Fortinet FortiCASB vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps comparison

Fortinet and Microsoft are both solutions in the Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) category. Fortinet is ranked #17 with an average rating of 7.0, while Microsoft is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.4. Fortinet holds a 0.5% mindshare in CASB, compared to Microsoft’s 8.8% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Fortinet users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Fortinet FortiCASB and Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Palo Alto Networks, Cisco, Netskope and others in Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB).

To learn more, read our detailed Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) Report (Updated: August 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB)

August 2025

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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

iboss

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) category, the mindshare of iboss is 2.3%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiCASB is 0.5%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps is 8.8%, down from 11.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps	8.8%
iboss	2.3%
Fortinet FortiCASB	0.5%
Other	88.4%

Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB)

Featured Reviews

Matt Crockford

Head of Cybersecurity at SES Water

It's easy to roll out, and their understanding of our business made it seamless

One aspect we value about iboss is its simplicity. Their customer service is brilliant, and they are super responsive and knowledgeable. It's easy to roll out, and their understanding of our business made it seamless. We were impressed by the solution's mental health function, which can detect if someone needs help. It scans what users are browsing and flags warning signs so we can check to see if they are okay. We've had to use it a couple of times. The user interface is highly intuitive. Our IT team picked it up with minimal training. It's arranged so that it's easy to find where things are. Another advantage is the single pane of glass console, which gives you visibility into what's happening. We're not fully there yet because we haven't implemented zero trust, but we're excited about the possibilities from the demos we've seen. We launched a POC of iboss' ChatGPT Risk Protection feature two weeks ago. AI is a great tool, but you need to be careful what you put into it. My biggest fear is employees inputting sensitive corporate information or customer PII data into one of these chatbots. I was impressed by our trial of the feature. It's exactly what we wanted. Now, when a user goes to ChatGPT, there's a banner warning them not to share information, and we can block conversations containing customer data like bank details and email addresses. I don't want to stop people from using it, but we need visibility. We've only tried it on a test group of 15 people. You can configure it to look for specific keywords or integrate it with your DLP policy if you have that configured

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Vijayakumar Yohannan

Delivery Head - NOC Operations at UST Global

Seamlessly customize security features but need improved deployment speed

I find Fortinet FortiCASB easily customizable. It allows me to leverage features that cover almost eighty percent of use cases required by my clients. The compliance management feature supports GDPR and HIPAA compliance, effectively meeting those use cases. The hybrid model of Fortinet offers seamless deployment on cloud or hybrid best suited for customers, making it adaptable in various scenarios.

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Abdulrahman Muhammadi

information Security and IT Manager at Discover Dollar Technologies Pvt Ltd.

Integration with existing cloud workflows has simplified compliance and threat detection

Licensing cost is a significant concern. With Defender Plan 1, Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps comes with a pay-per-use model. Each feature has its own pricing when activated on VMs. For example, the vulnerability assessment has separate pricing, the base model including encryptions has separate pricing, and the compliance features have separate pricing. This applies to each VM and Azure resource individually. It is not straightforward where you can take one license and apply it to everything. Each feature has its own pricing model which can be tedious, as the costs keep accumulating. The only lacking feature currently is XDR (extended detection and response). Apart from that, I have only positive experiences with the whole Microsoft suite, except for the pricing structure.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We chose iboss for both zero trust and proxy (SWG) because their SWG was superior."

"The security aspect of the solution, particularly the malware behind it, is excellent. That's something that really helped us out. It's not just a simple proxy that just blocks the insights of potential threats that come on behind it. They do malware detection and that helps us a lot."

"Content filtering is the most useful feature of iboss."

"iboss is among the few products providing inline filtering where no application is needed on the device. It operates on the network side and is not device-based. This feature was one of the main reasons why we stayed with them for so long."

"iboss has significantly lowered the number of security incidents. It is crazy how much it blocks and how much it is aware of the outside danger."

"Our primary use case for this product is DLP,"

"We were impressed by the solution's mental health function, which can detect if someone needs help. It scans what users are browsing and flags warning signs so we can check to see if they are okay. We've had to use it a couple of times."

"iboss is easy to use despite its complexity. Multiple engineers manage it, but it's significantly more straightforward to administer than traditional VPNs and web proxies."

