The top 10 browser security solutions: Push Security, Island, LayerX and more

Browser security refers to the tools and practices that protect users, data, and organizations from threats that originate inside the web browser. The browser is where modern work happens: employees access SaaS applications, interact with AI tools, and handle sensitive data — which makes it the most targeted attack surface in the enterprise. When people discuss browser security solutions, they usually mean secure enterprise browser (SEB) extensions or full-stack enterprise browsers. Remote browser isolation (RBI) is a third category that is not really comparable to the other two, but comes up through virtue of sounding similar.

An enterprise browser extension deploys into whatever browser your users already have and adds security capabilities without changing the user experience or requiring a migration. An enterprise browser replaces the existing browser entirely with a managed application that embeds security controls at the browser level.

Extensions offer faster deployment with no migration required and are typically built for the security team's need to detect and respond to threats — Gartner explicitly notes that extensions have become the preferred deployment option in the category. Full-stack enterprise browsers offer deeper workspace controls (copy/paste restrictions, watermarking, VDI replacement) and are typically built for the IT team's need to govern access.

The two are not mutually exclusive — many organizations use an enterprise browser for contractors or regulated populations and an extension like Push across the rest of the workforce. We cover this in detail in Enterprise browser vs. browser extension: Which should your security team choose?

No. enterprise browser extensions like Push Security, Seraphic (CrowdStrike), LayerX (Akamai), SquareX (Zscaler), and Keep Aware deploy into existing browsers without requiring users to switch. Enterprise browsers like Island, Prisma Browser, and SURF do require browser replacement. According to Omdia's 2026 research, 48% of organizations cite the ability to use their existing browsers as an important attribute in a secure browsing solution, and 80% expect to use browser security alongside existing tools rather than as a replacement.

CrowdStrike, Zscaler, and Akamai all acquired browser security startups in 2026. This is significant validation of the the browser security market that the browser is a gap that network and endpoint security vendors have acknowledged and are attempting to close.

But whether acquired products retain their innovation velocity as they're absorbed into larger platforms is a legitimate concern for buyers evaluating long-term roadmaps.

Yes, but it depends on the approach and vendor. According to , 32% of users access corporate applications from an unmanaged device at least occasionally. Enterprise browsers can be installed on unmanaged devices, but require the user to download and switch to a new browser application. Enterprise browser extensions like Push can be deployed to contractor and BYOD machines without MDM — via email or landing page self-enrollment — providing threat detection and policy enforcement without browser replacement or device management overhead.

The most common attacks include AiTM phishing, ClickFix-style social engineering, malicious browser extensions, and malicious OAuth consent grants. In 2026, device code phishing has become a core part of the attacker’s arsenal too, with 25+ unique attacker kits now offering the technique. 

Among browser-based attack victims surveyed by Omdia, phishing was the most common attack type (40%), followed by data loss or leakage (38%), malicious browser extensions (34%), and credential theft (28%). 

It's worth noting the distinction between . A number of the solutions in this list were designed to stop browser exploitation and prevent sandbox escapes. But the vast majority of the attacks in the wild are identity based — they happen in the browser, not on it.

EDR monitors the operating system layer — processes, file system activity, registry changes, memory behavior. Browser security operates inside the browser session — observing the rendered page, credential entry, session tokens, and user interaction.

The two are complementary: like ClickFix that never touch the endpoint in ways EDR can observe. CrowdStrike's acquisition of Seraphic in 2026 reflects the industry recognition that endpoint and browser are separate detection layers that both need to be instrumented.

Yes, but the effectiveness depends on the tool and its detection approach. AiTM phishing kits relay credentials and MFA tokens in real time, so most forms of MFA are bypassed. Browser security tools with behavioral detection — analyzing page structure, script behavior, and credential-harvesting mechanics — can detect phishing kits regardless of which domain they're hosted on or how quickly the infrastructure rotates.

Tools that rely primarily on URL blocklists or reputation scores are less effective because 89% of phishing domains are active for fewer than two days. It's also worth noting that not all MFA-bypass phishing works the same way. Device code phishing sidesteps authentication entirely — the user authorizes a device on a legitimate identity provider page, and the attacker receives a valid token without ever touching the credential exchange. 

With attacks evolving so quickly, telemetry isn't enough on its own — the vendor needs dedicated threat research expertise to turn that visibility into detections that keep pace with attacker innovation. Push detects and blocks phishing including AiTM reverse-proxy kits, human-operated relay panels, and device code phishing flows, backed by an in-house research team that discovers and publishes new attack techniques as they emerge.

The criteria that matter most are: 

• Detection model — is the vendor detecting behavioral attacker techniques or relying on URL blocklists that attackers rotate in minutes?

• Deployment model — does it deploy into existing browsers or require a migration? 

• Coverage for unmanaged and BYOD devices — does it need MDM, an endpoint agent, or just a browser? 

• Integration — does it feed telemetry into your SIEM, XDR, and identity tools or create a silo? 

• AI visibility and governance — can it discover shadow AI apps and govern OAuth consent flows? 

• Research depth — is the vendor discovering novel attack techniques or covering what others already documented? 

We've written a detailed guide on how to avoid the browser security buyer's trap and how to make the business case for browser security.

RBI was designed to prevent malicious content from reaching the endpoint by rendering web pages in a remote container. The architecture is effective for that specific threat model, but the dominant browser-based attacks in 2026 — AiTM phishing, session hijacking, ClickFix, OAuth consent abuse — don't deliver payloads to the endpoint. They manipulate what the user sees, steal session tokens, and hijack authenticated state inside the browser session. There's nothing for RBI to isolate. RBI still has value in specific zero-tolerance environments and for managing untrusted third-party access, but for organizations looking to address the threats driving most browser-based breaches today, an enterprise browser extension is more appropriate.

AI usage is primarily browser-based — every LLM interaction, every prompt containing sensitive data, every AI agent authorization happens inside a browser session. Browser security tools can discover which AI tools are in use (including shadow AI), monitor what data users share with them, observe OAuth consent flows for AI agent permissions, and block access to unsanctioned AI applications. According to Omdia, generative AI application security was the #1 capability organizations want from a secure browsing solution at 59%, ahead of data loss prevention and general web security. Push data shows the average organization has 16 unique AI apps, 17 AI browser extensions, and 17 AI OAuth integrations in active use — most unapproved (or simply not known about).

SWGs and CASBs operate at the network/proxy layer, inspecting traffic metadata and URLs. Browser security operates inside the browser session, observing the rendered page, script behavior, credential entry, and user interaction. The key difference: network tools can tell you where data went, but browser security sees what the user actually saw and did. SWGs block known-bad URLs via blocklists — but phishing infrastructure rotates faster than blocklists update. Browser-native detection analyzes page behavior regardless of whether the URL is known-bad. The two are complementary, though browser-layer capabilities are increasingly making network-centric tools redundant for specific use cases.

If you're counting on user awareness as a meaningful defense layer, yes. Security awareness training is not a technical control — it depends on every user making the right call, every time, across every delivery channel. Browser-based attacks now arrive through email, search engines, SMS, QR codes, social media, and voice calls, each with different lure formats and social engineering mechanics. The volume and variation makes it impossible for users to keep up.

Browser security detects and blocks attacks automatically at the point of risk regardless of the delivery channel, because the detection happens inside the browser session where the attack plays out — it should be the primary defense layer, not training.