Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection comparison

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection

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Helped 869,832 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 for Endp...

Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)

2nd

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

198

Ranking in other categories

Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (3rd), Anti-Malware Tools (1st), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (3rd), Microsoft Security Suite (5th)

WithSecure Elements Endpoin...

Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)

46th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is 9.9%, down from 12.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection is 0.8%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint	9.9%
WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection	0.8%
Other	89.3%

Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)

Featured Reviews

NaySan @ Suraj Verma

Solution Consultant at BIM Group of Companies

Has effectively blocked sophisticated attacks and malicious activities while providing excellent support

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is very good, but one suggestion is that in some products, we may need to configure security-related settings, whereas Microsoft Defender for Endpoint works completely differently, providing automatic recommendations and actions that we may need to perform ourselves. Regarding the pricing of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, during the last three years, we set up the product and sold it, but we faced difficulties because Microsoft pricing is always the same. For example, whether I purchase Microsoft Defender for Endpoint for one year or for the next three years, the pricing remains constant with no discounts available. In contrast, competing products offer reduced pricing for long-term commitments, which makes it difficult for us in that environment. Microsoft should consider this option to remain competitive, but otherwise, everything else is fine.

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Mark Feldman

IT-Manager at MKF-Schimanski-ERGIS GmbH

Central console streamlines patch monitoring and device management effortlessly

WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection is good and easy to set up. I provide an installation file for every client through my domain controller and GPO, and it works properly. We have faced no incidents with viruses or network breaches, and it's easy to monitor patches. I can use remote desktop from the central console. The solution also saves my time because, being the only one handling it, I can monitor all devices easily.

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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 whole bundle of the product, which is similar to other Microsoft products, is valuable. Ten years ago, you had third-party stuff for different things. You had one solution for email archiving and another third-party one for something else. Nowadays, Microsoft Office covers all the stuff that was formerly covered by third-party solutions. It is the same with antivirus. The functionality is just basic. You have the scanning, and then you also have a kind of cloud-based protection and reporting about your environment. With Microsoft Security Center, you have a complete overview of your environment. You know the software inventory, and you have security recommendations. You can not only see that the antivirus is up to date; you can also see where are the vulnerabilities in your system. Microsoft Security Center tells you where you have old, deprecated software and what kind of CVEs are addressed. It's really cool stuff."

"We found that because the endpoint devices are based on Microsoft Windows devices and Windows Defender is integrated with the foundation and the core layer, it makes it more integrated and more agile in terms of responding to any security threats or changes or development"

"The solution's threat protection is mostly AI and machine-learning based. That is the most important feature of the product. It also offers centralized management so I can remotely manage devices."

"Auto-remediation: When the product sees malware, it resolves the issue immediately. This protects the machine."

"The performance of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint has been good."

"The most valuable features are that it is flexible, and it is integrated with Microsoft products."

"The best part is that it is built into Windows, whether it is a server base or a desktop base, which gives more control over the operating system. Because Defender, the operating system, and the Office solution are by Microsoft, everything is working like hand-in-glove. Its administrative overhead is less because a desktop user has already got some experience of how to handle a Microsoft Defender notification or administer it."

"The ransomware and malware protection is the most valuable feature."

More Microsoft Defender for Endpoint pros

"The most valuable features of WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection are the clear useful portal and overall company protection."

"The notifications and patch management features are valuable."

"F-Secure is useful for keeping user machines up-to-date by pushing out security and critical updates."

"We use the product for detecting network vulnerabilities and for software update purposes."

"Both incoming and outgoing traffic is protected."

"There is a layer of security to prevent a malicious agent (malware) from interrupting or stopping services, deleting or modifying registry entries or even stopping the antivirus from acting, ensuring that there will be no interruption of protection."

"WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection is good and easy to set up."

"On the cloud management page, the solution scales up very highly."

Cons

"There is room to improve the security of the solution."

"We'd like to see integrations with more vulnerability scanning solutions like Tenable."

"The solution has minimal customization options, especially compared to Mandiant, so we want to see more scope for customization. A single portal for customization would also be a welcome addition."

"The time it takes to implement policies has room for improvement."

"Lacks some additional integration."

"The scanning is slow when it is working with incoming emails."

"It is not very scalable from the eyes of an MSP because there is no dashboard that you can use to see all of your devices that have Windows Defender unless you have your own dashboard or an RMM tool to actually look at it. So, you might not get to know that a particular computer of a client is doing something, and it might have got a virus. That person might know that, but unless you set it up to actually send you the information, you won't get to know that. That's one of the things that is hard with Microsoft Defender. It is not made for the MSP world where you have one pane of glass to see all of your clients with Microsoft Defender on it unless your RMM tool already has that built-in and it can see the telemetry from Microsoft Defender."

