CISO Tribune

Vendor comparison · 2 companies

Fortinet vs Palo Alto Networks

Fortinet sells cybersecurity and networking technology to enterprises, service providers, and government organizations. Palo Alto Networks sells network security, security operations, cloud security, identity security, AI security and observability platforms, along with threat intelligence and incident response services. CISO Tribune files both under Firewalls and NGFW and EDR and XDR. This page sets the two records side by side: what each sells, where it is based, who owns and funds it, the customers it names and its recent news, each fact numbered to its source.

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  • Fortinet
  • Palo Alto Networks
Fortinet vs Palo Alto Networks: Products, Customers and Funding Compared
FortinetFortinet sells cybersecurity and networking technology to enterprises, service providers, and government organizations.fortinet.comPalo Alto NetworksPalo Alto Networks sells network security, security operations, cloud security, identity security, AI security and observability platforms, along with threat intelligence and incident response services.paloaltonetworks.com
What it sells
  • FortiWeb[18]FortiWeb protects web applications and APIs.
  • FortiAP[17]FortiAP provides secure wireless LAN access points.
  • FortiManager[12][19]FortiManager is a NOC-SOC operations tool.
  • FortiSIEM[12][16]FortiSIEM is Fortinet’s SIEM solution.
  • FortiSandbox[16]FortiSandbox provides AI-powered protection against zero-day threats.
  • Unified SASE[1][11]Fortinet Unified SASE combines networking with AI-aware controls.
  • FortiAIGate[11]FortiAIGate secures AI apps and agents.
  • Strata[1][12][21]A network security platform built for Zero Trust and powered by AI.
  • Next-Generation Firewalls[20]Physical appliances and virtualized firewalls that can be managed with Panorama.
  • Cortex XSIAM[22]A security operations platform used by Abraxas.
  • Cortex XCOR[12]An AI-driven platform for observability.
  • Cortex Cloud[1][23]A cloud security product that unifies posture, runtime and investigation workflows.
  • Idira[1][11][12][25]An identity security product for human, machine and agentic identities.
  • Prisma AIRS[26][27]An AI security platform for enterprise AI applications and LLM deployments.
  • Prisma AIRS AI Gateway[27]A product that brings AI governance, identity and runtime controls together.
Categories
Headquarters
Sunnyvale, United StatesSanta Clara, United States[24]
Founded
2000[4]2005[4][24]
Ownership and funding
Public (NASDAQ: FTNT)[2][9][12][13][17][20][22]Public (NASDAQ: PANW)[2][9][13][15][18][19][21][22][30][32][33]
Named customers
  • IHG Hotels & Resorts[5]
  • Alaska Airlines[6]
  • IndiGo[7]
  • University of Birmingham[8]
  • Village Roadshow[5]
  • Banco Inter[6]
  • State of Louisiana[7]
  • Boyne Resorts[8]
Recent news
  • August 17, 2026Fortinet announced it has acquired Virtue AI, a company focused on AI runtime protection, automated AI validation, and security for autonomous AI systems.[20]
  • August 17, 2026Fortinet acquired Virtue AI, a company offering AI runtime protection and automated validation for autonomous AI systems.[9]
  • July 29, 2026Fortinet reported second-quarter 2026 revenue of $2.05 billion, up 26% year over year.[2]
  • June 24, 2026Fortinet appointed Derek Kan to its board of directors.[21]
  • May 6, 2026Fortinet reported first-quarter 2026 revenue of $1.85 billion, up 20% year over year.[10]
  • September 22, 2026Palo Alto Networks announced a new service that lets enterprises continuously find and fix exposures before attackers weaponize them.[17]
  • September 1, 2026Palo Alto Networks acquired Console, an AI-native platform that adds agentic capabilities to security operations workflows.[9]
  • September 1, 2026Palo Alto Networks reported fiscal fourth-quarter 2026 revenue of $3.41 billion, up 34% year over year.[10]
  • May 29, 2026Palo Alto Networks announced it has closed its acquisition of Portkey, a company focused on AI Gateways.[30]
  • May 12, 2026Palo Alto Networks launched Idira, an identity security platform for discovering, controlling and governing human, machine and agentic identities.[11]
G2 and Gartner Peer Insights
  • G2: Not stated on its pages
  • Gartner Peer Insights: listed, seen November 3, 2026[22]
  • G2: Not stated on its pages
  • Gartner Peer Insights: listed, seen November 4, 2026[19]
Who it fits
From its own pages, Fortinet sells mainly to enterprises, service providers, and government organizations. Its firewall pages describe deployments across data centers, branch offices, and multi-cloud environments. Wireless products are described for campuses, remote workers, and large public venues such as stadiums and arenas.From its own pages, Palo Alto Networks sells network security for branch offices, data centers, public cloud environments and mobile networks. Its customer stories name a tire manufacturer headquartered in India and a provider of IT solutions for the public sector in Switzerland. That provider has state and local government organisations under management. Its pages describe operational technology security for networks that manage physical hardware across manufacturing plants and water utilities, and cover healthcare delivery organizations such as hospitals and clinics.
Last verified
November 9, 2026October 10, 2026

