In short: Hornetsecurity, now branded Hornetsecurity by Proofpoint, makes cloud email security, backup and compliance services for Microsoft 365. Its main product, 365 Total Protection, comes in four plans that add threat protection, archiving, backup and governance tools in steps. Cloud services are licensed per user and billed monthly; VM Backup is licensed per host or per virtual machine.
What Hornetsecurity does
Hornetsecurity is a German security company, headquartered in Hanover, that builds cloud services to protect Microsoft 365: email filtering, encryption, archiving, backup and tools for controlling who can see what in SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams. It also makes VM Backup, the on-premises backup software that used to be called Altaro VM Backup. Proofpoint completed its acquisition of Hornetsecurity in December 2025, and Hornetsecurity now runs as a standalone business unit inside Proofpoint, focused on smaller organisations and the IT providers who look after them.
The products keep their Hornetsecurity names and appear under the Hornetsecurity by Proofpoint brand. Proofpoint also markets the same suite as Proofpoint 365 Total Protection, and that name now appears in parts of the control panel, so you may see both in documentation.
Hornetsecurity's cloud services run in its own regional data centres rather than inside Microsoft's infrastructure. That matters for backup in particular: if a Microsoft 365 tenant is compromised or an administrator deletes data, the copies held by Hornetsecurity are separate, and you choose the region where backup data is stored.
The Hornetsecurity product line-up
Most organisations buy one of the 365 Total Protection plans, which bundle most of the services below. Several, such as 365 Total Backup, Email Archiving and 365 Permission Manager, are also offered as separate services.
| Product | What it does | Licensed by |
|---|---|---|
| 365 Total Protection | Plans 1 to 4: email security, archiving, backup and compliance for Microsoft 365 | User |
| 365 Total Backup | Backup of mailboxes, OneDrive, SharePoint, Teams, Planner, OneNote and Entra ID | User |
| VM Backup | Backup and replication for Hyper-V, VMware and Proxmox Host (perpetual) or VM (monthly subscription) | |
| Spam and Malware Protection | Multi-layer inbound and outbound email filtering | User |
| Advanced Threat Protection | Sandboxing, link rewriting, QR code and fraud detection | User |
| Email Encryption | Automatic S/MIME and PGP encryption with certificate management | User |
| Email Archiving | Tamper-proof, searchable archive of all email | User |
| Email Continuity Service | Keeps email flowing when your mail server is down | User |
| DMARC Manager | DMARC, DKIM, SPF, BIMI and SMTP-TLS management | User |
| 365 Permission Manager | Sharing permissions and compliance policies for SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams | User |
| AI Recipient Validation | Outlook warnings for misdirected emails and sensitive data | User |
| AI Email Security Analyst | Automatic analysis of emails users report as suspicious | User |
| Teams Protection | Scans links shared in Microsoft Teams chats | User |
| Hornet.email | Hosted mailboxes for staff who do not need a full Microsoft 365 licence | Mailbox |
How Hornetsecurity licensing works
Hornetsecurity's cloud services are licensed per user and billed monthly, so the cost follows your headcount. The 365 Total Protection plans are cumulative: each plan includes everything in the plan below it, so moving up is a plan change rather than a new product.
| Plan | Adds |
|---|---|
| Plan 1 Business | Spam and Malware Protection, Email Encryption, Email Signature and Disclaimer |
| Plan 2 Enterprise | Advanced Threat Protection, Email Continuity Service, Email Archiving |
| Plan 3 Enterprise Backup | 365 Total Backup with unlimited storage and self-service recovery |
| Plan 4 Compliance and Awareness | Security Awareness Service, 365 Permission Manager, DMARC Manager, and the AI Cyber Assistant tools: AI Recipient Validation, Teams Protection and AI Email Security Analyst |
Two products work differently. VM Backup is either a perpetual licence per host, with a Software Maintenance Agreement (SMA) for updates and support, or a monthly subscription per backed-up virtual machine. Hornet.email is bought by the number of hosted mailboxes you need.
