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Nicky Tham - PeerSpot reviewer
Evaluator oа SD-WAN at Fullerton Health
Real User
A cloud security solution with query and SD-WAN features
Pros and Cons
  • "The query and the SD-WAN are useful features of the solution."
  • "The solution could be made more user friendly for the administrator to use the portal. It is difficult to use it for people who are not experienced with Cato Networks."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution for the SASE model.

What is most valuable?

The query and the SD-WAN are useful features of the solution.

What needs improvement?

The solution could be made more user friendly for the administrator to use the portal. It is difficult to use it for people who are not experienced with Cato Networks.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Cato Networks for more than five years. There is a web portal with a cloud SASE model. There's no specific version.

Buyer's Guide
Cato SASE Cloud Platform
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about Cato SASE Cloud Platform. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The product is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The product is scalable.

We’ve more than ten thousand users using the solution, including two administrators.

How are customer service and support?

Cato Networks supported the technical support team in-house. The product and support team helped us resolve the ticket and prepare. I'm satisfied with their support team.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was easy. The deployment of the whole solution to take onboard took about six months with two engineers. 

What was our ROI?

There is ROI. The solution helps us to gather a lot of information, including the MPLS cost for the replacement. It also provides network protection.

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

The solution has reasonable pricing. It has a yearly subscription.

The pricing depends on the permit to code. Sometimes, we need to increase the permit, and the cost will automatically change. There's no fixed cost.

Unless we request additional modules such as DNS security, ELP, and decent features, there will be no additional cost.


What other advice do I have?

Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Jordan Peters - PeerSpot reviewer
Owner/Managing Director at Infinity IT B.V.
MSP
Stable SASE platform suitable for large organizations with distributed teams
Pros and Cons
  • "Cato offers all the functionality found in other solution. The life cycle management is always very stable."
  • "Web application firewalling (WAF) is a feature we would like to have in this solution and does not exist yet."

What is our primary use case?

We are a reseller of this solution and propose it to our clients. We combine it with vertical sockets in our office. We deploy the whole stack including capability, data leak prevention and CASB.

This solution is good for large organizations that have many people working around the world with many branches who want to combine policies and networks. Cato have a global presence that is increasing around the world. 

There are less than two milliseconds of latency to the nearest pop. Cato have a back end connection to the grid that is very stable offers good performance. 

How has it helped my organization?

This solution has allowed us to have more points of presence around the world. The bandwidth has also improved across different areas. This solution has offered us data leak prevention, CASB and a better dashboard. 

Using this solution, we are able to drill down into security problems in a few clicks. We also use it for the IPsec connection with our clients that allows us to make the right policies that restricts access to certain users.

What is most valuable?

Cato offers all the functionality found in other solutions. The life cycle management is always very stable.

What needs improvement?

Web application firewalling (WAF) is a feature we would like to have in this solution. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for four years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This is a stable solution. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

This is a scalable solution. Cato have contracts with backend infrastructure. During COVID, there has been an exponential growth of VPN connections and related bandwidth. We have 25 people using this solution in our organisation and we support seven clients in the healthcare and offshore sectors. There are up to 5,000 people in each organization. 

How are customer service and support?

The customer service and support for this solution is really good although we have noticed that, due to their growth as a business, support is not as consistent. Sometimes you get a more junior person to assist and then it takes a little bit longer to get the right answer. I would rate their support a four and a half out of five. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We have previously used Cisco VPN and Fortinet VPN.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup and implementation is straightforward and can be done in a few hours.

What was our ROI?

When you compare Cato to normal firewalling and all the costs and effort to maintain changes, the return on investment can be seen in one year. 

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

The pricing of this solution depends on what you need. It is based on bandwidth. You can opt for between 10 megabits to 10 gigabits per month, as well as select virtual sockets or physical sockets. A virtual socket is X1500 and can be extended to 500 megabits. Using these, you can have different levels of security. 

What other advice do I have?

We have six environments and we integrate them with the directory services of Microsoft Azure. Authentication of credentials is done automatically, including for new employees. Maintenance is also done automatically. 

