Cybersecurity · head to head
Cosign vs Malwarebytes
Cosign
Cybersecurity
Signs and verifies container images and artifacts, with or without managing keys
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Cosign keyless signing inherits every weakness of the identity provider behind it. Sigstore’s own threat model states that if an identity provider is compromised, Sigstore will issue certificates to those identities, so a compromised account produces perfectly valid signatures.; Malwarebytes pricing page information is incomplete or dynamically loaded, making transparent pricing comparison difficult for potential customers
- They diverge on capability: Cosign covers Keyless signing, Malwarebytes covers Malware detection & removal.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Cosign and Malwarebytes actually diverge.
| Attribute | Cosign | Malwarebytes |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Open source, no licence fee | freemium |
| Platforms | macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android |
| Founded | Unknown | 2008 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Cosign
- Keyless signing
- Key and KMS signing
- Registry-native storage
- In-toto attestations
- Offline verification
- Trusted root and signing config
Only in Malwarebytes
- Malware detection & removal
- Ransomware protection
- Real-time protection
- Anti-exploit
- Anti-phishing
- Browser Guard
- VPN
- Brute Force Protection
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Cosign
- Signing container images in a build pipeline without managing long-lived private keysnot Malwarebytes
- Attaching a signed bill of materials to a release so consumers can verify its provenancenot Malwarebytes
- Meeting a customer or regulatory requirement for signed artifactsnot Malwarebytes
- Verifying third-party images before they enter an internal registrynot Malwarebytes
Malwarebytes
- Budget-conscious users performing manual scans via free versionnot Cosign
- Organisations needing real-time malware and ransomware protection via Premium subscriptionnot Cosign
- Users combining antivirus with privacy via Premium plus Privacy VPN bundlenot Cosign
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Cosign
- Keyless signing inherits every weakness of the identity provider behind it. Sigstore’s own threat model states that if an identity provider is compromised, Sigstore will issue certificates to those identities, so a compromised account produces perfectly valid signatures.
- A signature proves who signed, never whether they should have. The documentation is explicit that Sigstore cannot determine authorisation, so every consumer must write and maintain their own identity and issuer policy or verification means nothing.
- Nothing is enforced without an admission controller. Signing changes what you can prove, not what runs, and the official policy controller has a small maintainer base for a component sitting in a cluster admission path.
- Upgrades break pipelines. Version 3 changed defaults, version 4 is announced as removing legacy functionality and roughly half the command line flags, and two official client libraries still lacked support for the new log format as of mid 2026.
- Signatures do not expire. An artifact signed before a maintainer account was compromised and one signed after are indistinguishable unless somebody is actively monitoring the transparency log, and almost nobody is.
Malwarebytes
- Pricing page information is incomplete or dynamically loaded, making transparent pricing comparison difficult for potential customers
- Specific price amounts for different tiers (Individual, Family, Small business) are not clearly displayed on the main pricing page
- No mention of free tier or free trial duration on pricing page, unclear what features are included in each tier
Pricing, plan by plan
Cosign
Free- CosignFree
- Apache-2.0
- Public Sigstore infrastructure free to use
- No usage limits published
Malwarebytes
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the Malwarebytes review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Cosign if
- You need keyless signing.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker.
- You also want key and kms signing.
Choose Malwarebytes if
- You need malware detection & removal.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Windows, macOS, iOS, Android.
- You also want ransomware protection.
Questions people ask
- Is Cosign or Malwarebytes better?
- Neither clearly leads. Cosign starts at Free and Malwarebytes at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Cosign or Malwarebytes?
- Cosign starts at Free and Malwarebytes at Free.
- Does Cosign or Malwarebytes run on more platforms?
- Cosign runs on macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker. Malwarebytes runs on Windows, macOS, iOS, Android.
- Can I use Cosign for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Cosign best used for?
- Cosign is most often used for signing container images in a build pipeline without managing long-lived private keys, attaching a signed bill of materials to a release so consumers can verify its provenance, meeting a customer or regulatory requirement for signed artifacts, verifying third-party images before they enter an internal registry. Of those, signing container images in a build pipeline without managing long-lived private keys and attaching a signed bill of materials to a release so consumers can verify its provenance are not what Malwarebytes is typically brought in for.
- What can Cosign do that Malwarebytes cannot?
- Cosign covers Keyless signing, Key and KMS signing, Registry-native storage, In-toto attestations. Malwarebytes covers Malware detection & removal, Ransomware protection, Real-time protection, Anti-exploit.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Cosign: Does Cosign tell me if an image is vulnerable?
No. It has no vulnerability knowledge whatsoever. It can carry an SBOM as a signed attestation but never reads it. Pair it with a scanner.
Malwarebytes: What is the refund policy for Malwarebytes subscriptions?
Malwarebytes offers a 60-day money back guarantee on all purchases. This allows customers to test the product across their devices (PC, Mac, Android, iOS) with full refund protection if unsatisfied.
SourceCosign: Is signing alone enough?
No. Verification is a command somebody runs. Without an admission controller enforcing it, an unsigned image still runs.
Malwarebytes: What platforms does Malwarebytes support?
Malwarebytes works on Windows PC, macOS, Android, and iOS. Multi-platform protection is available across all subscription tiers including Individual, Family, Small business, and Standard single device options.
SourceCosign: What does a bare cosign verify actually prove?
Very little. Without a pinned certificate identity and OIDC issuer, it accepts a valid signature from any identity at all.
Malwarebytes: What is included in customer support with Malwarebytes?
Free customer support is included with all Malwarebytes subscription tiers. The product is backed by a 60-day money back guarantee for risk-free purchasing.
SourceCosign: What is the risk of keyless signing?
Your OIDC provider becomes the root of trust. Compromise of that account yields genuine, verifiable signatures, so account security is the control that matters.
Cosign: Should we expect breaking changes?
Yes. Version 4 is announced to remove roughly half the flags, and a post-quantum migration is named as a further breaking change after that.
Related pages
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