Critical Start vs ITC Secure
Critical Start is a Pure-play MDR that works with your existing tools. ITC Secure is a Microsoft-ecosystem that works with your existing tools. Critical Start targets Mid-market and Enterprise organizations; ITC Secure serves Mid-market and Enterprise. Critical Start includes 5 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Identity, Network), compared to 3 for ITC Secure (Endpoint, SaaS, Identity).
Buyer brief
Critical Start is a Pure-play MDR that works with your existing tools. ITC Secure is a Microsoft-ecosystem that works with your existing tools. Critical Start targets Mid-market and Enterprise organizations; ITC Secure serves Mid-market and Enterprise. Critical Start includes 5 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Identity, Network), compared to 3 for ITC Secure (Endpoint, SaaS, Identity).
Critical Start (Pure-play MDR) and ITC Secure (Microsoft-ecosystem) serve different buyer profiles. Your decision depends on whether you prioritize Critical Start's technology-agnostic mdr with tbr deterministic alert auto-resolution, 100+ integrations, ot/ics s... or ITC Secure's itc secure fits buyers that want microsoft-centered mxdr with pulse portal visibility, service re....
At a glance
| FIELD |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Best fit | Mid-market to large enterprises wanting technology-agnostic MDR that works with their existing security stack | Microsoft-centered buyers that want a verified managed XDR provider rather than a pure-play MDR platform |
| Price | Not published | Custom quote |
| Response authority | 6/6 actions · Configurable | 0/6 actions · Configurable |
| Stack | Works with existing stack | Works with existing stack |
| Data access | Dashboards | Dashboards |
| Warranty | None listed | None listed |
- Best fit
- Mid-market to large enterprises wanting technology-agnostic MDR that works with their existing security stack
- Price
- Not published
- Response authority
- 6/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Works with existing stack
- Data access
- Dashboards
- Warranty
- None listed
- Best fit
- Microsoft-centered buyers that want a verified managed XDR provider rather than a pure-play MDR platform
- Price
- Custom quote
- Response authority
- 0/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Works with existing stack
- Data access
- Dashboards
- Warranty
- None listed
Detailed comparison
| FIELD | Critical StartTECH-AGNOSTIC | ITC SecureTECH-AGNOSTIC |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | ||
| Target size | Mid-market, Enterprise | Mid-market, Enterprise |
| Sentiment | Positive | Mixed |
| Your stack | ||
| Approach | Works with your tools | Works with your tools |
| EDR integrations | CrowdStrikeSentinelOnePalo Alto Cortex Microsoft Defender | Microsoft Defender |
| SIEM integrations | SplunkSumo Logic Microsoft Sentinel | Microsoft Sentinel |
| Coverage | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: CoveredIDIdentity: CoveredSaaSSaaS: CoveredNetNetwork: CoveredOTOT/IoT: Optional add-on | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: LimitedIDIdentity: CoveredSaaSSaaS: CoveredNetNetwork: LimitedOTOT/IoT: Limited |
| Response | ||
| Response type | Active Remediation | Active Remediation |
| Approval policy | Configurable | Configurable |
| Response actions | IsolateKill processContainDisable accountsQuarantineCustom playbooks | Alert and notify only |
| IR included | Separate | Separate |
| Cost | ||
| Price range | Not published | Not published |
| Minimum seats | None | None |
| Breach warranty | – | – |
| More details | ||
| Requires own agent | No | No |
| Endpoints | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Cloud workloads | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Identity | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| SaaS apps | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Network | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| OT/ICS | + Optional | ~ Limited |
| Threat hunting | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Response SLA | ≤1 hour | Not disclosed |
| 24/7 coverage | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pricing model | Custom enterprise pricing (annual subscription, tiered by coverage depth) | Custom quote. ITC Secure does not publish MXDR powered by Pulse package pricing. |
| Hidden cost warnings | No public pricing at all, requires sales call for any ballpark. OT/ICS monitoring and vulnerability management are separate purchases on top of base MDR. Full IR/DFIR requires separate CIRT engagement, not included in MDR contract. Annual contract commitment typically required with no published minimum seat count | Public pages do not publish MXDR pricing, contract minimums or service-credit language.. The service is Microsoft-centric, so Microsoft licensing, tenant readiness and log ingestion should be priced before comparison.. ITC Secure publishes broad MXDR components, including endpoint, identity, Office 365, cloud apps, storage, vulnerability management and OT. Buyers should confirm which components are included in their quote.. Public pages do not define default response authority, so containment permissions and approval rules should be written into the contract.. Incident response is listed as a separate service, so buyers should confirm what is included in MXDR versus a separate incident-response engagement. |