This solution is very easy to implement and is very intuitive. When we do demos with our clients, they say, "Wow, is it that easy?" Cato offer a full package that can cover online, offline and whatever the customer needs.

I would rate this solution a nine out of ten. 

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: customers but also resellers and implementers
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Cato SASE Cloud Platform
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about Cato SASE Cloud Platform. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.
MarkThomas - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Revenue Officer at Vizst Technology
Reseller
Top 10
A stable and easy-to-deploy solution that provides excellent visibility control and security
Pros and Cons
  • "The visibility control and security aspects are amazing."
  • "The product must evolve into the endpoint domain."

What is our primary use case?

We are a reseller and partner. We are not the user of the system.

What is most valuable?

The product provides a single platform and a convergence of the various technologies from a WAN perspective. The visibility control and security aspects are amazing. It is a very robust platform. It's evolving slowly enough that what it brings out is always quick to market, but it takes the right time to get the right solution. There’s been a big move forward in DLP and CASB.

What needs improvement?

The product must evolve into the endpoint domain.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with the solution for nine years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the tool’s stability a ten out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I rate the tool’s scalability a ten out of ten.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is brilliant. I rate the ease of setup a ten out of ten. The time taken for deployment depends on the type of customer. The mean time to value is very short. It is quick.

What about the implementation team?

The number of people required for the deployment depends on whether the deployment is done within the country or globally.

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

I rate the pricing a seven out of ten on a scale where one is expensive, and ten is cheap.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We looked through Zscaler back in the day. We also considered firewall vendors like Palo Alto and Fortinet. We chose Cato because it had a single vendor.

What other advice do I have?

We don't have any clients. We're a new partner. People wanting to use the solution must forget about their current architecture and take a step back. Cato Networks is one of the best platforms that I work with. Overall, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller/Partner
PeerSpot user
Akei Hsu - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Network Consultant at PostNL
Consultant
A simple-to-use solution that helps us establish third-party connections
Pros and Cons
  • "The product is very simple, and everything can be done very quickly."
  • "The product may be complex for users with few years of experience."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case for this solution is SD-WAN, establishing third-party connections via Psec and remote feedback.

What is most valuable?

The product is very simple and everything can be done very quickly.

What needs improvement?

The product could provide more advanced features for networking.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution for approximately two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable, and we may eventually increase our usage.

How are customer service and support?

The customer service and support team provide fast responses.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was very fast.

What about the implementation team?

We implemented it via a third party. However, we do it in-house now because of its simplicity.

What was our ROI?

We have seen a  return on investment.

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

I cannot comment on the exact cost of the product. It is expensive but profitable in the long term.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated other suppliers before choosing this product.

What other advice do I have?

I rate the solution a nine out of ten. The product may be complex for users with few years of experience, but overall, it is a simple product to use.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1576422 - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Digital Officer at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
Real User
Top 10
A global service for controlling Zero Trust network access functions through its SASE capabilities
Pros and Cons
  • "The Cato SASE Cloud Platform is a remarkable solution for managing and controlling all aspects of Zero Trust network access functions through its SASE capabilities. It's designed with an exquisite and practical architecture, making it a worthwhile investment for organizations looking to optimize IT spending and streamline management processes."
  • "It could expand its reach into other sectors like professional services and finance, requiringmore specialized tools beyond Cato's current offerings. This includes better integration with third-party providers for more sophisticated tools such as intrusion prevention systems, anti-malware, and data loss prevention. Additionally, enhancing network speed and optimizing last-mile connectivity for managed service providers like us would be beneficial."

What is our primary use case?

For the past three years, our company has operated as a managed service provider across various continents. We assist clients in choosing the most suitable platforms or managing their existing ones. Our services aim to control costs, optimize IT spending, and effectively streamline necessary IT management processes.

What is most valuable?

