Intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDPS) monitor networks and enterprise environment activity to identify intruders, log data, and block threats. This article lists the top 10 intrusion detection and prevention tools in .
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Top 5 Key Must-Have Features of IDPS Tools in
An intrusion prevention detection system (IDPS) is defined as a solution that monitors network activity for signs of a malicious presence, logs information about the presence, and attempts to block it either through an automated response or by alerting a user.
Key Features of IDPS Tools
IDPS tools are central to network security. They protect enterprises from external and internal intruders by looking for abnormalities in network behavior. To achieve this, it analyzes the signature of network traffic, hunts for behavioral anomalies, or conducts stateful protocol analysis, sending a signal and studying the response.
IDPS can help preempt various intrusions such as break-ins to the enterprise network, data leakage, distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks that slow down the network, malicious bandwidth usage, or fraudulent users masquerading as legitimate ones.
IDPS tools are typically of four types &#; they either study network traffic, network behavior, wireless activity, or information regarding the host environment. These types can overlap, and IDPS tools can cater to multiple use cases with one solution.
Globally, the IDPS industry was valued at $4.7 billion in , as per research by MarketWatch. By , it will reach $7.1 billion, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.3%. If you&#;re looking to evaluate the market and select the best IDPS solution for your company, here are the five features to look for.
1. 24/7 network monitoring
The main purpose of deploying an intrusion detection and prevention system is to monitor the network around the clock. The tool connects to multiple network appliances, software, servers, systems, and endpoint devices if needed. It will analyze 100% of the traffic flow and match them against preset rules. The rules help distinguish legitimate traffic from a malicious presence.
2. Intrusion rules enforcement
The IDPS tool should allow users to enforce intrusion rules. Based on dynamically updated threat intelligence, these rules indicate which type of behavior counts as an intrusion and which doesn&#;t. Depending on the tool you choose, the rules may be pre-configured and managed by the provider, which is a low effort but inflexible approach. Configurable rulesets require more effort to implement but provide users with greater control.
3. Activity logs and insights
Another important feature of IDPS tools is maintaining detailed logs. Every security incident (no matter how minor or low in severity) is recorded for future reference and network audits. IDPS solutions also allow users to generate ad-hoc reports to meet compliance requirements &#; for instance, to demonstrate that the network is segmented as per the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).
4. Malicious presence detection
Intrusion detection and prevention systems immediately identify a malicious presence as soon as it is felt within the network. The tool will not wait until any damage is done or an attempt to hack into confidential data or software systems. Minor or familiar intrusions will be automatically detected, logged, and blocked, while more complex ones may trigger an alert. Some tools use artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to detect and classify intrusions accurately.
5. Malicious presence blocking
The IDPS tool should help block intruders and mitigate the damage they cause. As mentioned, familiar issues are resolved automatically, and a report may be generated for the IT team. More complex intrusions like malware or suspicious files can be quarantined in a virtual sandbox. Some tools integrate with external systems to streamline the blocking process.
See More: What Is Intrusion Detection and Prevention System? Definition, Examples, Techniques, and Best Practices
Top 10 IDPS Tools in
Intrusion detection and prevention systems protect the enterprise perimeter and identify intruders without causing too many false negatives or false positives. Here are the top 10 tools that can effectively achieve this, arranged in alphabetical order.
Disclaimer: This list is based on publicly available information and may include vendor websites that sell to mid-to-large enterprises. Readers are advised to conduct their final research to ensure the best fit for their unique organizational needs.
1. AirMagnet Enterprise
Overview: AirMagnet is a network assurance and security company founded in . It has been acquired by Fluke Networks but continues to offer IDPS solutions independently.
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring:
It connects to the network via wireless channels and enables 24/7 monitoring and scanning.
- Intrusion rules enforcement:
Users can define and enforce custom rules for event alerts, threat detection, and intrusion tracking.
- Activity logs and insights:
It maintains regular logs for forensic analysis, event triangulation, and compliance reports.
- Malicious presence detection:
It uses the company&#;s Dynamic Threat Update technology to immediately detect the presence of a
cyber threat
.
- Malicious presence blocking:
It provides remediation advice and active remote tools to address suspicious activity.
USP: The tool includes a unique AirWISE engine that automatically analyzes wireless network activity using frame inspection, stateful pattern analysis, statistical modeling, radio-frequency analysis, and anomaly detection. This ensures there are no false negatives.
Pricing: Pricing for the solution is approximately $10,325.
Editorial comments: AirMagnet is a reliable IDPS tool, particularly for compliance purposes. However, it may not be as sophisticated as solutions with AI and advanced automation.
2. Amazon Web Services (AWS) GuardDuty
Overview: GuradDuty is an intelligent threat detection service that helps detect and block network intruders. It is provided by Amazon and is compatible only with AWS workloads.
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring:
It continuously monitors and analyzes activity to reveal context, metadata, and details on impacted resources.
- Intrusion rules enforcement:
It has built-in rules to detect unusual application programming interface (API) activity, account compromise, AWS bucket compromise, etc.
- Activity logs and insights:
It maintains detailed logs, and the dashboard will prioritize intrusions or threats as per severity levels.
- Malicious presence detection:
It detects malicious presence based on data from AWS CloudTrail, VPC Flow Logs, DNS Logs, and other sources.
- Malicious presence blocking:
It automatically blocks primary threats, and users can configure further automations using command-line interface (CLI) tools.
