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PeerSpot user
Associate Consult at Atos
Vendor
Good support, protects against zero-day attacks, and provides good visibility
Pros and Cons
  • "Based on domain and URL reputation, it will allow traffic to flow."
  • "Cloud Guard would be a complete solution if Check Point added a comprehensive data loss solution that included capabilities such as bulk data transfer detection."

What is our primary use case?

This perimeter firewall provides me control over my perimeter servers and devices. Current Cloud applications are getting good protection from CASB solutions, but are limited to data leakage and application control. Beyond that, I require something to monitor my data that flows inside of my cloud application.

Sophisticated threats like zero-day attacks can't be control by CASB solutions, Instead, we are required to have something that can work using Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning algorithms. This helps to defend my cloud applications against today's attacks.

How has it helped my organization?

Sophisticated attacks can't be prevented by normal SaaS security. Cloud Guard SaaS is a technology that prevents not only Sophisticated attacks but affords protection from Email.

Most attacks are successful because of SPAM emails that effectively cause users to fall into the attacker's trap. As Check Point is a leading technology in the industry, it provides maximum protection against email phishing attacks and provides the identity of users and visibility over shadow IT applications.

Along with the email security solution, Cloud Guard is an additional layer of comprehensive security, so we can completely rely on it.

What is most valuable?

Most organizations that invest in email security opt for MFA. They invest in a Cloud Firewall but they never consider the east-west traffic flow inside their Cloud Applications.

Here, Cloud Guards comes in with the best features, such as protection from zero-day attacks. These are usually reported when we have blades on the perimeter firewall, like Threat Emulation and Extraction or Sandbox. We have complete visibility of email Attacks like spear-phishing, spoofing, etc. Based on domain and URL reputation, it will allow traffic to flow.

Apart from this, we can easily identify users who are going to use cloud applications. These users are logged in via a trusted network or device.

What needs improvement?

Cloud Guard would be a complete solution if Check Point added a comprehensive data loss solution that included capabilities such as bulk data transfer detection.

I would like to see a centralized gateway so that anyone from any geolocation can access the infrastructure with minimum latency.

I would like to see additional work on protecting against phishing emails by adding more filters to minimize risk or to harden the security.

Stability is the main area that Check Point needs to focus on.

Integration with third-party APIs should be supported, as AI and ML can get more inputs to minimize the false rate ratio.

Buyer's Guide
Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
816,636 professionals have used our research since 2012.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Check Point CloudGuard SaaS for more than a year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Stability is an area that needs to improve.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It can be scale up to maximum limit.

How are customer service and support?

Technical support is good.

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

We did not previously use another solution before this one. However, one of our customers had implemented an on-premises solution by McAfee.

How was the initial setup?

This solution is easy to implement, although it is required that you have knowledge of the Public Cloud domain.

What about the implementation team?

We are vendors and deploy this solution for our clients.

What was our ROI?

We definitely see ROI from this product, and it grows and we have a greater dependency on east-west traffic.

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

Cost is the main concern that every customer takes into consideration, and Check Point always negotiates a price that is affordable. Pricing is based on the requirements and their relationship.

What other advice do I have?


Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: We are the vendors who provide services to other customers.
PeerSpot user
Global Manager at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
Real User
Automated rule cleanups and automated policy installs have improved my customers' organizations
Pros and Cons
  • "The automated rule cleanups and automated policy installs have improved my customers' organizations."
  • "The API is its most valuable feature. On the API side, relative to the rest of the market, Check Point is decades ahead of its competitors."
  • "I have learned enough to make the product stable. However, the stability has some challenges."
  • "I would love it if they would do some work on the Postgres definition on the back-end."

What is our primary use case?

We do security automation for our customers.

How has it helped my organization?

The automated rule cleanups and automated policy installs have improved my customers' organizations.

What is most valuable?

The API is its most valuable feature. On the API side, relative to the rest of the market, Check Point is decades ahead of its competitors. The APIs on some of their competitors are so archaic, they are not even usable.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see them do some work on the database back-end and how it is supported, in terms of performance, cleanup, and scalability. In particular, I would love it if they would do some work on the Postgres definition on the back-end.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I have learned enough to make the product stable. However, the stability has some challenges.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is scalable. It can be very scalable in certain scenarios, but you have to make sure it is architected correctly.

How are customer service and technical support?

Their technical support is very good, but I am fairly technical. I don't have to use them a lot. The product has been pretty good that way.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was complex, but we were building something new for the API hosts.

What about the implementation team?