Cato SASE Cloud Platform is a remarkable solution for managing and controlling all aspects of Zero Trust network access functions through its SASE capabilities. It's designed with an exquisite and practical architecture, making it a worthwhile investment for organizations looking to optimize IT spending and streamline management processes. The single SASE cloud engine, known as the space engine, is particularly effective for threat prevention as it integrates critical functions related to network security seamlessly. This engine simplifies the management of flow control, segmentation, threat prevention, and application protection through an intuitive interface, offering a comprehensive solution from a single pane of glass.

What needs improvement?

It could expand its reach into other sectors like professional services and finance, requiring more specialized tools beyond Cato's current offerings. This includes better integration with third-party providers for more sophisticated tools such as intrusion prevention systems, anti-malware, and data loss prevention. Additionally, enhancing network speed and optimizing last-mile connectivity for managed service providers like us would be beneficial.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Cato SASE Cloud Platform is incredibly stable, with high availability and reliability. It's one of the most dependable solutions in the market, especially for global SASE deployments.

I would rate its stability ten out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability is an inherent feature of Cato SASE Cloud Platform, as it is familiar with all SASE platforms and software as a service (SaaS) models. This scalability is essential for cloud-based services like Cato, allowing businesses to expand operations efficiently without compromising performance or reliability. They’re expanding their presence in critical locations, demonstrating financial solid and engineering investments. They provide comprehensive monthly updates to partners, showcasing consistent growth and technological advancements.

I would rate this ten out of ten.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support for the Cato SASE Cloud Platform is top-notch. They have a competent and responsive team.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of the Cato SASE Cloud Platform is straightforward and can be quickly implemented by an experienced team.Cato SASE Cloud Platform is typically deployed as a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution. Cato manages its infrastructure, including firewalls and security tools, in its environment. For network access, managed service providers may need to deploy limited hardware, such as access points, at client premises. Cato provides all the tools
and services in the cloud, making deployment straightforward for users.

What was our ROI?

The ROI is typically achieved within a few months, making it a cost-effective solution. Using Cato as a complete SASE solution or solely for security as a service (SSE 360) provides flexibility and caters to specific business needs. This business model benefits Cato and us as a managed service provider. The ROI from the Cato SASE Cloud Platform has been quite good. While the solution is expensive, Cato's comprehensive management reduces the need for extensive support and expertise.

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

The pricing is on the higher side, almost an eight out of ten.

What other advice do I have?

AI is integrated into the Cato SASE Cloud Platform through various security tools like CASB, Kaspersky solution, DLP, and intrusion prevention system. These tools utilize AI to identify anomalies and patterns to enhance security measures. The AI integration in Cato's solution is practical enough for average retail, logistics, and manufacturing clients.

However, additional robust solutions may be necessary for clients in highly regulated sectors or those with more sophisticated security needs. As for incident response times, Cato's competent team continuously updates their AI-based security tools to protect against evolving malware attacks and maintain high security.

I would recommend the Cato SASE Cloud Platform to others. It's a trusted solution in the industry, and Cato is known for reliability and leadership. Various research companies like Forrester, Gartner, and others have recognized Cato as a leader in SASE solutions. Overall, I would rate the SASE solution from Cato an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
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PeerSpot user
Central Domain Administrator at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Top 20
A stable and scalable network service that provides useful features, like monitoring and SASE
Pros and Cons
  • "It is a stable solution...it is a scalable solution."
  • "I am located in South Korea, and I can say that most people here have no idea about Cato Networks. I think Cato Networks should promote its network services in various countries."

What is our primary use case?

In my company, we use the solution for multiple purposes, including for our employees involved in remote work. Cato Networks is helpful for my company since we need it to connect our headquarters in Germany with our branch office and plant in Korea.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of the solution is SASE or Secure Access Service Edge since the team of Cato Networks does the monitoring, and it helps us if any incidents appear in our network service.

What needs improvement?

I don't find any weaknesses in the solution. I am very satisfied with the service from Cato Networks.

