Field Effect vs Thales (S21sec)
Field Effect is a Platform vendor that requires its own security platform. Thales (S21sec) is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. Field Effect targets SMB and Mid-market organizations; Thales (S21sec) serves Enterprise. Field Effect includes 4 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Identity), compared to 2 for Thales (S21sec) (Network, OT/ICS).
Buyer brief
Field Effect is a Platform vendor that requires its own security platform. Thales (S21sec) is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. Field Effect targets SMB and Mid-market organizations; Thales (S21sec) serves Enterprise. Field Effect includes 4 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Identity), compared to 2 for Thales (S21sec) (Network, OT/ICS).
Field Effect is the choice if you want a single-vendor stack with deep integration. Thales (S21sec) is better if you have existing tools and want flexibility.
At a glance
| FIELD |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Best fit | SMBs and MSPs wanting affordable MDR with published per-user pricing | Critical infrastructure and public-sector buyers that need Thales/S21sec regional cyber detection and response |
| Price | MDR Core: $3-$20/user/mo | Custom quote |
| Response authority | 5/6 actions · Configurable | 2/6 actions · Configurable |
| Stack | Requires own platform | Works with existing stack |
| Data access | Dashboards | Reports only |
| Warranty | None listed | None listed |
- Best fit
- SMBs and MSPs wanting affordable MDR with published per-user pricing
- Price
- MDR Core: $3-$20/user/mo
- Response authority
- 5/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Requires own platform
- Data access
- Dashboards
- Warranty
- None listed
- Best fit
- Critical infrastructure and public-sector buyers that need Thales/S21sec regional cyber detection and response
- Price
- Custom quote
- Response authority
- 2/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Works with existing stack
- Data access
- Reports only
- Warranty
- None listed
Detailed comparison
| FIELD | Field EffectPLATFORM | Thales (S21sec)TECH-AGNOSTIC |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | ||
| Target size | SMB, Mid-market | Enterprise |
| Sentiment | Positive | Mixed |
| Your stack | ||
| Approach | Requires their platform | Works with your tools |
| EDR integrations | Field Effect Agent (proprietary, required)Carbon Black (enrichment)Palo Alto Cortex XDR (enrichment)Cisco Meraki (enrichment)Zscaler (enrichment)Thinkst Canary (enrichment) | Customer endpoint security tools |
| SIEM integrations | Syslog ingestion supported | Customer SIEM platformsThales SOC tooling |
| Coverage | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: CoveredIDIdentity: CoveredSaaSSaaS: CoveredNetNetwork: Optional add-onOTOT/IoT: Not covered | EPEndpoint: LimitedCloudCloud: LimitedIDIdentity: LimitedSaaSSaaS: LimitedNetNetwork: CoveredOTOT/IoT: Covered |
| Response | ||
| Response type | Active Remediation | Active Remediation |
| Approval policy | Configurable | Configurable |
| Response actions | IsolateKill processContainDisable accountsQuarantine | ContainCustom playbooks |
| IR included | Separate | ✓ Included |
| Cost | ||
| Price range | MDR Core: $3-$20/user/month (volume discounts apply). MDR Complete: custom pricing. | Not published |
| Minimum seats | None | None |
| Breach warranty | – | – |
| More details | ||
| Requires own agent | Yes | No |
| Endpoints | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Cloud workloads | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Identity | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| SaaS apps | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Network | + Optional | ✓ Included |
| OT/ICS | Not offered | ✓ Included |
| Threat hunting | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Response SLA | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| 24/7 coverage | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pricing model | Per-user, per-month | Custom quote for Thales Cyber Detection and Response, Managed Security Services, SOC and MDR. Public prices are not published. |
| Hidden cost warnings | MDR Core excludes network monitoring, DNS firewall, and dark web monitoring. Exact MDR Core price depends on volume and discounting within the published range. Requires proprietary Field Effect agent, cannot use existing EDR | The current S21sec domain routes to Thales-branded services, so buyers wanting legacy S21sec-specific delivery should confirm contracting entity, SOC location and delivery team.. Public pages do not publish prices, minimum terms, service credits, MTTD/MTTR or formal MDR SLAs.. Thales offers a broad cybersecurity services portfolio; buyers should separate base MDR scope from CTI, DRPS, DFIR, CERT, ICS monitoring and advisory services.. Named endpoint, identity and cloud containment actions are not public and should be confirmed tool by tool.. Data retention, raw log access, offboarding and detection-content export rights are not described publicly. |
