Sophos vs Fortinet: Comparing Endpoint Security, Data Security, Firewall, etc.
Choosing the right security tool is a big decision. Sophos and Fortinet are two of the best in the game, but how do they compare?
In this comparison, we’d be analyzing the differences between Sophos and Fortinet when it comes to endpoint security, data security, firewall, SaaS Security, and Pricing. We will also suggest a better alternative to them for security.
Try Kitecyber!
Here are three reasons why it might fit your needs better
1. Faster & More Reliable Security
- No hair-pinning of data through cloud gateways or appliances
- Stronger security due to endpoint based architecture
- Built in compliance control enforcement
2. Hyperconverged Solution for Multiple Needs
- Integrated endpoint management and network security
- Includes:
- Device Management for Corp or BYOD devices
- Compliance monitoring and enforcement
- Passwordless ZTPA (next gen VPN)
- DLP
- Internet and SaaS security—all in one.
- No need to deploy multiple agents or different point solutions
3. Modular and 60% More Cost-Effective
- Enable or disable security modules on demand
- Only pay for features you actually need
- Flexible pricing per user and module
Kitecyber has been a game changer for our IT and security teams. Now they don’t operate in silos and can see a unified dashboard. We feel much better in our security posture and are saving almost 20 hrs a week in dealing with issues and tickets related to previous solutions. We also saved 50% in our total cost of ownership.”
Amit Verma
CEO, Codvo
Sophos Intercept X vs Fortinet FortiEDR: Who has better features in terms of endpoint security?
Here's an example
Imagine your company invests in an endpoint security solution packed with dozens of features, but when a ransomware attack hits, it fails to detect and block the threat in time. A solution that prioritizes real-time threat detection and response over unnecessary add-ons makes the real difference in protecting your business.
It’s something to remember when comparing Sophos and Fortinet for endpoint security.
To help you make the most informed decision, we’ve created a comparison of Sophos and Fortinet. We’ve also thrown in Kitecyber for good measure. 😉
| Feature | Kitecyber Copilot | Sophos Intercept X | Fortinet FortiEDR |
|---|---|---|---|
Malware Scanning & Detection | YesKitecyber Copilot with EDR solutions gives complete protection with Malware, including detection | Yes | Yes |
Behavioral Analysis | YesSaaS apps, websites, Sensitive data, device, location, time of day | YesOS processes, memory, Aggregate Network traffic | Yes |
System & Software Inventory | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Compliance posture | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Sensitive Data Detection & Security | Yes | Partial | Partial |
Data Lineage Tracking | Yes | No | No |
Protection from credential theft | Yes | NoDetecting in hours and days is like no detection | NoDetecting in hours and days is like no detection |
Secure Web Gateway | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Zero Trust Private Access | Yes | Yes | Yes |
SaaS apps, APIs and 3rd party App | Yes | No | No |
SaaS apps offboarding | Yes | No | No |
Device Management | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Both Sophos Intercept X and Fortinet FortiEDR are endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions with AI-driven threat detection and automated responses. Sophos relies on firewall-based security, while FortiEDR integrates with Fortinet’s Security Fabric.
Sophos excels with its AI-driven malware detection, anti-ransomware capabilities, and exploit prevention, providing comprehensive endpoint protection. Its advanced AI technology proactively detects and stops threats before they can cause damage, making it a strong choice for businesses prioritizing intelligent, automated security.
While Fortinet offers strong real-time threat detection and automated response, Sophos stands out as a better cybersecurity tool with its superior AI-driven approach, ensuring proactive protection against evolving cyber threats.
Now, let’s look at how they stack up:
- Sophos Intercept X uses AI-driven malware detection, anti-ransomware, and exploit prevention. However, it still relies on firewall-based security enforcement, which means threats that bypass the firewall can still reach endpoints.
- Fortinet FortiEDR offers real-time threat detection, continuous monitoring, and automated response actions. It integrates with Fortinet’s Security Fabric, but still depends on cloud and network-based controls, creating potential gaps when devices operate outside the corporate network.
However, both of them require users configuring basic policies which takes 10+ clicks, including writing complex regular expressions and YARA rules. Analytics are a clear afterthought.
There are some areas where both solutions need improvement or more focus, such as UI limitations, false positive concerns and learning curve.
Kitecyber has been amazing for our SMB customers, who can now enjoy enterprise grade security with a simple and cost effective solution. Instead of dealing with multiple complex solutions, with Kitecyber they can get advanced security with ease using a single copilot”
Drew Danner
Managing Director, BD Emerson
How does Kitecyber compare?
