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Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade vs Cisco Secure Email comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender for Offi...
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Ranking in Email Security
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Number of Reviews
45
Ranking in other categories
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (10th)
Check Point Anti-Spam and E...
Ranking in Email Security
11th
Average Rating
8.4
Number of Reviews
37
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco Secure Email
Ranking in Email Security
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
Cisco Security Portfolio (8th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2024, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 15.9%, down from 20.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade is 1.0%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Secure Email is 9.6%, down from 11.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Security
 

Featured Reviews

Luis-Brown - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 8, 2023
Allows for easy reporting of problems, valuable anti-phishing, and anti-malware support
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 lacks proactivity in assisting us with preparing for potential threats before they occur. While they employ a substantial amount of threat intelligence to preemptively prevent incidents, their effectiveness diminishes when it comes to delivering proactive threat intelligence alerts from Microsoft. Their focus primarily revolves around managing the internal environment. On the other hand, my other vendor, Check Point, along with my membership in MS-ISAC, supplements me with this type of information. The phishing and spam filters could use some improvement. It is adequate, but it doesn't match the quality of Proofpoint or Mimecast. However, it comes close in effectiveness. Plus, if we're obtaining it for free, investing in the other products seems impractical.
Dushyant Trivedi - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 9, 2023
Effectively secures data centers against various threats, including spam emails and provides policy-based control
It is a stable solution. We implemented the solution in HA. This is because the solution is highly available and can withstand hardware failures and software upgrades. Once the solution is implemented, there is no need for any further downtime for the Check Point server. Because once we change any policy, we can break the High Availability (HA) session and define the new policy on the Check Point Security Gateway (SGW) in isolation. This allows us to test the new policy without affecting the production traffic. Once the new policy is tested and active, we can then activate it on the HA pair and bring the HA session back up. This process ensures that we can make changes to the policy without any interruption to the user experience. It is a really stable solution. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten.
Muhammad Naeemuddoja - PeerSpot reviewer
Nov 14, 2023
Robust email security with advanced threat protection, seamless integration with the Cisco security ecosystem, and flexibility in deployment options
While Cisco is a preferred choice for larger enterprises, its products, especially in the realm of security, tend to be more expensive due to their advanced features. Many organizations commonly rely on Microsoft Outlook for their email needs. Transitioning to Cisco security solutions, including Cisco SecureMail, requires careful consideration and typically involves a learning stage. The decision between traditional hardware and virtual machines (VMs) for deploying solutions like Cisco Secure Mail often depends on financial considerations. VMs are generally more cost-effective compared to dedicated hardware, leading industries to increasingly favor VM deployment. The choice is particularly relevant when the server's capabilities are robust enough to meet organizational needs. Overall, I would rate it nine out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Since we have started using the solution, there have been fewer compromises."
"The initial setup was easy."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is a stable solution."
"The benefit that stands out to me is the ability for multiple individuals to collaborate simultaneously within the same document. Additionally, there is the option to save the document directly in the integrated OneDrive or SharePoint."
"Some of the valuable features on the email side are anti-phishing, anti-malware, and Safe Links."
"I like its investigation capabilities, as that is what is most important to me. It is fairly simple with a user-friendly interface."
"Safe attachments, safe links, policies, and the ability to protect from zero-day threats are the most valuable features."
"The risk level notifications are most valuable. We get to know what kind of intrusion or attack is there, and we can fix a problem on time."
"It is easy to install, and the deployment is super easy as well."
"Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade provides an extra level of security against threats and malware along with 2FA support for multiple platform collaboration and integrations in a single click."
"Anti-spam and malware phishing are valuable features of the solution."
"This solution helped us lock down and have our infrastructure easier to manage."
"One of the standout features of the product is a significant reduction in false positives, achieved through the implementation of artificial intelligence for detecting malware, phishing attempts, and spam emails."
"It helped us to achieve process compliance with over 90% effectiveness."
"The robust Smart Dashboard enables to us fetch important and accurate data insights concerning the blocking of spammers and malware attacks on the system."
"DLP features can help prevent sensitive information from being leaked via email."
"The tool has a DLP solution which we can implement. Its database is updated regularly."
"What I find the most valuable about Cisco Secure Email is that the logs are not that difficult to see even if you're not used to them. The logs are reasonably readable and diagnosing the problem is not too hard with them."
"This solution provides some benefits, like comfortable access to TAC support. You get prompt support when working directly with Cisco."
"We rely heavily on antivirus protection, email content filtering, and authentication mechanisms to ensure compliance with email security. Regarding phishing attempts, while phishing protection features are crucial, we also emphasize user education as a critical defence. The intelligence services Cisco provides, such as the Cisco Intelligence Center, play a significant role in analyzing and validating threats, including phishing attempts, in our email security practices."
"The most significant enhancement we've gained is in terms of security through the upgrade we received."
"It's flexible. There are a lot of rules and policies that can be easily applied for certain employees or certain mailboxes."
"Administration of the email domains and custom filters are easily done via the web interface."
"The product blocks spam emails."
 

