CISO Tribune

Vendor comparison · 2 companies

KnowBe4 vs Proofpoint

KnowBe4 sells attack simulation and training, email and collaboration security, and agent security through the KnowBe4 Platform. Proofpoint sells security that covers data and AI as one system, with access that follows intent. CISO Tribune files both under Human risk management and Email security. 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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  • KnowBe4
  • Proofpoint
KnowBe4 vs Proofpoint: Products, Customers and Funding Compared
KnowBe4KnowBe4 sells attack simulation and training, email and collaboration security, and agent security through the KnowBe4 Platform.knowbe4.comProofpointProofpoint sells security that covers data and AI as one system, with access that follows intent.proofpoint.com
What it sells
  • Security Awareness Training[4][5][7]Education on recognizing threats, reinforced with phishing and vishing simulations.
  • Cloud Email Security[10]A suite of AI-driven products for inbound and outbound email.
  • Defend[1][4][5][6][10][11]Inbound email protection against phishing, ransomware and business email compromise.
  • Prevent[5][10][12]Outbound email protection and data loss prevention.
  • Compliance Plus[13]Compliance training platform.
  • Student Edition[5]Security awareness training for academic institutions.
  • BreachSim[14]A free tool to identify network vulnerabilities.
  • Weak Password Test[15]A free tool that finds users with weak passwords.
  • ITM / Endpoint DLP[19]Endpoint software whose main features are supported on Windows, Mac and Linux.
  • Proofpoint Threat Intelligence Services[21]A Proofpoint team that provides Threat Insights.
  • ET Intel[21]A subscription that gives full access to all insights.
  • ET Pro[21]A subscription that gives full access to all insights.
Categories
Headquarters
Clearwater, United StatesSunnyvale, United States[1]
Founded
2010[1]2002[1]
Ownership and funding
Owned by Vista Equity Partners since 2023[2][4][8][9]Owned by Thoma Bravo since 2021[3][12][14][15]
Named customers
Not stated on its pages
  • Xcel Energy[4]
  • Princeton University[5]
  • Columbia University[6]
  • Informatica[7]
  • California Department of Motor Vehicles[8]
Recent news
  • May 5, 2026KnowBe4 launched a two-tier Security Awareness Training offering and a new AI defense agent for custom content creation.[7]
  • April 6, 2026Dashlane announced an integration with KnowBe4 that links credential risk detection to security training for at-risk users.[18]
  • October 15, 2026Proofpoint and Varonis announced a definitive agreement under which Proofpoint will acquire Varonis in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $6.3 billion.[16]
  • September 22, 2026Proofpoint announced the Agentic Collaboration Security system, combining an intent-based detection model with agentic capabilities for email, collaboration tools and the browser.[17]
  • September 22, 2026Proofpoint announced the Proofpoint Agentic Data and AI Security system, built to secure AI and data as one connected risk.[18]
  • September 3, 2026Proofpoint introduced the SOC Analyst Agent, an AI capability that helps security teams investigate threats across Proofpoint security data, built with OpenAI models.[9]
  • August 4, 2026Proofpoint launched an OEM program that lets technology providers, security vendors and managed service providers embed its threat intelligence and detection capabilities.[10]
G2 and Gartner Peer Insights
  • G2: listed, seen November 4, 2026[8]
  • Gartner Peer Insights: listed, seen November 4, 2026[9]
  • G2: listed, seen November 10, 2026[14]
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
Who it fits
Not written yetFrom its own pages, Proofpoint addresses cyberattacks on organisations where people and AI agents work side by side across email, cloud and collaboration tools. The customers Proofpoint quotes include an organisation using Proofpoint for AI security for employees using AI services and tools, and for AI security in the tools and agents it is building. A quoted Proofpoint customer runs email security, DLP and insider threat management that work together, with its analyst using a single security console.
Last verified
September 27, 2026October 10, 2026

Where they overlap

  • KnowBe4 and Proofpoint are both filed under Human risk management and Email security.
  • Both are headquartered in the United States.

Where they differ, field by field

  • KnowBe4's primary category is Security awareness training; Proofpoint's is Email security.
  • KnowBe4 is also filed under AI model and agent security. Proofpoint is also filed under Collaboration app security and Insider risk management.
  • KnowBe4 lists Security Awareness Training, Cloud Email Security, Defend, Prevent, Compliance Plus and 3 more. Proofpoint lists ITM / Endpoint DLP, Proofpoint Threat Intelligence Services, ET Intel and ET Pro.
  • KnowBe4 is headquartered in Clearwater, United States. Proofpoint is headquartered in Sunnyvale, United States.
  • KnowBe4 was founded in 2010. Proofpoint was founded in 2002.
  • KnowBe4 is owned by Vista Equity Partners, since 2023. Proofpoint is owned by Thoma Bravo, since 2021.
  • Proofpoint publicly names Xcel Energy, Princeton University, Columbia University, Informatica and California Department of Motor Vehicles.

