Check Point Security Management Reviews

Thanks to the new Check Point management, we were able to manage our environments decentrally with a server or from the Check Point Infinity Portal. This management is handled separately and provides greater ease of implementation and backups. You can have your gateways separated from the control server. You can even lose the management server, and easily, with a previous backup, you can restore all the policies that had been generated so that you never lose the operation of the GW.

Our Check Point implementations are quite important in our environment. With them, we were able to shield our infrastructure from modern vulnerabilities.

The separate management provides greater security and peace of mind. In the face of events in which we can lose communication with the management server, the operation of the Check Point gateways continues unaffected.

We also like the ease and intuitiveness of the management server since it allows you to generate policies in a straightforward way. Its logs and monitoring provide the necessary information so that those responsible for security can make decisions and improve security even more.

The control is intuitive, it's an excellent tool.

The monitoring is excellent. It helps a lot in making decisions.

Finally, the additional tools or blades implemented in this console are great. You can go from basic security implementation to a fairly advanced one with all the blades you have available.

The separate environment of the Check Point gateways is one of the most important features. The separate management allows for the continued use of the gateways.

As for the support, it is not the best. 

The hours are different from those in America. They generally respond to us at dawn. They are not as fast or efficient, and they could improve in this area.

Every manufacturer must have enough documentation for client implementations and proof of concept. However, Check Point has many outdated manuals. These should be simpler for users and help them to manage their environments with the best practices.

They should improve the ease of licensing.

We've used the solution for more than three years. We started using Check Point Security Management and have had very good results in a manufacturer's architecture with excellent performance.

Previously, we had WatchGuard to provide security. However, it does not meet the parameters required for our organization.

It is important to value the support of a Check Point partner to validate the tools, in addition to seeing the product more closely.

We researched to find the security tool that best suits our requirements.

For us, there are more benefits than failures; it really is an exceptional tool, and I recommend it.

In recent years, management was to have an additional server in our data center or virtual machine that demanded resources locally. Today we have the possibility to have virtual teams in the cloud or on-premise and do not have the need to create that machine. We take that server to the Check Point cloud as a management cloud where we can have each subscription and be able to manage everything with the same account. It allows you to manage from anywhere and makes it easier for you to manage additional teams.

Check Point management is one of the most complete solutions for managing Check Point Firewall appliances. 

Since it is so powerful, we can manage more than one appliance with this same tool and create policies per appliance, and integrate different branches. 

One of the great benefits is being able to centralize all our branches under a single management server, thus being able to manage each of the created policy layers from a single place.

Among the most valuable features is the ability to manage everything simultaneously. It can integrate with the Check Point Infinity Cloud. 

The costs of acquiring a server for this task is of value. Each of us who are administrators can continuously manage the security of companies. This management manages not only Firewall-type appliances but also Cloudguard IaaS-type appliances.

I would like this solution to be integrated directly into the Cluster XL equipment. We'd like something that is all in one. The implementation becomes quite complex due to the extensive and not very graphic guides that we can find on their portal. 

I've used the solution for two years. 

It is very stable. You can have it in high availability services.

The scalability is fast and easy.

We previously used Fortinet as a firewall and management solution.

The cost of having cloud management lowers the monthly bill. That must be considered when acquiring these solutions.

As a consultant for a security infrastructure consulting firm, I install and integrate this solution at client premises. There are many types of client domains, such as financials, government, healthcare, etc. 

It's a stable and complete product that is easy to use and capable of managing their next-gen firewall infra around the globe without compromises. 

Once the Check Point infra is up and running, clients really appreciate its capabilities of centrally managing security rules, making traffic flows visible, and quick detection and response capabilities in case of issues.

It allows clients to quickly learn about the product and its capabilities and thus focus quickly on what really matters, security. 

The concepts are easy to understand but powerful. As the management is easy and fast, the workload is less compared to other products. Access can be restricted granularly so different types of profiles can access the management solution without the risk of breaking anything. The helpdesk people can investigate the first line and provide findings to other teams for solution implementation. 

The rulebase management and the shared layers concept are implemented well. It avoids double work and reduces the risk of human errors. It makes the management solution very scalable.

Working with multiple administrators is possible. Changes are visible to others once you publish changes.

Investigating logs is easy and fast. The search results are provided with all details, so an in-depth analysis of problematic flows is easier.

Installation of policies is fast. For R81.10+ releases, it's a matter of seconds (compared to many minutes in the past).

The upgrade procedure already made huge improvements, yet it remains more challenging compared to other products. However, everything is well documented and the Check Point support is very skilled, so risks are rather limited. 

