Comparison · 2026
ZscalerMicrosoft Purview
Zscaler vs Microsoft Purview for AI data protection
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À propos de ce comparatif
Compare Zscaler's network controls, Purview's Microsoft 365 and supported third-party AI protection, and Aona's dedicated employee AI controls. See how each handles sensitive prompts and files, which apps and devices it supports, and what your team needs to get started.
Zscaler and Microsoft Purview are not replacements for each other: they reach AI data protection from opposite ends. Aona reaches it from the device, at the moment the employee submits the prompt, and wins the employee AI use criteria.
Zscaler protects data as AI traffic crosses its cloud: it inspects prompts and responses inline when traffic is steered through the Zero Trust Exchange with TLS inspection, and applies DLP, guardrails and access policy. Microsoft Purview protects data where it already lives in Microsoft 365: it labels sensitive content, controls what Copilot can read and return, and records AI activity for compliance, with third-party AI controls that depend on onboarded devices, a supported browser and E5-class licensing. Aona inspects the prompt and the upload at submit on the managed device, hard-blocks with no user override, redacts DOCX, XLSX and PDF with the layout intact and coaches the employee. Everything below is drawn from each vendor's public documentation, re-verified 17 September 2026.
Zscaler vs Microsoft Purview vs Aona, side by side
Scoped to AI and data-protection capabilities. Competitor descriptions reflect each vendor's public documentation and state the mechanism, including its prerequisites; the Aona column states the shipped Aona fact for the row.
| Capability (AI / data protection) | Aona | Zscaler | Microsoft Purview |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary architecture | ✓Browser plugin for Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari plus a Windows/macOS native app. Coverage depends on the installed client and input path; prompt-processing placement is a separate choice. | ✓Cloud proxy / inline inspection through the Zero Trust Exchange; AI traffic is inspected in line when it is steered through the cloud with TLS inspection; a browser-extension form factor is offered via Zero Trust Browser. | ✓Native to the Microsoft 365 and Purview stack; endpoint DLP on onboarded Windows devices covers content pasted or uploaded in Edge, Chrome and Firefox (Purview extension required for Chrome); macOS paste-to-browser DLP is in Preview. |
| Prompt-level DLP for AI tools | ✓Inspect supported prompts and uploads before AI submission; apply configured blocking or redaction on the evaluated path. | ✓Inline DLP can detect and block sensitive data in prompts and responses using 100+ predefined dictionaries (PII, PCI, PHI, source code); AI Protect (June 2026) adds prompt extraction across 250+ GenAI apps and conversation views. | ✓DLP can detect Sensitive Information Types in prompts; endpoint DLP can warn or block pasting or uploading sensitive data to third-party GenAI sites in the browser on onboarded devices; the prompt and response view needs E5. |
| Coverage of third-party AI tools (ChatGPT, Gemini, etc.) | ✓10,000+ tools in the recognition catalogue. Observed use and policy enforcement depend on the deployed app, client and input path. | ✓Inline coverage of GenAI apps that traverse the proxy; can detect and classify thousands of AI apps including AI embedded in SaaS. | ~Third-party browser/endpoint controls and enterprise AI connectors have different capabilities. The ChatGPT Enterprise connector lists DLP as unsupported; verify the separate control and licensing you need. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot data protection | ~The native endpoint app intercepts the Copilot desktop app for prompt inspection; Aona does not govern Copilot's grounding or labels inside the tenant. | ✕Not the focus; Zscaler governs network-delivered AI traffic, not Copilot's grounding in your M365 tenant. | ✓Sensitivity labels, EXTRACT usage rights, and DLP control what Copilot can process and return inside the tenant. |
| Shadow AI discovery | ✓Observe supported employee AI activity through the deployed client. Catalogue breadth is not a count of observed or controlled tools. | ✓Dashboards surface users, departments, app trends, and at-risk data across detected AI apps. | ~DSPM for AI gives insights into AI activity (E3: app information, activity export and auditing; E5 adds the prompt and response view); 'Other AI apps' are discovered through browser activity via Defender for Cloud Apps. |