What it sells: KnowBe4

What Security Awareness Training does[4][5][7]
KnowBe4 says it delivers timely, personalized education that helps people recognize threats. Lessons are reinforced with realistic phishing and vishing simulations.
What Cloud Email Security does[10]
KnowBe4 Cloud Email Security is a suite of AI-driven products designed to detect and prevent advanced email threats across inbound and outbound communication. Contextual banners and prompts are delivered at the point of risk.
What Defend does[1][4][5][6][10][11]
Defend detects and blocks phishing, ransomware and business email compromise with behavioral AI and self-learning threat models. Defend inserts color-coded banners on flagged email and rewrites links, checking them at time of click. Defend integrates with Microsoft Defender for Office 365 through API-based connectivity.
What Prevent does[5][10][12]
Prevent monitors outbound email in real time and alerts users to risky behavior, such as accidental sends or misdirected emails. Prevent is integrated with Microsoft Outlook and Office 365. Prevent Enterprise adds misdirected content detection and custom DLP policies.
What Compliance Plus does[13]
Compliance Plus has a training library of 1000+ items of compliance training content. Compliance Plus offers targeted training for requirements such as HIPAA, PCI and GDPR. Organizations can upload SCORM-compliant content to the KnowBe4 LMS.
What Student Edition does[5]
The KnowBe4 Student Edition enables academic institutions to prepare students to identify and prevent modern cyberattacks. Its training content covers phishing, BYOD risks, password hygiene, social media risks and campus scams.
What BreachSim does[14]
BreachSim is a free tool from KnowBe4 to identify network vulnerabilities. BreachSim tests over 12 realistic data exfiltration scenarios following the MITRE ATT&CK framework.
What Weak Password Test does[15]
The Weak Password Test is a free tool to help IT Administrators know which users have passwords that are easily guessed. It checks the Active Directory and generates a report of users with weak passwords.

What it sells: Proofpoint

What Proofpoint Threat Intelligence Services does[21]
Threat Insights are provided by the Proofpoint Threat Intelligence Services team. Premium Threat Intelligence Services analysts curate threat news highlights.
What ET Intel does[21]
Subscribing to ET Intel or ET Pro gives full access to all insights. Threat Insights are provided by the Proofpoint Threat Intelligence Services team.
What ET Pro does[21]
Subscribing to ET Intel or ET Pro gives full access to all insights. Threat Insights are provided by the Proofpoint Threat Intelligence Services team.

Questions about KnowBe4 and Proofpoint

What do KnowBe4 and Proofpoint sell?
KnowBe4 sells Security Awareness Training, Cloud Email Security, Defend, Prevent, Compliance Plus and 3 more. Proofpoint sells ITM / Endpoint DLP, Proofpoint Threat Intelligence Services, ET Intel and ET Pro.
Are KnowBe4 and Proofpoint in the same category?
They share Human risk management and Email security. KnowBe4's primary category is Security awareness training and Proofpoint's is Email security.
Where are KnowBe4 and Proofpoint headquartered?
KnowBe4 is headquartered in Clearwater, United States. Proofpoint is headquartered in Sunnyvale, United States.
When were KnowBe4 and Proofpoint founded?
KnowBe4 was founded in 2010. Proofpoint was founded in 2002.
Who owns KnowBe4 and Proofpoint?
KnowBe4 is owned by Vista Equity Partners, since 2023. Proofpoint is owned by Thoma Bravo, since 2021.
Which customers do KnowBe4 and Proofpoint name?
Proofpoint publicly names Xcel Energy, Princeton University, Columbia University, Informatica and California Department of Motor Vehicles.
Who are KnowBe4 and Proofpoint sold to?
From its own pages, Proofpoint addresses cyberattacks on organisations where people and AI agents work side by side across email, cloud and collaboration tools.
What have KnowBe4 and Proofpoint announced recently?
May 5, 2026: KnowBe4 launched a two-tier Security Awareness Training offering and a new AI defense agent for custom content creation. October 15, 2026: Proofpoint and Varonis announced a definitive agreement under which Proofpoint will acquire Varonis in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $6.3 billion.

