc, Toyota Canada, Royal British Legion, Vitol, Allianz, KKR, AIRBUS, dpd, Billabong, Mclaren Group.
      Allegheny Millwork, Ayrshire College, Nium, Orris, Paramount School District, Pres Les, PRT Staffing, Recovery Unplugged, Telit, WebHelp
      Top Industries
      REVIEWERS
      Computer Software Company16%
      Manufacturing Company16%
      Comms Service Provider13%
      Financial Services Firm6%
      VISITORS READING REVIEWS
      Computer Software Company17%
      Financial Services Firm9%
      Manufacturing Company7%
      Government7%
      REVIEWERS
      Financial Services Firm19%
      Computer Software Company13%
      Healthcare Company6%
      Manufacturing Company6%
      VISITORS READING REVIEWS
      Computer Software Company16%
      Financial Services Firm8%
      Government7%
      Comms Service Provider7%
      REVIEWERS
      Comms Service Provider11%
      Construction Company11%
      Library11%
      Pharma/Biotech Company11%
      VISITORS READING REVIEWS
      Computer Software Company14%
      Manufacturing Company8%
      Financial Services Firm8%
      Comms Service Provider6%
      Company Size
      REVIEWERS
      Small Business42%
      Midsize Enterprise16%
      Large Enterprise42%
      VISITORS READING REVIEWS
      Small Business30%
      Midsize Enterprise19%
      Large Enterprise51%
      REVIEWERS
      Small Business51%
      Midsize Enterprise20%
      Large Enterprise29%
      VISITORS READING REVIEWS
      Small Business29%
      Midsize Enterprise19%
      Large Enterprise52%
      REVIEWERS
      Small Business50%
      Midsize Enterprise50%
      VISITORS READING REVIEWS
      Small Business32%
      Midsize Enterprise14%
      Large Enterprise54%
      Buyer's Guide
      Darktrace vs. IRONSCALES
      January 2024
      Find out what your peers are saying about Darktrace vs. IRONSCALES and other solutions. Updated: January 2024.
      769,065 professionals have used our research since 2012.

      Darktrace is ranked 13th in Email Security with 65 reviews while IRONSCALES is ranked 3rd in Secure Email Gateway (SEG) with 11 reviews. Darktrace is rated 8.2, while IRONSCALES is rated 9.2. The top reviewer of Darktrace writes "Great autonomous support, offers an easy setup, and has responsive support". On the other hand, the top reviewer of IRONSCALES writes "It has an easy installation that can be done in a matter of minutes". Darktrace is most compared with CrowdStrike Falcon, Vectra AI, SentinelOne Singularity Complete, Cortex XDR by Palo Alto Networks and Cisco Secure Network Analytics, whereas IRONSCALES is most compared with Avanan, Sublime Security, Perception Point Advanced Email Security and Cisco Secure Email. See our Darktrace vs. IRONSCALES report.

      We monitor all Email Security reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.