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Palo Alto Networks Advanced URL Filtering vs. Symantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Palo Alto Networks Advanced URL Filtering

    Score9.4 out of 10
    N/AThe majority of attacks and exposure to malicious content occurs during the normal course of web browsing activities, which requires the ability to allow safe, secure web access for all users. URL Filtering with PAN-DB automatically prevents attacks that leverage the web as an attack vector, including phishing links in emails, phishing sites, HTTP-based command and control, malicious sites and pages that carry exploit kits.N/A

    Symantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services

    Score8 out of 10
    N/ASymantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services (formerly Blue Coat WebFilter) is a web application protection and web content filtering solution, designed to allow users to control access to web content and block web threats with advanced threat defense and real-time global threat intelligence.N/A
    Pricing
    Palo Alto Networks Advanced URL FilteringSymantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
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    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Palo Alto Networks Advanced URL FilteringSymantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Palo Alto Networks Advanced URL FilteringSymantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services
    Considered Both Products
    Palo Alto Networks
    No answer on this topic
    Broadcom
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    100%
    Would buy again
    5 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    5 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    5 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    5 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    5 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    User Ratings
    Palo Alto Networks Advanced URL FilteringSymantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.5
    (6 ratings)
    8.0
    (2 ratings)
    Usability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    5.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Palo Alto Networks Advanced URL FilteringSymantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Palo Alto Networks
    Because of it's complexity, Palo may not be well suited for a small organization that may not have dedicated networking staff. But for a mid to large-sized enterprise, Palo shines.
    Incentivized
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    Broadcom
    In a large environment, this is the perfect system. If you do not have constant changes, it easily becomes a system you drop in place and rarely have to think about. Our units have been rock solid and have never experienced any unexpected downtime, and upgrades are just a couple button clicks to deploy, or roll back. For small offices, with minimal traffic this may be using a sledgehammer to put in a push pin. It will work great, but the devices is likely over engineered for small offices (<50 people). That being said, price-wise it's still a great solution when compared to competing products and being from Symantec, you know it's going to be around and support for the long term.
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    Pros
    Palo Alto Networks
    • Threat Detection and Prevention (Malwares, Un-Authorized Access)
    • Out of the box patterns for threat detection
    • Built in and Updated identification patterns
    • Unified Dashboard/Alerting on anomaly
    Incentivized
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    Broadcom
    • Almost real time protection from all ongoing threats with their DLA inspection
    • Great visibility into web filtering policies using the dashboards and reports
    • No patching or downloads needed, immediate protection is provided as clients are always cloud connected
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    Cons
    Palo Alto Networks
    • Steep learning curve
    • The top-down URL filtering match can sometimes be tricky and requires some expertise in setting up the desired policy
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    Broadcom
    • The admin interface would be better off not using Java
    • Setting up SSL properly can be a bit challenging
    • Could really use a better source for training, like a library of how-to videos
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    Usability
    Palo Alto Networks
    It is very easy to use and setup. It integrates well within all of Palo's products such as NGFWs and Prisma Access. There is a dedicated log inside of Palo products for URL filtering to aid in troubleshooting. It integrates with AD/Azure so that different users can have different URL filtering rules. Filtering can be adjusted in real-time
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    Broadcom
    I really like the system, it's easy to use and mostly intuitive. I would have gone 10/10, but the management interface uses Java, and that seems to always make things a bit harder to start. Once everything is loaded and running, it's great - but it does require me to maintain a compatible version of Java on the machine I use to access the system, I'd be much happier with some kind of HTML5 interface. I also deducted 1 point for the functionality of the refer filter - it works as expected, but if the site isn't coded with the correct refer header, like Microsoft's site - then some page elements get stripped and pages only render about 98% correctly. I know that's not in Symantec's list of responsibilities, but having a filter that doesn't fully understand CDNs is worth the 1 point ding.
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    Support Rating
    Palo Alto Networks
    Palo support is excellent, and I have never had to wait when contacting them for support. One of the best support teams in the business, in my opinion.
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    Broadcom
    I've had exactly 1 problem in 8 years, I contacted support via the customer portal, less than an hour later I found myself in a screen share with a support tech who not only fixed my configuration error, but also took the time to ask about my usage and offered some great tips on changes. It was just one support incident, but I was impressed by the speed of response to a non-critical issue as well as the depth of product knowledge the support engineer had.
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    Alternatives Considered
    Palo Alto Networks
    Palo Alto Networks Advanced URL Filtering is the best solution to work with Palo Alto Firewalls and Panorama as an orchestrator. We choose Palo Alto Networks Advanced URL Filtering as it could reach the success criteria during the PoC.
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    Broadcom
    Symantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services solution was a simple 1U appliance that does everything we need, compared to the Forcepoint solution which required a virtual appliance, a database server, a log server, and a management server - the licensing costs alone make the Symantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services solution a clear winner. The Forcepoint solution is really good, it just requires such a big footprint without delivering much beyond what the Symantec WebFilter / Intelligence Services solution does with a single unit.
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    Return on Investment
    Palo Alto Networks
    • Palo has been an excellent investment for us.
    • Having robust URL filtering built into the same device as the firewall saves the cost of a separate appliance and improves performance.
    Incentivized
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    Broadcom
    • Boosts business productivity with having secured systems
    • Globally available threat protection adhering to our own security policies
    • User may sometime find it difficult to deal with - so there can be a feature to make it more user friendly in terms of user experience. That is a bit of negative we have seen.
    Incentivized
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