About KnowBe4

KnowBe4 sells attack simulation and training, email and collaboration security, and agent security through the KnowBe4 Platform. KnowBe4 says it protects humans, and now their AI agents too. KnowBe4 says its platform uses 15 years of behavioral data against threats including social engineering, prompt injection and shadow AI. KnowBe4 says it serves more than 70,000 organizations worldwide.[6]

KnowBe4 describes its personalized education as helping people recognize threats, followed by realistic phishing and vishing simulations. KnowBe4's AI-Native Security Awareness Training gives academic institutions a path to reducing student-driven human risk. Real-Time Coaching sends a contextual SecurityTip to reinforce secure behavior when a student clicks a suspicious link or tries to access restricted content. AIDA automates training assignments, phishing simulations, policy quizzes and knowledge refreshers based on each student's individual risk profile. KnowBe4 says its agent security is powered by AIDA, short for Artificial Intelligence Defense Agents, and a proprietary Risk Score. KnowBe4 says it offers real-time visibility, automated threat detection and active AI agent control to eliminate AI security blind spots.[5][6]

KnowBe4 Cloud Email Security is a suite of AI-driven products designed to detect and prevent advanced email threats across inbound and outbound communication. Defend detects and blocks phishing, ransomware and business email compromise with behavioral AI and self-learning threat models, and enhances Microsoft 365's built-in security. Prevent monitors outbound email in real time and alerts users to risky behavior, such as accidental sends or misdirected emails. Protect offers policy-based email encryption and automatically enforces an organization's security policies. KnowBe4 says its layered cloud defenses spot and stop phishing, malware and social engineering attacks. KnowBe4 Cloud Email Security delivers contextual banners and prompts at the point of risk, which KnowBe4 says augment security awareness and training through real-time teachable moments.[5][10]

Defend combines AI-powered detection, real-time user education and actionable insights to protect against phishing threats. Defend inserts color-coded banners when an inbound email is flagged, providing risk explanations and teachable feedback. Defend rewrites links and checks them at time of click. Defend detects QR codes within email to warn users of quishing attempts. Defend includes sender policy verification lookup and validation for SPF, DKIM and DMARC. Defend filters graymail to a separate folder. Defend integrates into MS Outlook apps on Windows Desktop, Mac, iOS and Android, and with MS Safelinks. The KnowBe4 Defend and Microsoft Defender for Office 365 integration delivers threat management through API-based connectivity. Defend has an API that supports integration into a SIEM/SOAR. A Microsoft Sentinel connector is available on Azure marketplace for Native Microsoft customers.[5][11]

Prevent uses machine learning to analyze emails in real time, focusing on sender behavior, content and recipients. Prevent is integrated with Microsoft Outlook and Office 365. Prevent alerts users when they receive or attempt to interact with domains less than 50 days old. Prevent Enterprise adds misdirected content detection, custom DLP policies and integration with Microsoft Azure Information Protection (Purview). Prevent Enterprise features are customized to an organization's DLP requirements and require Professional Services to implement.[10][12]

Compliance Plus has a training library of 1000+ items of compliance training content. Compliance Plus offers targeted training for legislative and data privacy requirements, such as HIPAA, PCI and GDPR. With Compliance Plus, organizations can incorporate their own policies and procedures into brandable modules and upload SCORM-compliant training and video content to the KnowBe4 LMS. The KnowBe4 Student Edition enables academic institutions to prepare students to identify and prevent modern cyberattacks. Student Edition training content covers phishing, BYOD risks, password hygiene, social media risks, campus scams and off-campus data security.[5][13]

BreachSim is a free tool from KnowBe4 to identify network vulnerabilities. BreachSim tests over 12 realistic data exfiltration scenarios following the MITRE ATT&CK framework. The Weak Password Test is a free tool to help IT Administrators know which users have passwords that are easily guessed. The Weak Password Test checks the Active Directory for several types of weak password-related threats and generates a report of users with weak passwords. KnowBe4's Security Culture Benchmarking Analysis Center provides analysis of security culture benchmarking data by industry, organizational size and geographical region.[14][15][16]

Hood College used Student Edition to see an increase in reported phishing emails and to reduce clicking on phishing campaigns. Bridgewater State University is a KnowBe4 customer. The Mido Foundation equipped young learners to recognize and respond to real-world cyber threats with KnowBe4. One customer says it selected KnowBe4 Defend and Prevent as added security layers in its Microsoft 365 environment. The KnowBe4 CSM team assists in guiding customers through onboarding tasks at no additional cost. KnowBe4 Customer Success Managers work with customers to tailor program requirements based on organizational goals, objectives and desired outcomes. KnowBe4's Customer Success Team spans the globe.[3][5][6][10][11][13][17]