| Access control over GenAI apps | ✓Configured tool/group policies and employee responses on supported installed-client paths. | ✓Policies can allow, block, or coach access by user or user group, and can enforce browser isolation and control copy-paste within AI apps. | ~Endpoint DLP can warn or block specific actions (e.g. pasting or uploading) on browser GenAI sites; unallowed browsers see uploads blocked with a redirect to Edge; not a forward proxy that brokers app access. |
| Native desktop AI apps (ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude) | ✓Evaluate the intended ChatGPT, Copilot or Claude desktop action on the current Windows/macOS client release; coverage is not identical across every path. | ~Inspected when the app's traffic is steered through the cloud with TLS inspection; certificate-pinned apps fall outside; native desktop app coverage is not stated on the product page. | ~Browser-based endpoint DLP; locally installed AI apps and Office add-ins are reachable through network data security (Entra Global Secure Access or a SASE partner, partly preview, extra licences). |
| Hard block with no user override | ✓Hard blocking with no user override on supported prompt and upload paths. | ~Block at access and inline DLP block are hard; verify the configured traffic-steering and TLS-inspection path. | ~Per-rule Block or Block-with-override on onboarded Windows devices; macOS paste-to-browser DLP is in Preview. |
| Layout-preserving file redaction | ✓Layout-preserving DOCX, XLSX and PDF redaction on supported upload paths; inspect the representative output during evaluation. | ✕Inline DLP blocks; prompt or file redaction is not stated. | ✕Blocks or audits the upload; layout-preserving file redaction is not documented. |
| Real-time, in-the-moment employee coaching | ✓Coaching at the moment of a risky prompt, in the browser and in native AI apps, then per-team trends over time. | ~A 'coach' policy action can warn users at the point of AI app access, with post-incident coaching through its automation features; not an in-prompt learning loop. | ~Endpoint DLP can show a user a policy tip or override prompt; not an in-prompt learning loop. |
| AI security posture / guardrails | ✕Out of scope: Aona secures employee use of AI tools, not the AI you build (no AI-SPM, no LLM firewall). | ✓Inline AI guardrails for prompt injection, jailbreaks, malicious URLs, and content moderation; AI-SPM for AI assets. | ~Insider Risk Management 'Risky AI usage' policy detects prompt injection and protected-material access; DSPM for AI for posture. |
| Audit, eDiscovery, retention of AI prompts | ~Review available policy-event metadata and report scope. The public events API excludes compliant records; customer-deployed Sentinel ingestion requires separate validation. | ~Logging and reporting on inspected AI traffic, with conversation views in AI Protect; not a compliance-records platform for Microsoft 365 content. | ✓Prompts and responses flow into the unified audit log, activity explorer, eDiscovery, and retention policies; for third-party AI sites, retention and eDiscovery of prompts are restricted to the Edge browser. |
| Trial evaluation | ✓30-day guided free trial; agree the deployment, client prerequisites and observation period with IT. | ~GenAI Security is a Data Security add-on with no self-serve trial (as of September 2026). | ~Evaluated inside a Microsoft 365 tenant: the AI controls follow the licence tier (E3 for app information and auditing, E5 for the prompt and response view) rather than a standalone self-serve trial (as of September 2026). |
| Data residency choice | ✓Seven Aona-managed hosting regions: Australia, France, the UK, Germany, the US, Singapore and Hong Kong. | ~Global Zero Trust Exchange; residency options for AI prompt logs are not documented on the AI Access Security page. | ✓Follows the Microsoft 365 tenant's data location; Multi-Geo is a separate licence. |
Legend: ✓ clearly documented as a core capability · ~ documented but conditional or narrower in scope · ✕ not a focus of that product per public docs. Zscaler and Purview are broad platforms; this table is intentionally limited to the AI and data-protection angle. Sources: Zscaler AI Access Security, AI Protect and Zero Trust Browser pages; Microsoft Purview DSPM for AI, endpoint DLP, network data security and Microsoft 365 licensing documentation. Re-verified 17 September 2026.
