Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Fortinet FortiGate SWG vs Symantec Proxy comparison

Sponsored
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Categories and Ranking

iboss
Sponsored
Ranking in Secure Web Gateways (SWG)
13th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
Internet Security (4th), Web Content Filtering (4th), Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) (8th), ZTNA as a Service (13th), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (10th)
Fortinet FortiGate SWG
Ranking in Secure Web Gateways (SWG)
4th
Average Rating
8.6
Number of Reviews
41
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Symantec Proxy
Ranking in Secure Web Gateways (SWG)
12th
Average Rating
7.2
Number of Reviews
19
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

Jack Hamm - PeerSpot reviewer
Sep 20, 2024
We experienced benefits immediately but the report generation is lagging
iboss excels on the networking side but lags slightly behind competitors like Zscaler and Netskope in terms of security feature parity. I'd like to see them accelerate development on the security side, particularly around data loss prevention. Using iboss for DLP instead of traditional endpoint solutions is preferable, but its current feature set requires some clunky workarounds. I'd also like to see better integration of DLP into the platform. Additionally, while it's improving, reporting can be slow at times. This is problematic when generating reports for executives who expect them immediately. I'd like to see further improvements in reporting speed and efficiency.
David Carlson - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 13, 2022
Non-IT people could plug it in, connect it to the fiber, and get it running without IT help.
FortiGate is easy to configure. We configured one of the units and sent it to Indiana to be installed. We asked them to give us a call when they got it, so we could help them through the process, but they called us back to tell us it works great. Non-IT people could plug it in, connect it to the fiber, and get it running without IT help. That was fantastic. Fortinet also offers a single pane of glass that we can use to manage our routers with gateways, so that's convenient. We're running a VPN to our remote location, and the performance is good. We're changing all our VPN connectors on our laptops from Cisco's Anywhere to Fortinet's VPN because the performance is just so much better.
Mel Stevenson - PeerSpot reviewer
Oct 6, 2023
A scalable enterprise-level tool with advanced features that provide accurate database categorization
We use the product for malware filtering, content filtering, and reporting The CPL code is the best feature of the solution. We can get the tool to do extremely advanced things with the command line code. The database categorization is extremely accurate. The solution must add a new category for…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Its initial setup was straightforward."
"The iboss system is highly reliable. The false positive rates are small compared to some other systems we've experienced through other partner agencies who use competing solutions."
"Our primary use case for this product is DLP,"
"iboss has significantly lowered the number of security incidents. It is crazy how much it blocks and how much it is aware of the outside danger."
"From a use-case scenario, what I like the most is the plug-in. I like the fact that we can do the filtering of these devices offsite independent of the network they are connected to, and we do not have to have traffic coming back inside our network."
"It was a very easy product to install. It can be deployed very fast."
"Content filtering is the most useful feature of iboss."
"Granular setup, which was able to set different levels of filters using the OUs in the AD."
"The security for endpoints is the most valuable. It is very secure for our workers. It allows us to secure a transaction and enable security for a specific segment in the workflow."
"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate SWG are IPS and scanning."
"Fortinet FortiGate SWG's content is its most valuable feature."
"FortiGate also makes GRE tunneling possible."
"The product's most valuable features are SD-WAN and the integration of WiFi and switches."
"The interface and other reports are all user-friendly."
"Web filters, particularly web application controls, grant us the ability to regulate user access effectively."
"The product is highly stable."
"The initial setup of Symantec Proxy is easy."
"We can address and rectify issues promptly, resulting in consistently positive outcomes."
"This is a stable and robust solution with many features."
"The solution is scalable."
"It's a stable solution."
"The CPL code is the best feature of the solution."
"The content that we are getting is very good. Content caching is also supported."
"It enables us to manage bandwidth for users based on their privilege levels. For example, if a user wants to use a certain application or resource, we can provide access based on their privileges."
 