KnowBe4 on the record

Sources

KnowBe4 full record

  1. [1]About usKnowBe4 · knowbe4.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]Vista equity partners completes acquisition of knowbe4KnowBe4 · knowbe4.com · published February 1, 2023 · Tier A
  3. [3]Contact usKnowBe4 · knowbe4.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]KnowBe4 | Secure Your Digital Workforce: Human + AIKnowBe4 · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]KnowBe4 Student Edition | KnowBe4KnowBe4 · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Warning: Attackers Are Using Calendar Invite Files to Evade Security FiltersKnowBe4 · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]KnowBe4 Launches AI-Native Attack Simulation & Training Product and Twelfth AI AgentBusiness Wire · published May 5, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Reviews 2026 - G2G2 · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier C
  9. [9]KnowBe4 Reviews, Ratings & Features 2026 | Gartner Peer InsightsGartner Peer Insights · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier C
  10. [10]Cloud Email Security for Microsoft 365 | KnowBe4KnowBe4 · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Pricing | DefendKnowBe4 · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  12. [12]Pricing | Prevent | KnowBe4KnowBe4 · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  13. [13]Compliance Plus: Compliance Training Platform | KnowBe4KnowBe4 · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  14. [14]BreachSim | KnowBe4KnowBe4 · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  15. [15]Weak Password Test | KnowBe4KnowBe4 · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  16. [16]Security Culture Report Analysis Center | KnowBe4KnowBe4 · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  17. [17]KnowBe4 Customer Success | KnowBe4KnowBe4 · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  18. [18]Dashlane Launches First-of-its-Kind Integration with KnowBe4 to Transform Security Awareness into Proactive DefensePR Newswire · published April 6, 2026 · Tier A

Proofpoint full record

  1. [1]AboutProofpoint · proofpoint.com · published April 21, 2025 · Tier A
  2. [2]ProductsProofpoint · proofpoint.com · published September 24, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]Thoma bravo completes acquisition of proofpointThoma Bravo · thomabravo.com · published August 31, 2021 · Tier A
  4. [4]Xcel energyProofpoint · proofpoint.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]Princeton university safe with proofpoint email securityProofpoint · proofpoint.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Columbia universityProofpoint · proofpoint.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]InformaticaProofpoint · proofpoint.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]California department motor vehiclesProofpoint · proofpoint.com · undated page, accessed October 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]Proofpoint soc analyst agent openai daybreakProofpoint · proofpoint.com · published September 3, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Proofpoint launches oem program help security providers embed trusted threatProofpoint · proofpoint.com · published August 4, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Proofpoint launches dedicated msp business unit and introduces 365 totalProofpoint · proofpoint.com · published May 13, 2026 · Tier A
  12. [12]Enterprise Cybersecurity Solutions, Services & Training | Proofpoint USProofpoint · undated page, accessed October 27, 2026 · Tier A
  13. [13]Integrating ITM On-Prem (ObserveIT) with a Service Desk SystemProofpoint · undated page, accessed October 27, 2026 · Tier A
  14. [14]Proofpoint Core Email Protection Reviews & Product Details - G2G2 · undated page, accessed October 27, 2026 · Tier C
  15. [15]Proofpoint Acquires Acuvity to Deliver AI Security and Governance Across the Agentic WorkspaceProofpoint · published February 12, 2026 · Tier A
  16. [16]Proofpoint to Acquire Varonis in a $6.3 Billion TransactionProofpoint · published October 15, 2026 · Tier A
  17. [17]Proofpoint Stops the Attacks Traditional Defenses Miss in the AI EraProofpoint · published September 22, 2026 · Tier A
  18. [18]Proofpoint Breaks Down the Divide Between Data Security and AI Security with the Industry’s First Unified Agentic SystemProofpoint · published September 22, 2026 · Tier A
  19. [19]ITM / Endpoint DLP Windows / Mac / Linux SupportProofpoint · published November 9, 2026 · Tier A
  20. [20]Assigning SQL Permissions to the Service Account UserProofpoint · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  21. [21]Proofpoint: Emerging Threats IntelligenceProofpoint · published November 9, 2026 · Tier A

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