Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) Reviews

For the past two months, we have been evaluating Harmony Connect because it has some limitations on routing and account control, so we are testing it for three customers to check this function. In some areas, Harmony Connect can replace older VPN products and also add some features, like DRP and security gateway.

The DLP (Data Loss Protection) is the most valuable feature. 

My customers want more remote functionality.  They need another routing option after they connect to the enterprise intranet. For example, let's say a user tries to connect to a remote branch office and headquarters through Harmony Connect. They need a local breakout after connecting to the headquarters, especially in China. They need to put local breakout in the Chinese internet. The current version cannot do something like this.

This solution is new to Taiwan, so I haven't been using it for very long. I started using Harmony Connect in Q3 2022.  

Harmony Connect has been stable so far, but this is still a test. 

There are some limitations on redundancy, and it takes about 30 minutes to switch. This is a significant limitation. Competitors like Palo Alto can do it in around five minutes. It's more appropriate for enterprises because they sell the product license in packages of 50 accounts at least.

I rate Check Point customer service nine out of 10. It is excellent, especially on the customer side. 

Positive

Check Point Taiwan provides me with a lot of flexibility in pricing. If I'm trying to secure a customer, they can give me a good discount on this product. The price is about 350 HKD annually. 

I rate Check Point Harmony Connect eight out of 10.

We use the solution as an endpoint protection platform, which supports the next-generation antivirus. It offers endpoint detection and response and will help on addressing a single agent that will support multiple features. 

This helps IT Security operations front to minimize the security threats. Also, we can map the MITRE ATT&CK framework in a single dashboard which provides complete endpoint device visibility.

The solution offers runtime protection against ransomware, malware, and file-less attacks, with instant and full remediation features that give good insights into the organization's threat landscape.

The unified agent helps in addressing the system usage. Instead of installing different agents and real-time protection, the platform provides greater visibility to the operation team to see incidents in real-time, instead of creating a lot of false positives. The vaulted space features give more controls on signed processes. In case the malware attempts to perform a shadow copy deletion, the machine will not lose any data. We can also take a backup of the file.

Phishing protection gives good insights about credential theft and zero phishing.

Overall, the unified agent covers endpoints as well as prevents web browser attacks.

Phishing sites are blocked in real-time and protect against previously unknown phishing sites and corporate credential re-use. This will prevent the business end-user from being compromised by attacks.

Zero-day sandboxing is an additional feature that can provide greater visibility on the sandboxing end and gives more control on the threat front. We can sanitize the files if we want, using a threat extraction process with infected files that can be cleaned in the process and provides a safe environment.

The remote browser isolation is not part of the unified agent, as of now. It could protect more on threat intel sources and could give a broader view of threat hunting. 

Soon, the unified agent should take more CPU processing in the systems-deployed Check Point agent. 

Providing USB control in a Linux environment will give more control over data security. Few other OEMs provide Linux USB control. If Check Point could adopt the technology in near future, it would give more of a value add to existing customers. 

I've used the solution for more than six months. We are using the Check Point Harmony end point solution.

We switched in order to avoid multiple agents.

Pricing is purely based on their industry and company decisions.

We did look at the Sentinel product.

I work from home primarily, however, in a multi-unit complex. I often worry about internet security. From time to time, I also work from a coffee shop and that's when I really lean on Perimeter 81. 

It's definitely nice to know that no matter where I am I can use Perimeter 81 to make my connection more secure. Sometimes there is sensitive information or documents I work with and this extra layer of protection gives me a lot of peace of mind while I'm working (though I still tend to only work from home in those cases). 

It keeps us all accountable and ensures secure internet connections while we all work remotely. 

We have team members that live all over the country and some that chose to work abroad or in different locations periodically (since the pandemic). Having Perimeter 81 as a solution in those instances to keep our team secure has been really great. 

We eventually will have even more employees that are working remotely, and maybe even some international employees, so I'm sure we'll find it even more useful then. 