USP: AWS GuardDuty is built using the company&#;s proprietary ML technology. This means that it can adapt to your enterprise environment and become incrementally more effective.
Pricing: Pricing starts at $0.80 per one million events or $1.00 per GB (region-specific).
Editorial comments: GuardDuty is very easy to deploy and has a one-click deployment process. However, it supports very little customization and does not allow users to maintain their own rules.
3. Azure Firewall Premium IDPS
Overview: Microsoft&#;s intrusion detection and prevention functionality is part of the Azure Firewall Premium service. It is a new solution launched in July .
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring:
It constantly monitors inbound traffic and URL activities.
- Intrusion rules enforcement:
It includes pre-configured rules for malware fingerprinting,
phishing
, trojans, botnets, etc., comprising 58,000+ rules in total.
- Activity logs and insights:
It maintains logs of all events, which are displayed via the Azure Firewall dashboard.
- Malicious presence detection:
It can detect malicious presence in both encrypted and unencrypted traffic.
- Malicious presence blocking:
It has a malware sandbox to quarantine intruders and integrates with other security systems for threat blocking.
USP: Microsoft is a big investor in cybersecurity, with plans to spend $20 billion in security research and technology in the next five years. As a result, the tool is constantly updated, with 20-40 new intrusion detection rules released every day.
Pricing: Pricing starts at $1.75 per deployment hour and $0.016 per GB processed.
Editorial comments: Microsoft offers a highly scalable and easy-to-configure IDPS for the cloud. However, keep in mind that it will only protect Azure-based networks and requires cloud expertise.
4. Blumira
Overview: Founded in , Blumira is a cybersecurity startup that automates intrusion and threat detection. The company is based out of Michigan, U.S.
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring:
It monitors the entire IT environment, including networks and clouds, around the clock.
- Intrusion rules enforcement:
It has dynamic blocklists to help enforce intrusion rules, and users can request custom rules if needed.
- Activity logs and insights:
It has detailed records for long-term reference and displays urgent findings via the dashboard.
- Malicious presence detection:
Not only does it detect intruders, but it also validates suspected threats using Blumira honeypots.
- Malicious presence blocking:
You can use the tool to investigate an intrusion event and set up an automated response using Blumira&#;s playbooks.
USP: The tool&#;s threat detection capabilities claim to be 5X faster than the industry average. This is enabled by intrusion evidence stacking, automatic prioritization, and correlation.
Pricing: Pricing for Blumira is undisclosed.
Editorial comments: Blumira is a compliant and comprehensive IDPS solution. However, the dashboards aren&#;t configurable, and you will be able to generate only CSV reports without any data visualizations.
5. Cisco Secure IPS (NGIPS)
Overview: Secure IPS is a next-generation intrusion prevention system (NGIPS) from Cisco. It integrates with Cisco&#;s Firepower Management Center for threat detection.
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring:
It monitors the IT environment 24/7 to uncover contextual network data, file trajectories, device-level OS data, and more.
- Intrusion rules enforcement:
The tool uses information from Cisco Talos (the company&#;s threat intelligence team) to develop new policy rules every two hours.
- Activity logs and insights:
It maintains logs on user activity, file transfers, application protocols, devices, and network behavior.
- Malicious presence detection:
It can detect intruders, malware, and other suspicious entities with minimal false negatives.
- Malicious presence blocking:
It supports response automation to prioritize threats, filter events, and deactivate access privileges.
USP: Cisco Secure IPS offers flexible deployment. You can implement it at the enterprise perimeter, in your data center, or behind a firewall since it is available as a hardware appliance as well as a software solution.
Pricing: Pricing starts at $35,000.
Editorial comments: Cisco Secure IPS is ideal for large enterprises. However, customers have mentioned that the documentation is insufficient, and fine-tuning the policies can be time-consuming.
See More: What Is Network Security? Definition, Types, and Best Practices
6. Darktrace Enterprise Immune System
Overview: Darktrace is an AI-based cybersecurity company with offices in the U.K. and the U.S. It offers self-learning security tools.
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring:
It analyzes the end-to-end environment spanning IoT, private networks, SaaS, clouds, and data centers to look for intruders.
- Intrusion rules enforcement:
The tool automatically learns and analyzes network activity based on adaptive intrusion rules.
- Activity logs and insights:
It maintains precise logs about all security events and connects with security information and event management (SIEM) systems to generate reports.
- Malicious presence detection:
It can detect unknown malware and ransomware by identifying subtle deviations from normal network behavior.
- Malicious presence blocking:
The tool&#;s AI can autonomously block intruders when it realizes that there has been a compromise.
USP: Darktrace is powered by cutting-edge AI technology that self-learns and acts autonomously. This simplifies projection against a wide range of intrusion risks, from data exfiltration to insider threats.
Pricing: Pricing will depend on the deployment environment &#; e.g., it costs $30,000 annually on AWS.
Editorial comments: Darktrace is thorough and detects abnormal activities even if they are imperceptible. However, it may result in false positives, and users note that the tool slows down systems due to its bandwidth-heavy nature.
7. IBM Intrusion Detection and Prevention System (IDPS) Management
Overview: IBM offers an intrusion detection and prevention system that helps consolidate IDPS tools and break down silos. It is powered by the IBM Security X-Force threat intelligence database.
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring:
It has a virtual security operations center (SOC) to monitor network devices and activity around the clock.
