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Cybersecurity · head to head

Proofpoint vs Shift Technology

Proofpoint logo

Proofpoint

Cybersecurity

Email security and data protection suite from a private company owned by Thoma Bravo, licensed per user with modules sold separately.

From
$6/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Shift Technology logo

Shift Technology

Insurance

AI-native fraud detection for insurance

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Proofpoint licensing is per user per year with each capability as a separate stock item, so the platform shown in a proof of concept is normally several products, and adding awareness training, data loss prevention or insider threat monitoring later is a fresh negotiation rather than enabling a feature.; Shift Technology pricing not published on vendor website, requires demo request and quotation
  • They diverge on capability: Proofpoint covers Inline secure email gateway, Shift Technology covers Fraud detection.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Proofpoint and Shift Technology actually diverge.

Attributes where Proofpoint and Shift Technology differ
AttributeProofpointShift Technology
Starting price$6/monthOn request
PlatformsEmail, Cloud, WebWeb, Api
CategoryCybersecurityInsurance
Founded20022014

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Proofpoint

  • Inline secure email gateway
  • Attachment sandboxing
  • URL rewriting and click-time analysis
  • Threat Response Auto-Pull
  • Email Fraud Defense
  • Security awareness training
  • Insider Threat Management
  • Enterprise DLP

Only in Shift Technology

  • Fraud detection
  • Claims automation
  • Document intelligence
  • Network analysis
  • Real-time scoring
  • Investigation workbench
  • Predictive analytics
  • Machine learning models

What people use each for

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

Proofpoint

  • A regulated organisation that needs a filtering layer, DMARC enforcement and archiving with an auditable trail across all threenot Shift Technology
  • An organisation that suffered a business email compromise and must show its board a control that stops delivery rather than remediating afterwardsnot Shift Technology
  • Concentrating stronger controls and training on the specific individuals who actually receive targeted attacks rather than applying uniform policynot Shift Technology
  • Retracting a phishing message from thousands of mailboxes after the verdict changes, including copies that were forwarded internallynot Shift Technology

Shift Technology

  • Fraud detectionnot Proofpoint
  • Claims automationnot Proofpoint
  • SIU operationsnot Proofpoint
  • Subrogationnot Proofpoint
  • Underwriting risknot Proofpoint

Where each one falls short

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

Proofpoint

  • Licensing is per user per year with each capability as a separate stock item, so the platform shown in a proof of concept is normally several products, and adding awareness training, data loss prevention or insider threat monitoring later is a fresh negotiation rather than enabling a feature.
  • It sits inline with MX records pointed at it, so any service degradation is a mail outage for the entire organisation, and both migrating on and migrating off are cutovers with queueing, rollback planning and a real risk of message loss.
  • Most customers on Microsoft 365 E5 or Google Workspace Enterprise are already paying for native filtering, so Proofpoint is a second licence layered over a capability the organisation owns, and that comparison is raised by finance at every single renewal.
  • The administration console carries a decade of acquisitions: the classic gateway policy routes and filters do not share a model with the newer module interfaces, rule evaluation is order-sensitive in ways that surprise untrained administrators, and mistakes there silently change what is delivered.
  • Quarantine management is a standing helpdesk workload because legitimate bulk mail, invoices and supplier notifications are held, and unless end-user digests are configured and users are taught to use them, the security team becomes the mail release desk.

Shift Technology

  • Pricing not published on vendor website, requires demo request and quotation
  • No self-service onboarding; dedicated sales consultation mandatory
  • Solution requires on-premises deployment or custom SaaS configuration

Pricing, plan by plan

Proofpoint

$6/month
  • Email Protection$6/month
    • Per user
    • Advanced threat detection
    • Data loss prevention
  • Compliance$8/month
    • All Email Protection
    • Archive & search
    • eDiscovery
  • Advanced Threat$10/month
    • All Compliance features
    • Targeted attack detection
    • Behavior analytics

Shift Technology

On request
  • Fraud Detection$undefined/year
    • Claims fraud detection
    • Network analysis
    • Real-time scoring
  • Claims Automation$undefined/year
    • Document analysis
    • Automated extraction
    • Workflow automation
  • Enterprise Suite$undefined/year
    • All modules
    • Custom models
    • Global deployment

Which should you pick?

Choose Proofpoint if

  • You need inline secure email gateway.
  • You work on Email, Cloud, Web.
  • You also want attachment sandboxing.
Proofpoint review

Choose Shift Technology if

  • You need fraud detection.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want claims automation.
Shift Technology review

Questions people ask

Is Proofpoint or Shift Technology better?
Neither clearly leads. Proofpoint starts at $6/month and Shift Technology at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Proofpoint or Shift Technology?
Proofpoint starts at $6/month and Shift Technology at On request.
Does Proofpoint or Shift Technology run on more platforms?
Proofpoint runs on Email, Cloud, Web. Shift Technology runs on Web, Api.
What is Proofpoint best used for?
Proofpoint is most often used for a regulated organisation that needs a filtering layer, dmarc enforcement and archiving with an auditable trail across all three, an organisation that suffered a business email compromise and must show its board a control that stops delivery rather than remediating afterwards, concentrating stronger controls and training on the specific individuals who actually receive targeted attacks rather than applying uniform policy, retracting a phishing message from thousands of mailboxes after the verdict changes, including copies that were forwarded internally. Of those, a regulated organisation that needs a filtering layer, dmarc enforcement and archiving with an auditable trail across all three and an organisation that suffered a business email compromise and must show its board a control that stops delivery rather than remediating afterwards are not what Shift Technology is typically brought in for.
What can Proofpoint do that Shift Technology cannot?
Proofpoint covers Inline secure email gateway, Attachment sandboxing, URL rewriting and click-time analysis, Threat Response Auto-Pull. Shift Technology covers Fraud detection, Claims automation, Document intelligence, Network analysis.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Proofpoint: Does it replace Microsoft Defender for Office 365?

Functionally it overlaps heavily, and running both means paying twice for filtering. Most Proofpoint customers on Microsoft 365 keep Defender licensed because it is bundled in E5 and use Proofpoint as the inline gateway. Expect to justify that duplication annually.

Shift Technology: How much does Shift Technology cost?

Shift Technology does not publish pricing on its website. The vendor requires a demo request and direct sales contact for custom quotations tailored to deployment scope and use cases. Pricing is quote-based and depends on specific implementation needs.

Source
Proofpoint: Who owns Proofpoint?

Thoma Bravo, a private equity firm, which took the company private in 2021. It has continued to acquire since, including Tessian, Normalyze and Hornetsecurity, which is why the portfolio spans so many adjacent categories.

Shift Technology: What is Shift Technology's licensing model?

Shift Technology operates on a custom licensing model rather than standardized tiers. Pricing and licensing are determined through consultation with the vendor based on the number of users, data volume, and specific insurance processes being automated.

Source
Proofpoint: Do I have to change my MX records?

For the gateway, yes. That is what makes it inline and able to block before delivery. Some newer capabilities integrate through the mailbox API instead, but the core protection model is MX-level.

Proofpoint: Is security awareness training included?

No, it is a separate subscription. It integrates well with the threat data, so training can target the users actually being attacked, but it is a distinct line item on the quote.

Proofpoint: What does Threat Response Auto-Pull actually do?

It removes messages from mailboxes after delivery when the verdict changes, including copies that users forwarded internally. It is the answer to the case where a link was clean at delivery and weaponised an hour later.

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