I implemented it myself, and I did a great job!

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I was the decision process. I wrote the code for it. I only work with Check Point.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate it a ten out of ten. It is the best on the market right now. It is not perfect by any means, and it has its challenges, but every product does.

I would advise someone considering this solution to stop wasting your time and get it deployed.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
816,636 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Hazel Zuñiga Rojas - PeerSpot reviewer
Administrative Assistant at Tecapro
Real User
Non-invasive, helps educate users, and acts as a good failsafe
Pros and Cons
  • "Its total protection has been the greatest aspect since it completely protects all the mail from the cloud."
  • "They could help us be integrating features with solutions from third parties."

What is our primary use case?

We had the need for a solution that would allow us to integrate search and analysis into the different mail clouds. This allowed us to focus on features that were very important, such as avoiding the loss of data and content. Thanks to the search, analysis, and integration functionalities, we could integrate easily with the cloud that we have. The product gave us a greater ability to search and explore issues while minimally invasive to end users.

How has it helped my organization?

Checkpoint Harmony Email and Collaboration is one of the cloud solutions for email that has given us the most added value. It has allowed for the education of users while still keeping them protected in a non-invasive way. When configuring this solution, we have not needed to come and affect management in terms of the day-to-day tasks handled by the users. It is a solution that is directly configured at the service level, not at the user level, so it's quick to install and configure, allowing connectors through APIs that can block malicious emails before they reach the inbox. It is acting as a full replacement for data loss analysis and management issues.

What is most valuable?

Harmony email has many interesting features. Its total protection has been the greatest aspect since it completely protects all the mail from the cloud. It gives 100% protection and is something that is a failsafe. There are no errors. Having an app-based solution that detects everything that is lost helps ensure reliability. It is quite complete, and it integrates with emulation solutions. If an email is ever compromised, you can detect the issue, find out what happened, and protect the company. It is a very complete solution.

What needs improvement?

The solution really has many outstanding features. It is quite easy to install and configure and is very complete. 

We could analyze services such as SharePoint and have more seamless integration. They could help us be integrating features with solutions from third parties. That would be very helpful. Right now, we do not have complete analysis when it comes to analyzing and detecting all the data that is saved. Having a product that could sweep repositories would be great.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for about a year and two months.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

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

Other
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1395567 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Security Analyst at a energy/utilities company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Sifts through and quarantines phishing emails for us, enabling us to check them further
Pros and Cons
  • "We need the phishing detection and email quarantine. Once an email is considered malicious, it stays in the quarantine where we can interrogate it. We can check out why it was quarantined and see if it should be delivered to the individual."
  • "We still get some false positives. There are times when legitimate stuff gets flagged and it could be that somebody is expecting a very important email but they don't end up getting it. On the flip side, when we alert Check Point about stuff like this, it is corrected, so they are improving. That's a plus."

What is our primary use case?

We use it to secure an email gateway.

How has it helped my organization?

People are now thinking twice before clicking on something, and if it's suspicious they don't have a chance to click because it's quarantined.

We also provide a process where someone can request an email from quarantine. There are times when legal email gets through because of the subject line or the content. We're able to check it, and also double-check with our individuals to ask if they expected an email from the sender. They can confirm the sender and it can be released. That added layer of protection is always good.

What is most valuable?

We need the phishing detection and email quarantine. Once an email is considered malicious, it stays in the quarantine where we can interrogate it. We can check out why it was quarantined and see if it should be delivered to the individual.

With the greater use of mobile phones there is more threat of email being compromised. Having the phishing detection is very valuable because we get hundreds of phishing emails per day. Having something to sift through them and alert us that they may be phishing emails, so that we can go in and further now check them, is a very valuable feature.

What needs improvement?

We still get some false positives. There are times when legitimate stuff gets flagged and it could be that somebody is expecting a very important email but they don't end up getting it. On the flip side, when we alert Check Point about stuff like this, it is corrected, so they are improving. That's a plus.

In terms of additional features, right now it shows you login activity for Office 365, a bit of a broad overview. I would like to be able to drill down further into that to see real-time login events on a map.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using Check Point CloudGuard SaaS for almost two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It has been pretty stable. Sometimes Check Point has a cloud issue and we have had instances where that particular box might have been down, but we get alerted that it's being worked on and when it's back up we are alerted as well. Things happen but they always keep up in the loop.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We haven't needed to really scale up or scale up or down.

We have Office 365 for pretty much the whole company, which is over 1,000 users. CloudGuard has been implemented across 100 percent of our company.