Where they overlap

  • Firewalls and NGFW is the primary category of both Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks; both are also filed under EDR and XDR.
  • Both are headquartered in the United States.
  • Both are public companies.

Where they differ, field by field

  • Fortinet is also filed under SASE and SSE and SIEM. Palo Alto Networks is also filed under Cloud-native application protection (CNAPP) and Privileged access management.
  • Fortinet lists FortiWeb, FortiAP, FortiManager, FortiSIEM, FortiSandbox and 2 more. Palo Alto Networks lists Strata, Next-Generation Firewalls, Cortex XSIAM, Cortex XCOR, Cortex Cloud and 3 more.
  • Fortinet is headquartered in Sunnyvale, United States. Palo Alto Networks is headquartered in Santa Clara, United States.
  • Fortinet was founded in 2000. Palo Alto Networks was founded in 2005.
  • Fortinet is a public company listed on NASDAQ as FTNT. Palo Alto Networks is a public company listed on NASDAQ as PANW.
  • Fortinet publicly names IHG Hotels & Resorts, Alaska Airlines, IndiGo and University of Birmingham. Palo Alto Networks publicly names Village Roadshow, Banco Inter, State of Louisiana and Boyne Resorts.

How they differ

CISO Tribune files both Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks under Firewalls and NGFW as the primary category, and both are public companies listed on NASDAQ, Fortinet as FTNT and Palo Alto Networks as PANW. Fortinet is headquartered in Sunnyvale, United States, and was founded in 2000, while Palo Alto Networks is headquartered in Santa Clara, United States, and was founded in 2005. Fortinet's firewall line is built around FortiGate, and it also sells FortiWeb, FortiAP wireless access points, FortiManager, FortiSIEM, FortiSandbox and Unified SASE. Palo Alto Networks sells the Strata network security platform and Next-Generation Firewalls that can be managed with Panorama, plus Cortex XSIAM, Cortex Cloud, Idira and Prisma AIRS. Both companies sell AI security products: Fortinet offers FortiAIGate for AI apps and agents, and Palo Alto Networks offers Prisma AIRS AI Gateway for AI governance, identity and runtime controls.

Fortinet publicly names IHG Hotels & Resorts, Alaska Airlines, IndiGo and University of Birmingham as customers. Palo Alto Networks publicly names Village Roadshow, Banco Inter, State of Louisiana and Boyne Resorts. Fortinet describes selling to enterprises, service providers, and government organizations.