Kitecyber, on the other hand, is an hyperconverged Endpoint Security Solution that helps you detect and protect attacks by correlating signals from endpoints, networks, devices.
Instead of relying on network-based security, we enforce security, be it network or endpoint, directly on endpoints. That means no cloud-based traffic rerouting, no network blind spots, and no delays in protection.
Yes, that’s right—Kitecyber secures your devices, SaaS apps, and internet access directly on the endpoint itself. No need to funnel traffic through external gateways or worry about gaps when employees work remotely.
No Cloud
Gateways
Unlike Sophos and Fortinet, which rely on cloud-based gateways for enforcement, Kitecyber applies security instantly on devices, ensuring continuous protection even when offline.
Faster Security,
Zero Latency
No stopovers, no delays. Security happens directly at the source, stopping threats before they even reach the network.
All-in-One
Protection
VPN, DLP, Device Management, Internet Security, & SaaS security—all in a single lightweight endpoint-based agent. No extra add-ons, no extra costs.
Our Success Stories
What our customers say
“Kitecyber helped us with IT, security and compliance as a unified solution. It saved us almost 50% in overall cost as compared to our previous solutions, while significantly improving our security and compliance. the builtin device management and IAM integrations, also optimized our onboarding and offboarding workflows.”
Kitecyber helped us with IT, security and compliance as a unified solution. It saved us almost 50% in overall cost as compared to our previous solutions, while significantly improving our security and compliance. the builtin device management and IAM integrations, also optimized our onboarding and offboarding workflows."
Venkat Thiruvengadam
CEO, Duplocloud
Sophos vs Fortinet FortiDLP: Who’s better in terms of Data Security (DLP)?
Here’s an example:
Let’s say you deploy a firewall with built-in DLP. It claims to prevent sensitive data leaks, but you later discover that files sent through encrypted SaaS apps or personal devices bypassed detection—leaving your business exposed.That’s no good to you, right? It’s something to remember when selecting a data security solution. When comparing Data Loss Prevention (DLP) capabilities, both Sophos and Fortinet offer robust solutions tailored to safeguard sensitive business information.
- Sophos Data Protection
- Comprehensive Encryption: Sophos emphasizes encryption across devices, networks, and cloud services, ensuring data remains protected both at rest and in transit.
- Integrated Endpoint DLP: Their solution integrates DLP directly into endpoint protection, allowing for seamless monitoring and control over data transfers and usage.
- Policy-Based Controls: Administrators can define and enforce policies to prevent unauthorized data access or sharing, reducing the risk of data breaches.
- Fortinet's FortiDLP
- Network-Centric Approach: FortiDLP focuses on monitoring data across the network, identifying and preventing unauthorized transmissions.
- Advanced Content Inspection: It offers deep content inspection capabilities, enabling the detection of sensitive data within various file types and formats.
- Comprehensive Coverage: FortiDLP prevents data loss, provides real-time visibility, detects high-risk activities, and enables prioritized investigations across users, endpoints, and cloud storage.
Both companies offer advanced Data Protection Solutions. However, customers need to install cloud gateway and appliances in order to successfully deploy the solution. This leads to heavy traffic hairpinning as the solution re-routes you to a nearest data center, slowing down your requests and sensitive data movement coverage in the process.
No single product prior to Kitecyber could meet so many of the compliance controls while providing advanced SSE protection to SMBs. We are glad to partner with them and integrate with our GRC solution to simplify SMB security and compliance.”
Aayush Ghosh Choudhury
Co-Founder & CEO, Scrut Automation
How does Kitecyber compare?
At Kitecyber, we believe data visibility is everything. Kitecyber Data Shield boasts of a machine learning model that scans attachments, copy-pasted text, & installation files across all your SaaS tools and devices to reveal, categorize, and redact sensitive data.
But here’s a catch: unlike Sophos and Fortinet, Kitecyber Data Shield doesn’t force its users to write YARA rules and regular expressions in order to classify sensitive data. It automatically captures and classifies sensitive data files of all kinds and sizes.
Moreover, it helps organizations to detect sensitive data leaks by correlating information from endpoints, network analytics and behavioral analytics with minimal false positives.
Why Kitecyber’s DLP is Better
Tracks Sensitive Data Everywhere
Whether data is stored on a device, transferred via USB or network drives, shared on Gen AI apps, or sent over the internet, Kitecyber monitors, detects, and protects it everywhere.
Data lineage
Tracks risky activity and unauthorized data transfers to prevent them from being misused. Kitecyber Data Shield classifies sensitive data into several data types and use ML algorithms to reduce false positives.
