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Darktrace vs Sophos Cloud Optix comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 15, 2025

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

Darktrace
Ranking in Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)
15th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
82
Ranking in other categories
Email Security (8th), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (1st), Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) (1st), Network Detection and Response (NDR) (1st), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (6th), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (11th), Attack Surface Management (ASM) (4th), AI-Powered Cybersecurity Platforms (2nd)
Sophos Cloud Optix
Ranking in Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)
31st
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) category, the mindshare of Darktrace is 1.5%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Cloud Optix is 0.4%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)
 

Featured Reviews

Malebo Lethoba Group - PeerSpot reviewer
Have found the AI analyst and detection functions highly valuable for network operations while managing complexity in initial setup
The functions I find most valuable in Darktrace are the AI analyst as well as the detection.The autonomous response capabilities of Darktrace are not crucial for me because it doesn't work in a network where there are no core switches. In a modern network, the autonomous response doesn't work, especially when sitting in a shared data center.If I'm running a traditional network where I am not in a shared data center with a layer two dedicated for my resources, then it can work for me. However, if I am in a data center where I don't have layer two, it becomes an issue because the autonomous response is reliant on sending spoofed TCP resets to my core switch to block traffic, which is a major issue.
Jean Desir - PeerSpot reviewer
DLP is a valuable feature that we use a lot for info audits.
The dashboard and the process for applying policies could be more intuitive. Cloud Optix isn't that difficult once you get the hang of it, but the IT folks managing this want it to be more user-friendly. Deploying the agents could be more seamless, too. Ideally, Cloud Optix would automate adding agents into your environment by integrating with Active Directory or some policy.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I have found the automation and AI features to be valuable. If someone were to come in to the office at midnight and log in, Darktrace would flag it."
"Technical support is helpful and responsive."
"It is a stable solution without downtime."
"Darktrace's most valuable features are that it understands the network environment and is able to trace the traffic and alert on anomalies."
"The autonomous response is also highly designed in Darktrace."
"The technical support from Darktrace is very good, including support from their resellers."
"We are able to detect a lot of things, actually, and see what is happening in our network."
"The Dynamic Threat Dashboard is very nice, as it lists all of your threats and rates them, and then you can choose whether to investigate further."
"I find Cloud Optix to be a valuable solution since it provides a single, unified dashboard to monitor cloud assets, such as AWS and Azure."
"The most valuable feature for me would be the solution's endpoint protection."
"The most valuable feature of Sophos Cloud Optix is the simple way to manage my devices on the network. Additionally, it is easy to navigate and has a user-friendly interface."
"DLP is a valuable feature that we use a lot for info audits."
"I find Cloud Optix to be a valuable solution since it provides a single, unified dashboard to monitor cloud assets, such as AWS and Azure."
 

Cons

"There aren't so many third-party vendor platforms natively integrated with the platform."
"I was under impression that Darktrace's automatic blocking would be an out-of-the-box feature, but we had to integrate it with our firewall to get it to block automatically. The salesperson should be upfront and explain that you need to integrate it with your network. I would also like to see more reporting on risk. Banks in my region want to see at a glance the risk level of various assets."
"Darktrace could improve its features, such as monitoring and detecting ransomware."
"I would like to see a feature where the tool ingests information from an anti-malware product that is present at the endpoint."
"A reporting portal could be a great addition to help customize reports."
"The user interface and the configuration are a bit complex and should be improved or simplified."
"The price point for the product was too high for what our possible use case could be."
"One thing I would like is for Darktrace to flag SMB traffic more accurately. Currently, it only flags that SMB traffic has occurred, but it doesn't specify which file was being transferred. This makes it difficult to investigate incidents involving SMB traffic, as we don't have concrete evidence of what was being sent."
"The setup was a little bit complex."
"Sophos should enhance its AI-driven detection features and anomaly detection."
"The dashboard and the process for applying policies could be more intuitive. Cloud Optix isn't that difficult once you get the hang of it, but the IT folks managing this want it to be more user-friendly."
"There are times when the devices are at maximum capacity, and it takes a while before the device is updated. For example, if the device has a virus, and it's not aligned to connect to the network, even after you've scanned the device, and cleaned out the virus, once the management clears the system to allow it back on the network it takes some time. It can be frustrating when you have your line manager or in management affected trying to access the network."
"Sophos should enhance its AI-driven detection features and anomaly detection."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of the solution is not cheap. It is not a one-time purchase, there is a subscription that needs to be paid every one to five years depending on your choice. It is expensive but you can reduce the price by only using the services that you want."
"The pricing is quite high, estimated at around $350,000 per year."
"The pricing is a little high compared to the competition."
"We had an issue with pricing initially and had to cancel some of the features of the projects to fit the budget. I would like to see pricing that is not broken up into parts so that we can buy the whole package once. Darktrace is more expensive than an average solution, but it's functionality won't match that of an average solution."
"There is an annual license to use Darktrace."
"We've budgeted about 50,000 Kuwaiti dinars for the solution. That is a yearly operating cost."
"The tool's pricing is costly."
"Our customers feel that the price of Darktrace is quite high compared to other solutions."
"Regarding the pricing for Sophos Cloud Optix, I would say that it was a very good price."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Government
7%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Financial Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

How does Crowdstrike Falcon compare with Darktrace?
Both of these products perform similarly and have many outstanding attributes. CrowdStrike Falcon offers an amazing user interface that makes setup easy and seamless. CrowdStrike Falcon offers a cl...
Which is better - SentinelOne or Darktrace?
Which solution is better depends on which is more suitable specifically for your company. Darktrace, for example, is meant for smaller to medium-sized businesses. It is also a good option for organ...
What do you like most about Darktrace?
A very useful feature in Darktrace for real-time threat analysis is the packet inspection that analyzes the packet traffic in real time.
What needs improvement with Sophos Cloud Optix?
Sophos should enhance its AI-driven detection features and anomaly detection. The solution focuses on cloud security posture management. Fortinet, having acquired Lacework, seems to be a step ahead...
What is your primary use case for Sophos Cloud Optix?
One primary use case for Sophos Cloud Optix is cloud visibility. I use it for compliance requirements and improving end user experience. The solution provides a unified dashboard for multi-cloud en...
What advice do you have for others considering Sophos Cloud Optix?
I rate Sophos Cloud Optix seven out of ten overall. I recommend it for any size of company, considering their current ecosystem and workload. It's particularly suited for those in a Sophos ecosyste...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

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.
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Find out what your peers are saying about Darktrace vs. Sophos Cloud Optix and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.