{"question": "best email security gateways for remote teams", "category": "email-security-gateways", "category_name": "email security gateways", "audience": "remote-teams", "audience_name": "remote teams", "engine": "Claude (Anthropic) with web search", "model": "claude-opus-5", "asked_at": "2026-10-12T00:29:51Z", "permalink": "https://bikoosh.com/answers/s/email-security-gateways-remote-teams-2026-10-12", "question_page": "https://bikoosh.com/answers/q/email-security-gateways/remote-teams", "brands_named": [{"position": 1, "brand": "Microsoft", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 2, "brand": "Microsoft 365", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 3, "brand": "Google", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 4, "brand": "Google Workspace", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 5, "brand": "Abnormal", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 6, "brand": "Avanan", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 7, "brand": "Slack", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 8, "brand": "Microsoft Defender", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 9, "brand": "Defender", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 10, "brand": "Plan 2", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 11, "brand": "Sublime", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 12, "brand": "IRONSCALES", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 13, "brand": "Material", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 14, "brand": "cloud-first", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 15, "brand": "Proofpoint", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 16, "brand": "Proofpoint Essentials", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 17, "brand": "Mimecast", "label": "mentioned"}], "sources_cited": [{"url": "https://cipherssecurity.com/best-email-security-gateways-2026/", "domain": "cipherssecurity.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://tech-insider.org/proofpoint-vs-mimecast-vs-microsoft-defender-2026/", "domain": "tech-insider.org", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://sublime.security/articles/api-based-email-security-vs-traditional-seg/", "domain": "sublime.security", "source_type": "vendor"}, {"url": "https://expertinsights.com/email-security/does-microsoft-365-include-an-email-security-gateway", "domain": "expertinsights.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://expertinsights.com/email-security/top-email-security-solutions-for-office-365", "domain": "expertinsights.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://www.checkpoint.com/cyber-hub/tools-vendors/top-api-based-email-security-solutions/", "domain": "checkpoint.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://www.itcentralstation.com/products/comparisons/abnormal-security_vs_ironscales", "domain": "itcentralstation.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://material.security/compare-sublime-security", "domain": "material.security", "source_type": "vendor"}, {"url": "https://costbench.com/software/email-security/", "domain": "costbench.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://costbench.com/best/best-email-security-for-smb/", "domain": "costbench.com", "source_type": "other"}], "answer_text": "For a fully remote team the honest answer is that a classic *gateway* is usually the wrong shape - SEGs were built to defend a mail perimeter, and a distributed team on Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace doesn't really have one. The API-based (ICES) tools plug into the mailbox, need no MX change, and also see internal and outbound mail, which is where account-takeover lateral phishing lands. Here's what I'd actually name, in order:\n\n1. **Abnormal Security** - my default pick. Behavioral AI that baselines who normally emails whom, so it catches BEC, vendor-invoice fraud and payroll-diversion attempts that have no bad link or attachment to signature-match. Installs via API in under an hour, minimal tuning, and it auto-remediates compromised accounts. Roughly $3-8/user/mo. Highest-rated of the group in peer reviews.\n2. **Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration** (formerly Avanan) - best value if you want one vendor covering email *plus* Slack/Teams/OneDrive/Drive, which matters a lot for remote teams whose real conversations happen outside the inbox. Pre-delivery inline mode available via API, so you get blocking rather than clawback. Custom pricing.\n3. **Microsoft Defender for Offic", "answer_truncated": true, "measurement": "One answer from one engine on one date. Not a ranking and not a claim about the world; brands the engine did not name are not recorded.", "limitation": "Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included.", "alerts": {"name": "Answer Watch Pro", "price_usd": 79, "period": "month", "gets": "daily change alerts for up to 5 brands in what one AI answer engine says, history, CSV export. Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included", "url": "https://bikoosh.com/answers"}}