More iboss pros

"I find Fortinet FortiCASB easily customizable."

"Defender helps us control which applications are being used and gain more security insight into remote and hybrid users based on user identity and log in location. You can also integrate Defender for Cloud Apps with Defender for Endpoint to extend its capabilities."

"Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps is very comprehensive, providing a complete 360-degree view of applications within an organization."

"The most valuable feature is the ease of management. It's important."

"In Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps, there is an option to enable files. Once you enable that, it will give you all the files in your organization and where they are located in the cloud... That feature is very useful for investigation purposes."

"One of the most valuable features is auditing. Some of the other protection services have issues with auditing. Microsoft Defender for Cloud has an excellent auditing technique that helps us avoid the risk of filtering or information loss. You can use different tools to guarantee these things. It allows you to conduct an in-depth exploration of applications, users, and files that are harmful or suspicious. You can also enhance your security setup by creating personalized rules or policies that help you better control traffic in the cloud."

"The most valuable feature is its policy implementation."

"Defender for Cloud Apps has given us good visibility regarding what we've allowed into our environment until now."

"The most valuable feature is the alerting system."

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps pros

Cons

"If they could implement an extra security layer preventing access to iboss from the open internet, it would be great."

"I'd like to see them accelerate development on the security side, particularly around data loss prevention."

"The solution could be stronger on the integration side and offer more cloud applications like G Suite or Oracle."

"One thing I would like to see differently with their Zero Trust platform is that some of the AI aspects related to high-risk activities have more false positives."

"Sometimes, obviously, there are bugs."

"Iboss is growing so fast that it is often hard for them to keep up with the challenges."

"Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, iboss is not cheap, and that's my only concern."

"The dashboards for local use could be better."

More iboss cons

"The turnaround time to deploy Fortinet FortiCASB could be improved. The learning curve for deploying, configuring use cases, and rules can be better."

"The turnaround time to deploy Fortinet FortiCASB could be improved."

"I would like for it to be available on Mac and for it to support all of the features of Microsoft financing products. It is really for Windows."

"Defender for Cloud apps is primarily useful for Azure apps. It has limited capabilities for applications based on other cloud platforms."

"We are having trouble with our continuous reporting configuration and struggling with configuring the collector properly with our log parsing. We've also faced difficulties getting support for this issue. It's taken us months to figure this out after going through a couple of different support channels."

"There are some features, such as user navigation content filtering, that are disabled by default, and it probably makes sense to enable them by default."

"Currently, reporting is not very straightforward and it needs to be enhanced. Specific reports are not included and you need to run a query, drill down, and then export it and share it. I would love to have reports with more fine-tuning or granularity, and more predefined reports."

"A significant improvement I would like to see is the integration into a single pane of glass, which would allow me to view everything in one place rather than having to switch between different areas."

"Sometimes the support is actually lacking."

"Defender for Cloud Apps could come with more configured policies out of the box. Also, integration could be easier. Integration is moderately difficult because Microsoft hasn't developed a solution that unifies device onboarding and management. You have to use Intune to manage devices and Defender for Endpoint to enforce policies. They need to fix their integration, but I believe they will straighten it out by the end of the year."

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is probably in line with other solutions, but I do not deal with the financial side."

"We have not priced the solution recently, but they were competitive with other vendors in the past."

"We had the cost of purchasing a new appliance along with the implementation and licensing costs. However, the following year, the cost of just licensing was similar to what was paid the previous year for a new appliance along with the implementation and licensing costs."

"It is expensive compared to one of its competitors."

"It is not expensive, and it is also not cheap. iboss is priced right in the sweet spot for the number of features it offers."

"The overall pricing for iboss is very competitive and transparent."

Information not available

"The pricing is fair."

"This product is not expensive."

"We utilize the Microsoft E5 licensing, which encompasses the entire Microsoft suite; however, it is costly."

"The E5 license offers everything bundled. People are moving to Microsoft because you buy one license and it gives you everything."

"Where we are right now, this is an acceptable pricing. I would like to see more transparency given to the end user. The end user given to us is via the cloud service provider. There are different programs and license models. Some include this, and some include that. It is all over the place. There can be a little more consistency or simplification in the pricing so that your parts list is not ten pages long, and you are not trying to determine, "If I have an E3, does this cover that?", or "Do I need to pay separately for the license?" Simplification would probably be better."