Scans All File Types & Sizes
Documents, images, PDFs, spreadsheets, —no file is too big or too complex. Sophos and FortiDLP’s YARA rules and regular expressions are complex, leaving gaps in protection.
Real-Time Detection
Detects unauthorized file transfers instantly, applying automatic encryption, blocking, or alerts—without slowing down productivity.
No Network Level Dependency
Unlike Sophos and Fortinet, which require network-layer enforcement, Kitecyber operates directly on endpoints, ensuring continuous protection—even offline.
Flexible Pricing
Unlike Sophos and Fortinet, Kitecyber doesn't require extra setup for each module. There’s no complexity, no extra addons — just flexible pricing per module.
Here’s a table illustrating the difference between Sophos and Fortinet when it comes to Data Security. We’ve added Kitecyber here just to give you an overview of how we are better.
| Data Security Features | Kitecyber Data Shield | Sophos | FortiDLP |
|---|---|---|---|
Data Detection & Security | HighWorks without exceptions | WeakDoes not work for End-to-End encrypted apps or data that's password protected or encrypted | WeakDoes not work for End-to-End encrypted apps or data that's password protected or encrypted |
Data Lineage | ComprehensiveAt rest on user device user activity and network activity | PartialLimited to networks visible activity for non-encrypted data | ComprehensiveAt rest on user device user activity and network activity |
Privacy | YesSelf hosted or SaaS | NoThird party cloud | No |
Compliance | Covered | GapsDoes not work for End-to-End encrypted apps or data that's password protected or encrypted | GapsDoes not work for End-to-End encrypted apps or data that's password protected or encrypted |
Performance and Scaling | High | Poor scaling & performanceMultiple levels of traffic redirections with decryption and re-encryption | Poor scaling & performanceMultiple levels of traffic redirections with decryption and re-encryption |
Onboarding | SimpleZero Touch Provisioning in minutes | ComplexRequires skilled professional services with weeks to deploy | ComplexRequires skilled professional services with weeks to deploy |
Cost | CheaperLeverages edge compute | ExpensiveCloud based solution | ExpensiveCloud based solution |
Sophos Cloud Optix vs Fortinet Security Fabric: Who offer better SaaS security?
Protecting SaaS applications is critical in today’s cloud-driven world. Businesses rely on apps like Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, Salesforce, and Dropbox, but without proper security, sensitive data can be exposed. Both Sophos and Fortinet rely on their Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) solutions to provide secure SaaS access.
Here’s a neat comparison table that states the difference between Sophos and Fortinet in terms of SaaS security:
| SaaS App Access | Kitecyber App Shield | Sophos Cloud Optix | Fortinet Security Fabric |
|---|---|---|---|
Discovery & Inventory | YesSanctioned, Unsanctioned and previously not see | PartialSanctioned & Unsanctioned SaaS apps known to SSO or visibility from email providers | PartialSanctioned & Unsanctioned SaaS apps known to SSO or visibility from email providers |
Sensitive Data Recovery | Yes | PartialYes, if known to SSO, SaaS API and SaaS access logs availability | PartialYes, if known to SSO, SaaS API and SaaS access logs availability |
Security: SaaS Access & Data Leak | Prevention | DetectionPrevention, if known to SSO or SaaS API availability | DetectionPrevention, if known to SSO or SaaS API availability |
SaaS App configuration posture | No | Yes | Yes |
Integrated SaaS, Internet & Private Access Security | Yes | No | No |
Audit Trails & Compliance Policies | Yes | YesYes, if known to SSO, SaaS API and SaaS access logs availability | Yes |
Governance (Onboarding & Off boarding) | Yes | PartialYes, if known to SSO, SaaS API and SaaS access logs availability | PartialYes, if known to SSO, SaaS API and SaaS access logs availability |
Sophos offers CASB capabilities through its Cloud Optix platform. While it provides visibility into cloud applications, it has some serious limitations:
Complex Setup
Sophos CASB is hard to configure, requiring manual policy tuning and multiple integrations to secure different apps. IT teams often struggle to get it working efficiently.
Limited SaaS Controls
Only basic monitoring and logging. Lacks real-time threat detection, advanced access controls, and deep data security policies.
High Cost
Since Sophos CASB is not built into the firewall, businesses must deploy and integrate it separately, increasing cost.
Fortinet integrates CASB into its Security Fabric solution, which offers better SaaS visibility and security enforcement than Sophos. However, it still has some downsides:
More Granular Security Controls
Unlike Sophos, Fortinet offers real-time monitoring, access controls, and compliance checks for SaaS apps.
Separate Licensing and Configuration
Tighter integration with Fortinet’s firewall means easier setup, but it still requires separate licensing and configuration.
