NovaShield vs Mailinblack for Phishing Awareness

By Kaci, founder of NovaShield, holding a Master's in Cybersecurity & Cloud from IPSSI. NovaShield is a registered provider on the Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr platform.

Estimated read: 8 min · Published August 6, 2026 · Updated August 6, 2026

Mailinblack is first and foremost a French email filter: its phishing simulation module (Cyber Coach) was added to this offering, not designed from the ground up for that purpose. NovaShield targets the opposite: a platform entirely dedicated to simulation and training, built to complement an existing filter rather than replace it. The right choice depends on what you already have in place.

Transparency note: This article was written by Kaci, founder of NovaShield. All data cited comes from publicly verifiable sources. We explicitly indicate where Mailinblack is more suitable than NovaShield.

Key Takeaways

• Mailinblack is primarily an email filter (Protect, founded 2003) — Cyber Coach is an add-on simulation module, not a standalone product
• Data hosted in France (OVHcloud) — real advantage for digital sovereignty
• No public pricing — quote required via the website, commercial process with demonstration
• Several days to weeks between the purchase decision and the first simulation campaign
• NovaShield: simulation built from day one for this use case, public pricing (€59/month), 15-min deployment, AI email verification
• The two solutions are compatible: Mailinblack Protect for filtering, NovaShield for simulation
• Mailinblack remains the better choice if you have no email protection in place and want a single vendor for both filtering and awareness

Side-by-Side Comparison

Mailinblack at a Glance

Mailinblack is a French email security company founded in 2003 in Marseille. For nearly twenty years, the company specialized in filtering inbound emails. The current catalog includes three main products:

1. Protect, the flagship product: inbound email filtering, anti-spam, anti-phishing, anti-malware.
2. Cyber Coach, a phishing simulation module to assess employee vigilance.
3. Cyber Academy, an e-learning platform with cybersecurity awareness modules.

Mailinblack claims over 14,000 clients, primarily French SMBs and public organizations. Data is hosted in France with OVHcloud, a tangible advantage for GDPR compliance.

What Mailinblack Does Well

Email Filtering: the Real Strength

Protect is a mature product, proven over more than a decade. The filtering technology works, detection rates are solid, and integration with professional mail systems (Microsoft 365, Exchange) is well established. If your main problem is the volume of spam and malicious emails in inboxes, Protect addresses the need.

French Hosting

Data is hosted in France with OVHcloud. For companies subject to data sovereignty constraints or concerned about GDPR compliance, this is a tangible argument.

Brand Recognition and Reseller Network

20 years of presence on the French market, an established reseller network, and visibility at professional trade shows: Mailinblack is a name your IT director likely already knows.

Integrated Approach for Organizations Without Existing Filters

If you have no email security in place, ordering filtering and simulation from a single vendor simplifies management: one contract, one contact, one invoice.

Mailinblack's Limits for Phishing Simulation

Cyber Coach Is a Module, Not a Standalone Product

Mailinblack's phishing simulation is called Cyber Coach. But it's not an independent product designed from scratch for this use case — it's a complementary module to the Protect filter. If you already have an email filter (Microsoft Defender, Proofpoint, Google Workspace) and are only looking for a simulation tool, you risk paying for a filtering layer you don't need.

Opaque Pricing

No pricing is published on Mailinblack's website. You need to fill out a form, wait for a sales callback, describe your need, and receive a personalized quote. For an SMB comparing solutions before a board decision, this opacity slows the process.

Simulation Remains Secondary in the Product DNA

Mailinblack's product team has historically invested in filtering — it's been their core business since 2003. This translates into fewer simulation scenarios than specialized players, more limited campaign customization, and less developed post-failure training features.

A Commercial Deployment Process

Getting started with Mailinblack involves a sales contact, a demonstration, a quote, and configuration assistance. This classic enterprise model adds days or weeks between the purchase decision and the first simulation campaign.

NIS2 Compliance Not Highlighted

In 2026, the NIS2 directive requires organizations to document their awareness program. Mailinblack doesn't particularly highlight features dedicated to generating NIS2 compliance reports. The product is positioned on email protection, not regulatory documentation.

What NovaShield Aims to Do Differently

A Product Built for Simulation

Where Mailinblack added simulation to a filtering product, NovaShield's goal is to have been built around simulation: phishing, spear phishing, BEC fraud, and smishing scenarios, with targeted customization (editable templates, dynamic variables) and scenarios adapted to the French context (Ameli, tax authority, La Poste, sector-specific suppliers).