As this is probably the most complete product within its segment, no huge improvements are required from my point of view. Another problematic point, the policy installation duration time is solved since version R8x, so that's good. Clients always tell me: "Check Point is the Rolls Royce within this segment, it is outstanding". 

I've been using the Check Point Management solution for more than 15 years.

It's very stable with no remarks. Fixes are provided on a regular basis and are easy to install. 

Scalability is very good. Hardware appliances are available and virtual instances can be installed. It is possible to install, for huge deployments, the multi-domain Server. Multiple instances can be installed for redundancy purposes. 

They have excellent support which has improved a lot during the last years.

Positive

We implement other solutions, such as the Fortigate (Fortinet), PAN, and Cisco Secure Firewall (Firepower) with FMC.

The initial setup and installation are easy.

Security Management Server is easy to configure. We have more than six security gateways in different locations. It is easy to manage security gateways separately from Security Management Server. 

Also, we use a security management server as a log collector. Security Management Server is easy to configure. 

We can separately manage and install policies for all gateways. It has separated by blades. It is so flexible. Jumping from one blade to another is really simple. R80.x versions are better than R77.x versions. 

The log section is really good to understand and is really fast. 

The layered architecture is really understandable and easy to use. 

Event correlation function is really brilliant. 

Check Point provides one application with all your needs with the management system.

I do not need to log in to another application or website to see inputs and outputs. 

The monitoring is the best.

The solution offers:

• Strong user community
• Product functionality and performance
• Financial/organizational viability
• Strong services expertise

Policy installation time can be reduced. Proof of concept really matters on this subject. Every organization's needs are different and unique. Therefore, before you purchase the product, use proof of concept as much as you can. 

I have been using Check Point Security Management for more than seven years.

The pricing is not bad.

We use the solution for cybersecurity.  

We use a Check Point internet security appliance and have recently purchased their endpoint security solution.  

We have found the systems easy to manage and monitor. These systems are providing critical security to our computing systems. Past systems have required multiple products from multiple vendors. The Check Point solution provides multiple products under a single interface, greatly simplifying my job.  

We have yet to implement all of the blades/features of the Check Point solution, however, we are very happy with those we have used.

The product has done a great job in protecting our business network and SCADA systems.  

The single management interface has simplified our procedures. Training has been easier since there is only one interface to learn, not multiple interfaces from multiple vendors.  

As we implement more features of the security appliance, we find more value in it. Our cybersecurity posture is stronger than it has ever been with the addition of the Check Point appliance. 

We look forward to implementing additional features of the system.

The single interface to manage multiple cybersecurity platforms is great. In the past, we had multiple security appliances from multiple vendors. Each of these had their own interfaces and their own peculiarities. Staff had to learn multiple interfaces to provide our systems with cybersecurity. Additionally, when there was an issue, multiple systems needed to be checked to clarify and remedy the situation. If something was getting blocked incorrectly, we had to search for which systems was blocking it and then determine whether the block was legitimate. With the Check Point appliance, all of the blades are accessible through a single interface. We can easily track the reason for a block.

Some of the configuration elements could be improved. 

More automation of the tasks that now need to be performed at the level of the operating system could be made more streamlined. For example, we've often had issues where the log space has filled up. It would really be nice to have a feature in the GUI that addresses the cleanup of old files/logs. This is very much a manual process now. I have to get a putty or WinSCP session to the device and dig through the directory structure to find old files that are safe to delete. Luckily, I haven't accidentally deleted any critical files (so far).

I've used the solution for more than five years.

We have found the Check Point device to be very stable.  We rarely have to restart the device and have never experienced a hardware issue.  

The scalability is seamless.  

Customer service and support have always been very responsive.

Positive

We previously used a Netscreen firewall.   

The Netscreen firewall was limited and we had to rely on other appliances from other vendors to augment its capabilities.

It was a straightforward implementation. We did have a consultant help us in the initial setup of the systems.

The level of expertise of our vendor team was very high.

Our ROI is the peace of mind that our systems are well protected.

The Check Point solution is pricy, however, for what you get for your money, it is well worth it.  

The setup is pretty easy and licensing is straightforward.

We asked for a recommendation from a security consultant. They indicated that Check Point was the premier vendor of security appliances.

I'm glad we made the decision to use a Check Point appliance and am sure that we will stick with Check Point when we replace our current system.

We primarily use the solution for the management of thousands of rules. partially automated via the well-documented API.