- Intrusion rules enforcement:
It consolidates intrusion detection rules from multiple vendors and configures unique rules through managed services.
- Activity logs and insights:
The virtual SOC displays detailed dashboards containing data logs and insights.
- Malicious presence detection:
IBM&#;s X-Force team provides customers with AI-powered detection and security orchestration.
- Malicious presence blocking:
IBM Cloud Pak for Security lets you automate the blocking and response process, and there is always a managed service team for help.
USP: IBM can protect highly complex IT environments by incorporating human expertise and threat intelligence services. This provides you with a holistic solution without fragmented tools.
Pricing: Pricing for IBM IDPS Management is undisclosed.
Editorial comments: The tool is a good fit for companies with heterogeneous, multi-vendor environments using multiple clouds. However, it does not come with pre-built configurations and rules and requires time and effort to set up.
8. Meraki MX Advanced Security Edition
Overview: Originally founded in , Meraki is a networking company that was acquired by Cisco in . Today, it offers a wide range of network hardware and software solutions.
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring
: It constantly inspects file downloads and incoming traffic to detect intrusion or signs of malware.
- Intrusion rules enforcement:
You can enforce rules to detect malware, blacklisted URLs and IP addresses, SQL injection attempts, and more.
- Activity logs and insights:
It maintains detailed logs of security activity, and ad-hoc security reports are accessible via the built-in security center.
- Malicious presence detection
: It immediately detects malicious traffic and potential intrusions to send you alerts.
- Malicious presence blocking:
Once a malicious entity is detected, subsequent network packets from that source will be automatically blocked.
USP: Meraki MX is designed for intrusion detection and prevention in SD-WAN environments. It can be deployed in just three clicks and takes advantage of ML rules for log analysis.
Pricing: Pricing for the software license starts at approximately $4,600.
Editorial comments: SD-WAN users can definitely consider Meraki for intrusion detection and prevention. However, the tool may not be flexible enough for more complex environments, and users have noted that the quality of support has deteriorated in recent years.
9. NSFocus Next-Generation Intrusion Prevention System
Overview: NSFocus is a network and application security company. It offers an NGIPS solution that includes powerful intrusion prevention capabilities.
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring:
It monitors network and application traffic 24/7 and also prioritizes bandwidth availability for critical users.
I
ntrusion rules enforcement: It has prebuilt intrusion detection rules, powered by heuristics, AI, and signature and behavior-based detection.
- Activity logs and insights:
It maintains detailed and contextualized logs on network activity.
- Malicious presence detection:
It can detect a variety of anomalous behaviors such as sensitive data leakage, DDoS attacks, etc.
- Malicious presence blocking:
It automatically quarantines intruders in a virtual sandbox and blocks threats.
USP: NSFocus Next-Generation Intrusion Prevention System uses multi-stage AI analysis to reduce false negatives and false positives. This lets you identify intruders and visualize the attack chain accurately.
Pricing: Pricing for this solution is undisclosed.
Editorial comments: The tool&#;s multiple detection engines (IP reputation engines, antivirus engines, and static and dynamic analysis engines) drive reliable and comprehensive coverage. However, you may find the documentation to be lacking, and some customers have reported the absence of Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protection.
10. Snort
Overview: Snort is among the world&#;s oldest and most popular IDPS tools, launched in . It is an open-source tool, which is now managed by Cisco.
Key features: The key features of this IDPS tool include:
- 24/7 network monitoring:
It monitors the network 24/7 and alerts you about malicious network packets.
- Intrusion rules enforcement:
There are two sets of rules &#; the free Community ruleset and the Snort Subscriber ruleset, which is the same as the ones deployed to Cisco customers.
- Activity logs and insights:
It maintains detailed logs of incoming network packets and can be used as a packet logger when debugging networks.
- Malicious presence detection:
It matches incoming packets against intrusion rules and generates alerts for every match.
- Malicious presence blocking:
Snort automatically blocks network packets matching intrusion rules. Business customers can expect priority responses for false positives and custom rules.
USP: Snort is among the best open-source IDPS tools in the market. The paid versions offer access to Cisco&#;s up-to-date rules database at a very low cost.
Pricing: Snort Community is free. Paid subscriptions start at $29.99 per year.
Editorial comments: Snort is essentially a set of IDPS rules that you can adapt to any enterprise environment. However, it cannot function as a standalone solution and lacks premium support.
See More: What Is Zero Trust Security? Definition, Model, Framework and Vendors
Product Comparison of the Best IDPS Software in
Now that we have discussed these software solutions in detail, let us briefly summarize their key highlights:
Solution Name
Features
Pricing
Toolbox Comments
AirMagnet Enterprise
Its AirWISE engine analyzes wireless network activity using frame inspection, stateful pattern analysis, statistical modeling, radio-frequency analysis, and anomaly detection.
Pricing for the solution is approximately $10,325.
AirMagnet is a reliable tool for compliance purposes, but it may not be as sophisticated as solutions with AI and advanced automation.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) GuardDuty
It is built using ML, which means it adapts to your enterprise environment and becomes incrementally more effective with time.
Pricing starts at $0.80 per one million events or $1.00 per GB (region-specific).
GuardDuty is easy to deploy and has a one-click deployment process. However, it supports very little customization and does not allow users to maintain their own rules.
Azure Firewall Premium IDPS
It is constantly updated, with 20-40 new intrusion detection rules released every day.
Pricing starts at $1.75 per deployment hour and $0.016 per GB processed.
