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

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender for Offi...
Sponsored
Ranking in Email Security
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
47
Ranking in other categories
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (11th)
Check Point Anti-Spam and E...
Ranking in Email Security
10th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
38
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco Secure Email Threat D...
Ranking in Email Security
28th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 13.7%, down from 20.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade is 0.8%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense is 1.0%, down from 1.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Security
 

Featured Reviews

Tolu Omolaja - PeerSpot reviewer
Great URL scanning and attachment scanning, but I would like more proactive threat analysis
The two main features that prove most beneficial for us are URL scanning and attachment scanning. URL scanning involves an automatic scan of links and emails. When a user clicks on a link within an email, the system promptly checks the link's safety. If the link is deemed safe, access is granted automatically. However, if it is flagged as unsafe, we receive feedback and notification to caution us about the potentially harmful link. At this point, we are presented with the option to proceed or return. I have personally witnessed the system identify a few unsafe links, making this the primary advantage of using the solution. The second crucial aspect is the scanning of attachments. When an email containing an attachment arrives, we receive a notification of the new email, along with information that the attachment is being scanned for threats. This additional layer of security provides peace of mind for our organization. While Microsoft Defender for Office 365 offers numerous features, these two stand out as particularly impressive and valuable to us.
Dushyant Trivedi - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Mike Bulyk - PeerSpot reviewer
Can quickly identify, track, tag, and categorize internal emails. Reporting accessibly via the main dashboard would be a great addition.
If Cisco could continue to develop integrations, whether it's internal tooling, Threat Grid, or AMP reporting which could be accessible via a single web page, that would be helpful. This would essentially add additional context on messages as well as files or links being detected. Potentially adding additional context on why certain messages are tagged as spam or malware. In our case, malware hasn't been detected yet, but spam certainly has been. Knowing what engines or which components of the message make it identifiable as spam, that could be useful. Additional context and reporting accessibly via the main dashboard would be great. There is still room for improvement in terms of integrations with other Cisco tools and non-Cisco tools. There is also some room for improvement needed in terms of the reporting.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is its spam filter."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is a stable solution."
"The technical support is good and quick to resolve issues."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is the ease of use."
"The email protection is excellent, especially in terms of anti-phishing policies."
"The initial setup was easy."
"The stability of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is fantastic."
"We use Microsoft Defender for its ability to integrate with existing business technologies, which is beneficial for protecting business areas."
"It has provided us with an easy way to avoid invasive mail."
"Check Point offers us flexibility when it comes to customizing the configurations that we want to manage, thus allowing us to meet the specific needs of our company."
"Overall, the product rating is nine out of ten."
"Advanced Spam Filtering to identify and block unwanted email messages."
"Due to its technology, monitoring, and manufacturer features, we have been able to reduce the intrusion of spam and other threats that can be uploaded via email."
"We now have better security and fewer false positives."
"Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade helps my organization by enhancing email security."
"It is a highly cost-effective solution for all kinds of small, marginal, and medium enterprises."
"It has an efficient email filtering feature."
"The ability to see east-west traffic is its most valuable feature. Traditionally, email defense focuses on north-south, inbound-outbound, egress-ingress traffic. With Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox, it's able to quickly identify, track, tag, and categorize emails that are internal. That can typically give us visibility into if there's an internal compromised account (for example). Someone can then use that internal compromised account to email additional accounts with either malicious software or links, but internal within that Office tenant. Effectively, that email message never leaves the tenant. Any of the mail gateways really do not have any method or way of seeing this traffic since it's not leaving the environment."
"On ease of use, it rates very high. It's something that I was able to get into without really looking at any documentation. I wanted to see what it felt like before I started looking at any documentation on how to use it, and it was very easy to use. It works very smoothly. The user experience is very intuitive. They did an amazing job on that."
"I would say it's very comprehensive, with multiple antivirus OEMs, virus encrypt features, encryption, and more."
"I highly recommend it as one of the best choices."
"Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox can handle a complete portfolio, which is required to protect any kind of attack coming from emails. However, it does not have advanced phishing, but it is available through Cisco. If you compare Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox with the competition, in the competition you have to have one or two solutions together to address the customer's requirement, whereas Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox is addressing everything, such as web domain and email protection. If there is any kind of challenge it will come across through email."
"The features and functionalities are much better than Microsoft's in-built Defender plan."
"The product offers protection, email security, anti-spam, and antivirus."
 