Cons

"The only thing they should improve is the licensing model. They should stop changing it. A year ago, the five features I mentioned were included in one product. Now, three of them are bundled into one product, and you have to pay extra for the other two. I don't mind paying extra, but I don't want them to change it every year or every six months. I need to know what I'm looking at and not worry about it next year."
"In one of the reports I can get the exact place where a vulnerable file resides. But for that, I need to explicitly go into the device and check. If they could include that file part in the report, without my having to go to the device itself, that would help."
"Configuration at the mid-level could be improved for the support team."
"Several simulation options are available within 365, and the phishing simulation could be better."
"There is room for improvement with the UI."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 should be more proactive."
"We need a separate license and we don't know how to get the license that is required."
"Too many false positives and lacks an accurate capability to detect malicious SharePoint sites."
"Recognizing spammers and spam email sourcing is extremely lagging these days, and the performance could be improved to provide better efficiency."
"I can say that the solution's price level is a problematic area that needs to be considered for improvement."
"It is expensive but worth it."
"It would be useful to have more logs and in aggregate mode, perhaps through a specific report, that can be more easily used for troubleshooting."
"Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade could improve by focusing more on promoting and marketing its products. Despite having a great solution, it hasn't captured a larger market share, possibly due to insufficient promotion. It should also incorporate a module to monitor client identities, similar to CrowdStrike. It could also improve by systemizing and simplifying their documentation to make it easier to find needed information."
"While we often take advantage of Check Point's cloud part, including Infinity or Harmony, I would like to see products that directly deal with mobile or native environments or other operating systems that we have within the organization."
"Mobile solutions should be added to Check Point because business email is also used by users on mobile devices."
"There's definitely room for improvement when it comes to adapting to different languages in one environment."
"The tool's pricing can be improved."
"The initial setup was complex because I have two sites with physical clusters."
"There are some concerns in the way the architecture is set up, making it an area where improvements are required."
"Many smaller businesses opt for more cost-effective solutions, such as Gmail or Hotmail accounts, instead of investing in Cisco Secure Email, given its higher cost."
"My opinion on the licensing of this solution is that it is a mess that needs sorting out. I am not particularly bothered by pricing as I administer it and make recommendations for people to buy or not to buy."
"The hardware is not up to the mark. Two to three times a year we have complete downtime."
"I would like them to add some clustering or high availability features."
"There could be additional DLP functionality for it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is very expensive."
"The license is expensive because the cost is based on the number of users."
"Defender is a little bit more expensive as compared to others. We are in the manufacturing environment. So, we don't have a high budget for all of our endpoint devices. Its cost is a major concern for us."
"It is much more expensive than using another solution because we have had to include some options and upgrade our license."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is an add-on to the Office license. Many customers are purchasing this solution."
"Compared to other brands, Microsoft Defender for Office 365's pricing is competitive."
"Microsoft Defender is expensive. I typically recommend it only if clients have the budget. Otherwise, I would suggest an alternative."
"The solution could be better by simplifying the business model of their licensing. It was hard to figure out how to get the licensing done for the environment, initially."
"Choosing the correct set of licenses is essential because, without the additional software blade licenses, the Check Point gateways are just a stateful firewall."
"For licensing, my company makes yearly payments, which is expensive."
"Reasonably priced solution."
"The cost is competitive with other security products on the market."
"This is a simple system with a very low cost and basic functions, which surely is ideal for a small company."
"I rate the product pricing a seven out of ten."
"I rate the pricing as an eight on a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive."
"It is a super big router that costs a few hundred thousand dollars."
"Cisco Secure Email is not expensive, and licensing costs are yearly."
"I rate the pricing a ten out of ten on a scale where one means it is less cost-effective, and ten means it is the most cost-effective solution."
"The pricing for the Cisco Email Security Appliance involves recurring costs for licenses based on the contracted time frame, such as one year, three years, or five years. Renewals are required after the license expires."
"The product's price falls on the higher side when compared to the other products on the market."
"The licensing was all transferred."
"We were using Proofpoint and then we switched to Cisco... reportability was one of the main reasons we switched, but the biggest one was cost. If you can get an equivalent functionality for a better price it's wise to do so. That's what our primary decision came down to: We could get equivalent functionality at a lower price point."
"I would rate the pricing a ten out of ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
Security Firm
29%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
10%
Educational Organization
8%
Educational Organization
23%
Computer Software Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Threat Explorer is an invaluable tool for me, and it plays a crucial role in helping me discern the origins of variou...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
The pricing is reasonable since it comes integrated with our Office 365 license.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Sometimes, phishing emails manage to pass through the filter, so the system needs to enhance its phishing email detec...
What needs improvement with Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade?
The solution could be improved by reducing false positives, optimizing performance, improving the user interface, and...
What is your primary use case for Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade?
The primary use cases for Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade are anti-spam, anti-malware, anti-p...
What do you like most about Cisco Secure Email?
Cisco Secure Email is a budget-friendly solution.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Secure Email?
The pricing for Cisco Email Security Appliance involves recurring costs for licenses based on the contracted time fra...
What needs improvement with Cisco Secure Email?
The discontinuation of physical hardware solutions is a significant area for improvement in the Cisco Email Security ...
 

Also Known As

MS Defender for Office 365
No data available
Cisco Email Security, IronPort, Cisco Email Security, ESA, Email Security Appliances
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
SF Police Credit Union (SFPCU)
SUNY Old Westbury, CoxHealth, City of Fullerton, Indra
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade vs. Cisco Secure Email and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.
815,854 professionals have used our research since 2012.