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Microsoft BitLocker vs Symantec Endpoint Encryption comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 8, 2024
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft BitLocker
Ranking in Endpoint Encryption
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.9
Number of Reviews
64
Ranking in other categories
Mobile Data Protection (1st)
Symantec Endpoint Encryption
Ranking in Endpoint Encryption
7th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
36
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2024, in the Endpoint Encryption category, the mindshare of Microsoft BitLocker is 40.5%, up from 39.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Symantec Endpoint Encryption is 10.2%, up from 10.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Endpoint Encryption
 

Featured Reviews

Douglas Curry - PeerSpot reviewer
Users can easily deploy and manage it
The solution's most valuable feature is that it is simple to deploy and manage. I can't say what features of the tool I like since it is very much a deploy-and-forget product. We don't use any advanced features of the tool in my company. The tool's recovery options are good, especially since it integrates with Active Directory, making everything a simple process. The product's integration capabilities are good.
Bharath Kumar Gajula - PeerSpot reviewer
Robust data protection with user-friendly deployment, competitive pricing, and comprehensive features like customizable alerts and effective detection capabilities but needs GUI improvements
The stability is relatively good. Occasionally, certain clients may experience disconnection from the management servers, requiring a manual process to rectify. Even in instances where the link is severed, restoring client connectivity can be challenging, sometimes necessitating the uninstallation and reinstallation of the software. Additionally, when clients go out of sync, we do not receive alerts, indicating an area for potential improvement. I would rate it seven 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

"The ease of administering and integrating the solution is great."
"It is easy to use. It is usually easy to recover someone's privacy. The manageability is much easier than McAfee. I think that Microsoft is a leader in this area. We are in the Microsoft school so our judgment of McAfee will be a little bit unfair as we recommend Microsoft all the time because of the easy manageability and support. I think that McAfee is designed for a different customer and every time we open a ticket with their support, it takes a very, very long time. The main difference is just the manageability and support. In terms of the solution itself or the functionality, I know that McAfee is very strong, but manageability and support, for us, is much more important. It's strengthens the solution for us."
"It's a straightforward solution for encryption."
"It's very straightforward to recover data. It's safe for us; in case of lost information, it provides multiple options to recover the data."
"The most valuable feature is the TPM (Trusted Platform Module), which makes the PC security stronger because somebody who is not from the team cannot access the PC without the decryption PIN."
"Microsoft BitLocker's most valuable features are stability and simplicity in terms of usage."
"The solution is included in Windows 11."
"The product is stable."
"In general terms, it is working properly and according to our expectations. The comfort of feeling secure is the most valuable. Some customers had certain fears about changing the product because no one wants to lose any kind of information or to have some problems or inconsistencies while migrating from one product to another."
"The most valuable feature is the ease of use."
"Their cloud features such as Cloud Endpoint security, ransomware modules, malware, and other modules are very effective."
"Antivirus, URL filtering, and firewall protection are the most effective features for data protection."
"It is stable."
"The solution’s installation was easy."
"I like the management aspect of this solution. You don't want to have end-users tweak or set it themselves, so the fact that you could do it from a central point helped us a lot."
"I like the solution for its encryption."
 

Cons

"Lacks a portal that can be managed rather than just existing."
"More customization options would have been nice, such as password selection, actions when the screen is locked, etc."
"We recently found some stability issues with Microsoft BitLocker."
"They could improve cloud integration regarding attribute and encryption key management."
"The reporting in Microsoft is very minimal."
"I would like to see improvement in the solution's central management of passwords. Currently, we install it separately."
"It would be good if Microsoft offered improved recovery options or if it could automate the recovery options a bit."
"It needs a management console."
"The program's disk encryption is not very friendly with Microsoft OS updates. We have a problem with updates failing unless we use a time-consuming work-around."
"It's difficult to integrate the solution with the DLP"
"There are some issues with the single sign-on with the active directory. We had a few problems related to the synchronization between the active directory and the login features of the Symantec products because the users made many password changes during the day. The time for synchronization with the solutions can be improved. I would like to see mobile encryption. There should be a possibility to include all the mobiles of a company in the console. Many customers are asking about encryptions for tablets or cell phones, but we don't have any product that we are comfortable with to recommend to our customers."
"The solution does not have endpoint control."
"It was hard to install and took us about three months."
"The solution presently doesn't let network folder encryption be done on Macintosh."
"More features need to be included in the encryption software."
"The initial setup is a bit complex."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of this solution should be more competitive."
"It is free. It is enabled as part of the operating system. Once you have an operating system license, you're licensed for Bitlocker."
"The solution is priced low. I would rate the product's pricing one out of ten."
"The solution’s pricing is reasonable."
"This solution is included with Microsoft Server and my clients did not have to pay for anything extra."
"Microsoft BitLocker is a free feature when you are using Microsoft solutions."
"Microsoft BitLocker's pricing is included in the Microsoft license, and you don't have to pay an additional fee for it."
"The solution is cost efficient."
"Symantec Endpoint Encryption is not expensive."
"They have two solutions for encryption including Symantec Endpoint Encryption and PGP Endpoint Encryption. With one PGP license, you can deploy the two solutions. The PGP license gives you two options."
"The license is not very expensive."
"There is a license required for this solution."
"The solution is good, but it is more expensive than other solutions in the market. Other solutions, such as BitLocker are less expensive."
"It can be expensive. However, if you plan to scale or are at a large enterprise company, this product could be what you need."
"We hold an annual license, and their pricing is competitive, falling into the affordable range."
"The cost of this solution is a little on the higher side."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Healthcare Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What should one take into account when replacing PGP with Microsoft BitLocker?
Beware to make backup of useful data, then use reverse decryption policy from Symantec panel/McAfee ePO to decrypt the DE partitions while it is sometimes more straightforward and faster to reinsta...
Would you choose Microsoft BitLocker or McAfee Complete Data Protection?
Microsoft BitLocker is very intuitive and easy to maintain. It is basically the global standard solution for drive encryption and successfully fulfills regulatory needs in terms of data protection....
How does Microsoft BitLocker compare with Symantec Endpoint Encryption?
Microsoft BitLocker is very intuitive and easy to maintain. It is basically the global standard solution for drive encryption and it successfully fulfills regulatory needs in terms of data protecti...
What do you like most about Symantec Endpoint Encryption?
Antivirus, URL filtering, and firewall protection are the most effective features for data protection.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Symantec Endpoint Encryption?
We need to acquire a new license. Considering the fluctuation in exchange rates in our part of the world, we find it generally affordable. However, if there's room for it to be made more cost-effec...
 

Also Known As

BitLocker, MS BitLocker
Symantec Drive Encryption
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

ACV, Proaxis Therapy, Choice Hotels International, adnymics GmbH, Intermedia, NMBS/SNCB
Citrix Systems Inc., City of Lansing, Commercial & Industrial Property, France T_l_visions, Fujian Mobile Co. Ltd., Group Lotus plc, Hall Booth Smith & Slover, P.C. (HBSS), Portugal Telecom, PostFinance, Public Pension Agency
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft BitLocker vs. Symantec Endpoint Encryption and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.
816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.