Cisco Secure Connect is a SASE solution that converges Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) and Security Service Edge (SSE) to enable operational consistency across premises to the cloud.
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Zscaler Internet Access
Score 8.8 out of 10
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Zscaler Internet Access™ (ZIA) is a secure web gateway (SWG), delivering cloud native cyberthreat protection and zero trust access to the internet and SaaS apps.
Enterprise with Hybrid Workers or remote workers where most of the resources are in cloud. Branches spread around the worlds with private DCs. Enterprise with mpls or sd-wan connection, the Cisco Secure Connect technology is a further technology upgrade from SD-WAN. Central management of l3/l4 policies, DNS filtering and Web Filtering based on the identity.
Zscaler Internet Access has extremely powerful category selection and it is very easy to create your own destinations for inspection and policy exceptions (SSL exception specifically). It is also very affordable and just as powerful (if not more) than some of the other solutions I have used in the past to achieve internet security.
The depth that Cloud App control policies can go into. Being able to control individual actions within an application, more than just all or nothing access.
The UX/UI design makes it really easy to navigate the portal.
Understanding how cloud app/url control policy gets evaluated and creating/editing existing policy is extremely straightforward.
Cisco Secure Connect is designed as a unified, turnkey solution that simplifies the complexities of managing network and security functions in hybrid work settings. It combines Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) capabilities with Security Service Edge (SSE), allowing organizations to manage both networking and security from a single dashboard. This integration can lead to improved operational efficiency, making it easier for IT teams to oversee their infrastructure.
While Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA) delivers critical value in cloud security and RBI compliance, I rate renewal likelihood 7/10 due to evolving needs versus platform limitations. Below is my rationale:
The use of Cisco Secure Connect allows for Seamless use by users in normal day to day operations, working from anywhere and allowing for company policies to rule everything, helping this way to maintain the company’s security posture, improving business outcome and sense of security of the users.
The application is easy to install and configure on all Windows devices. To troubleshoot any internet issue, we can easily collect all the relevant logs from Zscaler and check the exact issue. The only problem is with the uninstall, as a dedicated crew needs to provide the password.
Zscaler's ZIA support is quick and knowledgable. They respond within 1-2 hours of you submitting your ticket. They are very thorough and are typically ready to jump on a live troubleshooting session. Our ZIA platform and how we use is it unique so at times tickets can be open for weeks but we alway get quality support compared to other unrelated product support in our enterprise
Very quick and easy, its a tidy set up, no messy cables and the sound and video quality is excellent. I use this weekly for home calls and larger team calls across the UK and Europe and have no problems. The engineers were in and out within a couple of hours
Cisco Secure Connect allows for secure connections to critical systems with a better performance while maintaining security for users and business processes, maintaining the company policies and security posture for improved end user experience without impact on the services. Better tool tested when considering technical requirements and security posture requirements.
Zscaler Internet Access is most akin to ZPA - we bought both at the same time to handle all traffic internally and externally. In terms of quality - I would make the statement that Zscaler Internet Access is a simpler product but that's also cause there are no App Connectors involved in that process.
Has allowed us to remove other products that were suboptimal
Saved us money overall by stacking it with other Zscaler products
Created a more secure work environment for our users through intelligent internet policies that are not needlessly restrictive while still maintaining security best practices