The verdict for employee AI use
Aona wins the employee AI use criteria on this page: it inspects the prompt at submit on the device through the supported installed-client path, hard-blocks prompts and file uploads with no user override, redacts DOCX, XLSX and PDF with the layout intact, coaches the employee at the moment of a risky prompt, covers the ChatGPT, Copilot and Claude desktop apps, and comes with a 30-day guided trial and seven Aona-managed hosting regions. Zscaler is for network-level AI app control and inline DLP, and its prompt inspection reaches only traffic steered through the Zero Trust Exchange with TLS inspection, sold as an add-on with no self-serve trial (as of September 2026). Microsoft Purview is for labelling, auditing and governing data inside Microsoft 365 and Copilot, and its third-party AI controls depend on onboarded Windows devices (macOS in Preview), a supported browser with the Purview extension, and E5-class licensing plus pay-as-you-go billing for prompt-level visibility.
Where Aona wins: employee AI use
Prompt inspection at submit on the device through the supported installed-client path, a hard block on prompts and file uploads with no user override, layout-preserving DOCX, XLSX and PDF redaction, real-time coaching at the prompt, coverage of the ChatGPT, Copilot and Claude desktop apps, seven Aona-managed hosting regions and a 30-day guided trial.
What Zscaler is for
Network-level AI app control and inline DLP for traffic steered through the Zero Trust Exchange with TLS inspection: allow, block or coach access by user or group, browser isolation, and AI Protect prompt extraction across 250+ GenAI apps. Its inspection stops where traffic is not steered (such as unsteered or uninspectable paths), and GenAI Security is an add-on with no self-serve trial (as of September 2026).
What Microsoft Purview is for
Labelling, auditing, eDiscovery and retention of data inside Microsoft 365 and Copilot: sensitivity labels, EXTRACT usage rights and DLP govern what Copilot can process and return. Its third-party AI controls stop at what an onboarded Windows device and a supported browser expose (Edge, Chrome and Firefox via one-click DLP, with the Purview extension for Chrome and macOS paste-to-browser DLP in Preview), and prompt-level visibility needs E5-class licensing plus pay-as-you-go billing for third-party AI sites.
Why buyers pick Aona for employee AI use
Start with the employee prompt or upload you need to protect. Aona provides supported blocking, redaction and guidance through deployed clients. Compare the response and evidence with your existing Zscaler or Purview control on the same input path.
- →A clear evaluation scope: name the app, account, installed client and input action. Verify the required deployment and inspection configuration with IT.
- →Blocking and useful redaction: test a supported hard block without an override, or a redacted DOCX, XLSX or PDF whose output your team can inspect.
- →Employee guidance: review the message and available context at the point of use, alongside the recorded policy outcome.
- →A guided 30-day trial: agree the population, supported controls and observation period. Review Aona's SOC 2 Type 2 report and the selected hosting/processing configuration.
Scope: Aona is not an SSE and does not label, retain or run eDiscovery on Microsoft 365 content, so Zscaler keeps the network edge and Purview keeps the tenant. Aona needs its plugin or endpoint app on managed Windows and macOS devices, so personal and unmanaged devices are out of scope; there is no iOS or Android coverage; and AI agent and MCP inspection ships in limited rollout on the endpoint app, not general availability.
SOC 2 Type 2 report · 30-day guided trial · 7 Aona-managed hosting regions
FAQ
Zscaler vs Microsoft Purview for AI data protection
Is Zscaler or Microsoft Purview better for AI data protection?
Can all three block sensitive data from going into ChatGPT?
Does Microsoft Purview cover non-Microsoft AI tools like Gemini or Claude?
Does Zscaler discover shadow AI usage?
Do I need Aona if I already have Zscaler or Microsoft Purview?
Do I have to choose only one of these?
Is Aona secure, and is there a free trial?
Control employee AI use
on the device
Bring your existing stack and one synthetic prompt or document. Scope a guided 30-day trial around the supported client, policy response and evidence your team needs.