Redoubt Forge vs Huntress.

Huntress is a managed security platform. Redoubt Forge is a compliance platform. Both serve defense contractors pursuing CMMC certification. Huntress detects threats, responds to incidents, and satisfies 37 of 110 NIST 800-171 practices as a Security Protection Asset. Redoubt Forge manages the full compliance lifecycle across all 110 controls: scanning, hardening, monitoring, framework mapping, and assessment package generation.

What Huntress Does Well

Huntress was founded in 2015 by ex-NSA cyber operators Kyle Hanslovan, Chris Bisnett, and John Ferrell. That security pedigree is not marketing copy; it is the foundation of a platform that now protects over 4 million endpoints and 10 million M365 identities. Huntress raised approximately $300 million through a Series D in June 2024, reaching a valuation above $1.5 billion and exceeding $100 million in annual recurring revenue by March 2025. The platform is rated 4.8/5 on G2 from over 1,000 reviews and holds the #1 EDR ranking on the platform.

Huntress provides four core products: Managed EDR with approximately 8-minute mean time to respond and less than 1% false positive rate; Managed ITDR for M365, Entra ID, and Duo identity threat detection; Managed SIEM integrating with CrowdStrike, SentinelOne, and other third-party EDR tools; and Security Awareness Training with phishing simulations. Every product is backed by a 24/7 human-assisted SOC. Huntress serves over 7,000 MSP and MSSP channel partners, delivering enterprise-grade security to organizations below the Fortune 1000. Pricing is published and accessible: $8.99/endpoint/month for EDR, $4.80/identity/month for ITDR, $4/source/month for SIEM, and $2.08/learner/month for SAT. Huntress also supports M365 GCC High environments and offers a Sensitive Data Mode for CUI protection, both important for defense contractors. Through its partnership with DEFCERT, Huntress provides CMMC Level 2 assessment documentation support.

What Redoubt Forge Does

Redoubt Forge is a secure operations platform that covers the full compliance lifecycle. The distinction from Huntress is not quality; it is category. Huntress is a security tool. Redoubt Forge is the compliance platform that orchestrates security tools, infrastructure, and documentation into assessor-ready proof.

Vanguard runs 14 native scanner types: SAST across multiple languages, DAST, SCA, secret scanning, container image scanning, STIG validation against 20+ technical benchmarks, CIS Benchmark scanning for OS, cloud, container, database, and web server targets, fuzzing, and API security. These are compliance scanners, not threat detection. They identify gaps in your security posture before you deploy.

Armory provides hardened Terraform modules pre-configured for specific framework controls. Garrison tracks your connected estate as infrastructure is provisioned. Deploy packs and IaC modules support AWS GovCloud and air-gapped environments. You close compliance gaps with infrastructure, not documentation.

Sentinel monitors infrastructure through event-driven detection. When a security group changes, an IAM policy updates, or a new resource deploys, Sentinel detects the change, re-evaluates posture against all mapped frameworks, and flags findings in Citadel. Evidence is generated from running systems on every change.

Rampart maps security posture to any framework and generates C3PAO-ready assessment packages. Artificer produces OSCAL-formatted authorization packages: SSP, SAR, SAP, and POA&M documents with immutable evidence chains linking every control to the infrastructure state that satisfies it.

Where Both Platforms Overlap

Both platforms serve the Defense Industrial Base. Both support CMMC compliance objectives. Both publish transparent pricing. Both deploy security capabilities that map to NIST 800-171 controls. Both target SMBs and mid-market organizations that enterprise tools price out. Both take the threat landscape seriously and build products for organizations that handle Controlled Unclassified Information.

How Redoubt Forge Goes Further

Huntress covers 37 of 110 NIST 800-171 practices as a Security Protection Asset. That coverage is genuine: EDR maps to access control, audit, incident response, and system protection requirements. But CMMC Level 2 requires all 110 practices across 14 control families. The remaining 73 practices span configuration management, identification and authentication, media protection, physical protection, personnel security, risk assessment, security assessment, and system and communications protection. These require different tools, documented policies, and continuous evidence.

