Fortra&#39;s Alert Logic MDR vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud comparison

Fortra's Alert Logic MDR vs. Microsoft Defender for Cloud

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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

Fortra's Alert Logic MDR

Ranking in Vulnerability Management

32nd

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

SOC as a Service (4th), Managed Detection and Response (MDR) (19th)

Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Ranking in Vulnerability Management

7th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Container Management (8th), Container Security (4th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (3rd), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (3rd), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (4th), Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) (3rd), Microsoft Security Suite (3rd), Compliance Management (2nd)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the Vulnerability Management category, the mindshare of Fortra's Alert Logic MDR is 0.3%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Cloud is 5.3%, up from 3.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Vulnerability Management

Featured Reviews

reviewer1525833

Site Reliability Engineer at a retailer with 10,001+ employees

Great reporting and session logic with an easy initial setup

The initial setup isn't too difficult. It's pretty straightforward. An organization shouldn't have too much trouble with the setup. The deployment is very fast. It doesn't take too much time at all. It's likely less than five minutes. Honestly, it's almost instantaneous. There is no mapping. Once you're done with the customization you can use it. It's not time-consuming. The customization part is based on whatever keywords and attributes you are adding, and that's less than a minute of time to handle. There is no time consumed. You just need to add to a filter. You don't really need to worry about having too much maintenance. It's not required really. Maybe once the log is full, you may require a maintenance checkup of six months on. We have a server team that manages that aspect.

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Vibhor Goel

Senior Cloud Platform Engineer at Deutsche Börse

A single tool for complete visibility and addressing security gaps

Currently, issues are structured in Microsoft Defender for Cloud at severity levels of high, critical, or warning, but these severity levels are not always right. For example, Microsoft might consider a port being open as critical, but that might not be the case for our company. Similarly, it might suggest closing some management ports, but you might need them to be able to log in, so the severity levels for certain things can be improved. Even though Microsoft Defender for Cloud provides a way to temporarily disable certain alerts or notifications without affecting our security score, it would be better to have more granularized control over these recommendations. Currently, we cannot even disable certain alerts or notifications. There should be an automated mechanism to design Azure policies based on the recommendations, possibly with AI integration. Instead of an engineer having to write a policy to fix security gaps, which is very time-consuming, there should be an inbuilt capability to auto-remediate everything and have proper control in place. Additionally, enabling Defender for Cloud at the resource group level, rather than only at the subscription level, would be beneficial.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable aspect of Alert Logic is its technology platform. They have SOCs in the US and Europe, giving them global visibility of the threat landscape. They detect and respond to threats in minutes. Their biggest value is human expertise. You're being attacked by a human, and you cannot respond to it unless you have a human on the other side. They have the human and technological resources to respond."

"While I still have on-premises appliances, I can remotely monitor everything from the cloud, and Alert Logic's ease-of-access features have helped me streamline my workflow and reduce implementation time."

"The installation and configuration were slick."

"Everything is in one dashboard; I'm notified when there's an incident and advised on what steps to take."

"It improves our security. Before, we didn't have anything scanning our containers. We had software scanning all the physical servers, but we had nothing to scan our containers. With Alert Logic, we can do that."

"The solution was consistently available, and I cannot recall any instances where it was down."

"It has the ability to install agents. It is pretty straightforward. You can automate the process pretty easily."

"We receive infrastructure security warnings from it. So, we know what is going on and what needs to be addressed."

More Fortra's Alert Logic MDR pros

"The technical support is very good."

"The most valuable features of this solution are the remote workforce capabilities and the general experience of the remote workforce."

"The solution's coordinated detection and response across devices and identities is impressive because it is complete."

"Microsoft Defender for Cloud can find potential phishing links and malicious code in data at rest."

"Some of the most valuable features of Microsoft Defender for Cloud include its effectiveness in threat detection through unsupervised machine learning, CTI, and advanced sandboxing."

"Using Security Center, you have a full view, at any given time, of what's deployed, and that is something that is very useful."

"Microsoft Defender for Cloud helps in improving our overall security posture. We have a nice overview of what is missing where and what can be improved."

"When you have commissioned Defender, you have these things visible already on your dashboard. This gives the efficiency to the people to do their actual work rather than bothering about the email, sorting out the email, or looking at it through an ITSM solution, whey they have to look at the description and use cases. Efficiency increases with this optimized, ready-made solution since you don't need to invest in something externally. You can start using the dashboard and auditing capability provided from day one. Thus, you have fewer costs with a more optimized, easier-to-use solution, providing operational efficiency for your team."

