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Gabriel Borlean - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Specialist at UFST.dk
User
Great search tools, good firewall cleanup functionality, and very user-friendly
Pros and Cons
  • "The user-friendliness, visibility, compliance and efficiency are unparalleled in the industry."
  • "I would say that the cases opened with AlgoSec could be solved faster or escalated sooner to the senior engineers/2nd or 3rd tier."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution for firewall management (with AFA - AlgoSec Firewall Analyzer) and application network visibility (with AppViz).  

We are running multiple firewalls and hundreds of users who request firewall connectivity.  

How has it helped my organization?

When it comes to a large organization with many vendors/partners, our firewalls are more easily managed using the AlgoSec AFA component.  The ease of use, visibility, compliance, and efficiency is unmatched in the industry. 

We have used AlgoSec AFA to have more visibility into the network and know what firewalls to activate. 

AlgoSec AFA has great search tools and firewall cleanup functionality. 

The Algsec AppViz is a newer Algosec element that we will use to improve application security and visibility in our complex network.

What is most valuable?

The firewall management tool and AppViz for application visibility and security in the network are great. 

The user-friendliness, visibility, compliance and efficiency are unparalleled in the industry. We have more visibility into the network and now we know what firewalls to activate. 

AlgoSec AFA has great search tools.

The firewall cleanup functionality is helpful. 

We also enjoyed the use of AlgoCare which speeds up the ticket troubleshooting process with AlgoSec Support.

What needs improvement?

I would say that the cases opened with AlgoSec could be solved faster or escalated sooner to the senior engineers/2nd or 3rd tier. AlgoSec Support is very good at responding very fast (faster than the required SLA) and very timely. Their engineers are based either in India or Israel. Each region has its sales person and technical engineer person.  

Another pet peeve is that there are hotfixes for new issues or bugs at least once a month, if not more frequently.  Overall, AlgoSec is trying to improve its case-resolution support team and process, and we are optimistic that our issues or bugs will be fixed much timelier.

Buyer's Guide
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November 2024
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For how long have I used the solution?

We've used the solution for over three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a very stable product.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is very scalable.

How are customer service and support?

Customer service and support are very prompt, always complying with SLAs. However, the time to resolution can be improved.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We did not use a different solution previously.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is very straightforward, and the online documentation and AlgoSec engineer support are more than adequate.

What about the implementation team?

We set up the solution in-house.

What was our ROI?

I am not privy to the financial benefits or ROI for this product.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I am not privy to the cost of the product, as I am a Network Specialist.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

The AlgoSec solution was selected before I joined the organization.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1109571 - PeerSpot reviewer
Works at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Network security optimization saves us time while boosting both security and performance
Pros and Cons
  • "AlgoSec has reduced the need for additional manpower and we can now use the time to tackle other security-related issues."
  • "We would like to see them utilize the cloud to help with performance improvement, and with various processes needed on a daily basis."

What is our primary use case?

We use AlgoSec to provide compliance and for the ease of automating everyday security tasks. We have more than five hundred firewalls and automation is a must. This was the best product in terms of the flexibility and visibility that we needed to manage them across different regions. We can modify policy according to our maintenance schedule and time zones.

How has it helped my organization?

AlgoSec has reduced the need for additional manpower and we can now use the time to tackle other security-related issues. For incident response, you can automatically isolate compromised servers from the network.

It helps remove rules with limited impact on other applications. By maintaining a clean security policy, it reduces the risk from the most common attacks and also improves performance.

AlgoSec has also helped increase collaboration between departments. It helps our network department to reduce third-party involvement in policy creation and management.

What is most valuable?

So far, we are using AlgoSec Analyzer and FireFlow. The Analyzer is more for compliance, risk, and auditing. FireFlow is more for automating rule changes and installation.

Right now I am loving FireFlow for its easy to use interface. You can also get as complex as you are comfortable with. You can add email, scripts, and hooks to certain aspects of the rule creation process.

What needs improvement?

AlgoSec now has cloud products that they are rolling out. This is the next space for which everyone is dedicating more resources. We would like to see them utilize the cloud to help with performance improvement, and with various processes needed on a daily basis. We have two remote agents that help with daily processing and would like to integrate more power from the cloud to be as flexible as possible.