"Microsoft Defender for Endpoint should have more transparency. In the latest edition of Windows, Windows 11, it is a compulsory requirement to connect to a Microsoft account, which in turn has implications for Defender. This should be removed."

More Microsoft Defender for Endpoint cons

"There could be a dedicated security partner with essential knowledge."

"There is no technical support available in the Middle East."

"I would like the part of Hash Analysis by external sources to be improved."

"The solution could improve by having more real-time responses. For example, when a license gets removed from a computer it does not update the records of the change. Additionally, when I installed Microsoft Windows Defender I was not able to send licenses through email to our tenants. The integration with other solutions could improve."

"But the biggest one for us is patch management because this has been our top priority when looking at alternatives. Every solution needs to have patch management, if that's possible. It would cut costs on our side if that feature were included, so we don't need to pay for two separate pieces of software."

"The program and cloud service management is in English. It's not a problem for me, however, it might be for users who don't speak English or use it regularly."

"One problem is that the solution takes too much RAM from the client."

"Resource consumption is suboptimal and could be improved."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is included with Microsoft Windows."

"The price for Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is about three euros, which is considered reasonably priced."

"The subscription is part of Windows, so we don't have to pay anything extra for this product."

"There is no license needed, the solution comes with Microsoft Windows."

"It is free."

"The pricing is competitive."

"It is affordable and comes in the Office 365 bundle."

"There is an annual license required."

More Microsoft Defender for Endpoint pricing and cost advice

"The price is comparable."

"If you purchase licenses in bulk the price of the licenses can decrease."

"The product has average pricing."

"The cost of the solution depends on the size of the company and where the licenses are being ordered from."

"We pay a yearly licensing fee of about €20 per computer."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

13%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Financial Services Firm

Comms Service Provider

21%

Computer Software Company

17%

University

10%

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	79
Midsize Enterprise	34
Large Enterprise	87

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Large Enterprise	1

Questions from the Community

How is Cortex XDR compared with Microsoft Defender?

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a cloud-delivered endpoint security solution. The tool reduces the attack surface, applies behavioral-based endpoint protection and response, and includes risk-ba...

Which offers better endpoint security - Symantec or Microsoft Defender?

We use Symantec because we do not use MS Enterprise products, but in my opinion, Microsoft Defender is a superior solution. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a cloud-delivered endpoint security s...

How does Microsoft Defender for Endpoint compare with Crowdstrike Falcon?

The CrowdStrike solution delivers a lot of information about incidents. It has a very light sensor that will never push your machine hardware to "test", you don't have the usual "scan now" feature ...

What do you like most about F-Secure Protection Service for Business?

The notifications and patch management features are valuable.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for F-Secure Protection Service for Business?

The pricing is scalable. We can purchase more licenses if needed. It's a more cost-effective solution compared to Darktrace, which requires a special device purchase.

What needs improvement with F-Secure Protection Service for Business?

One problem is that the solution takes too much RAM from the client. It would help if it used less RAM in future versions.

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Product Reports

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

Download Microsoft Defender for Endpoint product report

WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection

Download WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection product report

WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection report

Also Known As

Microsoft Defender ATP, Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection, MS Defender for Endpoint, Microsoft Defender Antivirus

F-Secure Elements Endpoint Protection, F-Secure Protection Service for Business

Interactive Demo

Microsoft

Demo not available

WithSecure

Overview

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a comprehensive security solution that provides advanced threat protection for organizations. It offers real-time protection against various types of cyber threats, including malware, viruses, ransomware, and phishing attacks.

With its powerful machine-learning capabilities, it can detect and block sophisticated attacks before they can cause any harm. The solution also includes endpoint detection and response (EDR) capabilities, allowing organizations to quickly investigate and respond to security incidents. It provides detailed insights into the attack timeline, enabling security teams to understand the scope and impact of an incident.

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint also offers proactive threat hunting, allowing organizations to proactively search for and identify potential threats within their network. It integrates seamlessly with other Microsoft security solutions, such as Microsoft Defender XDR, to provide a unified and holistic security approach. With its centralized management console, organizations can easily deploy, configure, and monitor the security solution across their entire network.

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a robust and scalable security solution that helps organizations protect their endpoints and data from evolving cyber threats.

Microsoft

WithSecure (formerly F-Secure) Elements Endpoint Protection is cloud-native, AI-powered endpoint protection that you can deploy instantly from your browser and manage easily from a single console. It integrates across all your endpoints, keeping your organization fenced in from attacks. WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection is a module of the Elements cyber security platform. The cloud-based platform provides effective protection against ransomware and advanced attacks. Elements brings together vulnerability management, automated patch management, dynamic threat intelligence and continuous behavioral analytics. Use individual solutions for specific needs or combine them all seamlessly for maximum defense.

WithSecure

Sample Customers

Petrofrac, Metro CSG, Christus Health

Information Not Available

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. WithSecure Elements Endpoint Protection