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Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus vs VirusTotal comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 11, 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

Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus
Ranking in Threat Intelligence Platforms (TIP)
18th
Average Rating
7.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
VirusTotal
Ranking in Threat Intelligence Platforms (TIP)
3rd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
Anti-Malware Tools (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2025, in the Threat Intelligence Platforms (TIP) category, the mindshare of Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus is 1.2%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VirusTotal is 3.8%, down from 4.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Threat Intelligence Platforms (TIP) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
VirusTotal3.8%
Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus1.2%
Other95.0%
Threat Intelligence Platforms (TIP)
 

Featured Reviews

Tejas Jain - PeerSpot reviewer
Seamless integration into existing ecosystem empowers effective threat detection
The most valuable feature of Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus is its seamless integration into the Palo Alto Networks ecosystem, allowing the threat intelligence feeds to be automatically consumed without manual effort. It uses the STIX format, which is automatically understood by the firewalls. AutoFocus also excels in behavioral analytics and reputation scoring, providing thorough threat analysis.
Chinmay Banerjee - PeerSpot reviewer
Helps businesses collect threat data while keeping privacy in mind and apable of detecting, blocking, and removing viruses and malware
There are two gray areas I still need to explore. I have worked with VirusTotal because it easily integrates with over seventy antivirus scanners and blacklisting services. In addition to those there is much scope to improve and add other services or integrations. The areas for improvement are that VirusTotal is not using much AI or generative AI models, while other competitors are starting to build them. For example, VirusTotal's work is based on the setup done by their engineers. If you want to do scanning or protection activities for a specific site, app, or device, that is the area VirusTotal is currently focused on. But other competitors are building AI models that can do things like left-side scanning and provide auto-generated reports. VirusTotal has predefined reports, but there is a lot of manual effort involved. Secondly, the API is very limited if I want to integrate VirusTotal with other applications. They need to build more connectors and provide support for Webhook connectors for the API. If you can't build your own connector, it's always good to have provisions for Webhook setup connectors across platforms. Thirdly, Kaspersky, a competitor of VirusTotal, is using a methodology called "gatekeeper." A gatekeeper is a security system that protects the inside of a building from outside threats. This is the model Kaspersky is currently using. You have your website set up, but the entire army of VirusTotal or Kaspersky is standing guard, protecting you from the first gate itself. Right now, VirusTotal detects threats from your domain, but it is always better to verify inside the domain and protect it from the first level when people or malware are entering. This first level of protection is lacking in VirusTotal right now. The security bridge and protection gate are missing.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The logs play a crucial role as they contribute to blocking unwanted Internet traffic."
"The feature that I like best is the dashboard."
"Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus has had a positive impact on my company as we can reduce the cost for the SOC investment, and we can also get good feedback on how to strengthen our network from the expertise people available."
"It integrates well with other solutions and provides good threat intelligence in terms of external threats."
"I am impressed with the tool's integration of Palo Alto products which serves as a platform for security."
"The most valuable feature is alerting."
"I would rate Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus a ten out of ten."
"It provides detailed insights into possible malicious behavior, dropped files, and TCP connections."
"The most valuable feature is the worldwide malware information database."
"It allows us to see if there have been previous reports on certain indicators of compromise, providing insights from other security professionals."
"The feature I like the most is the ability to see the MD5 or SHA-256 signature of the file, and also the composition of the file according to its segments."
"VirusTotal provides 95% to 98% accurate information."
"With VirusTotal, I can check for any hash, malware, file, domain, IP URL, or malicious URL, and Kaspersky stays clean."
"It gives detailed information about suspicious IPs, which is one of its most valuable features."
"It is quite simple for anyone if they just want to check some suspicious URLs."
 

Cons

"I would like the tool to see more integration with Cortex XDR. There is no real reason to keep them separate."
"It would be better if they used the threat intelligence feeds directly from their side and changing the verdict instead of us requesting it."
"I would like to have more technical documentation that contains greater detail on the types of threats that are occurring."
"It would be helpful to have better documentation for configuring and installing the solution."
"It is a completely cloud-based product at present."
"VirusTotal is hard to understand because you need to know Google Docs to create queries, and it doesn't have documentation for that."
"I would like to see improvements in the score consistency and accuracy."
"I would like to see improved correlation with other threat intelligence sources, not just reliant on its own database, to enhance the database of threat intelligence that VirusTotal offers."
"There should be room for improvement, particularly in the API side of things."
"They can improve the telemetry. Whenever we handle a sample, they cannot provide any information about a victim."
"I would like to see improvements in the score consistency and accuracy."
"I would like to see an improved user interface and some automation."
"VirusTotal has different versions, and sometimes the parameters of the API are not very clear."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is expensive."
"The solution is reasonably priced."
"VirusTotal is an expensive solution."
"The pricing is very economical."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"We are using VirusTotal with free licenses, managing the license limits across three or four accounts, thus incurring no costs."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Performing Arts
14%
Insurance Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
7%
University
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise5
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus?
I feel that Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus can improve, especially since most of the OEMs are implementing MDR, Managed Service feature, which is still not available with Palo Alto. The MDR feature i...
What is your primary use case for Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus?
I use Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus for threat monitoring, and it is provided by the OEM itself. I use the threat data correlation feature, which correlates with Cortex. We can use it for data corre...
What advice do you have for others considering Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus?
As a partner with Palo Alto Networks, my email is Sarvajit at bsrgroup.in. My job title is Technical Manager. I confirm that we will publish these reviews on peerspot.com in written or audio format...
What do you like most about VirusTotal?
With VirusTotal, I can check for any hash, malware, file, domain, IP URL, or malicious URL, and Kaspersky stays clean.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VirusTotal?
I do not know about the pricing or licensing as our organization services VirusTotal for our clients.
What needs improvement with VirusTotal?
I would like to see improvements in the score consistency and accuracy. VirusTotal should add more details like those from competitors such as URL Void or Symantec URL Checker, which show the categ...
 

Also Known As

Palo Alto Threat Intelligence Management
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Telkom Indonesia
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Palo Alto Networks AutoFocus vs. VirusTotal and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
872,837 professionals have used our research since 2012.