Why API-Only Email Security Vendors Leave You Vulnerable
Cloud email providers (Microsoft 365, Google Workspace) offer a robust set of APIs to provide additional services, and many email security vendors have leveraged these APIs for their solutions. API-based email security makes sense when offered as part of a comprehensive service that includes real-time protection. However, API-only approaches from vendors like Abnormal, Tessian and Armorblox have inherent shortcomings.
Here’s how relying on API-only email security vendors can increase phishing risks against your organization:
- Although they claim to offer “risk-free” deployment without touching mail flow, integration via API, by definition, means protection is not in real-time.
- By acting “after-the-attack,” when the threat has already reached inboxes, API-only solutions increase dwell time, the time between when a threat has already penetrated the environment and its discovery.
Why Area 1, Not API-Only Vendors?
Unlike API-only vendors, Area 1 Security is the best and only integrated cloud email security solution that preemptively stops threats before they reach inboxes.
With flexible cloud-native deployment options and no privacy risks, Area 1 closes the email security gap — and makes INBOX.CLEAN™ a reality.
With flexible cloud-native deployment options and no privacy risks, Area 1 closes the email security gap — and makes INBOX.CLEAN™ a reality.
| Area 1 Horizon | API-Only Solutions |
| Preemptive We stop phishing campaigns before they launch and reach inboxes. |
Delayed Actions API-only solutions can only remove threats after they’re already in inboxes. Threats sitting in inboxes increase attack dwell time, putting users and organizations at risk. |
| Flexible, Multi-Mode Deployments MX, inline, connector, API or a mix. You pick what works for your architecture. |
Single-Mode API-only deployments respond to threats, but don’t preempt them. |
| Comprehensive Email Security We’re a full suite, cloud-native email security solution, protecting against various threat types and covering multiple sources and vectors. With Area 1, you won’t even need a traditional Secure Email Gateway! |
Supplement Only API-only vendors are add-ons; you’ll still need additional security (such as a Secure Email Gateway or Microsoft 365 with ATP) for the threats they miss. |
| Scalable Performance We’re built to handle cloud traffic spikes and are not constrained by email provider limitations. Actions like message retraction can be taken across large volumes of messages. |
Limited Performance At-Scale For API-only solutions, performance is constrained by the cloud email provider’s limitations on API actions. This also means actions are not scalable across large volumes of messages. |
| Complete Privacy We provide highly accurate detections, including insider threat detection, without needing to access sensitive messages. |
Privacy Concerns API-only solutions access each message, which includes inspecting sensitive internal messages and confidential information. |
| Transparent to End Users Our solution protects users without distracting banners or interfering with their productivity. |
Noisy for End Users API-only solutions rely on end-user banners, notifications and actions, contributing directly to end-user fatigue and indirectly to SOC noise. |
WHAT CUSTOMERS SAY ABOUT AREA 1 HORIZON
AREA 1 SECURITY — THE ONLY PREEMPTIVE CLOUD EMAIL SECURITY WITH COMPREHENSIVE, CONTINUOUS PROTECTION
Comprehensive protection across threat types, vectors and sources.
Continuous security including pre-delivery, at-delivery and post-delivery protection.
AREA 1 PHISHING RISK ASSESSMENT
See what threats are already in your inboxes. Schedule a complimentary, risk-free Phishing Risk Assessment to see — in real-time — what’s getting through your current email defenses.