Comparison
ShadowLock vs Control D for shadow AI
Control D is a transparently priced DNS filter. ShadowLock is a shadow AI control across three layers - endpoint, browser, and Microsoft 365 tenant. Both are straightforward to buy, but only one of them can read pastes and scan your tenant for AI OAuth grants.
Control D details last verified · sources
Control D blocks the resolver request. ShadowLock blocks the paste. If your shadow AI policy is binary (allow / deny by domain) and your devices reliably resolve through Control D, the DNS layer is enough. The moment policy needs to be content-aware, you need the endpoint.
genAI apps at the average organization by May 2025, up from 5.6 in FebruaryNetskope Threat Labs, 2025 ↗
A DNS blocklist is only as current as its list, and the set of AI apps in an average organization grew by a quarter in a single quarter. ShadowLock identifies AI tools at the endpoint and browser and classifies what is pasted into them, rather than racing to blocklist new domains at the resolver.
Head to head
Side by side
Easy to buy, but two different layers
What ShadowLock and Control D share is that both are straightforward to buy in an MSP market where most browser-security and DLP competitors route every conversation through a sales cycle. What they don\'t share is layer.
Control D resolves a name, decides allow or block, and the rest of the stack never sees the request. ShadowLock runs after the connection - inside the device - and decides allow or block based on what the user actually pastes. The two are complementary far more than they\'re competitive: most shops that take shadow AI seriously run a DNS layer for the easy categorical wins and an endpoint layer for the nuanced ones.
Fit
Which one fits your situation?
Choose ShadowLock when…
- You need content-level enforcement - "allow ChatGPT but block sensitive pastes."
- You use Copilot, Notion AI, or any embedded AI inside approved SaaS that DNS can't separate.
- You need clipboard-level classification for HIPAA, SOC 2, or GDPR.
- You can't guarantee every device routes through the Control D client every time.
Control D still fits if…
- You want a transparently priced DNS filter as a baseline network-edge layer.
- Your AI threat model is "block every AI domain at the resolver" and that genuinely satisfies your governance team.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Do ShadowLock and Control D conflict on the same endpoint?
No. Different layers - Control D is a DNS resolver / roaming client; ShadowLock is a Windows service. They run alongside cleanly.
Can Control D block AI features embedded in approved SaaS?
No - same blind spot as any DNS filter. Copilot, Notion AI, and Einstein all resolve to allowed domains. ShadowLock catches them at the paste layer.
How does the pricing compare?
Control D publishes an SMB self-serve rate of $2/endpoint/month; its MSP pricing runs through the partnerships programme and is not published. ShadowLock is priced per managed device per month on volume tiers with no minimum, and the rate card is emailed on request, usually within five minutes. Different layers, and neither one makes you sit through a sales cycle to get a number.
Sources and verification
Every competitor claim below links to that vendor’s own public documentation. Where a vendor does not publish an answer, we say so rather than presenting silence as proof. Competitor facts on this page were last checked on . Pricing and features change without notice — verify against the vendor before you buy.
- Control D pricing ↗ — Published SMB self-serve pricing of $2 per endpoint per month. MSP pricing is arranged through the partnerships programme rather than published.
Comparisons
Compare ShadowLock to other shadow AI tools
Researching alternatives? Honest side-by-side comparisons against every MSP-channel shadow AI tool.
AI-native XDR with no M365 scanning. We scan the tenant and publish a price.
Browser-only. We add endpoint and M365 tenant.
Blocks AI apps. We inspect the prompt content.
Resolver-layer only. Blind to embedded AI and M365 OAuth.
Browser isolation. We are purpose-built for shadow AI.
Governs shadow AI inside the E5 stack. We need no E5 license.