The most visible business cybersecurity tools in Europe, October 2026

October 2026 · 105 questions asked from 7 countries · ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Google AI Mode · 420 answers read

Most cited source

splashtop.com

8citations

From Google AI Mode, Gemini and Google AI Overviews

Where engines disagree most

CrowdStrike

1/4engines put it in their top three

Top three on Gemini, not on Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT

Brands

Search is not measured for this board yet, so it ranks on AI answers.

Rank Brand Rank change Heralded Score All AI Score trend Mentioned Recommended By engine Mentioned by Change
1 Microsoft Defender US New entry 62 , range 56–68 62#1
62
  • : score 62 · #1
56% 42% First reading
2 Bitdefender RO New entry 40 , range 37–43 40#2
40
  • : score 40 · #2
30% 20% First reading
3 Microsoft 365 Business Premium US New entry 39 , range 36–42 39#3
39
  • : score 39 · #3
34% 14% None First reading
4 Sophos GB New entry 31 , range 23–34 31#4
31
  • : score 31 · #4
17% 11% First reading
5 ESET SK New entry 31 , range 22–34 31#5
31
  • : score 31 · #5
17% 11% First reading
6 CrowdStrike US New entry 31 , range 21–34 31#6
31
  • : score 31 · #6
19% 8% First reading
7 SentinelOne US New entry 27 , range 16–32 27#7
27
  • : score 27 · #7
19% 5% First reading
8 Huntress US New entry 9 , range 7–21 9#8
9
  • : score 9 · #8
8% 6% None First reading
9 Kaspersky RU New entry 5 , range 4–8 5#9
5
  • : score 5 · #9
7% 1% None First reading
10 Avast Small Business Solutions CZ New entry 5 , range 4–8 5#10
5
  • : score 5 · #10
6% 2% None First reading

“=” marks brands whose score ranges overlap, so the test cannot separate them. Every brand named in at least three answers is ranked. AI gives each brand’s score and rank from the engines’ answers; Search is not measured for this board yet. By engine has one dot per engine (ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Google AI Mode), darker the more often it names the brand.

Most cited sources

Rank Source Type Cited in Engines Pages cited Brands its pages mention
11 github.com Vendor site 0.5% 1 of 4 3 Not read
12 kaseya.com Vendor site 0.7% 2 of 4 3 Not read
13 netwrix.com Vendor site 0.7% 2 of 4 3 Not read
14 teamsystem.com Vendor site 0.5% 1 of 4 3 Not read
15 wazuh.com Vendor site 0.5% 1 of 4 3 Not read
16 antivirusarena.com Vendor site 0.5% 1 of 4 1 Not read
17 anunta.com Vendor site 0.5% 1 of 4 1 Not read
18 aonverzekeringen.nl Vendor site 0.5% 1 of 4 1 1
19 bleib-virenfrei.de Vendor site 0.2% 1 of 4 2 Not read
20 cleaq.com Vendor site 0.5% 1 of 4 1 Not read

Questions asked

QuestionLanguageMost recommended
Was sind die besten Endpoint-Security-Lösungen für kleine Unternehmen? German Bitdefender, Microsoft Defender and Sophos, tied
Wie können mittelständische Unternehmen die Arbeitslaptops ihrer IT-Teams schützen? German No brand recommended
Wie kann ein kleines Unternehmen die Computer seiner Mitarbeitenden vor Viren schützen? German Microsoft Defender
Wie kann ich Ransomware auf Arbeitslaptops verhindern? German Microsoft Defender
Klassische Antivirussoftware oder verhaltensbasierte Erkennung für kleine Unternehmen? German Microsoft Defender
Lokaler Schutz oder Managed Endpoint Security für kleine Unternehmen? German No brand recommended
Welche Alternativen gibt es dazu, auf jedem Computer Antivirussoftware zu installieren, wenn man ein kleines Unternehmen hat? German Microsoft Defender
Welche Alternativen gibt es für kleine IT-Teams, Sicherheitswarnungen manuell zu überprüfen? German Microsoft Defender
Ich bin IT-Admin in einem Unternehmen mit 20 Mitarbeitenden. Welchen Schutz sollte ich für unsere Laptops einsetzen? German Microsoft 365 Business Premium and Microsoft Defender, tied
Ich leite ein IT-Team ohne Sicherheitspersonal. Wie kann ich die Computer des Unternehmens schützen? German Microsoft Defender

Each engine's top three

Method

Each leaderboard ranks brands on two sides. AI is how ChatGPT, Gemini, Google AI Overviews and Google AI Mode answer the board's buyer questions. Search is Google's top 10 results for the keywords behind those questions. All combines the two, where Search is measured.

For the AI side, each month Heralded asks every engine the same buyer questions, twice each, and reads every answer. An answer counts 0 for a brand it leaves out, 50 for a brand it names and 100 for a brand it recommends, and the Heralded Score is built from those. A brand named in at least three answers gets a score and a place.

How the leaderboards are measured