How are customer service and technical support?

For CloudGuard, specifically, their tech support is very responsive. Once we send an email to the guys we work with, they're immediately ready to set up a meeting or set up a call so that we can work through it.

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

We didn't have anything prior to CloudGuard. We needed something to catch phishing emails and malicious emails, malware, and to have a sandbox area so that we could check the classification, as well as quarantine and release.

How was the initial setup?

The setup was pretty straightforward. We were up and running within a week.

It is my manager and I who are using and maintaining the solution on a daily basis. In terms of maintenance, we've had mis-classifications of emails where we had to reach out to Check Point and they have assisted and helped us fix any issues that we have come across.

What about the implementation team?

We had assistance from Check Point. They were fairly helpful. It's a fairly new solution so we've had a few false positives. We contacted them and helped them to pinpoint some things they could go ahead and fix.

What was our ROI?

Because of its features and abilities, it has saved us from a lot of possible breaches. That's always a plus.

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

It's best to cover all your needs because you're going to want all your emails to be checked.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We were looking at a few other options, although I don't remember which ones.

The difference between them boiled down to money. Price-wise, Check Point was very good, it was very competitive.

What other advice do I have?

Make sure you do your homework and compare all the possible vendors to ensure that you get what you really want out of a solution like this.

The biggest lesson I have learned from using CloudGuard is that even legitimate emails can look suspicious. You need to take that little extra step to check them.

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.
PeerSpot user
Owner at Giliam Network & System Solutions
Real User
Good security, nice interface, easy to use, and the support is good
Pros and Cons
  • "The program has a nice interface and it is easy to use."
  • "At this time, the two-factor authentication does not work for Active Directory."

What is our primary use case?

We use CloudGuard SaaS to protect our cloud-based services from security threats. It is responsible for our Office 365 environment, OneDrive, SharePoint, Dropbox, G-Suite, and more. 

How has it helped my organization?

This solution has improved our visibility. Last week, one of our Office 365 customers was hacked and we were able to see details such as the attacker's IP address and country. It allows us to better decide what to do, such as activating two-factor authentication.

What is most valuable?

The security level is fairly high, given the price.

The program has a nice interface and it is easy to use.

There is an extra option available for two-factor authentication that you install an app onto your mobile device for. You can, for example, set it up so that you can't get into Office 365 without authenticating access from your phone.

What needs improvement?

At this time, the two-factor authentication does not work for Active Directory. This is something that we are looking forward to.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using CloudGuard SaaS for close to six months.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I have 60 customers who are using CloudGuard.

How are customer service and technical support?

The technical support from Check Point is very good. 

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

The price is very good, based on what they deliver.

What other advice do I have?

Overall, this is a solution that we are absolutely satisfied with and I definitely recommend it. In my opinion, using this product is necessary.

I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: partner
PeerSpot user
Technoloc685 - PeerSpot reviewer
Technology Security Manager at a energy/utilities company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Intercepts phishing emails and emails laden with malware, viruses, and false links
Pros and Cons
  • "It seems quite scalable. We don't anticipate any scaling issues. We have it deployed in the cloud."
  • "The most valuable features would be its ability to intercept phishing emails and emails laden with malware, viruses, false links, etc."
  • "Stability has been a pain point. I was going back and forth with my product engineer and project manager for a couple of months. I had the product in a demonstration mode and wasn't satisfied with the results initially. After a few alterations and a few revisions later, it is fine."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use is for email protection, though the analytics provided with respect to data leakage and user login activity is invaluable.

How has it helped my organization?

My company is a singular key player in a major industry in my country so we are a target at all times for phishing campaigns. We have had bad experiences in the past. Based on those experiences, we have been using Check Point for a couple of months, and in the reporting, we are seeing very good results.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features would be its ability to intercept phishing emails and emails laden with malware, viruses, false links, etc. The ability to sandbox, extract and interrogate email attachments is also key to safeguard user mailboxes. 

What needs improvement?

I have a keen interest in being able to consolidate and being able to have one viewpoint. I want to be able to integrate directly into our centralized login. I would love to see the ability to integrate into our SIEM solution which is on-premise. 

I see where in a later update, they have built ability to integrate with an on-premise logging solution, so this is a big plus.

For how long have I used the solution?

Less than one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Stability has been a pain point. I was going back and forth with my product engineer and project manager for a couple of months. I had the product in a demonstration mode and wasn't satisfied with the results initially. After a few alterations and a few revisions later, it is fine.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It seems quite scalable. We don't anticipate any scaling issues. We have it deployed in the cloud. 