I think Cato Networks needs to promote its product globally. I am located in South Korea, and I can say that most people here have no idea about Cato Networks. I think Cato Networks should promote its network services in various countries.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Cato Networks for two years. I use the solution in my company. I don't remember the solution's version since it is a network service. I am a customer of Cato Networks.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution. I have never had any experience with Cato's setup box or network service being down for the last two years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I think it is a scalable solution.

For Korea alone, 1,800 employees in our office use Cato Networks. I think one administrator for Cato Networks is enough.

How are customer service and support?

The solution's technical support keeps an eye on our company's network service. If there is anything wrong with our company's network service, the technical support contacts us immediately and gives us good support. The technical support team's speed of response is really good.

I rate the technical support a nine out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

My company previously used MPLS for network service. The decision to switch from MPLS to Cato Networks was made by those at our organization's headquarters in Germany. MPLS was a really good service.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of Cato Networks is very easy and straightforward.

The solution is deployed on a hybrid cloud.

For deployment, you just plug the cable into Cato's setup box and Cato's suite. The deployment can be done in 30 minutes.

Only one person is needed for the solution's installation.

What about the implementation team?

I did the installation of the solution in our company.

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

The solution is reasonably priced since Cato Networks provides features like SASE and monitoring, which I am very happy with currently. The licensing costs of the solution are reasonable since, in our company, we just use the solution's service and don't need Cato Networks for many hours to operate.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I think our headquarters had considered various services like Palo Alto Networks and Cisco, but finally, they decided to use Cato Networks. From what I heard from my colleagues working in our company's finance department, the cost of Cato Networks is slightly lower than its competitors. The setup and deployment phases of Cato Networks are easy.

What other advice do I have?

Cato Networks is a product for those who want their enterprise network service to provide them with SASE and some features similar to SD-WAN.

The interface of Cato Networks is good. I am not sure of the solution's integration capabilities with the third-party tools. Cato Networks helps with the integration part of the ticketing system in our company. It is very helpful to identify issues and manage the process of troubleshooting. The documentation that Cato Networks provides is good.

I rate the overall product a nine out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Cybersecurity Consultant at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
MSP
Top 10
A highly recommended SASE solution that's user-friendly, with excellent stability and scalability
Pros and Cons
  • "When I first encountered Cato, I didn't know how to use it, but after a week of training, I could onboard our systems to it, so the solution was easy to learn and navigate."
  • "A little tweaking or improvement of the UI in terms of logging when troubleshooting would be an improvement because it's very detailed."

What is our primary use case?

We use the tool in our backend and offer it to our customers; we have a lot of customers interested in using the solution, including BPOs international MPLS lines replacement, banking, and finance branch to DC, and telecommunications companies. 

Cato is usually a cloud-native platform. However, it can be integrated into sites using sockets or by integrating the existing firewalls or routers with IPsec. The tool is flexible and has a powerful management User interface

How has it helped my organization?

When we hit the pandemic, it became challenging to migrate us and customers to have an auto-scaling VPN for the remote user. Cato gave us much hope because it works as fast as we need. It also helps our customers replace MPLS lines, or simply interconnect branch HQ and Cloud using its SASE. It stands out against other brands, which is why I highly rate it. 

What is most valuable?

  • Competitive Cost with great features
  • Full cloud native SASE with very skilled and responsive technical support
  • The UI is accessible and user-friendly
  • Integration was very straightforward
  • My customer saves millions of pesos when we remove the line dependency for MPLS/IPVPN for domestic and international sites.

When I first encountered Cato, I didn't know how to use it, but after a week of training, I could onboard our systems to it, so the solution was easy to learn and navigate.

What needs improvement?

A little tweaking or improvement of the UI in terms of logging when troubleshooting. Overall the UI is perfect and very powerful. It will remove your stress when you came from silo solutions and old-school multi-branch connectivity.