On August 17, 2026, Fortinet announced it had acquired Virtue AI, a company focused on AI runtime protection. Fortinet reported second-quarter 2026 revenue of $2.05 billion on July 29, 2026. On September 1, 2026, Palo Alto Networks acquired Console and reported fiscal fourth-quarter 2026 revenue of $3.41 billion. Palo Alto Networks also announced the completion of its acquisition of CyberArk on February 11, 2026, and launched Idira on May 12, 2026.

What it sells: Fortinet

What FortiWeb does[18]
FortiWeb protects business-critical web applications and APIs from emerging web-based threats. Its features include anomaly detection, API discovery and protection, bot mitigation, and client-side security. It comes in hardware, virtual machine, and SaaS form factors and is available in public cloud marketplaces.
What FortiAP does[17]
FortiAP integrates with the Fortinet SASE offering to support organizations securing microbranches. FortiAPs are available in models from 2x2 to 4x4, with internal or external antenna. Control can be done with FortiGate, FortiGate VM, FortiSASE, or FortiEdge Cloud.
What FortiManager does[12][19]
FortiManager is the NOC-SOC operations tool that was built with security perspective. It provides a single-pane-of-glass across the entire Fortinet Security Fabric.

What it sells: Palo Alto Networks

What Strata does[1][12][21]
Palo Alto Networks says the Strata Network Security Platform is built for Zero Trust and powered by AI. Palo Alto Networks says Strata proactively monitors, analyzes and prevents sophisticated threats in real time.
What Next-Generation Firewalls does[20]
Palo Alto Networks offers next-generation firewalls as physical appliances and virtualized firewalls. They can be managed individually or centrally using Panorama, and Strata Cloud Manager supports them. Palo Alto Networks says its NGFW uses App-ID technology to classify applications across all ports.
What Cortex XSIAM does[22]
Abraxas says Cortex XSIAM unites SIEM and EDR in one integrated solution. Cortex XSIAM provides SecOps across 3,000 clients and in-house Abraxas devices.
What Prisma AIRS does[26][27]
Prisma AIRS is an AI security platform designed to secure the entire enterprise AI ecosystem and to protect AI applications and LLM deployments. Prisma AIRS offers deployment modes such as Network Intercept and API Intercept.
What Prisma AIRS AI Gateway does[27]
Prisma AIRS AI Gateway brings AI governance, identity and runtime controls together in one place. Prisma AIRS AI Gateway intercepts and optimizes agentic traffic while inspecting and securing communications to protect agents from attacks.

Questions about Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks

What do Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks sell?
Fortinet sells FortiWeb, FortiAP, FortiManager, FortiSIEM, FortiSandbox and 2 more. Palo Alto Networks sells Strata, Next-Generation Firewalls, Cortex XSIAM, Cortex XCOR, Cortex Cloud and 3 more.
Are Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks in the same category?
Yes. Firewalls and NGFW is the primary category of both on CISO Tribune.
Where are Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks headquartered?
Fortinet is headquartered in Sunnyvale, United States. Palo Alto Networks is headquartered in Santa Clara, United States.
When were Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks founded?
Fortinet was founded in 2000. Palo Alto Networks was founded in 2005.
Who owns Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks?
Fortinet is a public company listed on NASDAQ as FTNT. Palo Alto Networks is a public company listed on NASDAQ as PANW.
Which customers do Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks name?
Fortinet publicly names IHG Hotels & Resorts, Alaska Airlines, IndiGo and University of Birmingham. Palo Alto Networks publicly names Village Roadshow, Banco Inter, State of Louisiana and Boyne Resorts.
Who are Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks sold to?
From its own pages, Fortinet sells mainly to enterprises, service providers, and government organizations. From its own pages, Palo Alto Networks sells network security for branch offices, data centers, public cloud environments and mobile networks.
What have Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks announced recently?
August 17, 2026: Fortinet announced it has acquired Virtue AI, a company focused on AI runtime protection, automated AI validation, and security for autonomous AI systems. September 22, 2026: Palo Alto Networks announced a new service that lets enterprises continuously find and fix exposures before attackers weaponize them.

