NCC Group vs Thales (S21sec)
NCC Group and Thales (S21sec) are both Services firms that work with your existing tools. NCC Group targets Mid-market and Enterprise organizations, while Thales (S21sec) serves Enterprise. NCC Group includes 4 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Network), compared to 2 for Thales (S21sec) (Network, OT/ICS).
Buyer brief
NCC Group and Thales (S21sec) are both Services firms that work with your existing tools. NCC Group targets Mid-market and Enterprise organizations, while Thales (S21sec) serves Enterprise. NCC Group includes 4 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Network), compared to 2 for Thales (S21sec) (Network, OT/ICS).
NCC Group offers broader coverage (4 surfaces vs. 2). Thales (S21sec) may suit teams that need depth over breadth.
At a glance
| FIELD |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Best fit | European enterprise and government organizations running Microsoft Sentinel or Splunk as their SIEM | Critical infrastructure and public-sector buyers that need Thales/S21sec regional cyber detection and response |
| Price | Custom quote | Custom quote |
| Response authority | 5/6 actions · Configurable | 2/6 actions · Configurable |
| Stack | Works with existing stack | Works with existing stack |
| Data access | Dashboards | Reports only |
| Warranty | None listed | None listed |
- Best fit
- European enterprise and government organizations running Microsoft Sentinel or Splunk as their SIEM
- Price
- Custom quote
- Response authority
- 5/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Works with existing stack
- 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 | NCC GroupTECH-AGNOSTIC | Thales (S21sec)TECH-AGNOSTIC |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | ||
| Target size | Mid-market, Enterprise | Enterprise |
| Sentiment | Mixed | Mixed |
| Your stack | ||
| Approach | Works with your tools | Works with your tools |
| EDR integrations | Microsoft DefenderCrowdStrike | Customer endpoint security tools |
| SIEM integrations | Microsoft SentinelSplunk | Customer SIEM platformsThales SOC tooling |
| Coverage | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: CoveredIDIdentity: LimitedSaaSSaaS: CoveredNetNetwork: CoveredOTOT/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 processContainQuarantineCustom playbooks | ContainCustom playbooks |
| IR included | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Cost | ||
| Price range | Not published. Custom quotes only. | Not published |
| Minimum seats | None | None |
| Breach warranty | – | – |
| More details | ||
| Requires own agent | No | No |
| Endpoints | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Cloud workloads | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Identity | ~ Limited | ~ Limited |
| SaaS apps | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Network | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| OT/ICS | Not offered | ✓ Included |
| Threat hunting | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Response SLA | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| 24/7 coverage | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pricing model | Not published. Custom quotes. Evidence of large-scale enterprise pricing: EUR 25M+ contract for Netherlands university consortium (23+ universities, 5-year term). | Custom quote for Thales Cyber Detection and Response, Managed Security Services, SOC and MDR. Public prices are not published. |
| Hidden cost warnings | MXDR for Microsoft and MXDR for Splunk are separate offerings. Customers using both Sentinel and Splunk may face separate engagements.. Only Microsoft Defender and CrowdStrike EDR integrations are confirmed. Other EDR platforms may not be supported.. Post-breach advisory limited to 2 hours included. Full IR engagement is a separate NCC Group consulting purchase.. SIEM licensing (Microsoft Sentinel or Splunk) is the customer's cost, not included in MXDR pricing | 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, Multi-year | Custom cyber detection and response engagement, Managed Security Services, SOC and MDR, Critical-infrastructure cybersecurity services |
| Channels | EmailPortalPhone | EmailPhonePortal |
| Data access | Dashboards | Reports only |
| Dedicated analyst | – | – |
| SOC regions | Europe | EuropeMEAAPAC |
| Onboarding | Weeks, not months (vendor claim). Uses infrastructure-as-code deployment. Exact timeline not published. | Not published. Thales describes customer-centric service roadmaps and selecting/deploying detection and response technologies, but no standard MDR onboarding timeline. |
| Industry focus | GovernmentHigher EducationFinancial ServicesManufacturingEnergyTelecommunications | Critical InfrastructureGovernmentDefenseEnergyManufacturingAviationSpaceFinancial ServicesTelecommunicationsHealthcareTransportationAutomotiveUtilitiesMaritime |
| MTTD | Not published | Not published |
| MTTR | 25 minutes average time to close (vendor-published). 95% of threats resolved within 2 hours. | Not published |
| Community view | Strong analyst recognition: Forrester Wave MDR Europe Q3 2025 Strong Performer, IDC MarketScape European MDR 2024 Leader. Virtually no practitioner reviews on G2 (not MDR-specific), PeerSpot (0 reviews, ranked 43rd in MDR), or Reddit. Analyst praise for threat hunting and consultative approach, but buyers cannot reference peer experiences. | 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 | ISO 27001:2022ISO 9001:2015PCI QSAPCI ASV | DORATIBER-EUPCI DSSEASA Part-ISEASAICAOUNECE |
| Certifications | ISO 27001:2022ISO 9001:2015PCI Qualified Security Assessor (QSA)PCI Approved Scan Vendor (ASV)FedRAMP 3PAO (Third-Party Assessment Organization) | 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 | 1999 | – |
| Data retention | Not published. | 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 NCC Group and Thales (S21sec)?
NCC Group is a Services firm that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). Thales (S21sec) is a Services firm that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). NCC Group covers 4 attack surfaces in base pricing vs. 2 for Thales (S21sec).
How do NCC Group and Thales (S21sec) differ in response capabilities?
NCC Group supports 5 autonomous actions (custom playbooks, 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.
How does NCC Group pricing compare to Thales (S21sec)?
NCC Group pricing: Not published. Custom quotes only.. Thales (S21sec) pricing: Not published. Watch for with NCC Group: MXDR for Microsoft and MXDR for Splunk are separate offerings. Customers using both Sentinel and Splunk may face separate engagements.; Only Microsoft Defender and CrowdStrike EDR integrations are confirmed. Other EDR platforms may not be supported.. 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 NCC Group or Thales (S21sec)?
Choose NCC Group if: european enterprise and government organizations running Microsoft Sentinel or Splunk as their SIEM. Choose Thales (S21sec) if: critical infrastructure and public-sector buyers that need Thales/S21sec regional cyber detection and response. NCC Group is not ideal for organizations running a SIEM other than Microsoft Sentinel or Splunk (only two supported). 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.