For how long have I used the solution?

Five years.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
AlgoSec
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about AlgoSec. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
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PeerSpot user
Global Network Security Engineer at General Motors
Real User
It easily scaled up to support our hundreds of firewalls.

What is our primary use case?

Provides visibility to firewall policies. 

Single tool to engineer changes and track approvals for audit compliance.

How has it helped my organization?

A Central tool to track firewall requests. 

Using AlgoSec API calls to integrate with other apps (ex: central IT request portal)

What is most valuable?

Standard view of firewall policies, regardless of vendor (ex: Checkpoint and Cisco). 

Built-in reports to aid in policy cleanup (ex: unused rules or objects, covered rules).

What needs improvement?

Faster HA/DR failover - with very large databases, it takes a long time to failover / failback.

Provide even more REST API calls (ex: rule removal API)

For how long have I used the solution?

More than five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Product and appliances have been very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It easily scaled up to support our hundreds of firewalls.

How are customer service and technical support?

Both are excellent. 

Customer service is clearly important to AlgoSec. I never get the feeling they're just trying to sell me something, they sincerely try to assist with the best solution for us.

Tech support is extremely knowledgeable and responsive. If I could score them 11, I would. 

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Did not use another solution previously.

How was the initial setup?

Initial deployment was straightforward. The FireFlow workflow can be configured to match the existing flow - customizing this to match any workflow permutations takes the most time. 

What about the implementation team?

Through a vendor team. They were top-notch - extremely knowledgeable and great to work with.

What was our ROI?

Unknown.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Explore the possibility of running on a VM instead of dedicated hardware.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I was not part of the evaluation.

What other advice do I have?

The tool is very flexible. Be sure to allocate sufficient resources to deploy & customize it.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
Manager - Network Service Delivery (IP & Security) at Prudential Corporation Asia at Prudential Corporation Asia
Real User
The compliance module provides full visibility of the risk required in firewall change requests
Pros and Cons
  • "AlgoSec contributes more in the security space for our company, especially in automatically ​finding the high risk and medium risk rules instead of manually reviewing over a few thousand rules."
  • "ABF is a wonderful module where you can keep the footprint for your firewall rules up-to-date, like CMDB."
  • "The Compliance module is one of the best features which can help anyone to perform security review with predefined security matrix configurations. The compliance module can save a lot of time for security reviews and provide full visibility of the risk required in firewall change requests."
  • "ABF is not very mature compare to AFA and AFF, but the module and concepts are quite good. I would suggest more concentration on ABF, especially on object and application permissions."

What is our primary use case?

ABF and compliance modules.

How has it helped my organization?

AlgoSec contributes more in the security space for our company, especially in automatically finding the high risk and medium risk rules instead of manually reviewing over a few thousand rules. 

Also, ABF is a wonderful module where you can keep the footprint for your firewall rules up-to-date, like CMDB.

What is most valuable?

ABF is a key module for us, which we are using like an application center where we can keep our firewall rules for each application up-to-date. 

The compliance module is one of the best features which can help anyone to perform security review with predefined security matrix configurations. The compliance module can save a lot of time for security reviews and provide full visibility of the risk required in firewall change requests.

What needs improvement?

ABF is not very mature compare to AFA and AFF, but the module and concepts are quite good. I would suggest more concentration on ABF, especially on object and application permissions. 

For how long have I used the solution?

Less than one year.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We used a different Network Security Policy Management Solutions (NSPM) tool, but we felt that it would not be able to fulfill our requirements and address the gap which we had before.

We were looking for a place where we could keep our rules and also track ownership of each rule in the application.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I personally feel that the cost is quite expensive. AlgoSec is charging for each function, e.g., Active change, Application ABF license, etc. 

It is worth spending the cost for visibility on security. Of course, security is not cheap.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated three marketing leaders in the NSMP industry. However, we are not interested in highlighting anyone here.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Gulu Demirag - PeerSpot reviewer
Cyber Security Expert at Soitron Siber Güvenlik Servisleri
User
Top 20
Automates policy analysis, optimizes configurations, and visualizes security risks
Pros and Cons
  • "AlgoSec's ability to integrate with various security and networking solutions enhances its overall value."
  • "Advanced analytics and reporting capabilities that provide deeper insights into network traffic, security policy effectiveness, compliance, and risk management can be beneficial."