Microsoft offers scalable and easy-to-configure IDPS. However, it protects only Azure-based networks and requires cloud expertise.
Blumira
It claims to be 5X faster than the industry average, aided by intrusion evidence stacking, automatic prioritization, and correlation.
Pricing for Blumira is undisclosed.
Blumira is a compliant and comprehensive IDPS solution. However, the dashboards aren&#;t configurable and can generate only CSV reports without any visualizations.
Cisco Secure IPS (NGIPS)
It offers flexible deployment at the enterprise perimeter, in your data center, or behind a firewall.
Pricing starts at $35,000.
Cisco Secure IPS is ideal for large enterprises. However, the documentation is insufficient, and fine-tuning the policies can be time-consuming.
Darktrace Enterprise Immune System
Darktrace is powered by cutting-edge AI technology that self-learns and acts autonomously.
Pricing will depend on the deployment environment &#; e.g., it costs $30,000 annually on AWS.
Darktrace detects abnormal activities even if they are imperceptible. However, it may result in false positives and slow down systems.
IBM Intrusion Detection and Prevention System (IDPS) Management
IBM can protect highly complex IT environments by incorporating human expertise and threat intelligence services.
Pricing for IBM IDPS Management is undisclosed.
The tool is a good fit for companies with heterogeneous environments. However, it does not come with pre-built configurations and rules.
Meraki MX Advanced Security Edition
It is designed for SD-WAN environments, uses ML, and can be deployed in just three clicks.
Pricing for the software license starts at approximately $4,600.
SD-WAN users can consider Meraki, but the tool may not be flexible enough for complex environments. Also, users have noted that the quality of support has deteriorated in recent years.
NSFocus Next-Generation Intrusion Prevention System
It uses multi-stage AI analysis to visualize the attack chain accurately.
Pricing for this solution is undisclosed.
The tool&#;s multiple detection engines drive reliable and comprehensive coverage. However, the documentation is insufficient, and customers have reported the absence of SSL protection.
Snort
The paid versions offer access to Cisco&#;s up-to-date rules database at a very low cost.
Snort Community is free. Paid subscriptions start at $29.99 per year.
Snort is essentially a set of IDPS rules that you can adapt to any enterprise environment. However, it cannot function as a standalone solution and lacks premium support.
Key takeaways
The first sign of any cyberattack is a breach of the network perimeter and an intrusion into your enterprise environment. To prevent such an attack from causing further damage, it is vital to detect and block it early on using an IDPS. When selecting an IDPS, enterprises should remember that:
IDPS can be of four types, and you can choose one solution for multiple use cases
IDPS tools are a multi-billion dollar industry, with game-changing innovations like AI
Monitoring, rules, logs, detection, and blocking capabilities must be part of the core solution
IDPS tools protect your enterprise using the most sophisticated analysis technology and the latest threat intelligence rules to ensure end-to-end visibility and security.
Are you planning to invest in IDPS in ? Tell us on LinkedInOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , or FacebookOpens a new window . We&#;d love to hear from you!
MORE ON CYBERSECURITY AND INTRUSION MITIGATION
Intrusion detection systems (IDS) and intrusion prevention systems (IPS) are designed to protect an organization from ongoing cyber threats. However, not all of these systems work in the same way or have the same objectives. Important distinctions between types of systems include:
Intrusion detection system (IDS) vs. intrusion prevention system (IPS)
Host-based vs. network-based systems
Signature-based vs. anomaly-based detection
Understanding the distinctions between these categories of intrusion prevention systems is important when evaluating different options and selecting the right fit for an organization.
Also consider a service like Clearnetwork&#;s 24/7 Managed SOC Service, which is a fully managed service with no software or hardware to manage with the security benefits of an IDS + more for a surprisingly affordable price. Another option is our Managed CrowdStrike EDR service, which brings you Gartner-leading CrowdStrike EDR managed by our US-based team of experts who respond to threats all for an affordable cost.
Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) vs. Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)
The terms IDS and IPS describe the difference in how each technology responds to a detected threat. Any IPS is also an IDS, but the reverse is not typically true.
An IDS, as the name suggests, is designed to detect an intrusion on the network. This means that, if a potential cyberattack is detected, the system will raise an alert. The system itself does nothing to try to prevent the attack, leaving that responsibility to a human analyst or other technology.
An IPS, on the other hand, actively works to prevent an attack from succeeding. If an intrusion is detected, the IPS will respond based upon predefined formulas. Responses may include blocking incoming network traffic, killing a malicious process, quarantining a file, etc.
If an IPS is better at protecting the network against threats, why do IDS solutions still exist? IPS has the advantage of a faster response to detected threats, but an IPS may also incorrectly identify a threat and take action against a legitimate user, process, connection, etc.
IPS tools can also be more complex to install. IPS tools need to be installed so that they can control packet traffic and will be deployed as a separate appliance, on a firewall, or on a network router so that all network traffic will pass through the solution.
While older, IDS technology can be faster and easier to connect than IPS solutions. IDS tools do not need to intercept network packets so IDS solutions can simply be connected anywhere on a network where they can receive packet duplicates. While the IDS tool does not provide active response, it provides more control to the security team over how to engage in incident response and will not require as much tuning to be effective.
Host-Based vs. Network-Based Intrusion Detection/Prevention Systems
Intrusion detection or protection systems can also be classified based upon the focus of what it protects. IDS or IPS tools can be host-based, network-based, or both.
