Abnormal AI Named a Leader in The Forrester Wave™: Email, Messaging, And Collaboration Security Solutions, Q2 2025

We’re excited to announce that Abnormal AI has been named a Leader in The Forrester Wave™: Email, Messaging, And Collaboration Security Solutions, Q2 2025, one of the most influential analyst evaluations in cybersecurity. In addition to being named a leader among the 10 vendors evaluated, Abnormal received above-average customer feedback.

Abnormal also received the top score in the Strategy category, alongside the highest scores possible in the criteria of Vision, Innovation, Roadmap, Malicious Message and Account Compromise Detection, and AI Models, Training, and Explainability.

This result highlights what we believe sets Abnormal apart: a modern, behavioral AI approach that stops the attacks traditional solutions like SEGs miss.

1. The SEG is No Longer Mandatory
   
   At Abnormal, we’re increasingly seeing enterprises move beyond traditional secure email gateways (SEGs), adopting layered defenses that combine native protections with API-based solutions. According to The Forrester report, “a layered approach—typically native capabilities from productivity suite providers and an additional solution—is now the norm.” Modern, API-first platforms are now serving as that additional layer, complementing Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace without the need for a traditional secure email gateway.
   
   

2. AI is Now Essential to Defend Against AI
   
   Forrester states that attackers are increasingly using artificial intelligence, specifically large language models (LLMs) and natural language generation to craft sophisticated phishing and impersonation attempts. In response, AI-powered detection is no longer optional. The report highlights the importance of capabilities like natural language understanding (NLU) and LLMs to enhance threat detection and improve decision-making for analysts.
   
   

3. Simplicity and Usability are Security Requirements
   
   Email, messaging, and collaboration security (EM&CS) tools must do more than detect threats—they must also support efficient triage and decision-making. Forrester stresses the importance of user experience (UX) and analyst experience (AX), noting that good solutions minimize friction: “...fewer logins, portals, dashboards, and screens” are now seen as critical to successful outcomes.

We believe this report reflects a broader shift in the market: legacy tools are falling short against the socially engineered, identity-based attacks that now dominate the email threat landscape. In its evaluation, Abnormal received a 5.0 score in the Vision criterion. The report states:

“Abnormal AI is one of the new guard of API-based email, messaging, and collaboration vendors that has shaken up the stagnant market.”

That “new guard” distinction matters. It reflects a move away from rules and signatures toward dynamic, context-aware detection powered by AI. And with a 5.0 score assigned to Abnormal in the Innovation criterion, the Forrester report states:

“Abnormal’s innovation focus backs up its vision to protect humans from cybercrime.”

That innovation isn’t just forward-looking—it’s built into what our customers use today. Abnormal also received a 5.0 score in the Roadmap criterion, which includes novel approaches to outbound message protection, security awareness training (now available as AI Phishing Coach), and real-time data analysis and reporting.

Of course, vision alone isn’t enough. Threat detection performance is what separates strategy from results in this evaluation. Forrester gave Abnormal a 5.0 in the Malicious Message and Account Compromise Detection criterion, a score that we believe is supported by customer interviews:

“Reference customers unanimously noted high efficacy for malicious message detection.”

Equally critical, those customers understood not just what we blocked, but how and why. Abnormal received a 5.0 in the AI Models, Training, and Explainability criterion. The report went on to state:

“[Customers] appreciated the transparency and explainability of AI model onboarding.”

That matters in today’s landscape, where AI can feel like a black box. We’re committed to building AI that’s not only powerful, but transparent and aligned with the real needs of security teams.

While analyst recognition is important, we’re especially proud that Abnormal received above-average customer feedback. That’s a rare combination—and one we believe reflects our commitment to building a platform that delivers real-world results, not just strong demos.

Customers cited our high efficacy, explainable AI, and superior filtering for spam and graymail as standout strengths. According to Forrester’s take in the report, Abnormal is:

“...an effective, low-maintenance solution to enhance protections and native security capabilities… across email, messaging, and collaboration environments.”

We’re exceptionally proud of this result in the Forrester Wave™, and grateful to the customers and partners who continue to place their trust in us. Your feedback drives our innovation and your success is the benchmark for ours.

Looking to the future, our mission remains the same: to protect people from cybercrime. As security leaders face advanced AI-powered threats reshaping the industry, Abnormal is committed to providing superior protection with a behavioral AI-native approach that simply works.

Access The Forrester Wave™: Email, Messaging, And Collaboration Security Solutions, Q2 2025 to see why Abnormal was named a Leader.

Forrester does not endorse any company, product, brand, or service included in its research publications and does not advise any person to select the products or services of any company or brand based on the ratings included in such publications. Information is based on the best available resources. Opinions reflect judgment at the time and are subject to change. For more information, read about Forrester’s objectivity here.