The short answer
Hornetsecurity suits organizations on Microsoft 365 that want one vendor for email filtering, advanced threat protection, encryption, archiving, continuity, backup, security awareness training and DMARC reporting, sold through partners on a quote. iBlockSpam suits businesses that mainly need inbound filtering for spam, malware, phishing and spoofing, on any mail platform, with a published per-domain price, unlimited mailboxes and free, ungated DNS tools.
If you're coming from Proofpoint Essentials, see our separate page on the Proofpoint Essentials alternative, which covers the Essentials migration dates.
Competitor details below were checked on Hornetsecurity's and Proofpoint's own pages in October 2026.
Side by side
| Item | Hornetsecurity (Spam and Malware Protection / 365 Total Protection) | iBlockSpam |
|---|---|---|
| Who it's sold to | Businesses and MSPs, through Hornetsecurity or certified partners; more than 12,000 partners | Businesses directly; partners (MSPs and web hosts) by conversation |
| Platform focus | Built around Microsoft 365; Spam and Malware Protection is also sold on its own | Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, cPanel/WHM, Exchange and other mail servers |
| Plans | 365 Total Protection Plan 1 to Plan 4 | Protect and Protect Plus |
| Published price | None; trial and quote by request form | Protect $12 per domain/month billed annually ($144/year) or $15 month-to-month; Protect Plus $19 annually or $24 monthly. Beta pricing, USD, excluding tax |
| Pricing model | Not published | Per domain, unlimited mailboxes (mailbox count, not message volume) |
| Trial or guarantee | Trial by request form (length not stated on the pages we checked) | No free trial; 30-day money-back guarantee on a domain's first annual subscription |
| If your server is down | Incoming mail kept up to 7 days; Email Continuity Service in Plan 2 and above | Mail spooled for up to 5 days, then delivered |
| Quarantine reports | Users schedule reports at specific times, even several times a day; one-click release | Personal quarantine for every user; digests hourly, daily, on a chosen weekday or custom; shared admin quarantine |
| Advanced protection | Advanced Threat Protection with sandboxing, URL rewriting and QR-code checks (Plan 2 and above) | Spam, virus, malware, phishing and spoofing filters; attachment-type, macro and geographic filters. No sandbox or link rewriting |
| Archiving and backup | Email archiving (Plan 2+); Microsoft 365 backup (Plan 3+) | 30-day message history only; no archive or backup |
| DMARC | DMARC Manager (DMARC, DKIM and SPF management with report aggregation), listed on the 365 Total Protection page | DMARC monitoring on both plans (reports only; it doesn't block mail) |
| Support | 24/7 support listed | Email support; human setup session on Protect Plus |
| Free check | Domain Security Check score; detailed report behind a lead form | Email Health Check and our other DNS tools, no sign-up |
What it costs at 10 and 50 mailboxes
Assumptions: one domain, published prices only, USD, excluding tax.
| Item | 10 mailboxes | 50 mailboxes |
|---|---|---|
| Hornetsecurity 365 Total Protection | Quote only | Quote only |
| iBlockSpam Protect, annual | $12/month ($144/year) | $12/month ($144/year) |
| iBlockSpam Protect Plus, annual | $19/month ($228/year) | $19/month ($228/year) |
| iBlockSpam Protect, month-to-month | $15/month | $15/month |
A suite quote usually covers far more than filtering, so compare it with what you'd pay for each part separately, and with what Microsoft 365 already includes.
When Hornetsecurity is the better choice
- You want one Microsoft 365 security suite. Filtering, advanced threat protection, encryption, archiving, continuity, backup, awareness training and permission management come from one vendor.
- You need sandboxing and link rewriting at the gateway. iBlockSpam doesn't offer either.
- You need a longer outage buffer. Hornetsecurity keeps incoming mail for up to 7 days; iBlockSpam spools for 5.
- You want 24/7 support. Hornetsecurity lists 24/7 support; iBlockSpam supports customers by email.
- You want a trial. Hornetsecurity takes trial requests; iBlockSpam doesn't offer a trial.
When iBlockSpam is the better choice
- You mainly need inbound filtering. You don't pay for suite features you won't use.
- You want prices you can read. Prices and per-domain limits are on the pricing page, with no quote form.
- You're not on Microsoft 365, or you run several platforms. Guided setup covers Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, cPanel/WHM and Exchange Server.
- You have many mailboxes or aliases. Unlimited mailboxes and domain aliases, with 100,000 inbound messages a month per domain.
- You want DMARC reporting in a simple plan. DMARC monitoring, domain monitoring and Lookalike Domain Watch come with every iBlockSpam plan.
- You want free checks without a lead form. Our tools show the full result straight away.
How to switch from Hornetsecurity
- Check your contract term and notice period with Hornetsecurity or your partner.
- Export allow and block lists, and decide where archived mail and backups will live if you rely on them.
- Save your current DNS with the Email Health Check and lower the MX TTL a day or two ahead.
- Add your domain in iBlockSpam and follow the guided setup for your platform. On Microsoft 365, replace the Hornetsecurity inbound connector and keep Enhanced Filtering for Connectors on.
- Change MX, test with the Email Header Analyzer, and keep Hornetsecurity active until the old TTL has passed and no new mail arrives there.
Our migration plan covers each step and the rollback.
Hornetsecurity, 365 Total Protection and Proofpoint are trademarks of their owners; iBlockSpam is not affiliated with Hornetsecurity or Proofpoint.
Sources
Checked October 2026.
- Hornetsecurity: Spam and Malware Protection (incoming mail kept up to 7 days, quarantine reports several times a day, outbound filtering)
- Hornetsecurity: 365 Total Protection (Plans 1 to 4, advanced threat protection, archiving, backup, DMARC Manager, trial form)
- Hornetsecurity: home page (24/7 support, more than 12,000 partners)
- Hornetsecurity: Domain Security Check (score, detailed report behind a form)
- Proofpoint: Proofpoint completes acquisition of Hornetsecurity (8 December 2025)
- Proofpoint: 365 Total Protection (Microsoft 365 suite)
Frequently asked questions
Who owns Hornetsecurity now?
Proofpoint announced on 8 December 2025 that it had completed its acquisition of Hornetsecurity, which now runs as a separate Proofpoint business unit serving MSPs and small and midsize businesses. Hornetsecurity's site still sells 365 Total Protection and its Spam and Malware Protection service under the Hornetsecurity name.
What do the four 365 Total Protection plans cover?
Hornetsecurity lists Plan 1 Business (spam and malware filtering, encryption, signatures), Plan 2 Enterprise (adds advanced threat protection, continuity and archiving), Plan 3 Enterprise Backup (adds Microsoft 365 backup) and Plan 4 Compliance & Awareness (adds security awareness training, permission control and domain fraud protection). Prices aren't published.
Is Hornetsecurity's outage window longer than iBlockSpam's?
Yes. Hornetsecurity's Spam and Malware Protection page says incoming mail is stored for up to 7 days if your mail server is unavailable. iBlockSpam spools for up to 5 days. If outages longer than 5 days are a real risk, that's a point in Hornetsecurity's favour.
Is Hornetsecurity's domain security check free?
Its Domain Security Check gives a 0 to 100 score for free, but the detailed report sits behind a form asking for your name, company and business email. iBlockSpam's Email Health Check and other DNS tools show the full result without a sign-up or form.
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