An intrusion detection or prevention system can mean the difference between a safe network and a nasty breach. We’ve rounded up some of the best and most popular IDS/IPS products on the market.

Detecting and preventing network intrusions used to be the bread and butter of IT security. But over the past few years, analysts and defenders have seen a slow but steady transition from these products. They have become a component of a broader spectrum of network defensive tools, such as security information and event management (SIEM) systems, security orchestration and response (SOAR) and endpoint and network management and detection systems.

For CSO, I examined the top six commercial tools and four open source ones, explain the different approaches and form factors used, and compare how intrusion prevention fits into the overall security marketplace.