Cons

"I am generally satisfied with how it currently is. If I could improve anything, I would reduce the cost."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365's Mac functionality requires improvement to deliver the same level of protection found on Windows devices."
"Microsoft security solutions work as expected. They are constantly updating the solutions to make them better. At the same time, the changes can impact a customer's environment, and we need to adjust settings. Sometimes we aren't aware of the changes, and nothing is pushed from the backend automatically."
"The visibility for the weaknesses in the system and unauthorized access can be improved."
"Microsoft wants its well-paying customers to finish testing some of its half-baked products, find bugs, and report bugs back to Microsoft's team, which is a little frustrating for those who have to manage it and roll it up to thousands of people across the organization."
"Too many false positives and lacks an accurate capability to detect malicious SharePoint sites."
"About eight months ago, we started to measure the quantity of phishing and spam that we have been receiving, and it has been increasing a lot. That means that protection for our email is not as good as we were expecting."
"There is room for improvement in terms of reporting."
"The pattern used to filter emails could be improved"
"I think that the pricing for the Check Point products should be reconsidered, as we found it to be quite expensive to purchase and to maintain."
"The solution's technical support is an area with shortcomings that need to be improved for the better."
"A major area for improvement is within some of the heavily discounted software blade add-ons on top of the current Next Generation Threat Prevention and SandBlast and Next Generation Threat Prevention offerings."
"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."
"The support language is only English."
"In my book, more and more customized integrations could be made available so that different kinds of mail servers and cloud servers can be internally integrated for real-time system flow and security enablement."
"It does not provide for standalone configuration on the security gateway. Instead, you need to have a management server/smart console for managing it."
"There is still room for improvement in terms of integrations with other Cisco tools and non-Cisco tools. There is also some room for improvement needed in terms of the reporting."
"From a technical point of view, Cisco is far behind in terms of cybersecurity, and it has to improve very much."
"The pricing could always be better."
"The solution is a bit expensive."
"The physical appliance has been discontinued, although the platform still exists."
"This solution could be improved by integration with Sandbox."
"Cisco's multiple product lines and verticals made this just one of their many verticals, and we could see a shift in focus."
"We encounter issues while searching for missing emails."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"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."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is an add-on to the Office license. Many customers are purchasing this solution."
"From the pricing point of view, like any other product in the market, there is scope for negotiation."
"The product is expensive."
"It is much more expensive than using another solution because we have had to include some options and upgrade our license."
"For licensing, it's usually a yearly package for customers who are subscribed to Office 365, but they can also pay on a monthly basis."
"Microsoft Defender is expensive. I typically recommend it only if clients have the budget. Otherwise, I would suggest an alternative."
"For large enterprise organizations, they can definitely afford it, but for small and medium organizations, they might struggle to cover the expenses."
"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."
"For licensing, my company makes yearly payments, which is expensive."
"This is a simple system with a very low cost and basic functions, which surely is ideal for a small company."
"Choosing the correct set of licenses is essential because, without the additional software blade licenses, the Check Point gateways are just a stateful firewall."
"The cost is competitive with other security products on the market."
"Reasonably priced solution."
"It is expensive compared to other vendors."
"The feedback from vendors and customer is that it is expensive."
"Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox does not have any competition with Sophos, Trend Micro, or other vendors of the world. However, there is a pricing premium for the solution. One has to look at it from that angle that while they are buying Cisco, there will be a premium, and Cisco justifies that premium value. That's why they're charging a high price."
"The solution’s pricing is manageable."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
Security Firm
26%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Computer Software Company
38%
Healthcare Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Government
5%
 

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?
I don't have detailed specifics on pricing, setup cost, or licensing.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
I am generally satisfied with how it currently is. If I could improve anything, I would reduce the cost.
What needs improvement with Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade?
Regarding Checkpoint, I would suggest an easier interface to understand. With time and practice, users can get a bett...
What is your primary use case for Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade?
My primary use case is to mitigate any spoofing or phishing attempts related to the intake of emails and outbound ema...
What do you like most about Secure Email Threat Defense?
Secure Email Threat Defense's scalability is good.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Secure Email Threat Defense?
Cisco's closest competition is Proofpoint. Both are in the same range in terms of pricing. Pricing is on the higher s...
What needs improvement with Secure Email Threat Defense?
The physical appliance has been discontinued, although the platform still exists. Improvements here and there could b...
 

Also Known As

MS Defender for Office 365
No data available
Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox, Cisco CMD, Cisco Cloud Mailbox Defense
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
SF Police Credit Union (SFPCU)
Luiss University, Lone Star College, T-Systems, Magyar Telekom
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Anti-Spam and Email Security Software Blade vs. Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
838,713 professionals have used our research since 2012.