About Fortinet

Fortinet sells cybersecurity and networking technology to enterprises, service providers, and government organizations. Fortinet describes itself as a global US-based company securing over 700,000 enterprises, service providers, and government organizations worldwide.[11]

Fortinet’s firewall line is built around FortiGate. FortiGate Next Generation Firewall uses purpose-built security processors and threat intelligence security services from FortiGuard labs. Fortinet says FortiGate provides automated visibility into applications, users, and network, and provides security ratings. Fortinet’s hybrid mesh firewall approach unifies FortiGate Next-Generation Firewalls across on-premises, cloud, and hybrid environments with centralized management and analytics. Fortinet says its firewall solutions include appliances, VMs, and FWaaS, so they can be deployed anywhere in the network, including cloud resources. Fortinet says its hybrid mesh firewalls (HMFs) offer unified management and consistent security enabled via a single operating system. For branch offices, Fortinet describes unified firewalling, SD-WAN, and a LAN/WLAN controller in one NGFW. FortiGate 1200G with FortiSASE Outpost delivers ASIC-powered local enforcement and cloud-delivered security where businesses need it most.[11][14][15]

Fortinet sells Secure SD-WAN, which combines networking with security. Fortinet says FortiAPs used with Fortinet Secure SD-WAN create a Secure SD-Branch. Fortinet’s wireless LAN solution integrates with the Fortinet Security Fabric to offer built-in security, end-to-end network visibility, and automated threat response. FortiAP integrates with the Fortinet SASE offering to support organizations securing microbranches and related devices. FortiAPs are available in models from 2x2 to 4x4, and configuration and control can be done with a FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall appliance, FortiGate VM, FortiSASE, or FortiEdge Cloud. Fortinet also describes deploying FortiAPs as remote APs to extend corporate network access securely to remote workers.[16]

Fortinet Unified SASE is described as helping secure the AI era with integrated networking, AI-aware controls, sovereign options, and digital experience visibility. In security operations, FortiSIEM is Fortinet’s SIEM solution. FortiSandbox delivers AI-powered protection against emerging, sophisticated, and zero-day threats. Fortinet offers FortiAIGate to secure AI apps and agents, enforce usage policy, and control AI spend. Virtue AI will enhance the Fortinet AI-Native Security Fabric with continuous agentic AI validation and runtime protection across the AI lifecycle, according to Fortinet.[11][16]

Fortinet also sells application security. FortiWeb protects business-critical web applications and APIs from emerging web-based threats that target known and unknown vulnerabilities. FortiWeb features anomaly detection, API discovery and protection, bot mitigation, and client-side security. FortiWeb comes in many form factors including hardware, virtual machines, and SaaS, and is available in public cloud marketplaces. FortiGuard security services used with FortiWeb are annual subscriptions that can be purchased a la carte or as part of a bundle with FortiWeb. Fortinet Email Security provides protection for your critical business information. Fortinet offers FortiProxy for protection against internet-borne threats and Advanced Web Content Caching. FortiADC brings the power of the Fortinet Security Fabric to your application layer. FortiDeceptor is based on deception-based technology that complements an organization’s existing breach protection strategy.[16][18]

Fortinet sells management and endpoint tools alongside its security products. FortiManager is the NOC-SOC operations tool that was built with security perspective, and it provides a single-pane-of-glass across the entire Fortinet Security Fabric. FortiAIOps uses artificial intelligence with machine learning to collect data and identify pattern anomalies. FortiClient Fabric Agent integrates endpoints into the Security Fabric and provides endpoint telemetry, including user identity. FortiExtender WWAN appliance uses LTE connectivity with the cellular infrastructure to provide broadband speeds.[16][19]