What is our primary use case?

AlgoSec is a very helpful product in carrying out security operations effectively.

It has a user-friendly interface, and we don't encounter any problems during or after installing updates.

We can get quick support from the manufacturer in case of problems.

The ability to automate policy analysis, optimize configurations, and visualize security risks allows organizations to mitigate threats and reduce the risk of security breaches proactively. 

By providing visibility into security risks, compliance gaps, and application connectivity requirements, AlgoSec helps organizations strengthen their security posture.

How has it helped my organization?

This product has had many benefits in improving my security posture by fixing many vulnerabilities.

Lack of sufficient resources or expertise to leverage AlgoSec's capabilities to their full potential might hinder the expected improvements.

The ability to automate policy analysis, optimize configurations, and visualize security risks allows organizations to mitigate threats and reduce the risk of security breaches proactively. AlgoSec's reporting and compliance features help organizations meet regulatory requirements more effectively.

What is most valuable?

AlgoSec offers a centralized platform for managing complex network security policies across heterogeneous environments. This feature enables users to visualize, analyze, and manage policies from a single interface, enhancing efficiency and reducing errors associated with manual policy management. 

AlgoSec's ability to integrate with various security and networking solutions enhances its overall value. Integration with firewalls, cloud platforms, SIEM tools, and other security devices ensures a cohesive security ecosystem and enables better threat response and mitigation.

What needs improvement?

Enhancements that allow for more automated policy management, change workflows, and orchestration can significantly streamline network security operations. 

Advanced analytics and reporting capabilities that provide deeper insights into network traffic, security policy effectiveness, compliance, and risk management can be beneficial. 

Features that allow security policies to be defined and managed based on specific applications' needs would be ideal.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for two years. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Security Consultant at a computer software company with 501-1,000 employees
MSP
Is user-friendly, reduces the time it takes to implement firewall rules, and is stable
Pros and Cons
  • "One of the features that I like about AlgoSec is the topology table. It helps us understand where the traffic flows through, where it gets interconnected, and how the traffic flows from our device to the other device."
  • "Certain firewalls don't integrate with AlgoSec, and it would be great if this bug could be fixed."

What is our primary use case?

We have around 200 firewalls that we manage through AlgoSec. We use it for automation purposes in certain cases. We have 10 to 12 team members who use AlgoSec.

We have around 100 plus on-premises devices. However, we are moving over to the cloud. At present, we mainly have Microsoft Azure, and we are going to deploy AWS and Google Cloud soon.

We use AlgoSec FireFlow as well. 

How has it helped my organization?

The amount of time spent on doing simple tasks, such as adding a particular rule or giving access to a particular person, or doing the same repetitive task has been reduced. We don't have to manually look into duplicate rules or look into traffic that is not getting hits. It will be automatically taken into consideration by AlgoSec, and the information will be given to us so that we can take action on that part. It saved us a lot of time.

When the staff is doing the same repetitive task all the time, there will be errors. AlgoSec helped to reduce human error and misconfigurations to a great extent.

What is most valuable?

One of the features that I like about AlgoSec is the topology table. It helps us understand where the traffic flows through, where it gets interconnected, and how the traffic flows from our device to the other device.

The other good feature that I have come across is that it suggests best practices. For example, we had a case where there was a legacy rule that was a wide-open rule. AlgoSec identified what IP traffic got hit and based on that suggested allowing those particular IPs instead of maintaining a wide-open rule.

In terms of the overall visibility that AlgoSec gives into our network security policies, I like the best practice assessment in terms of compliance. It helps us deal with wide-open rules and duplicates, and provides suggestions on how the rules can be written, restructured, and reordered.

AlgoSec reduced the time it takes to implement firewall rules. Also when it is upgraded, which we are in the process of doing, when a user tries to raise a ticket, that ticket will be associated with AlgoSec FireFlow. Then, the user will be able to access it themselves.