I would say the multiple networks are the most valuable aspects. I think it's cool that, depending on where I'm located, I can join a network with a specific gateway for my region. 

I don't exactly know what other features I could be using. Getting more of a tutorial or walkthrough would be awesome. I know our IT team doesn't have time for that kind of thing, however, so I would think it best to come from the solution's team. Even if it was just a quick video or animations that show you new features as you're getting acquainted with the product, that would be great. I wouldn't want a lot of emails, however, maybe a banner pop-up would work from time to time.

I don't know all the other ways I could be using the product, so I'd love to learn more about all of the features. Maybe a monthly spotlight of features or having a banner that explains more ways certain features could be used would be helpful. I wouldn't want anything too exhaustive or frequent - just something that could share some high-level features that may be helpful for at-home workers or even security tips. I'm not super-versed in that kind of thing, so I would find that valuable. I would love a little tutorial that's quick. 

I've been using it for about four months and I really love it. Not only is it easy to use but it adds some peace of mind. 

This tool is of great help and allows us to provide security assistance to our users who work remotely. They connect from any site, secure or insecure, accessing applications and business email without protection as they are outside the company perimeter.

It gives us granular security through web control policies, reports, and monitoring. We manage to avoid user vulnerabilities from anywhere. It is managed with Harmony Connect in the Check Point Infinity Portal, a very good tool.

Users are quite happy with the applied security performance.

Check Point Harmony Connect has improved the protection of computers outside the office. It offers implementation that is simple. 

Also, with the monitoring dashboard, we can make decisions to improve the control policies and web access so that we can better protect our teams.

This tool does not require being on the same network. Everything is verified thanks to a small Check Point protection agent that is installed on the client.

Protection against threats like ransomware is very effective.

We really liked the Check Point Harmony Connect tool and the monitoring, since we can make the right decisions thanks to the records observed in a simple way through the dashboard. The portal is really very intuitive.

The policies applied to users are quite granular, which helps a lot with the differential protection of users, generating managerial profiles and normal profiles efficiently.

We have also put VPNs into practice through harmony connect, having secure user connectivity. It is a very robust, modern, and secure tool.

They should include the ease of implementation or installation of the agent through an Excel list, where all the users can be loaded and added to be able to send the agent by mail.

I would also like it if they could include more documentation from the manufacturer to be able to implement it more efficiently and follow all the best practices.

Regarding the support, the schedules can be improved since they are generally in another geographical area, and it is difficult to solve the problems with the time differences between them and us.

We have been using this tool for approximately two years now. It is an excellent security tool to protect telecommuting users.

This is an excellent cloud-managed Check Point tool; no server is required.

Problems are always solved, however, with modern security applications, specifically those that are in the Check Point Infinity Portal, it is a little more difficult to solve with support.

Neutral

We have not had a modern solution like this before. Check Point has innovated our processes.

It is important to associate you company with a partner who can work with prices and documentation in order to find the security application that best suits the company's requirements.

Before acquiring any company-level security tool, we undertake the task of investigating several solutions. In this case, Check Point was the best.

All Harmony solutions are excellent. I really recommend this option.

Check Point Harmony Connect is a modern security tool from the prestigious brand that helps us provide web filter or web gateway security to our employees, from the office or anywhere they can be covered with the security of this application.

It is a tool with great potential. It gave us access to security and user control to enhance productivity.

In the company, we are pleased with the functionalities and benefits provided by Check Point Harmony Connect. It is an excellent option and an excellent tool.

It helps us daily with access and restrictions due to business policies, generating access and restriction profiles, we have guaranteed greater productivity and better security for the institution's teams.

This has helped mitigate the latest attacks, malware, and even ransomware that are all too common these days.

Thanks to this tool, we managed to solve all these vulnerabilities quickly. It offers a clean implementation and a Check Point agent that does not cause any concern at the level of requirements on the server.