Cons

"The area I would like to see improvement in is the ability with in the reporter to navigate directly to the content the user is traversing. It is kind of there, but it's not perfect. Quite frequently, I receive links that lead me to pages with error messages."
"Sometimes the agent stops working in iboss, and we have to reinstall the agent."
"To scale up, a new iboss Node Blade Chassis must be purchased."
"The dashboards for local use could be better."
"Fold that in with the risk intelligence they're getting from all of the different subscriptions they are a part of. Now, these security companies subscribe to things like emerging threats, databases, etc. You can fold all this intelligence to decide what's happening on an endpoint. I would love to see them start moving into that space. That would compete directly with Microsoft. Maybe that's why they haven't. Having that ability native within the solution would be great. The other area in which I would love to see improvement is more detailed descriptions of why they block websites."
"Iboss is growing so fast that it is often hard for them to keep up with the challenges."
"The solution could be stronger on the integration side and offer more cloud applications like G Suite or Oracle."
"File integrity monitoring would be very advantageous as an additional feature."
"The graphical user interface of Fortinet FortiGate SWG is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"Integrating OpenVPN with FortiGate would provide a powerful combination of secure remote access and comprehensive network security."
"I would like the deployment and integration of this product to be easier. We should be able to deploy the features more easily and have different types of access. It should be easier to integrate. Currently, we need to develop APIs to use this interface."
"Fortinet FortiGate SWG can't be used on its own, and you have to get FortiAnalyzer."
"Fortinet FortiGate SWG's SSL offloading features need improvement."
"Fortinet FortiGate SWG could improve the price, it is expensive."
"The software is a bit expensive to renew."
"They should make the product user-friendly and enhance the security features."
"Activating the SSL inspection is one of the challenges. We are currently moving to the O365 cloud, and one of the challenges is the performance when all of our users are connected to O365 by a proxy."
"The tool’s reporting features must be improved."
"Prior to the Broadcom purchase, every appliance was application based, but now they have one ISG device and on top of it multiple applications are running. It has a single point of failure. If your device goes down, all of the applications would be down."
"The initial setup can be somewhat complex, and deploying the system can take some time."
"There are performance issues with all of the proxies."
"I would like to see more improvements in the cloud."
"Support response time and case resolution could be improved."
"Marketing needs improvement in Symantec Proxy, as it needs to catch up in sales here in the Asia Pacific region. Symantec Proxy licensing renewal also needs improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We have not priced the solution recently, but they were competitive with other vendors in the past."
"It is not expensive, and it is also not cheap. iboss is priced right in the sweet spot for the number of features it offers."
"The overall pricing for iboss is very competitive and transparent."
"It is expensive compared to one of its competitors."
"It is probably in line with other solutions, but I do not deal with the financial side."
"FortiGate SWG is reasonably priced."
"We pay about $4,000 for a yearly license, and there aren't any additional fees."
"When comparing this solution to others, I would rate it a ten out of ten in terms of pricing. However, the issue of requiring a separate license for redundancy is a drawback, and I would rate it a nine out of ten."
"I would rate the pricing a six out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive."
"The price is relatively expensive compared to other solutions which are providing similar features."
"While slightly more affordable than competitors, it remains relatively expensive due to its inclusive subscription."
"The cost has increased since the update so I would rate it eight out of ten."
"I rate the product's pricing a seven out of ten. Its one-year license cost is competitive with three and five-year licenses offered by other products."
"There is a different department that looks into the licensing part."
"It's expensive. Clients often go to other products."
"The price is too expensive compared with that of another solution."
"There are no licensing fees required."
"The tool is pretty expensive."
"The solution is very expensive."
"Licensing is based on a subscription."
"In terms of cost, it is expensive. Its pricing has been a challenge for us since its acquisition by Broadcom."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Secure Web Gateways (SWG) solutions are best for your needs.
814,649 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Government
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Financial Services Firm
19%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about iboss?
Content filtering is the most useful feature of iboss.
What needs improvement with iboss?
A positive improvement would be to expand into more areas for product monitoring. You have an agent that resides on t...
What is your primary use case for iboss?
We use it for URL filtering to enforce our enterprise Internet use policy. We use it for our current initiatives in a...
What do you like most about Fortinet FortiGate SWG?
The interface and other reports are all user-friendly.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiGate SWG?
The product pricing is moderate and competitive to Palo Alto. I rate the product’s pricing a six out of ten, where on...
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiGate SWG?
Fortinet FortiGate SWG can't be used on its own, and you have to get FortiAnalyzer.
What do you like most about Symantec Proxy?
We can address and rectify issues promptly, resulting in consistently positive outcomes.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Symantec Proxy?
The product is highly priced. There are no additional costs apart from the standard licenses.
What needs improvement with Symantec Proxy?
In future releases, we look forward to the cloud side. So, I would like to see more improvements in the cloud.
 

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform
FortiGate SWG, FortiGate Secure Web Gateway
Blue Coat Encrypted Traffic Management, ProxySG Appliance
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

More than 4,000 global enterprises trust the iboss Cloud Platform to support their modern workforces, including a large number of Fortune 50 companies.
Salt Lake County, Catholic College Bendigo, Azienda Unita Sanitaria
Jefferies
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiGate SWG vs. Symantec Proxy and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.
814,649 professionals have used our research since 2012.