Identity threat detection and response · October 2026 Edition
Microsoft Defender for Identity vs Sophos ITDR
Zero of fourteen models named Microsoft Defender for Identity first on the direct prompt; two named Sophos ITDR. Microsoft Defender for Identity was named by twelve of the fourteen models and Sophos ITDR by ten and Microsoft Defender for Identity carries 38 labels and Sophos ITDR 14, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Microsoft Defender for Identity
accepted challengerNamed in one category this edition.
Named in one category this edition.
First-choice share14%4%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate8%0%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#2#4A position in a field of 9; printed, not drawn.
Labels3814A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Microsoft Defender for Identity reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.Huntress Managed ITDR was named alongside these two in ten of the fourteen direct answers. Huntress Managed ITDR vs Microsoft Defender for Identity · Huntress Managed ITDR vs Sophos ITDR · Microsoft Defender for Identity vs Silverfort ITDR
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the identity threat detection and response page.
By framing
How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
Microsoft Defender for IdentityFirst choices, of fourteen modelsSophos ITDR
Direct02
Paraphrase50
Comparative30
Budget-constrained20
Scale-constrained00
Negative003 against Microsoft Defender for Identity
Bars are first choices, 0 to 14 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to fourteen.
Across every category in the October 2026 Edition, Microsoft Defender for Identity and Sophos ITDR were named in the same answer twenty-seven times, of the 117 answers naming Microsoft Defender for Identity and the 36 naming Sophos ITDR. In those answers Sophos ITDR took the first choice one time and Microsoft Defender for Identity six.
Every model, every framing
The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Microsoft Defender for Identity and Sophos ITDR stood in it.
| Model | DirectMD | ParaphraseMD | ComparativeMD | Budget-constrainedMD | Scale-constrainedMD | NegativeMD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | MD | MD | MD | MD | MD | |
| GPT-5.4 mini | MD | MD | MD | |||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | MD | MD | MD | MD | MD | |
| Perplexity Sonar | MD | |||||
| Grok 4.1 Fast | MD | MD | MD | MD | MD | |
| Mistral Small | | |||||
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | | MD | MD | |||
| Llama 4 Maverick | | |||||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | MD | MD | ||||
| Kimi K2 | MD | MD | MD | |||
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | MD | MD | MD | MD | ||
| MiniMax M2.5 | ||||||
| GPT-6 Luna | MD | MD | ||||
| Muse Glimmer 30B | MD | MD | MD | MD |
MD Microsoft Defender for Identity Sophos ITDRMD first choiceMD named as an alternativeMD argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Microsoft Defender for Identity on the left and Sophos ITDR on the right.
Sophos ITDRMD first choiceMD named as an alternativeMD argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Microsoft Defender for Identity on the left and Sophos ITDR on the right.The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Microsoft Defender for Identity and Sophos ITDR stood in it.
