Cisco Umbrella Easy Protect for MSPs vs. Zscaler Internet Access

If you have a large number of clients that need to access different products within your company it is a good fit. If you just need to protect access within your company, you'd probably just want to look into Cisco Umbrella. The MSP product is specifically tapered to [manage] access from 3rd parties outside of the company.

Incentivized

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.

Incentivized

• 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.

Incentivized

• Analyzing security logs can be challenging as the interface is rather slow and due to the large quantity of logged data.
• It is not always clear why a resource was blocked as there are 2 types of block lists
• Clients sometimes have to re-logon in order to get an updated policy rolled out.

Incentivized

• Easier interface on the menus so they don't disappear.
• Help, I'm contacting support only through the ZIA portal, but I'm unable to use the link easily.
• Mobile interface changes.
• The searching function for the logs is tricky and challenging to use, and the menu always pops down when trying to find the proper function.

Incentivized

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:

Key Gaps:

1. Advanced Threat Costs:

ZIA’s add-ons (e.g., Advanced DLP, Sandboxing) incur 35%+ cost premiums – straining budgets as transaction volumes (UPI/iMobile) grow 50% YoY.

2. API Banking Scalability:

ZIA’s API rate limits throttle real-time policy sync during UPI peaks (10K+ TPS), forcing workarounds for finacle integrations.

3. RBI Future-Proofing:

Limited native support for upcoming digital rupee (CBDC) security rules requires custom development, increasing compliance overhead.

Incentivized

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.

Incentivized

There are often performance issues reported

Incentivized

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

Incentivized

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.

Incentivized

• Not always clear which block list caused an access issue. [There are] several places that need to be checked.
• Client policies take a while to get updated, sometimes need to re-logon

Incentivized

• 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

Incentivized