The short answer
If you're on Proofpoint Essentials and like the wider Proofpoint and Hornetsecurity suite, migrating to 365 Total Protection keeps you with one vendor and adds features. If you mainly need inbound spam and malware filtering with a published per-domain price, unlimited mailboxes and per-user digests, iBlockSpam is a simpler alternative to compare first.
What has changed, with dates
These facts come from Proofpoint and Hornetsecurity's own pages, checked in October 2026:
- 8 December 2025: Proofpoint announced it had completed its acquisition of Hornetsecurity, whose flagship product is 365 Total Protection.
- 8 December 2025: Proofpoint's announcement blog said that for Essentials partners and customers "nothing changes today", that it would continue to operate the Essentials product line, and that it would offer an upgrade path to Hornetsecurity's 365 Total Protection platform "in the near future".
- October 2026: The Proofpoint Essentials product page (proofpoint.com/us/products/essentials) redirects to the Proofpoint 365 Total Protection page.
- October 2026: Hornetsecurity's Essentials migration page says a migration process "is now available", that there will be no changes to existing Essentials packaging or pricing, and that Essentials partners migrating to 365 Total Protection pay their current price until the end of November 2026, after which the normal 365 Total Protection price applies.
What we didn't find in official sources: an end-of-life date for Essentials, or published 365 Total Protection prices. We've left out anything we could only find on resellers' or third parties' sites.
Essentials is usually bought through a partner (an MSP or reseller), and the migration offer is described in terms of partners. If that's how you buy, your partner is the person to ask about timing and price.
Side by side
| Item | Proofpoint 365 Total Protection (Essentials' upgrade path) | iBlockSpam |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per plan, through partners or by quote | Per domain, unlimited mailboxes (mailbox count, not message volume) |
| Published price | None found; migrating Essentials partners keep their current price until end of November 2026 | 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 |
| Minimum | Not published | 1 domain |
| Trial or guarantee | Free trial on request; length not stated | No free trial; 30-day money-back guarantee on a domain's first annual subscription |
| Spooling if your server is down | Hornetsecurity's Spam and Malware Protection stores incoming mail for up to 7 days | Up to 5 days |
| Quarantine and digests | Quarantine reports at configurable intervals | Personal quarantine for every user; digests hourly, daily, on a chosen weekday or custom; shared admin quarantine |
| Sandboxing, link rewriting, encryption, archiving | Listed (sandboxing, URL rewriting, S/MIME and PGP encryption, archiving) | None of these; 30-day message history |
| Setup method | MX or API-based integration with Microsoft 365 | MX change plus platform steps, with a guided setup wizard and rollback steps |
| Free tools | Hornetsecurity Email Security Check | Email Health Check, MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC, blacklist, PTR, MTA-STS, BIMI, header analyzer, SPF and DMARC generators |
| Contract notes | Partner agreement and billing through Proofpoint or Hornetsecurity | Annual or month-to-month; cancel any time in the billing portal, effective at period end |
What it costs at 10 and 50 mailboxes
Assumptions: one domain, published prices only, USD, excluding tax.
| Item | 10 mailboxes | 50 mailboxes |
|---|---|---|
| Proofpoint Essentials or 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 |
To compare fairly, ask your partner for two figures in writing: what you pay now, and what 365 Total Protection will cost after November 2026 for your user count. Then set them against the per-domain figures above, and against what each option includes.
When 365 Total Protection is the better choice
- You want the wider suite. It lists sandboxing, URL rewriting, BEC detection, encryption, archiving, DMARC management and Microsoft 365 backup. iBlockSpam offers none of those beyond filtering and 30 days of history.
- You want a longer spool. Hornetsecurity states up to 7 days; iBlockSpam holds mail for up to 5.
- Your MSP manages it for you and you'd rather they handle the migration on your behalf.
- You want to try before paying. 365 Total Protection can be trialled on request; iBlockSpam has a money-back guarantee instead of a trial.
When iBlockSpam is the better choice
- You want to know the price now and later. Our prices are on the pricing page, per domain, with limits stated.
- Your user count is growing. Unlimited mailboxes and domain aliases per domain, with 100,000 inbound messages a month included.
- You want each user to manage their own held mail. Personal quarantines and digests as often as hourly.
- You want to watch your DNS after the move. Domain monitoring alerts on MX, SPF or DMARC changes: weekly on Protect, daily on Plus.
- You want free, ungated tools for checking SPF, DKIM, DMARC and blacklists before and after the switch; see tools.
- You want a refund window. A domain's first annual subscription has a 30-day money-back guarantee.
How to switch from Proofpoint Essentials
- Ask your partner what you pay today, what changes after November 2026, and your notice period.
- Export your sender allow and block lists, and note any custom filter rules.
- 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, such as the Microsoft 365 inbound connector with Enhanced Filtering for Connectors.
- Update any Microsoft 365 rule or connector that only accepts mail from Proofpoint, so mail from iBlockSpam isn't rejected.
- Change MX, test, and keep Essentials running until the old TTL has passed and it receives no new mail for your domain.
Our migration plan covers each step and the rollback. For the vendor-neutral version, read how to switch spam filter providers.
Proofpoint, Proofpoint Essentials, Hornetsecurity and 365 Total Protection are trademarks of their owners; iBlockSpam is not affiliated with Proofpoint or Hornetsecurity.
Sources
Checked October 2026.
- Hornetsecurity: Proofpoint Completes Acquisition of Hornetsecurity (press release, 8 December 2025)
- Proofpoint blog: Hornetsecurity + Proofpoint (8 December 2025)
- Proofpoint: Essentials product page (now redirects to 365 Total Protection)
- Proofpoint: 365 Total Protection (features, MX or API deployment, free trial)
- Hornetsecurity: Proofpoint Essentials migration (process, pricing promotion, FAQ)
- Hornetsecurity: Essentials and 365 Total Protection package comparison
- Hornetsecurity: Spam and Malware Protection (up to 7 days storage, quarantine reports)
- Hornetsecurity: Email Security Check
Frequently asked questions
Is Proofpoint Essentials being shut down?
Proofpoint hasn't announced an end date in the official sources we checked in October 2026. Its December 2025 statement said it would continue to operate the Essentials product line and offer an upgrade path to 365 Total Protection. Hornetsecurity's migration page says that path is now available. Ask your provider about timing for your account.
What happens to Essentials pricing after November 2026?
Hornetsecurity's migration page says Essentials partners who migrate to 365 Total Protection pay their current price until the end of November 2026, and the normal 365 Total Protection price applies afterwards. Those prices aren't published, so ask your partner for a written quote before you decide.
Do I have to migrate to 365 Total Protection?
No. Migrating is one option. You can also stay on Essentials while it's offered, or move to a different filter. Compare the quote for 365 Total Protection with the published prices of alternatives such as iBlockSpam, and weigh what each includes.
Does iBlockSpam match 365 Total Protection's features?
Not all of them. 365 Total Protection lists sandboxing, URL rewriting, encryption, archiving and Microsoft 365 backup. iBlockSpam is an MX filter for spam, malware, phishing and spoofing, with per-user quarantine digests, 5-day outage spooling and domain monitoring. If you need the wider suite, 365 Total Protection fits better.
Can I move from Essentials to iBlockSpam without losing mail?
Yes, if you plan the cutover. Lower your MX TTL ahead of time, configure your mail platform for the new filter before changing MX, then keep Essentials active until the old TTL has passed. Our migration plan walks through each step and the rollback.
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