A host-based IDS or IPS protects a particular endpoint. It may monitor the network traffic entering and leaving the device, processes running on the system, modifications to files, etc.
A network-based solution performs monitoring of traffic on the network as a whole. These typically include a packet sniffer to collect packets from a network tap or by sniffing wireless traffic. This traffic is then analyzed for signs of malicious content and based upon the profiles of common types of attacks (such as scanning or a Distributed Denial of Service attack).
Signature-Based vs. Anomaly-Based Detection
IDS and IPS solutions identify potential threats based upon built-in rules and profiles. These rules generally will be based upon signatures or anomalies.
A signature-based algorithm compares network activity against known attacks. After a piece of malware or other malicious content has been identified and analyzed, unique features are extracted from it to create a fingerprint of that particular attack.
Signature-based detection systems compare all traffic, files, activity, etc. to a database of signatures. If a match is found, the IDS or IPS knows that the content is part of an attack.
Anomaly-based detection systems take a different approach to identifying malicious content. Instead of fingerprinting known attacks, they build a model of &#;normal&#; behavior for a particular system. After this &#;normal behavior&#; model is built, the tool can look for anything that doesn&#;t match its model (an anomaly). If the model is well-trained, any anomalies should be attacks.
In practice, many Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems combine both signature and anomaly detection. Anomaly-based detection can potentially catch zero-day threats but can suffer from high false positive rates since they alert on anything anomalous. Security teams could receive alerts or from benign activities such as setting up a new web server or installing new software on a machine.
Signature-based detection strategies have very low false positive detection rates but can only detect known attacks. Deploying solutions that adopt both strategies combines to make a more robust solution with better threat detection than with either approach in isolation.
The Best Intrusion Detection and Prevention System
Organizations can select from a variety of reasonably-priced and powerful IDS and IPS solutions that fit a variety of needs- from startups on a tight budget to global enterprises. Some will be standalone solutions and others will be features added to other security products.
Our guide to selecting the best solution consists of:
Important Factors in Choosing an IDS or IPS Solution
Leading IDS and IPS Solutions
Comparing IDS and IPS Solutions
Important Factors in Choosing an IDS or IPS Solution
IDS or IPS? Host-based or network-based? Standalone or integrated? The choice of what to use should be based upon an organization&#;s unique needs and resources. Budget, staffing, IT environment, risk tolerance, and business strategies all play a role in determining what solution provides a good fit.
It is also important to keep in mind that intrusion prevention system options are not always an &#;either/or&#; choice. Achieving comprehensive threat detection and prevention may require deploying both a host-based and a network-based Intrusion Detection and Prevention System or running multiple network-level IDS systems side-by-side to take advantage of their different strengths.
Another important consideration is the organization&#;s ability to cope with the output of the solution. IDS systems can be very inexpensive because they push the burden of responding to alerts off to the human talent on the security team.
IPS solutions can absorb some of that burden because many types of alerts can simply be automatically handled by the tool. However, IT security teams will still need to investigate and reverse potential false positives and investigate anomaly alerts that did not result in automated actions.
Some solutions will be highly specialized for particular purposes such as wireless networks. Other tools will be cloud-based and attempt to encompass enterprise-level environments consisting of multiple networks, cloud resources, etc. The &#;right&#; IDS or IPS will be the one that fits your IT and security needs right now and in the near future.
In a practical sense, many tools combine the features of both IDS and IPS with some calling themselves IDPS (IDS and IPS) solutions or Next Generation IPS (NGIPS) tools. As the tools become more complex, we also must consider whether our organization needs outside experts to install and configure these devices properly for our environment.
Leading IDS and IPS Solutions (Unranked)
AIDE
The Advanced Intrusion Detection Environment (AIDE) is an open-source host-based intrusion detection system (HIDS) for Unix, Linux, and Mac OS. This specialized tool focuses on the very important niche of checking file integrity, but does not offer any broader malware or attack detection.
Pros:
Open source
Runs on MacOS and *nix systems
Verifies the integrity of files
Can target specific directories for monitoring or exclude certain files
Integrates with other tools
Cons:
Needs to be obtained from commercial vendor (such as Red Hat) or through a consultant for support
Less frequent updates
Very specific niche (file integrity) does not detect many types of attacks
Only protects the device upon which it is installed
BluVector
Formerly known as Cortex and now owned by Comcast, BluVector&#;s advanced threat detection solution uses artificial intelligence (AI) to complement an existing security stack. The AI detects fileless malware and zero-day threats and is designed to become more powerful the longer it sits in the environment.
Pros:
On premise
Collects logs
Builds off of trusted Suricata and Zeek technology
Integrates with other tools
Open platform &#; data is easily available
Takes in data from multiple intel feeds and sandboxes
Proprietary machine learning algorithm adds to capabilities
Broad MITRE ATT&CK coverage, does not use signature technology
Built-in tuning assistant to reduce false positives easily
Cons:
Requires local resources, not built to support the cloud
No published license costs makes it difficult to compare with other solutions
Check Point Quantum IPS
Check Point embeds their Quantum IPS into their next generation firewall (NGFW) solutions to scan packets passing through the device. This device can replace a variety of other devices (firewalls, VPNs, etc.) and provides both IDS and IPS functionality.