Limited Endpoint Enforcement
Fortinet relies on network-layer security, which means it can’t fully offer secure SaaS access when users are off-network or using personal devices.
After being scammed online, we decided to use Kitecyber and it has been awesome to find such a simple and effective security solution with so much coverage. One of the best solutions if you have remote teams who need protection and you need better sleep."
Gunjan
CEO, Jobgini
How does Kitecyber compare?
Kitecyber shifts SaaS security to endpoints with its App Shield copilot. In comparison to Sophos and Fortinet, Kitecyber App Shield holds following advantages:
Protects SaaS at the Source
Unlike Sophos and Fortinet, which monitor SaaS activity through network gateways, Kitecyber secures SaaS access directly on endpoints. No need for cloud traffic rerouting, no network blind spots.
No Complex Deployment
Forget slow, complicated setups. With Kitecyber, SaaS security springs into action with a lightweight endpoint-based agent—no separate CASB licensing, no manual configurations.
Stops Data Leaks in Any App
Detects and blocks unauthorized file uploads, data sharing, and risky cloud activity—whether inside Google Drive, Microsoft 365, Dropbox, or any other SaaS platform.
Works Anywhere, On Any Device
Unlike Fortinet and Sophos, which only enforce SaaS security on corporate networks, Kitecyber protects SaaS access no matter where users are working—even on personal devices.
Flexible Pricing
Unlike Sophos and Fortinet, Kitecyber doesn't require extra setup for each module. There’s no complexity, no extra addons — just flexible pricing per module.
Sophos XGS vs Fortinet FortiGate: Who provides better Firewall?
Sophos XGS and Fortinet FortiGate are leading next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) with distinct strengths, though their 1990s-era appliance approach is less vital today. Sophos targets SMBs with a user-friendly interface, essential security features (IPS, antivirus, VPN), and Sophos Central integration, but offers lower throughput and higher latency. Fortinet serves a broader range, including enterprises, with higher performance via custom SPUs, advanced features (ATP, sandboxing), and Security Fabric ecosystem, though it’s more complex. Sophos suits SMBs with limited IT resources, while Fortinet fits larger organizations needing robust capabilities.
While both Sophos and Fortinet firewall appliances are widely used, organizations face some challenges with them. These firewall devices require all protected traffic to pass through them, necessitating inline deployment. This approach hampers their ability to secure today’s distributed enterprises, as placing them at every protected network—amid expanding cloud usage, remote work, and branch offices—becomes impractical and unscalable. Alternatively, redirecting all traffic through a central firewall introduces latency and degrades network performance.
Here’s a table comparing Sophos vs Fortinet in terms of Firewall:
| Feature | Sophos XGS | Fortinet FortiGate |
|---|---|---|
Target Audience | SMBs needing simple, user-friendly security | SMBs, enterprises, and service providers |
Performance | Lower throughput, higher latency | Higher throughput, lower latency (via SPUs)Yes, if known to SSO, SaaS API and SaaS access logs availability |
Security Features | Essential (IPS, antivirus, VPN, web filtering) | Advanced (ATP, sandboxing, third-party support) |
Ease of Use | User-friendly, Sophos Central management | More complex, steeper learning curve |
Integration | Sophos Central ecosystem | Broader Security Fabric and third-party ties |
How does Kitecyber compare?
Unlike Sophos and Fortinet, Kitecyber accesses the default endpoint firewall, which is installed directly on an endpoint device. Unlike traditional network firewalls, which act as gatekeepers at a network’s perimeter, endpoint firewalls function within the device itself, filtering and managing data packets based on pre-established security rules.
Here’s how our firewall is different:
Device-Level Deployment
Kitecyber installs directly on endpoints, unlike Sophos and Fortinet, which rely on hardware at the network perimeter, offering device-specific security rather than network-wide gatekeeping.
Tailored Protection
Provides granular, per-device control, outshining the broader, centralized scope of Sophos XGS and Fortinet FortiGate, which protect the entire network rather than individual endpoints.
Remote Work Flexibility
Adapts seamlessly to remote work, BYOD, and unsecured networks, where Sophos and Fortinet struggle due to their dependence on traffic routing through a fixed point.
Consistent Security
Ensures endpoints remain protected outside corporate networks, a key edge over the static, perimeter-based approach of Sophos and Fortinet.
Real-Time Threat Prevention
Leverages local resources for precise traffic filtering and immediate threat response, contrasting with the less agile, network-level protection of traditional appliances.
Modern Threat Readiness
Excels in today’s distributed, dynamic threat landscape, while Sophos and Fortinet’s hardware-centric design is less suited to evolving cybersecurity needs.
