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Fortra's Clearswift Secure Email Gateway vs Sophos Email comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender for Offi...
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Ranking in Email Security
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Number of Reviews
43
Ranking in other categories
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (9th)
Fortra's Clearswift Secure ...
Ranking in Email Security
40th
Average Rating
8.6
Number of Reviews
0
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Sophos Email
Ranking in Email Security
12th
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
Office 365 Protection (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2024, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 16.7%, down from 20.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortra's Clearswift Secure Email Gateway is 0.6%, down from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Email is 3.3%, down from 4.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Security
 

Featured Reviews

SR
Nov 28, 2023
Stops evolving threats and offers peace of mind
We use the solution for wireless scanning, reporting, and monitoring.  The product is not resource-intensive.  The tool's most valuable feature is virus scanning, which has saved us from malware and ransomware.  We need to be able to whitelist data at the backend.  I have been using the product…
it_user746937 - PeerSpot reviewer
Oct 2, 2017
Facilitates creation of your own content-filtering policies with relative ease
Ability to create message bypasses for groups and/or individuals. Meaning, you do not have to "whitelist" email domains or addresses when a specific bypass will do. Personal Message Manager (PMM): It allows users to release or delete quarantined messages. Also, allows users to add people to a…
SK
Oct 14, 2022
A strong appliance with excellent filtering and an easy setup
We primarily used the solution as an email gateway, for filtering It was a really good appliance. It filtered most of the spam and junk emails and quarantined them. It was working fine for us. The speed and stability were fine. It had good features. The initial setup was very simple. We didn't…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 has improved my organization's security. It makes it easier to manage the infrastructure without the help of third-party applications."
"Threat Explorer is one of the features that I very much like because it is a real-time report that allows you to identify, analyze, and trace security attacks."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365's most valuable features are safe attachments and safe links."
"The initial setup was easy."
"The product's scalability is good."
"Does a thorough job of examining email and URLs for malicious content."
"At the moment we are satisfied with this product. It's a stable, scalable, and resilient solution for us."
"The good part is that you don't have to configure it, which is very convenient."
"A stable solution."
"Ability to create your own content-filtering policies with relative ease."
"The speed and stability were fine."
"The tool is a good solution for protecting against email attacks and monitoring networks. It supports our compliance efforts and is easy to use and stable."
"The solution's identity proxy feature is very good and reliable."
"The anti-malware, risk scanning has been pretty spot on."
"Good VIP protection, time of click protection and the Sandstorm feature."
"There are many features that are important, but among those, the spam protection feature is very valuable. It help us to safeguard the email against phishing and ensures that there is maximum security enabled for our communication processes. It has a huge role in protecting our emails from potential threats."
"The platform is scalable when installed on server-based systems."
"Sophos Email is a stable solution."
 

Cons

"Too many false positives and lacks an accurate capability to detect malicious SharePoint sites."
"The certification training for Defender for 365 needs to be deeper and incorporate Sentinel. I took all the security courses except one, and Sentinel isn't included."
"There is room for improvement in terms of reporting."
"We noticed that from time to time, Microsoft's stability does have problems. Sometimes the service goes up and down. Sometimes they change without prior notice."
"It would be better if it were more scalable. It depends on the architecture, but we would like to make it more scalable for both data centers."
"Microsoft should provide more documentation for users so they can self-educate. I would like to see more documentation for advanced security features."
"This product's effectiveness could be improved, in terms of detecting unwanted spam or even malware between the emails, compared to other products."
"The company should focus on adding threats that the solution is currently unable to detect."
"Malware needs improvement."
"FTP server and TRUST Manager functionality."
"Sophos Email could improve DLP features."
"A lot of legit emails get quarantined."
"Sophos Email has few improvements to implement, including the handling of incoming emails in the systems. It needs to add additional feature that helps in enhancing the scanning processes of these emails. While adding these features, it should work towards improving the current features also."
"The solution's technical support is slow and unresponsive. You need to book time in order to get support."
"The solution has not found a way to block certain kinds of phishing emails."
"The solution's sandboxing and spam control features could be improved."
"The solution should be able to support the cloud environment."
"Enhancing rule creation and customization features would provide users with greater control over their email security settings."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution saves money so we have seen a return on investment."
"Compared to other brands, Microsoft Defender for Office 365's pricing is competitive."
"I know that the product is incredibly expensive."
"While Microsoft Defender for Office 365 necessitates pricier E3 or E5 subscriptions, the extensive functionality offered by these licenses across various Microsoft products justifies the investment."
"Microsoft Defender is expensive. I typically recommend it only if clients have the budget. Otherwise, I would suggest an alternative."
"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."
"The license is expensive because the cost is based on the number of users."
"It's a user-base subscription."
Information not available
"The pricing could improve by having additional discounts. For example, when customers buy have more than 50 or more users, there should be additional discounts."
"Licensing is paid on a yearly basis."
"The solution is expensive."
"The pricing is quite reasonable, with a fixed cost and no additional charges."
"Most of our clients are on a perpetual license. If there is a budget issue, they can choose a subscription. However, most of the clients choose the perpetual license."
"The platform is inexpensive. It offers a cost-effective licensing model. We purchase its yearly license."
"The pricing is fair."
"There is an additional fee for their central managed console."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
23%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Government
13%
Construction Company
7%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Retailer
7%
Educational Organization
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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 variou...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
While Microsoft Defender for Office 365 necessitates pricier E3 or E5 subscriptions, the extensive functionality offe...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps is a very good solution that allows you to use a single port or tool to control eve...
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What do you like most about Sophos Email?
The solution's identity proxy feature is very good and reliable.
What needs improvement with Sophos Email?
The tool's pricing is expensive. In its future release, the tool should make reporting easier to view.
 

Also Known As

MS Defender for Office 365
No data available
Sophos Email Security
 

Learn More

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Overview

 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
Information Not Available
Del Monte Foods, Terra Verde, spicerhaart, RIVERLITE, Dataprise, SureBridge, Reed's School, Sayfol International School
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortra's Clearswift Secure Email Gateway vs. Sophos Email and other solutions. Updated: August 2024.
800,688 professionals have used our research since 2012.