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Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance comparison

Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management and Microsoft Purview Data Governance are both solutions in the Microsoft Security Suite category. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management is ranked #32 with an average rating of 7.5, while Microsoft Purview Data Governance is ranked #7 with an average rating of 7.6. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management holds a 0.4% mindshare in Microsoft Security Suite, compared to Microsoft Purview Data Governance’s 4.7% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 84% of Microsoft Purview Data Governance users who would recommend it.
Microsoft Defender External...
Read 2 Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management reviews
  • 942 Views
  • 151 Comparison Views
100% willing to recommend
Microsoft Purview Data Gove...
Read 58 Microsoft Purview Data Governance reviews
  • 16,772 Views
  • 3,187 Comparison Views
84% willing to recommend
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary
We performed a comparison between Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management and Microsoft Purview Data Governance based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Microsoft Security Suite solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

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To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management vs. Microsoft Purview Data Governance Report (Updated: September 2025).
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management vs. Microsoft Purview Data Governance
September 2025
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Helped 869,513 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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender External...
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
32nd
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
Attack Surface Management (ASM) (12th)
Microsoft Purview Data Gove...
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
7th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
58
Ranking in other categories
Data Governance (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management is 0.4%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Purview Data Governance is 4.7%, down from 5.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Microsoft Security Suite Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Purview Data Governance4.7%
Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management0.4%
Other94.9%
Microsoft Security Suite
 

Featured Reviews

AndyChan3 - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhanced visibility and exposes vulnerabilities but needs more integration
I am currently in the pilot stage of implementing Microsoft External Attack Surface Management (EASM). My organization is transitioning to a comprehensive track of Microsoft solutions, and we will move to full-scale production in another year, maybe Microsoft External Attack Surface Management…
Read full review
AmrNaeem - PeerSpot reviewer
It helps us by reporting on and auditing leaks and breaches
One important feature is data security, which both end users and the organization seek. Microsoft Purview offers data protection across a multi-cloud and multi-platform environment. It's critical that Purview connects to iOS, Mac, and Android. We could only secure some of our data if it only covered Windows. It provides a comprehensive view of the entire ecosystem's threats and compliance in real time. It's very easy to use. Purview's compliance features are crucial. We have to match some cases in other countries to our own to comply with the policies, procedures, and regulatory frameworks here.
Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It seems to be better at protecting from cyberattacks."
"Microsoft External Attack Surface Management helps improve the visibility of my exposed vulnerabilities and provides an overview of my security posture across the globe."
"Microsoft External Attack Surface Management helps improve the visibility of my exposed vulnerabilities and provides an overview of my security posture across the globe."
"I really like the entire system for auto-labeling content. It's a very refined system. I use the Keyword Query Language to define refined string-based metadata, and then I can really go deep into the specific data with the specific properties labeled in such and such a way."
"The feature that I find most valuable is its ability to block unintended data sharing, like forcing unencrypted emails to be encrypted. We're evolving technologically, so people aren't always working from their desks. Our people are on the move. We have data everywhere. For example, in airlines, they're mobile and working from one door to another. They can't carry a computer from one station to another. That's where a lot of airlines use iPads. Securing and integrating iPads is helpful."
"The documentation is very exhaustive. Anyone can go ahead and try different use cases."
"The time to onboard is pretty short."
"The data lineage feature stands out. It tracks where the data comes from and any changes made."
"The best part is that I can create classifications per my requirements. I use it to classify multiple platforms like AWS, GCP, Azure, and different file sharing systems."
"Purview's greatest benefit for us is data discovery."
"My favorite features are eDiscovery and insider risk management, because these are the major threats to an organization that can't be easily traced."
More Microsoft Purview Data Governance pros
 