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud pros

Cons

"Could be more of an endpoint protector."

"The setup process was complex."

"I would like more data on the alert payload. It would be good to have the ability to customize the alert payload to add whatever data that we want on there. Right now, it is a bit limited."

"We'd like to have triggered alerts sent to us so we see errors quicker."

"I would like to see it do initial scans and start capturing data, which it will truly analyze, not just be a reporting system saying, "Here is an email. Here is an email. Here is an email.""

"As a user involved with the user interface, I believe there is a need to continue improving it based on feedback from our customers."

"The product needs to mature. We don't want to be bombarded with unnecessary issues and have the real ones slip through."

"Alert Logic needs to expand its SOCs to serve more markets, such as the Middle East and Asia. There should be infrastructure that covers more time zones. The company should also develop an EDR that is natively integrated into their solution. Currently, a client must buy another EDR solution like CrowdStrike or Sophos. I think Alert Logic is developing this. Built-in email security could also be developed and integrated."

More Fortra's Alert Logic MDR cons

"The overview provides you with good information, but if you want more details, there is a lot more customization to do, which requires knowledge of the other supporting solutions."

"We haven't experienced issues with Microsoft Defender for Cloud for our company size of about five hundred people. However, I've heard there might be issues with scalability for larger enterprises."

"Defender could provide more in-depth visibility into vulnerabilities and services. For instance, we wanted to scan Azure NetApp for sensitive data, but they didn't have that feature. It was only for storage accounts. I want Azure Defender features to cover all Azure resources rather than a few."

"The solution could extend its capabilities to other cloud providers. Right now, if you want to monitor a virtual machine on another cloud, you can do that. However, this cannot be done with other cloud platform services. I hope once that is available then Defender for Cloud will be a unified solution for all cloud platform services."

"After getting a recommendation, it takes time for the solution to refresh properly to show that the problem has been eliminated."

"Sometimes it's very difficult to determine when I need Microsoft Defender for Cloud for a special resource group or a special kind of product."

"Microsoft Graph needs improvement."

"It needs to be simplified and made more user-friendly for a non-technical person."

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Price of the solution was very reasonable considering the size of our organization at the time, and so it worked out perfectly."

"Its pricing is very reasonable considering what you get for what you pay. There is quite a good value there. Its licensing is also very logical. They've got the licensing price points at a reasonable level. It is on a monthly license but a yearly contract. There are no additional costs to the standard licensing fees."

"Our ROI would probably be zero. We don't even use it. It sits in there. We get emails and just delete them. Around the world, we don't even use it."

"Almost any product that is on the AWS Marketplace is super easy to subscribe to."

"Alert Logic has better competitive pricing than some of its competitors."

"The pricing is very difficult because every type of Defender for Cloud has its own metrics and pricing. If you have Cloud for Key Vault, the pricing is different than it is for storage. Every type has its own pricing list and rules."

"The pricing model for most plans is generally good, but the cost of the new Defender for Storage plan is high and should be revisited, as it could lead to disabling desirable security features due to cost."

"Currently, Microsoft offers only one plan at the enterprise level which is $15 per machine."

"Defender's basic version is free, which is good. Many of our teams are evaluating the paid version against third-party products."

"They have a free version, but the license for this one isn't too high. It's free to start with, and you're charged for using it beyond 30 days. Some other pieces of Defender are charged based on usage, so you will be charged more for a high volume of transactions. I believe Defender for Cloud is a daily charge based on Azure's App Service Pricing."

"Security Center charges $15 per resource for any workload that you onboard into it. They charge per VM or per data-base server or per application. It's not like Microsoft 365 licensing, where there are levels like E3 and E5. Security Center is pretty straightforward."

"Understanding the costs of cloud services can be complicated at first. As with a lot of things in the cloud, it can be quite hard to understand the end cost, but it becomes clearer over time. Early on, the lack of transparency is a challenge. Microsoft does not tell you the cost when they launch something. It is clever marketing, and there is room for improvement there. There should be clarity from the start."

"Pricing depends on your workload size, but it is very cheap. If you're talking about virtual machines, it is $5 or something for each machine, which is minimal. If you go for some agent-based solution for every virtual machine, then you need to pay the same thing or more than that. For an on-premises solution like this, we were paying around $30 to $50 based on size. With Defender, Microsoft doesn't bother about the size. You pay based on the number of machines. So, if you have 10 virtual machines, and 10 virtual machines are being monitored, you are paying based on that rather than the size of the virtual machine. Thus, you are paying for the number of units rather than paying for the size of your units."