Email protection can be connected to Microsoft 365 in MX mode (mail is routed through Hornetsecurity's gateway), API mode (no MX change, scanning after delivery only) or Hybrid mode, which combines both and is the mode Hornetsecurity recommends. See per-user vs per-device licensing for how user-based licences compare with other models.
Buying Hornetsecurity through Forever Systems
We supply Hornetsecurity as a managed account in your organisation's name.
- Scope: we look at your Microsoft 365 licences, mailboxes and existing tools, so you do not pay twice for protection you already have.
- Quote: we recommend a plan or individual services and quote them. Ask us for a quote rather than relying on list prices, because the best option depends on your user count and what you already own.
- Onboard: we connect your tenant, choose the security mode and backup region, and set policies, quarantine reports and archiving retention.
- Run: one monthly invoice, with user changes, plan upgrades and add-ons handled for you.
If you already use Hornetsecurity through another supplier, we can arrange for the account to move to us. Microsoft 365 licences themselves are covered by Forever Group's Microsoft licensing team. Compare other vendors in email security and Microsoft 365 backup, or browse the vendors A to Z.
Which Hornetsecurity services do you need?
- Better filtering than Microsoft 365 alone: Plan 1 for spam and malware filtering, or Plan 2 if you also want sandboxing and an archive.
- Backup of Microsoft 365 data: 365 Total Backup on its own, or Plan 3 to combine it with email security.
- Compliance and data sharing control: Plan 4, which includes 365 Permission Manager and AI Recipient Validation; both are also listed as separate services.
- Domain spoofing and deliverability: DMARC Manager, part of Plan 4.
- Staff who only need a mailbox: Hornet.email hosted mailboxes on your own domain.
- On-premises servers and virtual machines: VM Backup.
Plan 4 includes Hornetsecurity's Security Awareness Service. If staff training is the main need, our sister site covers security awareness training options in more depth.
Explore Hornetsecurity
How Forever Systems supplies your software licences
Forever Systems Ltd supplies business software subscriptions to UK organisations from one account, with one monthly invoice and a UK team who know the products.
- The right edition first time: we check what you need before you buy, so you are not paying for features you will never use
- Monthly or annual terms where the vendor offers them, and help timing renewals and commitments
- Licence changes handled for you: add or remove users, upgrade editions and true-up without starting a new contract
- Deployment and support from engineers who run these products every day, not just a reseller account
- Consolidated billing and renewal reminders so nothing lapses unexpectedly
We work with businesses, schools, charities and public sector organisations of all sizes.
Need a licence quote or a second opinion on your renewal?
Tell Forever Systems what you need and we will come back to you by email with options, not a hard sell.
Contact usFrequently asked questions
Is Hornetsecurity now Proofpoint?
Yes. Proofpoint completed its acquisition of Hornetsecurity in December 2025. Hornetsecurity runs as a standalone business unit within Proofpoint, and its products are sold as Hornetsecurity by Proofpoint under their existing names.
How is Hornetsecurity licensed?
The cloud services, including the 365 Total Protection plans and 365 Total Backup, are licensed per user. VM Backup is licensed per host as a perpetual licence with a Software Maintenance Agreement, or per backed-up virtual machine on a monthly subscription. Hornet.email is bought by mailbox.
Does Hornetsecurity replace the security built into Microsoft 365?
It adds a layer on top. Hornetsecurity filters email before or after it reaches Microsoft 365, and keeps archive and backup copies outside Microsoft's infrastructure. Whether you also need Microsoft's paid security add-ons depends on your Microsoft 365 plan, which we can review with you.
Can I move my existing Hornetsecurity account to Forever Systems?
Usually, yes. We arrange the transfer and confirm beforehand what, if anything, will change for your users and administrators.
Where is Hornetsecurity data stored?
In Hornetsecurity's own regional data centres, which are independent of Microsoft's infrastructure. For 365 Total Backup you choose the storage region when the account is set up, and we confirm the available regions when you order.