Pros:
Up to 15 Gbps integrated IPS performance
Detailed and customizable reports
Vulnerability detection for HTTP, POP, IMAP, SMTP, and more
Policies can be configured by vendor, product, protocol, file type, and threat year
Updates every two hours via a security gateway
Built-in antivirus, anti-bot and sandboxing
Blocks DNS tunneling, signature-less attacks, known CVEs.
Uses both signature and anomaly detection
Cons:
Sold as hardware (secure gateway) only
No support for off-site (cloud, remote) resources that are not rerouted through the gateway
Internal network traffic must be routed through the gateway for protection
Cisco NGIPS
Cisco markets their Secure IPS product as a next generation intrusion prevention system (NGIPS) with over 35,000 built-in IPS rules and broad capabilities for detecting and blocking anomalous traffic. Secure IPS can be integrated with other Cisco devices or deployed as a stand-alone IPS.
Pros:
Can deploy as hardware or in a virtual machine
Detect fileless threats
Embedded DNS, IP and URL security intelligence
Threat analysis and scoring
File sandboxing
Integrates Snort 3.0
Uses signature and anomaly detection
Cons:
Some customers complain that the interface could be more user-friendly
SSL decrypt requires a lot of memory and CPU power
Pricing varies depending upon type of product, number of licensed years, and level of support.
More expensive solution
Fail2Ban
Fail2Ban is an open-source host-based IPS designed to detect and respond to suspicious or malicious IP addresses based upon monitoring of log files. Analysts can combine &#;filters&#; (detection rules) with automated remediation actions to form a &#;jail&#;.
Pros:
Open source and available for free
Runs on *nix and MacOS systems
Log file analysis to identify suspicious events (such as repeated failed login attempts)
Automatic blocking of suspicious/malicious IP addresses
Effective against brute force and denial of service (DoS) attacks
Blocked IP tables can be fed to firewalls and other security devices
Cons:
Focuses on repeated malicious actions from a single IP address (can miss DDoS attacks)
Too tight a policy can ban legitimate users
No paid support available
No user-friendly GUI
Only blocks IP addresses, does not detect or block other types of attacks
Fidelis Network
Fidelis Cybersecurity&#;s Network IPS product analyzes network traffic to calculate the risk of all assets and communication in the network. The tool integrates with other Fidelis tools that protect other assets such as endpoints, cloud applications, and containers.
Pros:
Uses the MITRE ATT&CK knowledge base to identify and respond to threats
Can decrypt and analyze encrypted network traffic
Supports cloud and local network
Tracks shadow IT deployments
Integrates with other security solutions
Part of an extended detection and response (XDR) solution
Offers sandboxing capabilities
Identifies account takeover, insider threat and hacker activity
Built-in OCR scanner to scan image and PDF attachments for emails
24/7 global and web support
15-day free trial
Cons:
Hillstone Networks
Hillstone Networks offers high-speed dedicated appliances for network IPS and next generation firewalls. Hillstone IPS hardware has been installed in over 20,000 customers since and offers a range of appliances to meet a flexible range of needs.
Pros:
13,000 signatures built-in, custom signatures, and anomaly detection
Sandboxing capabilities for investigation
Detection capabilities from layer 3 to layer 7
Application aware
Options for anti-spam and URL-blocking
Cloud-based management of distributed devices
Cons:
Kismet
Kismet&#;s open-source solution sniffs wireless traffic and can act as a wardriving tool or a wireless IDS tool. Kismet works with most wi-fi cards, bluetooth devices and other hardware.
Pros:
If you are looking for more details, kindly visit Perimeter Intrusion Detection System.
Open-source free solution
Wireless network and device specialist
Supports Linux, OSX, and Windows 10 (limited)
Exposes unauthorized access points
Extended plugin support for web user interface and functionality enhancements
Cons:
NSFOCUS
The Santa Clara and Beijing-based NSFOCUS provides a next generation IPS solution with a throughput of up to 20 Gbps.
Pros:
Response options include: block, pass-through, alert, quarantine, and capture
Secures against webshell, XSS, SQL injection and malicious URLs
9,000+ threat signatures and advanced anomaly detection
Categories for IPS policies and complex password policies
Traffic analysis, bandwidth management and Netflow data on inbound and outbound traffic
Protects against a variety of distributed DoS (DDoS) attacks
Can integrate with threat feeds
Cons:
OpenWIPS-NG
OpenWIPS-NG is an open-source wireless intrusion prevention system that can detect and block wireless network intrusions based upon a sensor. The sensor forwards information to a server with an analysis engine that detects intrusion patterns to issue alerts or to take actions.
Pros:
Highly flexible and free tool
Especially focused on wireless networks
Lightweight command-line interface
Cons:
OSSEC
OSSEC stands for open-source host-based security (despite the lack of an H in the acronym). OSSEC and the more robust OSSEC+ solution protect hosts by analyzing the system files for signs of malicious activity. A commercial version has been released by Atomicorp.
Pros:
Open source and free
Windows registry monitoring
MacOS privilege escalation detection
Monitors log file checksums to detect tampering
Widely used &#; over 500,000 annual downloads
Cons:
Palo Alto Networks
Palo Alto Networks offers an IPS for large businesses looking for support that comes with a commercial solution. Their network IPS starts at $9,509.50 and can be deployed as hardware, software (virtual machines or containers), as a cloud service, or integrated into next generation firewalls.