"The product's pricing seems fair."

"It has fair pricing. You pay for what you get. As far as I know, there are no costs in addition to the standard licensing fee."

"Its pricing is on the higher side. Its price is definitely very high for a small-scale company. As an enterprise client, we do get benefits from Microsoft. We get a discounted price because of the number of users we have in our company. We have a premier package, and with that, we do get a lot of discounts. There are no additional costs. It only comes in the top-tier packages. Generally, the top-tier license is the best license that you can get for your organization. If you want, you can buy it separately, but that's not a good idea."

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Government

No data available

Computer Software Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	5

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	13
Midsize Enterprise	10
Large Enterprise	18

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with iboss?

For zero trust implementation, we encountered complexity issues, especially with a large infrastructure company Exxon...

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What is your primary use case for iboss?

Previously when I used iboss, we did the POC for iboss for ExxonMobil. Four or five people wanted to move from our ol...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for iboss?

Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, iboss is not cheap, and that's my only concern. There are cheaper alte...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiCASB?

The price point could be better, and improvements are desired in staying on top of evolving threats while keeping cos...

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What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiCASB?

The turnaround time to deploy Fortinet FortiCASB could be improved. The learning curve for deploying, configuring use...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiCASB?

My primary use case for Fortinet FortiCASB is threat management and managing external threats. I predominantly use it...

See all answers

Which is the better security solution - Cisco Umbrella or Microsoft Cloud App Security?

Cisco Umbrella is an integral component of the Cisco SASE architecture. It integrates security in a single, cloud-nat...

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What do you like most about Microsoft Cloud App Security?

It does a great job of monitoring and maintaining a security baseline. For us, that is a key element. The notificatio...

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

At the time of implementation, when the size of our organization was small, it was a more affordable product. Since a...

See all answers

Comparisons

Zscaler Internet Access vs iboss

Compared 14% of the time

Netskope vs iboss

Compared 14% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs iboss

Compared 14% of the time

Cisco Umbrella vs iboss

Compared 13% of the time

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs iboss

Compared 8% of the time

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FortiSASE vs Fortinet FortiCASB

Compared 43% of the time

Netskope vs Fortinet FortiCASB

Compared 22% of the time

More Fortinet FortiCASB Competitors

Zscaler Internet Access vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

Compared 18% of the time

Cisco Umbrella vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

Compared 16% of the time

Netskope vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

Compared 12% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

Compared 6% of the time

Skyhigh Security vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

Compared 5% of the time

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

iboss

September 2025

Download iboss product report

Buyer's Guide

Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB)

August 2025

Download Fortinet FortiCASB product report

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

September 2025

Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps report

Download Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps product report

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform

FortiCASB

MS Cloud App Security, Microsoft Cloud App Security

Overview

iboss offers a comprehensive security platform designed for diverse use cases such as web filtering, data loss protection, corporate proxy services, and URL filtering.

iboss integrates advanced features to address dynamic security needs, leveraging its strength in SASE, ZTNA, AI initiatives, and cloud integration, while ensuring seamless operations for remote work. It excels in historical forensics, malware protection, and flexible cloud deployments. Users benefit from comprehensive traffic scanning, robust malware detection, and PaaS capabilities that reduce hardware management. An intuitive admin console ensures efficient management with content filtering and low false positives. SSL decryption enhances security, while DLP protects data in AI conversations. Deployment is rapid and scalable, allowing effortless integration with emerging technologies.

What features does iboss offer?

Granular Web Filtering: Provides precise control over web content access.
Traffic Scanning: Monitors data through multiple ports for security breaches.
Malware Detection: Ensures superior protection against malware threats.
PaaS Capabilities: Eliminates need for hardware management.
SSL Decryption: Enhances data protection by decrypting secure connections.
DLP Capabilities: Safeguards data during AI interactions.

What benefits and ROI should users consider?

