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Cybersecurity · head to head

Falco vs Feedzai

Falco logo

Falco

Cybersecurity

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

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Feedzai logo

Feedzai

Cybersecurity

Real-time transaction fraud and financial crime detection for banks and payment processors

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Falco has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Feedzai pricing is per transaction with an annual minimum, so a bank with seasonal or growing volume commits to a floor it may not use and pays overage above the band.
  • They diverge on capability: Falco covers eBPF kernel instrumentation, Feedzai covers Real-time scoring.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Falco and Feedzai actually diverge.

Attributes where Falco and Feedzai differ
AttributeFalcoFeedzai
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feequote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Kubernetes, Self-hostedWeb, Linux

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 Falco

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

Only in Feedzai

  • Real-time scoring
  • Rule and model hybrid
  • Case manager
  • Behavioural biometrics
  • Model explainability
  • Deployment options

What people use each for

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

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 Feedzai
  • A regulated business required to evidence host and container intrusion detection on Kubernetes nodes for an auditnot Feedzai
  • A security team wanting a vendor-neutral detection layer whose rules they can read and modify rather than a black-box agentnot Feedzai
  • A cluster where a compromised dependency might write to sensitive paths or open unexpected outbound connections, and only kernel-level visibility will catch itnot Feedzai

Feedzai

  • A bank joining an instant payments scheme where transfers are irrevocable and post-hoc recovery is impossiblenot Falco
  • A card issuer whose existing rules engine cannot be changed without a release, so fraud waves run for daysnot Falco
  • An acquirer needing per-merchant risk models rather than one portfolio-wide modelnot Falco
  • A bank required by its regulator to explain automated declines to customers, which rules out opaque scoringnot Falco

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Feedzai

  • Pricing is per transaction with an annual minimum, so a bank with seasonal or growing volume commits to a floor it may not use and pays overage above the band.
  • It sits in the authorisation path, which makes every upgrade a change-controlled event with rollback plans, and the operational burden falls on the bank rather than the vendor.
  • Out of the box models need months of the customer own labelled fraud history before they beat the rules they replace, so the value case starts late.
  • AML and fraud are licensed as separate modules, so institutions expecting one platform fee find the transaction monitoring capability is a second line item.
  • The buyer profile is large institutions, so smaller banks and fintechs face minimums that make per-transaction economics unattractive below significant scale.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Feedzai

On request
  • Feedzai Financial Crime Platform$undefined/year
    • Priced by transaction volume with annual minimum commitment
    • Modules for fraud, AML and account opening licensed separately
    • Cloud, private cloud and on-premises deployment

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Feedzai if

  • You need real-time scoring.
  • You work on Web, Linux.
  • You also want rule and model hybrid.
Feedzai review

Questions people ask

Is Falco or Feedzai better?
Neither clearly leads. Falco starts at Free and Feedzai at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Falco or Feedzai?
Falco has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Falco and On request for Feedzai.
Does Falco or Feedzai run on more platforms?
Falco runs on Linux, Kubernetes, Self-hosted. Feedzai runs on Web, Linux.
Can I use Falco for free?
Yes. Falco has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Feedzai starts at On request.
What is Falco best used for?
Falco is most often used for 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 runtime, a regulated business required to evidence host and container intrusion detection on kubernetes nodes for an audit, a security team wanting a vendor-neutral detection layer whose rules they can read and modify rather than a black-box agent, a cluster where a compromised dependency might write to sensitive paths or open unexpected outbound connections, and only kernel-level visibility will catch it. Of those, 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 runtime and a regulated business required to evidence host and container intrusion detection on kubernetes nodes for an audit are not what Feedzai is typically brought in for.
What can Falco do that Feedzai cannot?
Falco covers eBPF kernel instrumentation, System call rules engine, Container and Kubernetes context, Default rule set. Feedzai covers Real-time scoring, Rule and model hybrid, Case manager, Behavioural biometrics.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Falco: Does Falco block attacks?

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

Feedzai: Can Feedzai run on-premises?

Yes. On-premises and private cloud deployments are supported, which is why it appears in markets where transaction data cannot legally leave the country.

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.

Feedzai: Does it cover AML as well as fraud?

It does, but transaction monitoring is a separately licensed module. Assume two line items if you want both.

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.

Feedzai: How fast are decisions?

Designed for the authorisation window, typically tens of milliseconds. This is the constraint that rules out batch scoring architectures.

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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