Extra plugs via API would be a welcome feature, as the solution is a closed loop. Readily available external integration points would make our job easier for customers looking to integrate monitoring tools.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been working with the solution for about two years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution's stability is excellent; we didn't encounter any issues in a year. Cato Networks had a massive outage in 2017 or 2018, but they fixed it.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is highly scalable because Cato Networks has its fully-fledged cloud and independent infrastructure. This is an advantage over other solutions dependent on AWS, for example, because a small business migrating to enterprise-level could be required to shut down its system for the upgrade. However, with Cato, it's much easier to scale up and down. I recently worked with a call center and was able to increase their capacity as they requested, which is very helpful in the IT industry.

We have 15 users in our company, and our largest deployment for a client is 22,000.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is very hands-on, even during the deployment process. They are skilled at helping their customers, so I rate them highly. As a dev, I didn't have to do anything, Cato took care of it, and I don't have any negative feedback for them. Our customers and we are delighted.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward. 

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

The product is very competitively priced, and that's compelling. They don't charge the customer based on the operational cost like other brands such as Palo Alto. Cato has its own fully-fledged cloud, with their own data centers, equipment, and so on, which is an advantage. I rate the solution five out of five for affordability. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I compared many solutions because I received an initiative to find one to fit into our market. I asked the industry leaders for POCs, and Cato stood out because of their platform; they were the first in the SASE domain.

What other advice do I have?

I rate the solution nine out of ten. 

If we require remote site deployment, for example, if we have applications sitting in an on-premise data center, there are two ways of doing that. We need an IPsec channel going from the data center to Cato Cloud, and the first way of doing that is using the existing network component, either router or fiber, as long as they have IPsec. Second, we can use Cato Network's sockets if we want visibility, packet loss monitoring, the SD-WAN component, etc.

Cato Networks is an excellent solution in the retail sector, especially for companies with multiple sites or international branches, like Jollibee. The product is less applicable for a telco because it can conflict with the consumer-facing side of the operation. Cato can accommodate VPNs with a remote access solution, and SD-WAN is necessary, allowing business to connect their international sites using the solution as the platform.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Other
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller/Integrator/consultant
PeerSpot user
Customer Success Manager at Ledwork
Real User
Great optimization and acceleration of traffic with an easy setup
Pros and Cons
  • "We appreciate the optimization and acceleration of the performance of SDP users."
  • "The different languages in the user interface should be enhanced."

What is most valuable?

The optimization and acceleration of traffic from difficult countries like China, India and South America are very valuable. Cato Networks is highly likely to win the deal if the customer has branch sites in countries with complex connections. On the other hand, if the customer has many difficulties, they may prefer other well-known solutions they already have installed.

In addition, we appreciate the optimization and acceleration of the performance of SDP users, especially those who work from home. The possibility of activating the IPS/TLS inspection without changing the device is also great.

What needs improvement?

The different languages in the user interface should be enhanced to include other languages. Currently, it's only in English, which would be an advantage in Italian for some small customers.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution for two years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable because the possibility to scale depends mainly on the PoP. The PoP has no limitation in scalability, and there are two kinds of sockets. Still, there are a lot of differences in the suggested maximum throughput. One socket for under 500 megabits and the largest one has more slots for NICs. But the scalability doesn't depend on the appliance, it depends on the PoP.

For example, if you have 50 SDP users for people that connect remote to the headquarters, you can scale to 300 because all the staff works remotely. You won't need any updates, only the licenses in Cato, because the PoP can support it. This is different if you have a VPN based on the appliance because you usually have to update.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support team is very good. We used them for deployment and initial settings. After that, it wasn't problematic. They can also advise you about the configuration if you change something during the time.

How was the initial setup?

The setup is very easy. You can also define the policies and all the configurations without the need to have the socket already available. For example, with the customer, we configured all the settings and sent the socket to the branch in China. When the socket arrived, they only needed to turn it on and connect to the internet.

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

We are satisfied with the pricing. However, I don't know what the competition is on the price. It is also convenient because if you dismiss the MPLS connection, you save a lot of money, but it depends on the customer's network and their advantage.

What other advice do I have?

I rate the solution a ten out of ten. The solution is good but can be improved by including different language options in the user interface.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Cato SASE Cloud Platform Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: November 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Cato SASE Cloud Platform Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.