| Data portability | Partial | Partial |
| Contract terms | Annual, Multi-year | Custom, MXDR powered by Pulse, Managed services, Incident Response |
| Channels | EmailPortalPhone | PortalEmailPhone |
| Data access | Dashboards | Dashboards |
| Dedicated analyst | ✓ | – |
| SOC regions | North America | |
| Onboarding | 5-10 business days to first detection value (vendor-stated). 4-6 weeks for full enterprise onboarding. Vendor claims 2.66-day median TTFV for Microsoft Sentinel specifically. | Not published. ITC Secure publishes security engineering and SOC onboarding as a build-and-deploy service, but no standard MXDR implementation duration was found. |
| Industry focus | Financial ServicesHealthcareManufacturingTechnologyGovernmentProfessional ServicesRetailTransportation | Not published |
| MTTD | Not published | Not published |
| MTTR | 60 minutes or less median time to resolution for ALL alerts regardless of priority | Not published |
| Community view | Gartner Peer Insights 4.8/5 (53 reviews). PeerSpot 9.4/10, skewing large enterprise. Glassdoor 4.3/5 (140 reviews, some concerns about RIFs and turnover). IDC MarketScape Major Player (Emerging MDR, 2024). Praised for TBR noise reduction and SOC analyst accessibility. Criticized for onboarding communication gaps, missing Slack integration and opaque pricing. | No meaningful MDR-specific buyer-review signal was found in major English-language review communities during this pass. The public buyer case rests on ITC Secure's Microsoft focus, Microsoft Verified Managed XDR status, Pulse portal, long managed-service history and broad MXDR service components. Buyers should validate pricing, response authority, SOC operating model and exact component inclusion directly. |
| Compliance | SOC 2 Type IIISO 27001 | ISO 27001Cyber Essentials PlusISO/IEC 20000-1 |
| Certifications | SOC 2 Type IIISO 27001MISA (Microsoft Intelligent Security Association)Microsoft Solutions Partner for Security | Microsoft Verified Managed XDRMicrosoft Solutions Partner in SecurityMicrosoft Solutions Partner in Modern WorkMicrosoft Solutions Partner in Infrastructure AzureMicrosoft Intelligent Security AssociationCyber Essentials PlusISO/IEC 20000-1ISO/IEC 27001Great Place to Work Certification |
| Founded | 2012 | – |
| Data retention | CORR platform provides API access and data export (CSV/XLSX). Specific retention periods not publicly documented. | Not published. ITC Secure says Pulse provides visibility into customer security posture, activities, incident trends, Microsoft license consumption and service metrics. No standard public MXDR log-retention period or data-residency term was found. |
| API available | ✓ | – |
| Website | Visit → | Visit → |
FAQ
What is the main difference between Critical Start and ITC Secure?
Critical Start is a Pure-play MDR that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). ITC Secure is a Microsoft-ecosystem that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). SLA commitments differ: Critical Start offers ≤1 hour, ITC Secure offers Not disclosed. Critical Start covers 5 attack surfaces in base pricing vs. 3 for ITC Secure.
How do Critical Start and ITC Secure differ in response capabilities?
Critical Start supports 6 autonomous actions (account disable, custom playbooks, endpoint isolation, file quarantine, network containment, process termination) and approval is configurable. ITC Secure supports 0 autonomous actions (none) and approval is configurable.
How does Critical Start pricing compare to ITC Secure?
Critical Start pricing: Custom-quoted pricing. ITC Secure pricing: Not published. Watch for with Critical Start: No public pricing at all, requires sales call for any ballpark; OT/ICS monitoring and vulnerability management are separate purchases on top of base MDR. Watch for with ITC Secure: Public pages do not publish MXDR pricing, contract minimums or service-credit language.; The service is Microsoft-centric, so Microsoft licensing, tenant readiness and log ingestion should be priced before comparison..
Should I choose Critical Start or ITC Secure?
Choose Critical Start if: mid-market to large enterprises wanting technology-agnostic MDR that works with their existing security stack. Choose ITC Secure if: microsoft-centered buyers that want a verified managed XDR provider rather than a pure-play MDR platform. Critical Start is not ideal for sMBs or budget-conscious organizations, enterprise-focused pricing not published. ITC Secure is not ideal for buyers that need public MDR pricing before sales.
Daylight Security
AI-native MDR for buyers comparing active remediation across endpoint, cloud, identity, and SaaS. Daylight works with existing EDR/SIEM stacks and uses ChatOps-native collaboration, so it can be a useful third reference point in this comparison.