How are customer service and technical support?

Their technical support was very responsive. I was not initially satisfied with the length of time it took to get this solution.

I've been a Check Point customer for about 17 years, and I am not accustomed to not getting immediate fixes when I contact support. This was different. However, I am glad it eventually worked out.

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

A colleague recommend the Check Point solution after we had such significant disruptions with the phishing email campaign. So, we tried it out.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was was straightforward. It was unknown territory for me, but the instructions from Check Point were very clear and straight to the point. 

What about the implementation team?

I worked directly with Check Point for the deployment. We had a good experience with them. 

What was our ROI?

Being able to keep the phishing campaigns out of my company has been ROI for me. 

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

Do a full feature evaluation (interactive) with a support person. That is what I did.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also considered Fortinet and Proofpoint. We always look at things like stability, feature set, the position in the market, maturity of the product, cost (because we have a budget that we have to work with), and the availability of technical support. This is why we went with Check Point. 

I was part of the decision-making process to implement the solution.

What other advice do I have?

I have been quite pleased with the solution. You have nothing to lose by trying out Check Point.

I would rate it an eight out of ten with room for improvement. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user694761 - PeerSpot reviewer
Managing Partner with 51-200 employees
Real User
Sharing of documentation is easier now. However, there is too much functionality, which makes it difficult to use.
Pros and Cons
  • "It is the collaboration between users inside the company. It is a big advantage with Check Point to be able to work together on the same document."
  • "There is too much functionality, which makes it difficult to use. More guidance for users would be helpful."

What is our primary use case?

We used it to replace the old Lotus Notes application with a full deployment of the Check Point Suite. So, it is more of an Office 365 and Check Point combined deployment, so we had a full ecosystem around Office 365 with Check Point, Outlook and all the different applications available. The idea was to replace old applications based on Notes as a base.

How has it helped my organization?

It is a little bit new, but the sharing of documentation is clearly easier now. It is easier to work within your teams using the Check Point solution so you can easily share a file without sending it by mail. This is an advantage, being able to work on the same document in a work group.

What is most valuable?

It is the collaboration between users inside the company. It is a big advantage with Check Point to be able to work together on the same document.

What needs improvement?

I would like some features that manage projects in more flexible ways, like smart chips. It would be very interesting to share tasks in a very flexible way inside a team or to reorganize planning for a certain project in a very collaborative way. Either integrating or developing something in Check Point to enable flexible project management with smart chips would be easy to use and quite powerful.

There is too much functionality, which makes it difficult to use. More guidance for users would be helpful.

For how long have I used the solution?

One to three years.

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

We were using Notes before, but it was quite obsolete. The idea was to replace it with something new, in the cloud, so this was our main objective around the Check Point and Office 365 deployment.

What other advice do I have?

It is a major concern for us is to give people enough knowledge to use the product in the proper way. Now it is more about training and management as we have to organize to make sure that everybody is onboard and using the tool in the correct way.

It is always good to compare with different solutions available on the market. This is a Microsoft solution so you are linked with a lot of tools for the integrations, and your integrations with your current landscape are key. An assessment on the different competitors in the market is very relevant for this type of choice.

Most important criteria when selecting a vendor: 

  • Quality of applications
  • Ecosystem
  • Price.

The ecosystem of partner is very important. The position in the market, in terms of quality of the application, is key. The cost and price around it are important too. 

Often. we need to have a local partner available to make sure that we are not obliged to develop by ourselves a solution. It is key to have people able to help us to deploy something. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Cyber Security Supervisor at Hanzolo
Real User
Stable product with easy-to-work and comprehensive environment
Pros and Cons
  • "The product's environment is easy to work and comprehensive."
  • "The product's pricing needs improvement."

What is our primary use case?

We use the product for endpoint security features.

What is most valuable?

The product's environment is easy to work and comprehensive.

What needs improvement?

The product's pricing needs improvement. 

For how long have I used the solution?

We have Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration for five months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The product is stable.

How was the initial setup?

We deploy it on the cloud; we use an infinity portal for the process. It takes a day to complete.

What about the implementation team?

We implement the product with the help of an in-house specialist in our company.

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

The product is expensive. I rate its pricing a seven or eight. There is room for improvement.

What other advice do I have?

I rate CheckPoint Harmony Email & Collaboration a nine out of ten. Even though it is an expensive product, it works efficiently. I advise others to do industry-related research and evaluate the products to suit business requirements regarding pricing and the number of users.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: partner
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: November 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.