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Cybersecurity · head to head

Cybereason Defense Platform vs Falco

Cybereason Defense Platform logo

Cybereason Defense Platform

Cybersecurity

AI-driven endpoint protection and detection

From
$50/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Falco logo

Falco

Cybersecurity

CNCF-graduated runtime threat detection for Linux and Kubernetes using eBPF

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Falco has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Cybereason Defense Platform no published pricing on any platform tier: three plan levels (Enterprise, Enterprise Advanced, Enterprise Complete) feature-differentiated but cost-free; Falco falco detects and alerts but does not block; stopping an attack requires wiring up Falco Talon or your own response tooling, so out of the box a confirmed detection still means a human intervening after the fact.
  • They diverge on capability: Cybereason Defense Platform covers Next-gen antivirus, Falco covers eBPF kernel instrumentation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cybereason Defense Platform and Falco actually diverge.

Attributes where Cybereason Defense Platform and Falco differ
AttributeCybereason Defense PlatformFalco
Starting price$50/yearFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, Macos, Linux, MobileLinux, Kubernetes, Self-hosted
Founded2012Unknown

Identical on both: 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 Cybereason Defense Platform

  • Next-gen antivirus
  • Endpoint detection and response
  • Machine learning detection
  • Behavioral analysis
  • Threat hunting
  • Automated remediation
  • XDR integration
  • Ransomware protection

Only in Falco

  • eBPF kernel instrumentation
  • System call rules engine
  • Container and Kubernetes context
  • Default rule set
  • Falcosidekick
  • Falco Talon
  • Plugins framework
  • DaemonSet deployment

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Cybereason Defense Platform

  • Enterprise threat detection and response platformnot Falco
  • Managed detection and response (MDR) servicesnot Falco
  • Advanced cybersecurity for large organizationsnot Falco

Falco

  • A platform team that needs to know when a shell is opened inside a production container, which image scanning cannot detect because it happens at runtimenot Cybereason Defense Platform
  • A regulated business required to evidence host and container intrusion detection on Kubernetes nodes for an auditnot Cybereason Defense Platform
  • A security team wanting a vendor-neutral detection layer whose rules they can read and modify rather than a black-box agentnot Cybereason Defense Platform
  • A cluster where a compromised dependency might write to sensitive paths or open unexpected outbound connections, and only kernel-level visibility will catch itnot Cybereason Defense Platform

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Cybereason Defense Platform

  • No published pricing on any platform tier: three plan levels (Enterprise, Enterprise Advanced, Enterprise Complete) feature-differentiated but cost-free
  • MDR services cost hidden: tiered MDR inclusion (Essentials, Essentials+XR, Complete) does not disclose pricing per tier
  • Add-on pricing absent: incident response, DFIR, assessments, mobile defense, threat hunting marked as 'Add-On' with no pricing
  • Sales-gated all pricing: no budget range or starting price available; customers must book demo or contact sales

Falco

  • Falco detects and alerts but does not block; stopping an attack requires wiring up Falco Talon or your own response tooling, so out of the box a confirmed detection still means a human intervening after the fact.
  • The default rule set is noisy in real clusters and generates a large volume of benign matches from normal operational activity; without weeks of tuning, alert fatigue sets in and the team stops reading the feed, which is the usual failure mode.
  • There is no storage, console, search or case management in the project, so a working detection capability means also running Falcosidekick, an event store, a dashboard and alert routing, all of which you build, host and maintain.
  • The modern eBPF driver requires kernel 5.8 or later; older hosts fall back to the legacy probe or the kernel module, which brings driver-building against kernel headers and the operational fragility that comes with it on every kernel upgrade.
  • Per-node syscall instrumentation carries measurable CPU overhead on busy hosts, and the cost scales with syscall volume rather than with cluster size, so the noisiest and most performance-sensitive workloads are exactly the ones that feel it most.

Pricing, plan by plan

Cybereason Defense Platform

$50/year
  • Cybereason NGAV$50/year
    • Next-gen antivirus
    • Machine learning detection
    • Ransomware protection
  • Cybereason EDR$85/year
    • All NGAV features
    • Endpoint detection
    • Automated response
  • Cybereason Complete$150/year
    • All EDR features
    • Managed detection
    • 24/7 SOC support

Falco

Free
  • Falco (open source)Free
    • Apache 2.0 licence, CNCF graduated project
    • eBPF and kernel module drivers
    • Full rules engine and default rule set

Which should you pick?

Choose Cybereason Defense Platform if

  • You need next-gen antivirus.
  • You work on Windows, Macos, Linux, Mobile.
  • You also want endpoint detection and response.
Cybereason Defense Platform review

Choose Falco if

  • You need ebpf kernel instrumentation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
  • You also want system call rules engine.
Falco review

Questions people ask

Is Cybereason Defense Platform or Falco better?
Neither clearly leads. Cybereason Defense Platform starts at $50/year and Falco at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cybereason Defense Platform or Falco?
Falco has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $50/year for Cybereason Defense Platform and Free for Falco.
Does Cybereason Defense Platform or Falco run on more platforms?
Cybereason Defense Platform runs on Windows, Macos, Linux, Mobile. Falco runs on Linux, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
Can I use Falco for free?
Yes. Falco has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Cybereason Defense Platform starts at $50/year.
What is Cybereason Defense Platform best used for?
Cybereason Defense Platform is most often used for enterprise threat detection and response platform, managed detection and response (mdr) services, advanced cybersecurity for large organizations. Of those, enterprise threat detection and response platform and managed detection and response (mdr) services are not what Falco is typically brought in for.
What can Cybereason Defense Platform do that Falco cannot?
Cybereason Defense Platform covers Next-gen antivirus, Endpoint detection and response, Machine learning detection, Behavioral analysis. Falco covers eBPF kernel instrumentation, System call rules engine, Container and Kubernetes context, Default rule set.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Cybereason Defense Platform: What are the Cybereason Enterprise pricing tiers?

Cybereason offers three tiers (Enterprise, Enterprise Advanced, Enterprise Complete) with different MDR service levels (MDR Essentials, MDR Essentials+XR, MDR Complete), but exact pricing is not published.

Source
Falco: Does Falco block attacks?

No. It detects and emits events. Response requires Falco Talon or your own automation on top.

Cybereason Defense Platform: How much do add-on services cost (incident response, DFIR, threat hunting)?

Add-on services (incident response, DFIR, security assessments, mobile defense, threat hunting) are available across all plans but marked as 'Add-On' with no published pricing.

Source
Falco: Is Falco owned by Sysdig?

Sysdig created and open sourced it, but it graduated within the CNCF in February 2024, so governance sits with the foundation rather than the vendor.

Cybereason Defense Platform: How do I get pricing from Cybereason?

Click 'Book a Demo' or 'Talk to a Cybereason Defender' on the website. Cybereason sales will discuss pricing, platform fit, and custom solutions based on your organization's needs.

Source
Falco: What does it cost?

The project is Apache 2.0 with no licence fee. The cost is the storage, routing, tuning and staff time needed to make its output useful.

Falco: What kernel version do I need?

Kernel 5.8 or later for the default modern eBPF driver. Older hosts need the legacy eBPF probe or the kernel module.

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