Fortinet names customers in several sectors. Global hospitality company IHG Hotels & Resorts is replacing its legacy hub-and-spoke network with a managed SD-WAN solution from Fortinet. IHG Hotels & Resorts is deploying Fortinet Secure SD-WAN to 4,000 sites. Jersey Mike’s says moving to FortiSwitches is greatly enhancing its help desk support of franchisees.[1][3][11][15]

Fortinet on the record

Sources

Fortinet full record

  1. [1]fortinet.comFortinet · fortinet.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]Fortinet reports strong second quarter 2026 financial resultsFortinet · fortinet.com · published July 29, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]Ftnt 20241231Fortinet, Inc. via SEC EDGAR · sec.gov · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]Press kitFortinet · fortinet.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]IHG Hotels & Resorts | Fortinet Case StudyFortinet · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Alaska airlinesFortinet · fortinet.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]Indigo airlinesFortinet · fortinet.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]University of birminghamFortinet · fortinet.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]Fortinet advances continuous ai protection with the acquisition of virtue aiFortinet · fortinet.com · published August 17, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Fortinet reports first quarter 2026 financial resultsFortinet · fortinet.com · published May 6, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Global Leader of Cybersecurity Solutions and Services | FortinetFortinet · undated page, accessed October 25, 2026 · Tier A
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  20. [20]Fortinet Advances Continuous AI Protection with the Acquisition of Virtue AIFortinet, Inc. · published August 17, 2026 · Tier A
  21. [21]Fortinet Appoints Public Sector Leader and Tech Executive Derek Kan to Its Board of DirectorsFortinet · published June 24, 2026 · Tier A
  22. [22]Fortinet Reviews, Ratings & Features 2026 | Gartner Peer InsightsGartner Peer Insights · undated page, accessed November 3, 2026 · Tier C

Palo Alto Networks full record

  1. [1]paloaltonetworks.comPalo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]Palo alto networks to announce fiscal second quarter 2026 financial results on tuesday february 17 2026Palo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · published February 3, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]Panw 20250731Palo Alto Networks via SEC EDGAR · sec.gov · published July 31, 2025 · Tier A
  4. [4]Palo alto networks global identity operations faqPalo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]Village roadshow fortifies entertainment empire with ai powered cybersecurityPalo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Banco inter resolves cases faster with cortex xsiamPalo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]Louisiana scales security using ai driven cortex xsiamPalo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]Boyne resorts achieves game changing soc improvements with cortex xsiam and unit 42 mdrPalo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]Palo alto networks acquires console to agentify securityPalo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · published September 1, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Palo alto networks reports fiscal fourth quarter and fiscal year 2026 financial resultsPalo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · published September 1, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Palo alto networks introduces idira the next generation identity security platform built for the ai enterprisePalo Alto Networks · paloaltonetworks.com · published May 12, 2026 · Tier A
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  15. [15]Palo Alto Networks Completes Chronosphere Acquisition, Unifying Observability and Security for the AI EraPalo Alto Networks · published January 29, 2026 · Tier A
  16. [16]Palo Alto Networks to Acquire Portkey to Secure the Rise of AI AgentsPalo Alto Networks · published April 30, 2026 · Tier A
  17. [17]Palo Alto Networks Delivers Anthropic's Mythos and OpenAI's GPT-5.6 to Customers with Unit 42 Continuous Frontier AI DefensePalo Alto Networks · published September 22, 2026 · Tier A
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  30. [30]Palo Alto Networks Completes Acquisition of Portkey to Secure AI AgentsPalo Alto Networks · published May 29, 2026 · Tier A
  31. [31]Palo Alto Networks Announces Intent to Acquire Koi to Secure the Agentic EndpointPalo Alto Networks · published February 17, 2026 · Tier A
  32. [32]Palo Alto Networks Completes Acquisition of CyberArk to Secure the AI EraPalo Alto Networks · published February 11, 2026 · Tier A
  33. [33]Palo Alto Networks Completes Acquisition of Koi to Secure the Agentic EndpointPalo Alto Networks · published April 14, 2026 · Tier A

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