Public, Predictable Pricing

NovaShield publishes its pricing: free up to 50 employees (Freemium), then from €59/month for 51–150 employees, with decreasing rates up to €349/month for 501–1,000 employees. Monthly billing with no commitment, annual option at -17%.

15-Minute Deployment, No Intermediary

The stated goal: create an account, import the employee list, set up a first campaign, send — no sales rep, no DNS modification, no filtering configuration to adapt.

AI Email Verification

NovaShield includes an AI email verification assistant. Employees forward a suspicious email and receive a verdict: the AI analyzes the content, headers, links, and attachments, and returns a risk assessment. The key difference from Mailinblack filtering: the employee decides to submit the email. The AI informs, it doesn't block.

NIS2 Compliance Aimed to Be Integrated

NovaShield's goal is to automatically generate audit-ready compliance reports: campaign history, click rates by period, risk score by department.

NovaShield and Mailinblack Are Compatible

NovaShield and Mailinblack are not mutually exclusive. If you're already using Mailinblack Protect for email filtering and find Cyber Coach insufficient, you can keep Protect and add NovaShield for simulation. The two work on different layers: filtering protects the inbox, simulation tests and trains people.

Who Should Choose Mailinblack vs. NovaShield?

Choose Mailinblack if:

1. You have no email protection in place and need both a filter and an awareness tool.
2. You want a single vendor for all email security: one contract, one contact, one invoice.
3. The purchase process goes through an IT reseller that already distributes Mailinblack.

Choose NovaShield if:

1. You already have an email filter (Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Proofpoint, Barracuda): your inboxes are protected, you don't need a second filter.
2. Phishing simulation is your priority, with a dedicated scenario catalog and a human-risk-focused dashboard.
3. You need transparent pricing before any purchase decision.
4. You want to start quickly, not in three weeks after a sales cycle.
5. NIS2 compliance is an issue and you don't want to manually assemble reports.

How to Migrate from Mailinblack to NovaShield

1. Create a NovaShield account. Start your free 14-day trial — full access, no credit card.
2. Import your employees. Export your employee list from Mailinblack (CSV: first name, last name, email, department) and import it into NovaShield.
3. Configure and launch. Select your first simulation scenarios and launch your first campaign.
4. Run both in parallel if needed. Keep Mailinblack Protect for email filtering and use NovaShield for simulation during the transition period.

No DNS modification is required (NovaShield doesn't filter inbound emails) and your Mailinblack data remains accessible while your contract is active.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Mailinblack cost?

Mailinblack doesn't publish pricing online. The price depends on the number of users and chosen modules. NovaShield publishes its pricing: free up to 50 employees, then from €59/month.

Mailinblack or NovaShield: which to choose for an SMB?

Mailinblack is a complete email protection solution (filtering and awareness). NovaShield focuses on phishing simulation and training. If you already have an email filter, NovaShield complements your existing protection without overlap.

How do you migrate from Mailinblack to NovaShield?

Create a NovaShield account, import the employee list (CSV) and launch a first campaign. No DNS modification is needed as NovaShield doesn't perform email filtering.

Is Mailinblack Cyber Coach sufficient for phishing simulation?

Cyber Coach offers simulation campaigns, but it's a module complementary to Protect, not a standalone tool. NovaShield aims to be built from day one for simulation, with more scenarios and a dedicated human risk dashboard.

What's the difference between Mailinblack Protect and NovaShield?

These are two different products. Mailinblack Protect is an anti-spam and anti-phishing filter that blocks malicious emails before they reach the inbox. NovaShield is a simulation tool that sends fake phishing emails to test and train employees. The two are complementary.

Sources

• G2 and Gartner Peer Insights for independent user reviews on Mailinblack (search "Mailinblack" and "Mailinblack Cyber Coach" on these platforms).
• Mailinblack.com for product information (Protect, Cyber Coach, Cyber Academy), hosting details (OVHcloud), and client numbers.
• ANSSI, Panorama de la cybermenace 2024, for French phishing statistics.
• Mailinblack information based on publicly available data as of July 2026.

This comparison does not constitute a contractual commitment and the features mentioned may have changed since the writing date.

About the Author

Kaci is the founder of NovaShield, holding a Master's in Cybersecurity & Cloud from IPSSI. NovaShield is a registered provider on the Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr platform.

Find Kaci on LinkedIn