What is our primary use case?
We use app flow, Firewall Analyzer, and FireFlow. We use AlgoSec to gain visibility on firewall rules and for gap-cleaning projects to clean up the firewalls. We also use the solution as a firewall assurance tool to stay clean, have an optimized set of firewalls, and then automate firewall rules deployed from start to finish.
We have on-prem data centers and 180 sites all over the world.
Additionally, we use cloud services, infrastructure as a service, platform as a service, and software as a service. The majority of it is standardized on Cisco networking with Fortinet security solutions, except for the data centers, which are Check Point.
The purpose is to gain visibility into firewall rules. We used it to go through a gap-cleaning project to clean up the firewalls. We also use the solution as a firewall assurance tool to stay clean and to have optimized firewall rules. In addition, we use the solution to automate firewall rule deployment from start to finish, so we have a complete change process in FireFlow and can automatically deploy the firewalls on appliances. For that, we also built a connection with BMC Remedy because that's the main tool used for change management.
How has it helped my organization?
AlgoSec has improved our organization through a safer firewall rule base and better time-to-market IT services provided to the rest of the organization. Those are the two main improvements. In general, AlgoSec has provided a better security posture.
What is most valuable?
Customizability is AlgoSec's best feature. You can customize everything and build anything you like, and that's a feature we missed in competitors' solutions.
What needs improvement?
AlgoSec is not a tool where people with little knowledge of security or IT can find their way around. AlgoSec has a less user-friendly interface compared to competitors, but it is comparatively more customizable. As such, the interface is more on the complex side.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using AlgoSec for four years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
AlgoSec is a stable solution. There are bugs, but those do not affect the system's stability. We have not had any unplanned downtime since we started.
We use the solution 24x7 to record cyber rules, with about 50 changes per week.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable and we have approximately 50 users.
How was the initial setup?
The initial deployment was complex because we were integrating with ITIL systems since we had integrated with BMC Remedy. The integration with Check Point was complex because we were on the wrong version. We had to go through various administrative processes to update Check Point. If AlgoSec was more flexible in the ways one could integrate and the versions one could integrate it with, that would help.
A team of ten people handled the deployment, including testers, and they took approximately three months. The end-to-end deployment took just over two years. We did not migrate from a previous solution.
What was our ROI?
We have seen a return on investment only with efficiency gains and improved security posture. That might transfer to a monetary value, but we haven't assessed that.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I find the price too expensive. It looks a bit like SAP, so it does have standard functionality out of the box, but you will spend a lot of money if you want to customize it. However, the price is not as extreme as SAP or Oracle, but the actual implementation does turn out to be expensive.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We finally chose AlgoSec over Skybox for its customizability, the options for integration, and the workflows. Though Skybox was much more user-friendly, it was weaker when it came to integration options and customizability.
What other advice do I have?
In our organization, we work with multiple security vendors, and integrating with leading vendors for the most part is easy, but there are some exceptions. The solution made integration with the majority of devices really easy, but it was really cumbersome with some devices.
The solution has massively reduced human error through automation by about 95%.
As far as multiple environments are concerned, we have a private cloud, which is just a data center hosted by an external party. We have a public cloud, multiple vendors, and multiple regions. We also have decentralized data centers throughout the world.
We're investigating combining the solution with Cisco ACI.
The cost versus the achieved business goals is in balance.
I recommend that new users do a proof-of-concept before choosing AlgoSec. I would rate the solution an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Other
Disclosure: PeerSpot contacted the reviewer to collect the review and to validate authenticity. The reviewer was referred by the vendor, but the review is not subject to editing or approval by the vendor.