Sophos ITDR first, Microsoft Defender for Identity an alternative
2 of 14 modelsMicrosoft Defender for Identity was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Llama 4 MaverickSophos ITDR alternatives: Delinea ITP, Netwrix's identity portfolio, Okta Identity Threat Protection, Vectra AI ITDR
Muse Glimmer 30BHuntress Managed ITDR, Sophos ITDR alternatives: Microsoft Defender for Identity, Netwrix ITDR
Neither was the first choice, one was named
6 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.Claude Haiku 4.5Huntress Managed ITDR alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon, Microsoft Defender for Identity
GPT-5.4 miniHuntress Managed ITDR alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Identity Protection, Microsoft Defender for Identity
Gemini 3.5 FlashHuntress Managed ITDR alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Identity Protection, Microsoft Defender for Identity, SentinelOne Singularity Identity, Silverfort ITDR
Grok 4.1 FastHuntress Managed ITDR alternatives: Microsoft Defender for Identity, Sophos ITDR
Mistral SmallMicrosoft Defender XDR, Microsoft Entra ID Protection alternatives: ClearVector, Sophos ITDR
DeepSeek V4 FlashHuntress Managed ITDR alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Identity Protection, Microsoft Defender for Identity / Entra ID Protection, Silverfort ITDR, Sophos ITDR
Neither was named
6 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Perplexity SonarHuntress Managed ITDR alternatives: Delinea ITP, Microsoft Defender for Identity plus Entra ID Protection, Semperis Directory Services Protector, Vectra AI ITDR
Qwen 3.7 FlashMicrosoft Defender for Cloud Apps alternatives: Cyb3r, Defender for Identity, Tenable One, Varonis, Wiz
Kimi K2Huntress Managed ITDR alternatives: Microsoft Defender for Identity / Entra ID Protection, Okta Identity Threat Protection, SentinelOne Singularity Identity
GLM 4.7 FlashXMicrosoft Defender for Identity / Entra ID Protection alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Identity Protection, Huntress Managed ITDR, Vectra AI Platform
MiniMax M2.5Huntress Managed ITDR, Silverfort ITDR alternatives: Adlumin, Verosint
GPT-6 LunaMicrosoft Defender's identity-security stack alternatives: Falcon Identity Protection, Okta Identity Threat Protection, Silverfort ITDR
Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment and they are never added together. The figures above are the mid-market standing, which is the one the category orders by.
Small business
Microsoft Defender for Identity leads by eight points.
Microsoft Defender for Identity8%#2 of 7
Sophos ITDR0%#4 of 7Mid-marketThe figures above
Microsoft Defender for Identity leads by ten points.
Microsoft Defender for Identity14%#2 of 9
Sophos ITDR4%#4 of 9Enterprise
Microsoft Defender for Identity leads by thirty-six points.
Microsoft Defender for Identity38%#1 of 9
Sophos ITDR2%#– of 9What the models said about Microsoft Defender for Identity
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of seven in this category shown.
“Reviewers report heavy alert noise during onboarding that requires real tuning time and limited value outside Microsoft-centric environments, with rigid customization.” Claude Haiku 4.5 · negative prompt · soft negative
“is top-tier for Active Directory and Entra ID, but if your enterprise also uses Okta, Ping, or AWS IAM, Microsoft's native tools will leave major visibility gaps.” Gemini 3.5 Flash · negative prompt · soft negative
“Microsoft Defender for Identity users report that false positives on cloud-side detections require ongoing tuning effort and AD expertise” GLM 4.7 FlashX · negative prompt · soft negative
“Look to CrowdStrike Falcon Identity or Microsoft Defender for Identity. The integration of endpoint telemetry and identity logs provides a powerful, consolidated investigation workflow.” Gemini 3.5 Flash · comparative prompt · first choice
“Microsoft Defender for Identity is the natural choice for M365 E5 customers, providing no-additional-cost ITDR with native Defender XDR integration” Claude Haiku 4.5 · paraphrase prompt · first choice
“The "Zero Incremental Cost" Option: Microsoft Defender for Identity ... This is the highest ROI move you can make for a $0 incremental spend.” Qwen 3.7 Flash · budget prompt · first choice
What the models said about Sophos ITDR
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Three of four in this category shown.
“Sophos ITDR: Offers a comprehensive ITDR solution with features such as threat detection, response, and protection.” Llama 4 Maverick · direct prompt · first choice
“Need managed detection/response without building a SOC → Sophos ITDR or Huntress Managed ITDR.” Muse Glimmer 30B · direct prompt · first choice
“Sophos ITDR or Cynet: These vendors integrate ITDR capabilities directly into their broader security packages.” Gemini 3.5 Flash · budget prompt · alternative
Also compared
Huntress Managed ITDR vs Microsoft Defender for IdentityHuntress Managed ITDR vs Sophos ITDRMicrosoft Defender for Identity vs Silverfort ITDRMicrosoft Defender for Identity vs Okta Identity Threat ProtectionSilverfort ITDR vs Sophos ITDRSophos ITDR vs Okta Identity Threat ProtectionAll ten head-to-head pages and the full ITDR standing
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.