Cons

"The integration is not as seamless compared to competitors like Palo Alto."
"Further integration across different Microsoft products would be an improvement."
"With Microsoft, support is always crazy, it's not easy to get support."
"Purview's data loss prevention for macOS endpoints has some limitations, and the end-user experience of recovering from a failure is lacking."
"The API needs some improvement when connecting to non-Microsoft API sources. This is a limiting factor."
"There should be more clarity about the costing, particularly how the cost is calculated, especially when utilizing health reports and quality features."
"Although you can explore the data, that creates a great interest in data lineage or the data flow. How does it go from a source to a platform to a Power BI report, for example? It is possible, to some extent, to see that with Purview, but the lineage feature requires some manual work on the development side or more work from Microsoft to improve on it."
"Non-Microsoft use cases are not very high. It's limited for now."
"Running eDiscovery once a day takes quite a long time because it has to fetch your data. I also want the eDiscovery results to be improved. At the same time, I would like to get a centralized page where I could see records management applied to my Office 365 tenant visualized instead of waiting for a custom script to run through the complete tenant."
"Some of the menu headings may not be easy to understand for some people."
"Setting up Purview in a production tenant proved challenging due to a lack of clear documentation on permission requirements."
More Microsoft Purview Data Governance cons
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"The price is reasonable considering its value."
"Aside from the complexity of the pricing model, the price itself is realistic. Features like AI components and automatic classification require additional licenses. Still, anyone can start using Purview with a basic E3 license if they're using Microsoft 365 and grow with additional licenses as needed. Overall, we're satisfied with the price."
"Microsoft Purview is expensive."
"Microsoft Purview is priced in the middle. It isn't the cheapest, but it isn't the most expensive. It's affordable compared to other public cloud services."
"I consider it cost-efficient because of the metrics it provides."
"The categorization within the licensing could be improved. There are a lot of solutions within Microsoft Purview. If the licensing could be a bit clearer and the solutions could be better categorized according to function and across multiple environments, that would be excellent. The licensing is very confusing."
"While Purview's standard pricing might not be accessible to most small businesses, we were fortunate to benefit from the educational pricing which made it a financially viable option for our needs."
"The pricing is moderate. It's not too expensive, but it's not the most competitive."
More Microsoft Purview Data Governance pricing and cost advice
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise30
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management?
I rate the pricing of the solution as eight out of ten.
See all answers
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management?
Further integration across different Microsoft products would be an improvement. Introduction of more AI automation into the products would also be beneficial. The integration is not as seamless co...
See all answers
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management?
I am currently in the pilot stage of implementing Microsoft External Attack Surface Management (EASM). My organization is transitioning to a comprehensive track of Microsoft solutions, and we will ...
See all answers
What do you like most about Microsoft Azure Purview?
It is designed to seamlessly connect to various data sources, which is particularly beneficial for our customers who primarily use Microsoft technologies.
See all answers
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure Purview?
Microsoft Purview Data Governance is quite affordable compared to other market solutions, which have high initial costs. It allows for a cost-effective start with negligible initial cost. However, ...
See all answers
What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure Purview?
There should be more clarity about the costing, particularly how the cost is calculated, especially when utilizing health reports and quality features. Additionally, adding more tools around data q...
See all answers
 

Comparisons

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Compared 12% of the time
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Darktrace vs Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management
Compared 11% of the time
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CrowdStrike Falcon vs Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management
Compared 11% of the time
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Tenable Attack Surface Management vs Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management
Compared 11% of the time
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Varonis Platform vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance Logo
Varonis Platform vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance
Compared 17% of the time
Collibra Governance vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance Logo
Collibra Governance vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance
Compared 14% of the time
Alation Data Catalog vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance Logo
Alation Data Catalog vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance
Compared 9% of the time
Collibra Lineage vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance Logo
Collibra Lineage vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance
Compared 8% of the time
Microsoft Intune vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance Logo
Microsoft Intune vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance
Compared 4% of the time
More Microsoft Purview Data Governance Competitors
 

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide
Attack Surface Management (ASM)
September 2025
Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management reportDownload Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management product report
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Purview Data Governance
September 2025
Microsoft Purview Data Governance reportDownload Microsoft Purview Data Governance product report
 

Also Known As

No data available
Microsoft Purview, MS Azure Purview
 

Overview

In this era of hybrid work, shadow IT creates an increasingly serious security risk. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management helps cloud security teams see unknown and unmanaged resources outside the firewall.

Microsoft

The new Microsoft Purview portal offers an enhanced governance experience, serving as a unified platform for managing and governing data across various sources, including Azure, Microsoft 365, on-premises, and multicloud environments. Designed to streamline governance, compliance, risk, and security efforts, the new portal provides a user-friendly interface and unlocks advanced features like live view and preset scans. Existing users of Microsoft Purview can upgrade to this enhanced experience, gaining access to improved user interface, enhanced capabilities, and consolidated management of data assets. Additionally, the upgrade sets the stage for future developments, including account consolidation and fine-grained access control.

Microsoft
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management vs. Microsoft Purview Data Governance
September 2025
Free Report: Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management vs. Microsoft Purview Data Governance
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management vs. Microsoft Purview Data Governance and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
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