There are too many positive things that I could mention. Some of them are more impressive than others, however, the best include: 

• The ease of implementation. It offers easy steps for the implementation of security tools, all through a web portal (Infinity Portal from Check Point).
• It has comfortable licensing. It adapts per user and really for all the functionalities they are of great value. It is worth implementing and acquiring.
• The monitoring and granular policies are very helpful. We can generate site blocking policies and specific applications for some user profiles. Monitoring is incredible. It helps decision-making and security improvements in an easy and intuitive way.

Check Point Harmony Connect has basic improvement areas, such as the following:

• In order to be able to invite users, send the agent and implement it, the user input must be generated manually. It would be easier if we could add them automatically via automation.
• The guides for some capabilities are limited or do not represent the reality of the application. It is difficult to find 100% reliable documentation. It is not always possible to perform all the steps due to some problems. Some manuals are not so intuitive.

This is an excellent modern security application. From the web portal, it is easily accessible.

We've used it for more than a year and have been satisfied.

We have not previously used such a complete tool.

Finding a Check Point vendor or partner who can provide you with costs and advice on current tools is best.

We evaluated the requirements of the company. However, after seeing the different options we understood that Check Point is the best option on the market.

I really liked this application. I would recommend it without hesitation.

The solution provides access to our own environments. Our environments are usually restricted by IP from external access, so I cannot access it from a regular internet connection. I can with this product. 

We also have a system in place that allows us to access to our own SSO login for our customer environments, without having to use individual logins for all of our customers. By doing so, we protect our customer environments from external public access, which is vital to our customers - especially in the onboarding phase of the lifecycle.

It helps to quickly get access to the pages I need. 

The overall login experience is seamless and usually also has no issues. I rarely have to restart the service. 

The service offers decent speed without interruptions, which allows me to work and focus without distractions or interruptions to what I am trying to achieve. This is reducing my work stress a lot as switching focus constantly has a negative impact on the quality of our products and services, which would affect our customer sentiment in a negative way.

The tool does offer a single sign-on for businesses. This means that I no longer have to remember a separate, individual password for this tool. Other tools require that, which is a big downside as I used to have to retrieve this password from my mails every time that I attempted to perform a login to the service. 

With single sign-on, the system will automatically detect who I am and which organization I belong to. This speeds up the process and even a restart of the system will not require me to lose time.

There is not much to improve. 

Currently, I am not able to define a different country or location, which can result in negative experiences as the tool is being recognized by websites and this can make it difficult to access them or force me to disable the program temporarily. This could also be solved, however, this issue might be related to the way in which we have set up our current implementation of this service. This does not have to be a global shortcoming when using this service.

We've used the solution for about two years.

The product is very stable so far. We have been connected for 36 hours without issue.

The solution is very scalable; it is easy to add more seats.

Support was quick and able to help with my query.

Positive

The solution’s UI is more user-friendly and has more functions.

The solution is very complicated for new people. The solution could add more connectors.

I have been using Perimeter 81 for two months.

The product is stable.

The solution is scalable. Around 30-40 users are using this solution.

The initial setup is easy. We must first install it on a machine and then access the connection for deployment. If you go with the standard setup, it won’t take much time, but with a database, it takes some time.

The solution is expensive.

The solution’s maintenance is easy. Since the data collector is free, they don’t provide any support. Web filtering is paid, so they provide support for it.

Before you go with the solution, ensure to check the certificate.
Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.

We use the Perimeter 81 solution for our service desk and for supporting our customers. Our operators can work from home without any problems. Also, I can use the VPN P81 from my Android device to give support to our customers at any moment. 

The VPN endpoint is very fast and easy to upgrade. The console is very simple to use. I can manage users and groups quickly. I used the P81 support and I can confirm that it's working properly. They have fixed our problems very quickly.

In the future, maybe P81 can improve the network traffic balancing and redundancy.