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 #33 with an average rating of 7.5, while Microsoft Purview Data Governance is ranked #8 with an average rating of 7.6. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management holds a 0.3% mindshare in Microsoft Security Suite, compared to Microsoft Purview Data Governance’s 4.4% 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

905 Views
136 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Purview Data Gove...

Read 58 Microsoft Purview Data Governance reviews

18,784 Views
3,569 Comparison Views

84% willing to recommend

Microsoft Defender External...

Microsoft Purview Data Gove...

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.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management vs. Microsoft Purview Data Governance Report (Updated: July 2025).

Buyer's Guide

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

July 2025

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Helped 865,384 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

33rd

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Attack Surface Management (ASM) (13th)

Microsoft Purview Data Gove...

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

8th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Data Governance (1st)

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management is 0.3%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Purview Data Governance is 4.4%, down from 4.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Microsoft Security Suite

Featured Reviews

AndyChan3

General manager at a tech services company with 201-500 employees

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

Manager, Service Delivery & Solutions Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

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

"Microsoft External Attack Surface Management helps improve the visibility of my exposed vulnerabilities and provides an overview of my security posture across the globe."

"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."

"The features of Microsoft Purview Data Governance that I value most include communication compliance. It provides visibility into how people are using Copilot for Microsoft and gives insight into risks and sensitive conversations."

"The time to onboard is pretty short."

"Microsoft Purview's most valuable feature is its ability to identify content across a number of prescribed regulatory frameworks, including Microsoft, GDPR, PII, and UCC Financial."

"The audit log has been a lifesaver for a lot of reasons. Historically, when using SaaS products, there were always questions about how the audit was going and whether we were sufficient out of the box. Purview has many capabilities available through centralized reporting that provide a view of a specific segment."

"It is very easy to learn the interface, and it is very user-friendly."

"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 reporting is excellent. Limiting what people can see is also valuable, especially when tagging documents."

"It is pretty early, but the decision to go with this investment was largely driven by the simplification of our information security technology management stack. That is the primary objective. Once you simplify and you have a connected structure, it allows for faster adoption there. It also gives us additional capabilities as we go on using the technology that we are familiar with, and we do not have to depend on outside parties to come in and tell us how to do certain things."

More Microsoft Purview Data Governance pros

Cons

"Further integration across different Microsoft products would be an improvement."

"The integration is not as seamless compared to competitors like Palo Alto."

"With Microsoft, support is always crazy, it's not easy to get support."

"If we could have a view something like we have in CrowdStrike—which is, I believe, the biggest competitor to Microsoft when it comes to security—a node nodal view, which we also have in Defender, that would make it a more complete, one-stop solution. That would save a lot of time for the admins and the engineers."

"The API needs some improvement when connecting to non-Microsoft API sources. This is a limiting factor."

"We are currently in the rollout phase, so I am not entirely sure about specific areas of improvement. However, there are some problems with DLP rules, and it would be great if the security around DLP could be expanded."

"Reflecting organizational changes within Purview is impractical."

"The support could be better, particularly with consulting."

"Purview's data connector platform for non-Microsoft data sources is good, but there is some functionality that hasn't been developed yet. There are some servers that it can't connect to yet, because they're still in a trial process."

"One drawback of Microsoft Purview, though it's beneficial and easy to use, is that when you start plugging in connectors for third-party sources when setting the solution up for data collection, it becomes a bit more tricky."

"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."

More Microsoft Purview Data Governance cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"The pricing is reasonable because it's part of the 365 E3 or E5 license you buy."

"Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention is not cheap."

"The pricing is decent. It is neither too low nor too high. Given its capabilities, the pricing is justified."

"Some people find the tier licensing system complicated, but it offers a lot of value for money if we use the features."

"It is cheap. It is based on consumption. If somebody wants to start using it, the price is definitely cheaper than a tool like Collibra."

"The pricing depends on the client's requirements and the number of applications."

"The price is reasonable considering its value."

"Purview is included in our Microsoft E5 licensing."

More Microsoft Purview Data Governance pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

20%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

15%

Computer Software Company

13%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

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?

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

Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management vs Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management

Compared 18% of the time

Bitsight vs Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management

Compared 14% of the time

CrowdStrike Falcon vs Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management

Compared 13% of the time

Tenable Attack Surface Management vs Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management

Compared 12% of the time

Darktrace vs Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management

Compared 11% of the time

More Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management Competitors

Collibra Governance vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance

Compared 16% of the time

Varonis Platform vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance

Compared 15% of the time

Alation Data Catalog vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance

Compared 9% of the time

Collibra Lineage vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance

Compared 7% of the time

Microsoft Intune vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance

Compared 5% of the time

More Microsoft Purview Data Governance Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Attack Surface Management (ASM)

August 2025

Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management report

Download Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management product report

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Purview Data Governance

August 2025

Microsoft Purview Data Governance report

Download 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

July 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: July 2025.

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