We work with multiple security vendors, but not all vendors integrate with AlgoSec. As a result, our team has both AlgoSec and Tufin. In terms of integrations, it's going well so far.

AlgoSec helped to simplify the job of our security engineers. For example, a new user who tries to gain access will have to raise a case, and automation will take that into consideration. It helped us to disable rules that are not being utilized, merge any duplicate rules, and reorder rules based on traffic hits to have a good flow. Any rule works from top to bottom, and AlgoSec will place the major items at the top. These helped to reduce latency as well.

What needs improvement?

Certain firewalls don't integrate with AlgoSec, and it would be great if this bug could be fixed.

AlgoSec looks into compliance and is helpful. However, it would be nice to have validations that can run before the changes are posted and implemented. Now, if something goes wrong the user would need to reach out to us, and then we would have to troubleshoot. Instead of that, if there are validations for simple tasks, it would be great.

I've also heard from our AlgoSec vendor about a feature that is coming up in the future. With the topology table, we can see the interconnected devices to understand the traffic flow. I was told that with this new feature, if we find a blockage, maybe on a firewall, that we would be able to go to that firewall and allow traffic through a specific rule. This would be done just by right-clicking on that particular device and getting the change implemented through automation. This would be a helpful feature.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using AlgoSec for about a year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability has been okay so far. There are a few bugs, but no device is perfect.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We previously used FireMon and switched to AlgoSec because we were not satisfied with it. FireMon was good but was not user-friendly.

What other advice do I have?

I recommend AlgoSec because it has good features and is more user-friendly than FireMon. AlgoSec has fewer options in terms of tabs, so you'll be able to navigate and explore everything. From a technical point of view, AlgoSec is good for a newcomer. Therefore, I would give AlgoSec an overall rating of eight on a scale from one to ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Volkan Tastan - PeerSpot reviewer
Security Engineer at Infosec
Real User
Provides excellent visibility into security policies with robust reports and notifications
Pros and Cons
  • "The Firewall Analyzer component has excellent compatibility with the solution, and it's highly useful and easy to manage."
  • "More scope for editing alerts would be a welcome change."

What is our primary use case?

We work on the support side, and our customers use AlgoSec, primarily via on-prem deployments. They use the solution to analyze and engage firewall policies, increase their security, and receive advice for firewall optimization. 

The solution component we use is AlgoSec Firewall Analyzer. We have a customer who uses FireFlow, and we carried out a POC of AppViz, which some of our customers may want to implement in the next year.  

How has it helped my organization?

AlgoSec reduced the time it takes to implement firewall rules for our organization. 

The product helps us prepare for audits and ensure firewalls are in compliance; we can check the security and firewall rating points and advise our customers on optimizing their firewall and security rules. 

AlgoSec helped simplify the job of our security engineers, primarily through the advice it provides to admins managing the firewalls, which is essential. It also made them more efficient at their jobs.   

What is most valuable?

The Firewall Analyzer component has excellent compatibility with the solution, and it's highly useful and easy to manage.

Our customers find the Intelligent Policy Tuner very helpful, and it was useful for us during the POC because it was a significant selling point for our clients; they liked it and wanted to use it.

The solution provides excellent visibility into our network security policies, especially when we set the log options to ''extensive''; this gives us a lot of visibility for reports and change notifications. 

AlgoSec provides complete visibility into the risk involved in firewall change requests, which is especially important when presenting security reports to upper management.  

The solution's automation helped to reduce human error and misconfigurations; if the tool detects a drop in security and firewall policy points, it notifies admins via email of a potential misconfiguration, allowing us to fix the issue and raise the points again.  

What needs improvement?

More scope for editing alerts would be a welcome change. 

The solution has visibility and compatibility issues with Palo Alto firewalls, which makes it challenging to provide reports. The reports rely on logging, and the product has problems with Palo Alto's logging. Better compatibility with Palo Alto firewall reports is a must.

Some of our customers want to see AlgoSec with a user-based policy that can advise on user policy rules and be compatible with identity awareness.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for over eight years across two companies.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is good; there's no problem with it. 

How are customer service and support?

