No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Fortra's Digital Guardian vs Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention comparison

Why PeerSpot?
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
7.4
Fortra's Digital Guardian delivers high ROI and efficiency, with dependable data loss prevention and minimal workflow interruptions.
Sentiment score
6.6
Microsoft Purview DLP reduces data leakage, compliance risks, and costs, while enhancing security operations and productivity without extra resources.
It is reliable, it has a broad scope, and the vendor is easy to reach out to and makes it easy to request assistance.
Security Managed Services Associate at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
It doesn't block my workflows, saving me from wasting hours of troubleshooting security blocks that could happen with other tools.
Automation Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I see some return on investment with Fortra's Digital Guardian since the license is based on the endpoints, which is where you can save.
System Engineer/Consultant at Notable Frontier Sdn Bhd
We save a lot of time for legal by using Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention when searching data for legal and HR and employee issues.
Staff Systems Administrator at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
I have also seen fewer accidental data sharing incidents, improved audit readiness, and increased the efficiency of the security team without needing additional headcount.
Technique at Digitaltrack
In these days of data breaches and data leakages that result in huge regulatory fines, we have not had any data breaches that could result in such fines.
Head of Geographies; Data Protection Officer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
8.0
Fortra's Digital Guardian support is generally positive, though experiences vary; some face delays, others find software reliable.
Sentiment score
5.9
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention receives mixed reviews, praising documentation but noting slow and inefficient customer support in complex cases.
For others looking into using Fortra's Digital Guardian, I would suggest learning the steps for monitoring and maintaining the server, especially policy configuration, since it is quite tricky and includes a lot of processes.
Security Managed Services Associate at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Technical support from Fortra can vary; sometimes I encounter great engineers with high experience who can resolve issues quickly, but other times I face less experienced engineers which can cause delays in issue resolution.
System Engineer/Consultant at Notable Frontier Sdn Bhd
I have never had to contact Fortra's Digital Guardian's customer support because the software has never crashed or caused any issues on my machine.
Automation Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I rate it a ten because they are very quick to respond and very quick to escalate if needed.
Cloud Architecture Lead at bolder inc
Once we got to the Microsoft engineers, the experience was great.
Director of Cyber Security
In terms of support, it's top-notch and always available to help us with any support issues we raise.
Head of Geographies; Data Protection Officer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Fortra's Digital Guardian is scalable and adaptable, efficiently handling performance, licensing, and stability for varied enterprise needs.
Sentiment score
7.4
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention is praised for its scalability and flexibility across industries, organizations, and complex environments.
Even when my laptop is under heavy load, running multiple instances of automated browsers via Selenium, PyCharm, and handling background API requests, the agent remains stable and completely unnoticeable.
Automation Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
While there are limits, we attempt to work around them, sometimes needing to collaborate with Fortra's Digital Guardian engineers to find solutions.
System Engineer/Consultant at Notable Frontier Sdn Bhd
The policy working and detection technology need enhancements.
Solution Architect at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention scales well with the growing needs of our organization.
Head of Geographies; Data Protection Officer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention scales effectively.
Director, IT Infrastructure at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.5
Fortra's Digital Guardian is highly stable, rated 9/10 by users, with minimal downtime and no significant issues reported.
Sentiment score
7.8
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention is stable and reliable, with minor lag, high stability ratings, and positive user feedback.
Fortra's Digital Guardian is stable; it doesn't have a negative effect on my system performance.
Automation Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I would assess the stability and reliability of Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention as high.
Co-Owner and Principal Consultant at BriComp Computers
The stability and reliability of Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention is great.
Senior Infrastructure Engineer at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
I assess the stability and reliability of Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention as quite good because I don't think it's ever gone down, unlike other parts of Azure.
Director, IT Infrastructure at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Fortra's Digital Guardian struggles with user-friendliness, scalability, CPU efficiency, visibility, compatibility, and cost compared to alternatives.
Microsoft Purview DLP needs easier policy setup, improved third-party integration, real-time insights, and enhanced scalability features.
System reporting and default system reporting are not totally usable and require customization to be practical.
System Engineer/Consultant at Notable Frontier Sdn Bhd
Fortra's Digital Guardian does have some mishaps and imperfections, but it has been really helpful for us as a DLP tool.
Security Managed Services Associate at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I give Fortra's Digital Guardian a seven because it doesn't compromise my system performance, but I don't get any visibility about what's happening and I don't know which criteria are used for preventing data leaks or classifying my files as sensitive or not sensitive.
Automation Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Business Premium users can get the data loss prevention features of E5, which is fantastic.
Senior Infrastructure Engineer at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
Implementing a degree of severity ranking is essential.
Director of Cyber Security
More guides, more examples, and more compliance frameworks such as NIST or even PCI compliance would be great.
Director, IT Infrastructure at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Purview DLP is cost-effective with 365 E5, but add-ons and advanced features can be expensive and complex.
In terms of pricing, I would say it's unlimited value because it's bundled in our A5 and E5 licensing situation.
Director, IT Infrastructure at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
The pricing for Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention is generally set; E5 is required, but it comes with all other products, so I would say it is fine.
Security Engineer at baseVISION
Advanced DLP and insider risk features became expensive when we scaled at the enterprise level.
Soc Anaylst at Softcell Technologies Limited
 