Scalability: Adapts quickly to growing demands and emerging tech integration.
Rapid Deployment: Reduces time to implement security measures.
User-Friendly Admin Console: Facilitates efficient operations management.
Low False Positives: Increases accuracy of threat detection systems.

iboss finds significant application in sectors such as education, where web filtering for K-12 is crucial, and in corporate environments requiring robust proxy services and URL filtering for network security. Its adaptability is essential in scenarios demanding flexible, decentralized security frameworks, particularly for remote work setups.

iboss

Fortinet FortiCASB is a comprehensive cloud security solution offered by Fortinet, a leading cybersecurity company. FortiCASB is designed to provide organizations with visibility, control, and security for their cloud-based applications and services. It helps organizations secure their cloud environments, detect threats, enforce policies, and ensure compliance.

Fortinet FortiCASB Features:

Cloud Application Visibility

FortiCASB offers visibility into cloud applications and services being used within an organization's network. It helps identify shadow IT and provides insights into the cloud usage patterns, facilitating effective management and control.

Data Protection and Compliance

FortiCASB enables organizations to protect sensitive data in the cloud by enforcing data loss prevention (DLP) policies and encryption. It helps identify and control data sharing, detect anomalies, and ensure compliance with data privacy regulations.

Threat Detection and Response

FortiCASB incorporates advanced threat detection capabilities to identify and mitigate cloud-specific threats. It employs machine learning algorithms and behavioral analytics to detect anomalous activities, account compromises, malware, and other cloud-based threats.

Access Controls and Identity Management

FortiCASB enables organizations to enforce granular access controls for cloud applications, ensuring that users have appropriate permissions and follow secure authentication practices. It integrates with identity management systems and supports features such as single sign-on (SSO) and multi-factor authentication (MFA).

Compliance Monitoring and Reporting

FortiCASB helps organizations monitor and maintain compliance with industry regulations and standards. It provides pre-defined compliance templates, automated policy enforcement, and detailed reporting capabilities to demonstrate adherence to data privacy and security requirements.

Shadow IT Discovery and Control

FortiCASB helps organizations discover and gain visibility into unauthorized or risky cloud applications used within their network. It enables IT teams to assess risks, enforce policies, and take appropriate actions to manage and control cloud usage effectively.

Cloud Security Assessments

FortiCASB conducts security assessments of cloud applications and services to evaluate their security posture and identify vulnerabilities. It provides insights into potential risks and assists organizations in making informed decisions about the adoption of specific cloud services.

Fortinet

Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps is a comprehensive security solution that provides protection for cloud-based applications and services. It offers real-time threat detection and response, as well as advanced analytics and reporting capabilities. With Defender for Cloud Apps, organizations can ensure the security of their cloud environments and safeguard against cyber threats. Whether you're running SaaS applications, IaaS workloads, or PaaS services, Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps can help you secure your cloud environment and protect your business from cyber threats.

Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps Benefits:

Provides comprehensive security for cloud applications
Integrates with other Microsoft security tools
Easy to use and deploy
Provides real-time threat detection and response
Strong protection against phishing attacks and other common threats
Highly customizable to meet specific needs of different organizations

Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps Use Cases:

Governance, authentication, security, and compliance.
Detects shadow IT and anomalous user behavior
Controls access to applications
Provides auditing and filtering setups
Used for end-user compute devices, file monitoring, user investigation, and activity
Used for data governance, threat detection, and getting visibility over cloud applications
Used to identify information about applications beyond organizational boundaries
Prevent exfiltration and data filtration of corporate data
Used to deal with spam emails and detect shadow IT

Reviews from Real Users

Ram-Krish, Cloud Security & Governance at a financial services firm, says that Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps "Integrates well and helps us in protecting sensitive information, but takes time to scan and apply the policies and cannot detect everything we need".

PeerSpot user, Senior Cloud & Security Consultant at a tech services, writes that Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps "Great for monitoring user activity and protecting data while integrating well with other applications".

Simon Burgess,Infrastructure Engineer at SBITSC, states that Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps is "A fluid, intelligent product for great visibility, centralized management, and increased uptime".

Microsoft

Sample Customers

More than 4,000 global enterprises trust the iboss Cloud Platform to support their modern workforces, including a large number of Fortune 50 companies.

Rollins

Customers for Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps include Accenture, St. Luke’s University Health Network, Ansell, and Nakilat.

Buyer's Guide

Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB)

August 2025

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