| Data portability | Partial | Partial |
| Contract terms | Annual | Custom cyber detection and response engagement, Managed Security Services, SOC and MDR, Critical-infrastructure cybersecurity services |
| Channels | EmailPortalPhoneTeams | EmailPhonePortal |
| Data access | Dashboards | Reports only |
| Dedicated analyst | ✓ | – |
| SOC regions | North America | EuropeMEAAPAC |
| Onboarding | Hours to days for most customers | Not published. Thales describes customer-centric service roadmaps and selecting/deploying detection and response technologies, but no standard MDR onboarding timeline. |
| Industry focus | HealthcareFinancial ServicesGovernmentDefense ContractorsMSP/MSSP Channel | Critical InfrastructureGovernmentDefenseEnergyManufacturingAviationSpaceFinancial ServicesTelecommunicationsHealthcareTransportationAutomotiveUtilitiesMaritime |
| MTTD | 11 minutes overall MTTD, first detection in 2 minutes (MITRE Engenuity ATT&CK Managed Services Round 2, 2024) | Not published |
| MTTR | Not published | Not published |
| Community view | PeerSpot 9.2/10 (Jan 2026). SoftwareReviews 9.5/10 composite (423 verified reviews, +98 Net Emotional Footprint, Data Quadrant Leader four consecutive years 2022-2025). G2 Highest ROI in MDR, Winter 2026. Praised for easy setup, noise reduction, and MSP value. Main criticisms: limited third-party integrations and no raw log visibility. | The current public evidence is strong for Thales-branded global SOC, MDR, CTI, DFIR and critical-infrastructure detection and response, but weak for S21sec as a standalone public MDR brand. Buyers should validate current delivery model, SOC location, response authority, pricing and whether the contract is with Thales/S21sec in the relevant country. |
| Compliance | SOC 2 Type IIISO 27001PIPEDA | DORATIBER-EUPCI DSSEASA Part-ISEASAICAOUNECE |
| Certifications | SOC 2 Type IIISO 27001Microsoft Virus Initiative (MVI) | 8 threat intelligence and AI-driven SOCs around the worldSOCs in France, Morocco, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, Portugal and Spain, and New Zealand and Australia |
| Founded | 2016 | – |
| Data retention | 90 days included, extended options available as upgrade | Not published. Public pages do not describe default log retention, raw log access, storage tiers or export terms for Thales SOC and MDR. |
| API available | ✓ | – |
| Website | Visit → | Visit → |
FAQ
What is the main difference between Field Effect and Thales (S21sec)?
Field Effect is a Platform vendor that is platform-native (requires their own security stack). Thales (S21sec) is a Services firm that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). Field Effect covers 4 attack surfaces in base pricing vs. 2 for Thales (S21sec).
How do Field Effect and Thales (S21sec) differ in response capabilities?
Field Effect supports 5 autonomous actions (account disable, endpoint isolation, file quarantine, network containment, process termination) and approval is configurable. Thales (S21sec) supports 2 autonomous actions (custom playbooks, network containment) and approval is configurable. Incident response is not included with Field Effect and included with Thales (S21sec).
How does Field Effect pricing compare to Thales (S21sec)?
Field Effect pricing: MDR Core: $3-$20/user/month (volume discounts apply). MDR Complete: custom pricing.. Thales (S21sec) pricing: Not published. Watch for with Field Effect: MDR Core excludes network monitoring, DNS firewall, and dark web monitoring; Exact MDR Core price depends on volume and discounting within the published range. Watch for with Thales (S21sec): The current S21sec domain routes to Thales-branded services, so buyers wanting legacy S21sec-specific delivery should confirm contracting entity, SOC location and delivery team.; Public pages do not publish prices, minimum terms, service credits, MTTD/MTTR or formal MDR SLAs..
Should I choose Field Effect or Thales (S21sec)?
Choose Field Effect if: sMBs and MSPs wanting affordable MDR with published per-user pricing. Choose Thales (S21sec) if: critical infrastructure and public-sector buyers that need Thales/S21sec regional cyber detection and response. Field Effect is not ideal for organizations with existing CrowdStrike/SentinelOne/Defender deployments (requires proprietary agent). Thales (S21sec) is not ideal for buyers that need a standalone legacy S21sec-branded MDR package.
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.