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Fortinet FortiSandbox vs Microsoft Defender for Office 365 comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 1, 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

Fortinet FortiSandbox
Ranking in Advanced Threat Protection (ATP)
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
38
Ranking in other categories
Threat Deception Platforms (7th)
Microsoft Defender for Offi...
Ranking in Advanced Threat Protection (ATP)
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
Email Security (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (11th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiSandbox is 10.7%, up from 8.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 9.2%, down from 15.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP)
 

Featured Reviews

Kiarash Heydari - PeerSpot reviewer
Light and powerful solution design; useful to have
My impression is that the initial setup process is quite straightforward. If you know what you're using it for, the initial setup can be quite easy and the solution is not that hard to use. When it comes to the steps taken for the implementation, you would select the OS you're using and when the files are sent to the appliance you check, and in the appliance configuration, it must be like the visual governance environment. You must set up the OS you have so that appliance can scan or analyze your file. To maintain this solution, you must always have at least one all-around person tuning this solution.
Tolu Omolaja - PeerSpot reviewer
Great URL scanning and attachment scanning, but I would like more proactive threat analysis
The two main features that prove most beneficial for us are URL scanning and attachment scanning. URL scanning involves an automatic scan of links and emails. When a user clicks on a link within an email, the system promptly checks the link's safety. If the link is deemed safe, access is granted automatically. However, if it is flagged as unsafe, we receive feedback and notification to caution us about the potentially harmful link. At this point, we are presented with the option to proceed or return. I have personally witnessed the system identify a few unsafe links, making this the primary advantage of using the solution. The second crucial aspect is the scanning of attachments. When an email containing an attachment arrives, we receive a notification of the new email, along with information that the attachment is being scanned for threats. This additional layer of security provides peace of mind for our organization. While Microsoft Defender for Office 365 offers numerous features, these two stand out as particularly impressive and valuable to us.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The GUI makes administration tasks straightforward."
"Compared to other solutions, it's easy to configure and implement because of the templates. The timing of scanning files is faster."
"Performance is a valuable feature."
"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiSandbox are customization, ICAP protocol, and integration with other vendors. Additionally, the security work very well."
"Fortinet FortiSandbox's most valuable feature is the security it provides against threats, such as ransomware. Additionally, it integrates well with APIs."
"It is a stable solution."
"The main benefit of Fortinet FortiSandbox is that it allows organizations to detect and prevent unknown threats from entering an infrastructure."
"Fortinet FortiSandbox puts suspicious files in quarantine, analyzes for virus risks, and lets them out of quarantine if it detects no risk."
"Safe attachments, safe links, policies, and the ability to protect from zero-day threats are the most valuable features."
"Scalability-wise, I do not think there are any issues so far."
"One of the best features of the tool is its capability to aggregate insights from different workloads, basically from the Office 365 and endpoints part."
"I like its investigation capabilities, as that is what is most important to me. It is fairly simple with a user-friendly interface."
"The most valuable feature is the integration. It's a single console, so we don't have to switch around between multiple products. Another valuable feature is the ease of operations and maintenance."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is the ease of use."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is its spam filter."
"The two main features that prove most beneficial for us are URL scanning and attachment scanning."
 

Cons

"Something that needs to improve, is the end-point protection."
"There could be more templates and a higher number of simulated VMs to configure more use cases. Sometimes we need to configure many use cases in many different environments, and if the number of VMs that we configure is limited, we have to remove some and reconfigure the environment if we need another environment."
"When you reach the maximum capacity, you cannot upgrade the solution because its hardware is very expensive."
"The main area of concern in Fortinet FortiSandbox is its detection capabilities."
"Not practical for real-time web traffic analysis because users won't wait for the FortiSandbox to complete its analysis before accessing content"
"The initial setup is not too complex but could be easier."
"The integration is limited. The solution needs to offer better integration with multiple vendors."
"The response time from technical support should be improved."
"Too many false positives and lacks an accurate capability to detect malicious SharePoint sites."
"The only thing they should improve is the licensing model. They should stop changing it. A year ago, the five features I mentioned were included in one product. Now, three of them are bundled into one product, and you have to pay extra for the other two. I don't mind paying extra, but I don't want them to change it every year or every six months. I need to know what I'm looking at and not worry about it next year."
"We need a separate license and we don't know how to get the license that is required."
"Microsoft security solutions work as expected. They are constantly updating the solutions to make them better. At the same time, the changes can impact a customer's environment, and we need to adjust settings. Sometimes we aren't aware of the changes, and nothing is pushed from the backend automatically."
"Microsoft wants its well-paying customers to finish testing some of its half-baked products, find bugs, and report bugs back to Microsoft's team, which is a little frustrating for those who have to manage it and roll it up to thousands of people across the organization."
"One area for improvement is support, in terms of being able to reach them and, especially, technical support for configuration."
"In one of the reports I can get the exact place where a vulnerable file resides. But for that, I need to explicitly go into the device and check. If they could include that file part in the report, without my having to go to the device itself, that would help."
"We are always looking for others tools to increase automation on tasks. There can be better integration with other solutions, such as PowerPoint and email."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Fortinet FortiSandbox is a nominally priced product, so I would not say that it is a very cheap tool."
"Fortinet is more reasonable than Palo Alto."
"There are no costs in addition to the standard licensing fees."
"The license for Fortinet FortiSandbox depends on the use case."
"We are on an annual license to use the solution. We have an additional feature that is integrated with S5, which is working well."
"The solution is unavailable at a lower cost and can be difficult to deploy."
"The solution is not expensive at all."
"Altogether, it is about €10,000 for the Sandbox and Email Gateway."
"Compared to other brands, Microsoft Defender for Office 365's pricing is competitive."
"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."
"I know that the product is incredibly expensive."
"I was working in the government and it was too expensive for us to use our Microsoft products."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 comes with Microsoft Windows. It is free with the operating system."
"From the pricing point of view, like any other product in the market, there is scope for negotiation."
"The pricing has become expensive."
"The product is expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
13%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Fortinet FortiSandbox?
The real-time analysis capability of FortiSandbox is beneficial for email analysis.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiSandbox?
I think it's affordable. For the six to seven months of usage, the cost has been reasonable.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiSandbox?
We sometimes face a delay in email scanning due to not having multiple virtual machines. Improvements could be made in dynamic scanning, scanning all email components such as URLs and attachments, ...
What do you like most about Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Threat Explorer is an invaluable tool for me, and it plays a crucial role in helping me discern the origins of various email campaigns, pinpointing where they emanate from, and identifying the indi...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
I don't have detailed specifics on pricing, setup cost, or licensing.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
I am generally satisfied with how it currently is. If I could improve anything, I would reduce the cost.
 

Also Known As

FortiSandbox
MS Defender for Office 365
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Lush, Barnabas Health, Options, Riverside Healthcare, Hillsbourough County Schools, Columbia Public Schools, Schiller AG
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiSandbox vs. Microsoft Defender for Office 365 and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
845,040 professionals have used our research since 2012.