Pros:
Constantly updated threat protection profiles
Blocks harmful sites
Multiple defensive laters combining signature and anomalous analysis
Blocks malformed packets, TCP reassembly, IP defragmentation, and C2 attacks
Can deploy Snort and Suricata rules
Cloud-native option
Integrates vulnerability protection, anti-malware, and anti-spyware detection
Can scan encrypted traffic
Cons:
More expensive option
Lack of visibility into file analysis details
Users complain that somle configurations have overly complex implementation steps
Some users complain about the level of support
Sagan
Sagan is a host-based open-source IPS that focuses on log analysis. An unusual aspect of the software is that while it can only be installed on Unix, Linux, or MacOS it can accept log data from Windows or from network IDS tools such as Snort. Sagan also integrates with firewalls to block IP addresses from detected external attackers. .
Pros:
Open source and free
Compatible with Snort, Snorby, BASE, and more.
Can ingest log files from Windows, Zeek and Suicata.
Multiple third-party integrations
Lightweight, high performance, multi-threaded architecture
Real time log analysis
IP locator feature that shows the geographical location of an IP address
Cons:
Samhain
Samhain Design Labs of Germany produces the free, host-based IDS solution that can be run on many hosts and used to feed into a central monitoring repository. Samhain is notable because it uses steganography to hide its presence on a host computer which make it likely that attackers will not be able to disable its monitoring.
Free
Runs on MacOS, Unix, and Linux systems
Looks for rootkit viruses, rogue user access rights, hidden processes
Checks log integrity
Lightweight and can obscure its presence to prevent disabling by attackers
Cons:
Does not automatically block or remediate attacks
Outdated interface, difficult to use
Smaller community than more popular open-source tools
Open source free version does not come with support
Not available for Windows
Security Onion
Security Onion is a Linux IDS that can monitor both the host and the network. The open-source solution incorporates aspects of Snort, Suricata, Zeek, and other popular open-source security tools behind a Kibana visualization dashboard.
Pros:
Open-source Linux distribution
Integrates a number of popular IDS tools
Examines host log files and network traffic
Can perform live network traffic analysis and store packets to a file
Uses both signature and anomaly analysis
Cons:
Snort
Snort is probably the most well-known and popular IPS in existence. Its extremely large fan base has led to its rule formats being accepted as a widely-used standard, and many other IDS and IPS tools are built to be compatible with it.
Pros:
Open source and free
Installs on Linux, Unix, or MacOS, but will support Windows analysis
Large library of pre-built detection rules
Sniffer, packet logger, intrusion detection
Both signature and anomaly analysis
Deep visibility into network traffic
Supported by Cisco
Base rules can be downloaded, advanced access to new rules available for a fee
Cons:
SolarWinds SEM
SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM) is a paid IPS and log analysis tool built off of Snort and designed for enterprise environments. It is available as a subscription service for $2,525 and up, and lifetime licenses are available starting at $4,485.
Pros:
Runs on Windows
Supports Windows, MacOS, Unix and Linux log files
Collects and analyzes network and host data
Integrates with Snort for network analysis
Over 700 built-in rules for event correlation
File integrity monitoring
User-friendly interface
Compliance reporting and forensic analysis functions
Alerts can be managed as rules with customizable response options
Can perform as a Security Intrusion and Event Management (SIEM) solution
Cons:
Suricata
Suricata is designed to be an alternative to Snort. It is compatible with Snort file formats, rules, etc. and is also a free option. It includes features not available in Snort, such as performing network traffic analysis at the application level (which enables detection of malicious content spread over multiple packets). Zeek&#;s creator also offers an appliance that combines Suricata and Zeek features into one appliance.
Pros:
Open source and free
Data collection at application layer
Can monitor multiple protocols such as TLS, HTTP, and SSL
Deep network traffic visibility
Integration with a number of third-party tools
Lua scripting support
User-friendly interface
Parallel processing with GPU support
Uses both signature and anomaly analysis
Cons:
Trellix Network Security (McAfee + FireEye)
The details regarding the Trellix network security product may change in the near future since the company&#;s extended detection and response (XDR) platform is being created based upon McAfee&#;s Network Security Platform (NSP) and FireEye&#;s network security products. A series of mergers of the companies, the brands, and the technologies took place in July , but the original products can still be found on the individual company websites.
Pros:
Protection against bots, Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), ransomware, and many other attacks
Blocks harmful sites and downloads
Protects cloud and on-prem devices
FireEye&#;s IPS was deployed as part of the network security and forensics solution
FireEye&#;s technology focused on anomaly detection, McAfee focused on signature detection
Run on physical or virtual appliances
Sandboxing capabilities
Detect and block malware, phishing, exploits, command and control (C2) callbacks, and botnets.
Cons:
False positives for harmful site detection
Negatively impacts network performance
Pricing will be confusing until older products discontinued
Trend Micro (IPS)
Trend Micros&#; IPS solution is available as a physical or a virtual appliance to be deployed inline on local networks, private clouds, or public clouds.
Pros:
Incorporates Trend Micro&#;s antivirus signatures as well as machine learning.
Sandbox capability for investigation
Deploys with rules and security policies to block current and previous threats
Uses deep packet inspection, malware analysis, URL reputation, and threat reputation
Applies both signature and anomaly analysis
Scans inbound, outbound, and lateral traffic
Cons:
Does not yet integrate with other IPS or TrendMicro products (DBI, IWSVA, etc.)
Automatic application of rules can disrupt business processes
More expensive option
Vectra Cognito
Vectra&#;s Cognito IPS platform applies AI to analyze traffic from public clouds sources, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), user identity information, Networks and EDR to detect and block malicious attacks.
