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Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense vs Fortinet FortiMail comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 3, 2024

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

Cloudflare One
Sponsored
Ranking in Email Security
20th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
23
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (12th), Data Loss Prevention (DLP) (21st), Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) (13th), Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) Protection (8th), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (12th), Access Management (11th), Bot Management (3rd), ZTNA as a Service (9th), ZTNA (4th), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (10th), Remote Browser Isolation (RBI) (3rd)
Cisco Secure Email Threat D...
Ranking in Email Security
19th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
16
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Fortinet FortiMail
Ranking in Email Security
5th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
68
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Cloudflare One is 1.6%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense is 1.1%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiMail is 2.9%, down from 4.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Security Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiMail2.9%
Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense1.1%
Cloudflare One1.6%
Other94.4%
Email Security
 

Featured Reviews

CV
Network Architect at IP Dimension
Cloud security has improved remote access and has reduced costs for smaller client sites
I have used Cloudflare One's Identity-Aware Proxy, and it is quite straightforward from what I have seen so far. The app registration on the Azure side integrates fully into Cloudflare, and I am very satisfied with that part because it is easy to set up. The integration of Cloudflare One's Secure Web Gateway and Zero Trust Network Access works without any issues. That part is pretty automatic, and if you complete the rest of the setup, it comes together by itself with no issues from my side. What makes it nice is that we can actually start replacing on-site firewalls at this stage for the smaller clients because it does not matter if they go to a coffee shop or work from home; they are still secured by the same connection. The hops get shorter and you get better latency. We have done testing to see if it is better. One thing that we did notice with our proof of concept with our current client is that they have people connecting from the UK. When they used their previous VPN solution, uploading CAD drawings and other files to the server took a long time. They mentioned that it is much quicker on Cloudflare One's solution. I definitely believe that is part of the improved performance, and I am satisfied with that as well. What is nice about Cloudflare One is that it makes the setup easier and also easier to train technicians to maintain it. Compared to legacy systems, we do not need to get fancy firewalls in place that are costly. That is definitely also a cost-saver with Cloudflare One.
GC
Senior Cybersecurity Engineer at a financial services firm with 11-50 employees
Provides robust email security features but requires improved modernization and complexity management
Modernization is an area that could be improved for Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense, as some features have lagged behind newer competitors, potentially offering more advanced analysis capabilities. The initial setup is not straightforward and requires expertise and time to master configurations such as spoofing and DLP. More control over backend functionalities and simplifying rule management could enhance user experience. The product's complexity at times results in redundant rule sets that are difficult to untangle, highlighting the need for streamlined management systems and a more user-centric approach to system configuration. Furthermore, the pricing might deter new users who could opt for alternative, more cost-effective solutions.
Abhimanyu Das - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Cybersecurity Engineer at Kyndryl
Targeted email filtering has reduced spam and phishing and now saves significant investigation time
The best features of Fortinet FortiMail include its techniques and tactics, which are highly effective compared to other solutions such as Microsoft 365. Although Fortinet FortiMail may not be as advanced in some aspects, it is well recognized for its strong performance in handling spam and phishing. It performs thorough mail scanning and also offers a sandboxing feature that enhances protection. Fortinet FortiMail has had a positive impact on my organization by significantly reducing unwanted email activities such as spam and phishing. It provides accurate detection and generates results that often exceed what can be achieved through manual analysis. Since deploying Fortinet FortiMail, I have observed a reduction in investigation time by at least 20 to 30 percent.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Cloudflare Access is a stable solution."
"The capabilities of the software are strong enough for me to do what it's supposed to do. For me, we don't need to do a lot of configuration on our site. We just enable it and monitor it."
"It will take the blow rather than our applications should an attack occur."
"The solution has different options that can be used to differentiate DDoS attacks."
"Enables me to work from two locations."
"Cloudflare is simple to use."
"It's a perfect solution from my perspective; it's easy to understand and easy to configure."
"The simplicity of the solution is its valuable features as almost no effort was needed to learn the configurations. It is also one of the cheapest firewalls available in this category."
"I highly recommend it as one of the best choices."
"On ease of use, it rates very high. It's something that I was able to get into without really looking at any documentation. I wanted to see what it felt like before I started looking at any documentation on how to use it, and it was very easy to use. It works very smoothly. The user experience is very intuitive. They did an amazing job on that."
"The solution is stable."
"The advanced threat analytics and URL filtering in threat detection are good features that are working well."
"Secure Email Threat Defense's scalability is good."
"This solution is easy to use."
"The ability to see east-west traffic is its most valuable feature. Traditionally, email defense focuses on north-south, inbound-outbound, egress-ingress traffic. With Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox, it's able to quickly identify, track, tag, and categorize emails that are internal. That can typically give us visibility into if there's an internal compromised account (for example). Someone can then use that internal compromised account to email additional accounts with either malicious software or links, but internal within that Office tenant. Effectively, that email message never leaves the tenant. Any of the mail gateways really do not have any method or way of seeing this traffic since it's not leaving the environment."
"Cisco has a threat mechanism called cloud-based Talos, where all the threats are inbuilt."
"The features I find most valuable in Fortinet FortiMail include its robust security and ease of use."
"Fortinet FortiMail is very reliable and stable since the databases are very strong."
"The user quarantine feature in the solution is good...It is a stable solution."
"FortiMail has a low cost and high support."
"I am satisfied with both the scalability and the stability of this solution."
"I highly recommend the product; the product is easy and there's no complexity, it's easy to use, easy to learn, easy to upgrade, easy to apply any changes, and it offers a good price versus quality balance."
"With the Fortinet FortiMail solution, you have a lot of advantages because of the effectiveness of security."
"Fortinet FortiMail's most valuable features are antispam, antivirus, database, and data loss prevention (DLP)."
 