Valuable Features

Fortra's Digital Guardian offers customizable policies, cross-platform protection, and real-time detection, enhancing data control and productivity.
Microsoft Purview DLP excels in integrated data protection, policy controls, and automatic labeling, enhancing security and compliance in regulated sectors.
Fortra's Digital Guardian can detect any user activity after installation and commissioning without the need for policy implementation; it just works by system default.
System Engineer/Consultant at Notable Frontier Sdn Bhd
With this file tagging, everything that needs to be controlled or monitored is blocked for any file transfer because once the file is tagged by Fortra's Digital Guardian, that tag remains wherever the file is placed.
Security Managed Services Associate at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Fortra's Digital Guardian's lightweight nature impacts my productivity and workflow positively because it delivers enterprise security without hurting developer productivity, and the system performance remains stable.
Automation Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention prevents users from sharing sensitive information outside the organization based on the configurations that we've implemented.
Head of Geographies; Data Protection Officer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Microsoft Purview has helped improve our organization's ability to discover sensitive data significantly as we use eDiscovery Purview, which is incredibly helpful.
Staff Systems Administrator at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
It finds social security numbers in the files when we scan for it, so that we can prevent those from leaving the company.
Managing Director, Chief Information Security Officer at a financial services firm with 201-500 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortra's Digital Guardian
Ranking in Data Loss Prevention (DLP)
24th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Purview Data Loss...
Ranking in Data Loss Prevention (DLP)
1st
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
36
Ranking in other categories
Microsoft Security Suite (12th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Data Loss Prevention (DLP) category, the mindshare of Fortra's Digital Guardian is 1.3%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention is 5.7%, down from 12.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention5.7%
Fortra's Digital Guardian1.3%
Other93.0%
Data Loss Prevention (DLP)
 

Featured Reviews

Lucianofernandez Fernandez Moroaga - PeerSpot reviewer
Automation Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Security has protected data quietly and now needs to give users more visibility and control
Regarding how Fortra's Digital Guardian can be improved, the fact that it runs as a background process isn't necessarily a bad thing, but you don't get any visibility into what it's doing unless a security policy is triggered. In the future, they could improve that to give users more visibility about what's happening. I give Fortra's Digital Guardian a seven because it doesn't compromise my system performance, but I don't get any visibility about what's happening and I don't know which criteria are used for preventing data leaks or classifying my files as sensitive or not sensitive. I would give it a ten if it had more visibility about what's happening or more contact with the user. Regarding the accuracy and reliability of Fortra's Digital Guardian's output, since it's fully managed by my company's IT department, I don't get any visibility of what processes it runs internally, so I don't know how it classifies the files. Therefore, I cannot give you a certain answer about that.
Rohit Jaiswar - PeerSpot reviewer
Soc Anaylst at Softcell Technologies Limited
Integrated controls have reduced insider risk and now protect sensitive data across our workforce
One standout feature about Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention is the tight integration with Insider Risk Management and Defender XDR, as it gives much better context during investigations instead of treating DLP as an isolated alerting tool. We also use endpoint DLP heavily to control USB, copy, print, clipboard, and browser upload activity, which has been very effective for remote workforce security. The best features Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention offers include real-time policy enforcement, endpoint DLP, and deep integration with Microsoft 365 plus Defender XDR. We also heavily rely on sensitive information type detection, adaptive policy tips, and insider risk integration to investigate suspicious user behavior with proper context. Another standout feature is the ability to control USB copy, browser uploads, print clipboards, and cloud sharing actions directly from endpoint policies. The integration with Microsoft Defender 365 and Defender XDR helps our team in day-to-day operations because DLP alerts are automatically correlated with endpoint identity, email, and user activity telemetry, which helps the SOC investigate incidents much faster from a single workflow. The sensitive information type detection makes a difference compared to other tools we have used because it is more effective than many legacy DLP tools. It understands context, exact data patterns, document labeling, and Microsoft 365 native content, reducing false positives while improving detection accuracy. Another strong feature of Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention is auto-labeling and policy inheritance with Microsoft's Information Protection, which helps maintain protection even after files are shared or moved across workloads. We also value the user coaching or policy tip capability because it educates users in real time instead of only blocking actions, which reduces repeated DLP violations significantly.
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Data Loss Prevention (DLP) solutions are best for your needs.
914,109 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
14%
Comms Service Provider
13%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Outsourcing Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise15
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortra's Digital Guardian?
Regarding pricing, setup cost, and licensing, I am not aware of the actual cost since only the leadership discusses that. Regarding licensing, I believe we are able to get as much licensing as need...
What needs improvement with Fortra's Digital Guardian?
Regarding how Fortra's Digital Guardian can be improved, the fact that it runs as a background process isn't necessarily a bad thing, but you don't get any visibility into what it's doing unless a ...
What is your primary use case for Fortra's Digital Guardian?
My main use case for Fortra's Digital Guardian is that I don't configure the software directly; instead, I experience it as an end-user on my corporate laptop where it runs silently in the backgrou...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention?
The pricing for Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention was manageable for us because we already had Microsoft 365 and Purview-related licensing, but advanced DLP and insider risk features became ex...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention?
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention can be improved as the endpoint DLP policy tuning can be complex in large environments, especially when balancing security with user productivity. False posit...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention?
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention is used for monitoring and preventing sensitive data exfiltration across Exchange Online, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, and endpoints. From a SOC's perspective...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Microsoft Endpoint Data Loss Prevention, MS Endpoint DLP, Microsoft Endpoint DLP
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Fortra's Digital Guardian vs. Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
914,109 professionals have used our research since 2012.