Huntress scans endpoints for threats and malware via its EDR agent. Redoubt Forge scans code, containers, infrastructure, STIGs, and CIS Benchmarks for compliance gaps via 14 scanner types through Vanguard. The scanning purposes are fundamentally different: Huntress asks "is this endpoint compromised?" while Vanguard asks "does this system meet the control requirements?" Both questions matter. They require different tools to answer.

Huntress generates security telemetry: endpoint detection events, identity threat alerts, SIEM logs, and incident reports. This telemetry is valuable. It proves that specific security controls are active and functioning. But telemetry is not compliance proof. Compliance proof requires mapping telemetry to framework controls, generating immutable evidence chains with provenance, and producing assessment packages that C3PAOs can evaluate. Redoubt Forge bridges that gap. Rampart maps evidence to controls. Artificer generates OSCAL-formatted packages. Assessors get provenance, not assertions.

Huntress does not provision infrastructure or provide IaC modules. Redoubt Forge's Armory provides hardened Terraform modules pre-configured for specific framework controls. Garrison tracks your connected estate. Deploy packs support AWS GovCloud and air-gapped environments. You do not just identify what 73 controls are missing; you deploy infrastructure that satisfies them.

Redoubt Forge publishes all pricing: five tiers from $49/mo (Developer) to $2,499/mo (Enterprise), with all features, add-on costs, and seat prices listed. Huntress also publishes pricing at the per-unit level. Both platforms value transparency. The pricing models differ: Huntress prices per endpoint, identity, source, or learner across individual security products. Redoubt Forge prices per platform tier with bundled capabilities.

When to Choose Huntress

If you need managed security operations for your endpoints, identities, and logs. If you want a 24/7 SOC without building one internally. If you value the #1 rated EDR on G2 with less than 1% false positive rate. If you are an MSP serving defense contractors and need a security tool that maps to CMMC requirements. If you need managed SIEM that integrates with your existing EDR investment. Huntress provides genuine security value built by ex-NSA operators. It is a security tool, and it is an excellent one.

When to Choose Redoubt Forge

If you need the full compliance lifecycle, not just security tools. If you need to manage all 110 NIST 800-171 practices, not 37. If you need native scanning beyond EDR: SAST, DAST, SCA, STIG validation, CIS Benchmarks. If you need IaC modules and infrastructure hardening through Armory. If you need overlay composition and multi-framework support across CMMC, FedRAMP, NIST 800-53, and beyond. If you need OSCAL output and C3PAO-ready assessment packages. If you need GovCloud or air-gapped deployment.

Is Huntress a compliance platform?

No. Huntress is a managed security platform providing EDR, ITDR, SIEM, and Security Awareness Training. It satisfies 37 of 110 NIST 800-171 practices as a Security Protection Asset. Redoubt Forge is a compliance platform managing all 110 practices across the full compliance lifecycle: scanning, hardening, monitoring, framework mapping, and assessment package generation.

Can Huntress alone achieve CMMC Level 2 certification?

Not alone. Huntress covers 37 of 110 practices. The remaining 73 span configuration management, identification and authentication, media protection, physical protection, personnel security, risk assessment, security assessment, and system and communications protection. These require additional tools, documented policies, and continuous evidence. Redoubt Forge covers the full 110-control lifecycle.

How do Huntress and Redoubt Forge scanning capabilities differ?

Huntress scans endpoints for threats and malware via its EDR agent. It answers "is this endpoint compromised?" Redoubt Forge scans code, containers, infrastructure, STIGs, and CIS Benchmarks for compliance gaps via 14 scanner types through Vanguard. It answers "does this system meet the control requirements?" Different purposes require different scanning architectures.

Does Huntress deploy in GovCloud?

Huntress integrates with M365 GCC High but the platform itself is not deployed in AWS GovCloud and is not FedRAMP authorized. Redoubt Forge deploys in AWS GovCloud with full platform capability and supports air-gapped environments for disconnected operations.

Could Huntress and Redoubt Forge work together for CMMC?

Yes. Huntress provides managed security for 37 of 110 practices. Redoubt Forge manages the full compliance lifecycle including the remaining controls. Huntress security telemetry could serve as evidence ingested by Redoubt Forge, mapped to framework controls through Rampart, and included in C3PAO-ready assessment packages. Security tools and compliance platforms serve complementary purposes.