Cons

"Cloudflare One is not very powerful, but for what we require, it is basic and sufficient."
"Feedback could be enhanced."
"For the topic of improvement, providing some training material is one of my suggestions."
"The free plan has limitations. For example, I can only set up three rules, and the application firewall is unavailable."
"I would like them to include a VPN feature to provide a secure connection to the data center."
"Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform needs to improve its documentation. It took time to do the implementation."
"When there are any dynamic changes in complex applications, the tool takes a lot of time, making its analytics-related area a major matter of concern where improvements are needed."
"There are premium tier live service and lower tier live service, so we opted for the lower tier. But there is no medium tier where we pay a little extra and get a bit more service. So if that can be improved."
"The physical appliance has been discontinued, although the platform still exists."
"The behavioral analysis capability of Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense is not particularly helpful for identifying new, evolving threats within my company, as it keeps flagging legitimate emails as malicious."
"The learning curve shows that in the beginning, there are numerous false positives. For one month, we had to reclassify the false positives manually until the system learned."
"Customers will benefit greatly from monthly billing because the majority of customers today use the cloud, be it Office 365, or Google Cloud."
"Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox can improve by adding advanced phishing, then the solution would become the best in the market. However, this could increase the price even more. Additionally, if CES with domain protection could be added it would be an even better solution."
"The product's complexity at times results in redundant rule sets that are difficult to untangle, highlighting the need for streamlined management systems and a more user-centric approach to system configuration."
"This solution could be improved by integration with Sandbox."
"From a technical point of view, Cisco is far behind in terms of cybersecurity, and it has to improve very much."
"The web console management interface could be improved."
"An additional feature that could be added is a pop-up screen notifying you that an email has been blocked, without having to double click on it to take you there it could provide you with a summary explaining why it was on hold or why was it spam when you hover over it with your cursor."
"High Availability needs improvement."
"The product could incorporate even more artificial intelligence to enhance the functionality, but it is a competetive and intelligent product as it."
"Limited ability to upgrade hardware may lead to some performance issues that might otherwise be improved."
"I don't know if it is possible, but I would like to see Artificial Intelligence and machine learning introduced."
"The logging information is sometimes not clear or easy to understand."
"My customers frequently ask to have detailed documentation for FortiMail and FortiWeb as they have in FortiGate. What they currently have is not enough."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution's pricing lacks transparency."
"The solution is not that expensive."
"The pricing is somewhere in the middle. I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten."
"The prices are slightly expensive."
"The pricing of the solution is cheap. The licensing cost is also very low. I rate the cost and pricing a three out of ten."
"My company has to make yearly payments towards the licensing costs attached to the solution. There are no hidden charges apart from the licensing costs of the solution."
"Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform's pricing is good."
"The price tag is no longer $200,000, but rather $300,000 to $400,000. It's twice."
"Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox does not have any competition with Sophos, Trend Micro, or other vendors of the world. However, there is a pricing premium for the solution. One has to look at it from that angle that while they are buying Cisco, there will be a premium, and Cisco justifies that premium value. That's why they're charging a high price."
"The feedback from vendors and customer is that it is expensive."
"It is expensive compared to other vendors."
"The solution’s pricing is manageable."
"There is a license required for this solution and it is on an annual basis. I am satisfied with the price."
"Fortinet FortiMail has an annual license agreement."
"The tool is very expensive."
"I find Fortinet FortiMail pricing reasonable. There's no additional cost apart from its standard licensing fees."
"It is reasonable."
"Price-wise, the solution is not far from Microsoft ATP. So, it is affordable."
"The fees for Fortinet FortiMail can be complicated. However, overall the pricing is fair."
"The pricing is good."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
19%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Marketing Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Construction Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business10
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise12
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise7
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business32
Midsize Enterprise23
Large Enterprise15
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform?
In my opinion, Cloudflare One can be improved mainly through compatibility, as the integration should be much simpler...
What is your primary use case for Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform?
Cloudflare One's primary use case for my organization is to protect servers and to provide remote access with the VPN...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Secure Email Threat Defense?
Comparatively with other products, the pricing of Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense is normal. As a technical guide, ...
What needs improvement with Secure Email Threat Defense?
We have deployed Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense in two customer environments. It is still in development as a new ...
What is your primary use case for Secure Email Threat Defense?
We are working with Cloud Mail Gateway and on-premise mail gateways. We have worked with Cisco Secure Email Threat De...
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiMail?
I think they should improve Fortinet FortiMail on-premises by enhancing its user interface. Additional features they ...
What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiMail?
I do have a partnership with Fortinet. I have been both a partner and reseller.
 

Also Known As

Cloudflare Area 1 Email Security, Cloudflare Bot Management, Cloudflare Gateway, Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform, Cloudflare DDoS, Cloudflare SASE & SSE Platform
Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox, Cisco CMD, Cisco Cloud Mailbox Defense
FortiMail
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

23andMe
Luiss University, Lone Star College, T-Systems, Magyar Telekom
Magromer Cueros y Pieles S.A.
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense vs. Fortinet FortiMail and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,417 professionals have used our research since 2012.