Pros:
Delivers results in well known Zeek format
Integrates with a variety of security tools
Will pull data from a variety of endpoints
Offers strong cloud and container (Kerberos) support
Primarily uses anomaly detection
Cons:
More expensive option
Does not have flexible geographic location for processing data
Use proprietary logging format
Can generate many false positives if misconfigured or not tuned well
Zeek (AKA: Bro)
Zeek, formerly known as Bro, is an extremely powerful network-focused IDS. Zeek&#;s built-in scripting support enables a great deal of customization and customized automated responses to identified threats. Zeek&#;s creator offers pre-packaged physical or virtual Zeek appliances as Corelight with user-friendly GUIs, scripts, and extra support.
Pros:
Open source Zeek is available at no cost
Runs on MacOS and *nix systems
Deep visibility into network traffic
Integrated traffic logging
Tasks enable customized automation
Monitor SNMP traffic and track FTP, DNS, and HTTP activity
Runs analysis at the application layer for broader analysis
Applies both signature and anomaly detection
Cons:
Steep learning curve, requires deep SIEM and IDS knowledge
Open source free version does not come with support
Not available for Windows
ZScalar Cloud IPS
ZScalar&#;s IPS solution captures all traffic, whether the user is working on-site or remote and connecting to local data or cloud SaaS resources.
Pros:
Supports all types of resources: local data, cloud data, SaaS apps
Scalable metered solution that grows or shrinks as need
Can decrypt SSL traffic
Unlimited capacity
No hardware to buy or software to manage
Security teams can dig into IPS alerts and access the Zscaler threat library for more details.
Supports iOS, macOS, Android, Windows, some Linux.
Supports mobile devices
Cons:
Offered only as a SaaS license
May not support all OS
Can add latency to network performance
Global installation and custom app alignment can be difficult and time consuming
Comparing IDS and IPS Options
Not every Intrusion Detection and Prevention System is created equal. With many different types of systems (IDS vs. IPS, host-based (HIDS) vs. network-based (Network), signature vs. anomaly detection), it is important to understand the purpose that a particular system is designed to fulfill and how it does its job.
IDS/IPS and Host/Network
Supported Platforms
Detection
Price
AIDE
IDS, Host
Unix, Linux, and Mac OS
File integrity check (only)
Free*
BluVector
IDS, Network
Not specified
Broad threat detection
Not available
Check Point Quantum IPS
IDS, IPS, Network
Appliance
Broad threat detection
$1,500+ / year
Cisco NGIPS
IPS, Network
Appliance, VMware
Broad threat detection
$1,280+ / year
Fail2Ban
IDS, IPS, Host
Unix, Linux, and Mac OS
Detects potentially malicious IP addresses
Free
Fidelis Network
IDS, IPS, Network
Not specified
Broad threat detection
$78,000+ / year based on GB bandwidth and days of storage
Hillstone Networks
IDS, IPS, Network
Appliance
Broad threat detection
Perpetual license based on users and functionality
Kismet
IDS, Network
Linux, OSX, Windows 10 (limited)
Wireless IDS only
Free
NSFOCUS
IDS, IPS, Network
Not specified
Broad threat detection
Not available
OpenWIPS-NG
IDS, IPS, Network
Linux
Wireless Networks
Free
OSSEC
IDS, IPS, Host
Unix, Linux, MacOS, Windows
System file monitoring
Free*
Palo Alto Networks
IDS, IPS, Network
Appliance, Container, VM
Broad threat detection
$9,509.50+
Sagan
IDS, IPS, Host
Unix, Linux, MacOS
Log file analysis, IP blocking
Free
Samhain
IDS, Host
Linux, Unix, MacOS
File integrity checking, log file analysis, rootkit detection
Free
Security Onion
IDS, Network, Host
Linux only
Broad threat detection
Free*
Snort
IDS, IPS, Network
Linux, Unix, MacOS
Broad threat detection
Free, $399+ for rules subscription
SolarWinds SEM
IDS, IPS, Network, Host
Windows, Linux, Unix, MacOS
Broad threat detection
$2,525+
Suricata
IDS, IPS, Network
Windows, Linux, Unix, MacOS
Broad threat detection
Free
Trellix (McAfee + FireEye)
IDS, IPS, Network
Appliance or software
Broad threat detection
$10,995+
Trend Micro
IDS, IPS, Network
Appliance or software
Broad threat detection
Not available
Vectra Cognito
IDS, IPS, Network, Cloud
Appliance or software
Broad threat detection
$10,000+, based on IP addresses
Zeek (AKA: Bro)
IDS, Network
Windows, Linux, Unix, MacOS
Broad threat detection
Free*
ZScalar Cloud IPS
IDS, IPS, Network, Cloud
Windows, MacOS, some Linux, Android, iOS
Broad threat detection
Offers different levels: Business, Transformation, ELA
*Support or preloaded appliances available from 3rd party vendors for a fee
Sources
https://www.comparitech.com/net-admin/ids-vs-ips/
https://www.esecurityplanet.com/products/top-intrusion-detection-prevention-systems.html
https://www.dnsstuff.com/network-intrusion-detection-software
https://www.comparitech.com/net-admin/network-intrusion-detection-tools/
https://www.csoonline.com/article//12-top-idsips-tools.html
https://www.softwaretestinghelp.com/intrusion-detection-systems/
https://www.comparitech.com/net-admin/network-intrusion
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