The customer service is responsive and reliable enough, and most of our cases are solved within a day or two.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The setup is very straightforward; we use VMs, so our customers don't need appliances. We can set up a VM and install AlgoSec in 15-30 minutes, then further configuration such as DNS, names, IP addresses, and adding the firewalls takes two to three hours.

The upgrade process is also straightforward; when the upgrade package is released, we download it, import it to a machine, and implement it with one SSH command. The solution doesn't require any further maintenance. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I'm not involved in the financial aspect, but I understand the platform to be expensive, though I need to find out how it compares to competitors like Tufin, for example.

What other advice do I have?

I rate the solution a nine out of ten. 

Some of our customers work with different security vendors, including FortiGate, Palo Alto, and Check Point, and integration with their firewalls is straightforward when using AlgoSec.  

We are also a supporter of Tufin in Turkey, and there are some advantages to using AlgoSec, as it's more useful in specific ways. With the latter, it's quick and easy to get reports, and AlgoSec has lower spec requirements for new installs. It requires a maximum of 16-32 GB of memory and 500 GB to one TB of storage, but Tufin requires 60 GB of memory and one to two TB of storage. AlgoSec is more straightforward and user-friendly; the options are named clearly, so it's easy to add identities or active directories.

The product is suitable for small, medium, and large businesses; they could all find a use for it. 

I recommend the solution; I've been using it for eight years, and it's more user-friendly and useful than other products.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner/Integrator
PeerSpot user
reviewer1026111 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Security Manager at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Impressive rule base analysis, compliance features, and report generation
Pros and Cons
    • "The process to replace a decommissioned device with a new device is not straightforward."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use this solution for rulebase analysis. AlgoSec provides great unified visibility into all policy packages in one place. Also, the compliance feature is quite useful. 

    It is great for checking rules/objects across numerous policies/domains, as well as generating advanced reports about risks, trends in recent changes, covered and unused rules, and if you want to go really deep in rule base optimisation - unused objects. This helps our team to keep network access up to date and secure. 


    How has it helped my organization?

    Growing big requires an increased level of automation and less manual tasks, and this is where AlgoSec comes into the picture.

    It has being used for CheckPoint environment with numerous domains, hundreds of Firewalls and numerous policy packages, and Algosec able to provide single point of review. Security risks reports and rules analysis are very handy to optimise company's security posture and operational excellence. 

    What is most valuable?

    The most valuable feature is the rule base optimization, which provides extremely valuable information about inactive rules, and rules that can be optimized or unified.

    In addition it is about tracking insecure changes and getting better visibility into network security environment - either on-prem, cloud or mixed.

    We are also going to implement full change management via Algosec as it allows to eliminate human error, ease on security governance and improve general ROI.

    What needs improvement?

    In my opinion, the user should be granted more flexibility to choose exactly which devices per CMA should be analyzed.

    The process to replace a decommissioned device with a new device is not straightforward.

    With the upgrade to CheckPoint R80.xx we have started to see some issues, although this version was already some time on the market, hence I was surprised that there was no full compatibility achieved. Nevertheless, working with support and professional services solved our problems.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using this solution for one to three years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    This solution is stable. There has been zero technical support interaction during last two years.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    Support is build in tier model so the case can be always escalated to more advanced level if needed

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We did not use another solution prior to this one. However, it was picked up after careful review and comparison with similar products.

    How was the initial setup?

    The setup was long in the past but recent upgrades were flawless and support engineers knowledgeable 

    What about the implementation team?

    Our company have close relationship with Algosec team and they are always showing great level of expertise along with the will to develop custom solutions in case of need

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    The pricing for this solution seems to be reasonable for the functionality.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We have evaluated number of solutions which are available on the Market. In my opinion several of them were concentrating to much on security operations and SOAR while not having that much functionality related to managing rulebases. Solid firewall change management is something must to have as it is provide strong basis for security governance, improves company's posture and allow to reduce risks in rapidly growing companies associated with multiple changes which might be not properly assessed or implemented as a security exception.

    What other advice do I have?

    As my company uses basic package, I quite happy with the functionality.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free AlgoSec Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
    Updated: November 2024
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free AlgoSec Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.