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

Healthcare Company

Computer Software Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Alert Logic?

The most valuable aspect of Alert Logic is its technology platform. They have SOCs in the US and Europe, giving them global visibility of the threat landscape. They detect and respond to threats in...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Alert Logic?

Alert Logic's license is one of the most competitive. They deliver a high-quality service for a competitive price.

What needs improvement with Alert Logic?

Alert Logic should also develop an EDR that is natively integrated into their solution. Currently, a client must buy another EDR solution like SentinelOne, CrowdStrike, or Sophos. I think Alert Log...

How is Prisma Cloud vs Azure Security Center for security?

Azure Security Center is very easy to use, integrates well, and gives very good visibility on what is happening across your ecosystem. It also has great remote workforce capabilities and supports a...

What do you like most about Microsoft Defender for Cloud?

The entire Defender Suite is tightly coupled, integrated, and collaborative.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Cloud?

The licensing is straightforward but can become expensive if you cover everything. You must balance the cost against the importance of what needs covering.

SentinelOne Vigilance vs Fortra's Alert Logic MDR

Comparisons

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Compared 19% of the time

Rapid7 InsightIDR vs Fortra's Alert Logic MDR

Compared 17% of the time

CrowdStrike Falcon Complete MDR vs Fortra's Alert Logic MDR

Compared 17% of the time

Sophos MDR vs Fortra's Alert Logic MDR

Compared 11% of the time

More Fortra's Alert Logic MDR Competitors

AWS GuardDuty vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 21% of the time

Prisma Cloud by Palo Alto Networks vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 13% of the time

Wiz vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 11% of the time

Microsoft Defender XDR vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 4% of the time

Azure Firewall vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 3% of the time

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud Competitors

Product Reports

Fortra's Alert Logic MDR

Download Fortra's Alert Logic MDR product report

Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Download Microsoft Defender for Cloud product report

Also Known As

Alert Logic MDR, Alert Logic Managed Detection and ResponseAlert Logic Threat Manager, Alert Logic Cloud Defender, Critical Watch FusionVM

Microsoft Azure Security Center, Azure Security Center, Microsoft ASC, Azure Defender

Learn More

Fortra

Microsoft

Interactive Demo

Demo not available

Fortra

Microsoft

Overview

Alert Logic specializes in log management, security configuration, SIEM, SaaS monitoring, network protection, and MDR services. It is suitable for sectors such as utilities, financial services, and government.

Alert Logic offers extensive log management and proactive security by centralizing logs, providing detailed notifications, and detecting intrusions. With global threat visibility and SOCs in the US and Europe, it speeds up the threat detection process in seconds. Advanced technologies, like AI and ML, improve its MDR services and differentiate legitimate user behavior from threats.

What are Alert Logic's key features?

Excellent log messages for seamless log management
Immediate log retrieval during production issues
Clear, user-friendly notifications
Proactive and detailed incident notifications
Centralized dashboard for easy monitoring
Good intrusion detection and heuristic threat monitoring
Global threat visibility with fast threat detection
Human expertise backing threat detection and response

What benefits should users expect when evaluating Alert Logic?

Streamlined log management and rapid issue resolution
Centralized monitoring for efficient incident management
Fast global threat detection improves security stance
Human expertise for accurate threat response
Advanced threat differentiation using AI and ML

Alert Logic proves beneficial for various industries, with e-commerce applications utilizing it for robust log management and security measures. Utility sector companies leverage its network protection and threat detection capabilities, while financial services organizations appreciate its MDR services. Government agencies rely on its comprehensive infrastructure monitoring and SOC expertise for enhanced security.

Microsoft Defender for Cloud is a comprehensive security solution that provides advanced threat protection for cloud workloads. It offers real-time visibility into the security posture of cloud environments, enabling organizations to quickly identify and respond to potential threats. With its advanced machine learning capabilities, Microsoft Defender for Cloud can detect and block sophisticated attacks, including zero-day exploits and fileless malware.

The solution also provides automated remediation capabilities, allowing security teams to quickly and easily respond to security incidents. With Microsoft Defender for Cloud, organizations can ensure the security and compliance of their cloud workloads, while reducing the burden on their security teams.

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Microsoft Defender for Cloud is trusted by companies such as ASOS, Vatenfall, SWC Technology Partners, and more.

Fortra's Alert Logic MDR vs. Microsoft Defender for Cloud