Managing the rules is a day-to-day business that takes a lot of time. It is really good that we can do the management through the dashboard. It is so comfortable, and, in contrast to other manufacturers, is structured much better. The integration of the logs allows a quick jump by mouse click between rules and log entry.

The API reduces the administrative effort so that we can concentrate on the essential things. in addition, it is an enormous advantage for our customers that rules are created automatically and are available immediately.

The transparency of the rules and the integrated logs makes daily troubleshooting easy and saves a lot of time. 

Managing the rules is a day-to-day business that takes a lot of time. The dashboard is great and much better in contrast to other manufacturers. 

The integration of the logs allows for a quick click between rules and log entry. 

The immediately visible audit logs are also a great advantage. This allows changes to a rule to be tracked quickly and any errors to be corrected.

The management API is the best new feature for me. It allows us to further automate our customers' automated server ordering.

The API reduces the administrative effort so that we can concentrate on essential things. It is an enormous advantage for our customers that rules are created automatically and are available immediately. 

For our private cloud, we have to stay competitive with the public clouds and the speed on offer is what counts here. It's good.

The new web management tool allows the management in the browser, which is a great feature.

The management API can be further developed so that all functions offered by the dashboard are also available via the API (for example,  Network Topology).

The new web management tool which allows the management in the browser has to be developed further so that all functions from the dashboard are available. Many of our administrators work with a Mac OS. Until now, the management of rules is only possible on  Windows as the Smart Dashboard is only available for Windows. Now, with the first release of the web interface, it is possible in the browser. All functions from the dashboard must still be possible via the web interface.

I've used the R77.30 version since 2013.

We've upgraded to R80.10 in 2019. The update was a bit complicated, however, with the pre-check and some cleanup, it went without a problem

We upgraded the R80.10 to R 80.30 in 2020. The update management with the migration of export/import was a remote update and was easy.

We upgraded R80.30 to R80.81 in 2021. The management update was very easy and through the wizard, everything was very clear in terms of the individual steps. The update of the gateways took place at night.

We do not have any stability problems.

Check Point Maestro offers the industry a new way to leverage current hardware investments and maximizes appliance capacity. It's in an easy-to-manage hyper-scale network security solution in order to bring our networks and data centers into the world of hybrid clouds.

The case handling is good. If you have experience and know what information the support needs, then the processing time can be minimized.

Neutral

In the past, we have used a Cisco ASA. Our management of the rules was not so good there.  We also use FortiGate. This already offers a nice web interface, however, managing a large set of rules is almost impossible there.

The initial setup was very simple. However, the migration of rules from other vendors was challenging.

For large migrations, we always use a service provider or the manufacturer's team (Check Point Professional Services). Here we can fall back on well-trained SE's with a lot of experience.

No exact ROI has been calculated.

All of our administrators have previously been on CCSA/CCSE training which provides good insights into the products. After various tests, we were able to carry out most of the setup ourselves in a developer environment. We were able to keep the costs for the migration low by using a lot of our own initiative. However, I would recommend the support of a Check Point certified partner.

Together with a Check Point partner (service provider), the requirements should be evaluated. Here, we were able to draw on the experience of our service provider and develop our environment according to our requirements.

We did not evaluate any other options.

I can recommend the Check Point solution.

We use Check Point Security Gateway GAIA R 80.40 as our secure gateway firewall. We have configured two gateways as active-passive in cluster mode. We also use R 80.40 as our security management server to configure the policies on the firewall. We use it primarily to control traffic and secure our network perimeter against unknown attacks. The different rules and policies for the SSL VPN connections are configured on the mobile access blade. We use the policies to segregate and filter the traffic flow. 

Check Point Security Management GAIA R 80.40 tremendously helped us in securing our network perimeter against various threats. 

We have used the access rules and application/URL filtering blades to filter and restrict unwanted traffic. 

The IPS blade, Antivirus blade, Anti-bot blade, Threat Emulation blade, and Threat Prevention blades are helping us tremendously in preventing attacks and thus take care of the threats at the gateways themselves. 

At the time of COVID, the Mobile Access blade has helped greatly in the smooth running of production.

We have found all the security blades very helpful. The IPS blade, Antivirus blade, Anti-bot blade, Threat Emulation blade, and Threat Prevention blades have been most useful in securing the network. 

With the antivirus, IPS, and Anti-bot blades signatures being automatically updated regularly on a daily/hourly basis, the network is always safe. 

The URL and Application Filter blade offers a daily update of the database which helps us control the traffic. 

Mobile access has helped us cater to more than 4000 users so that they can work from home.

The Security Management server could be improved. If it provided an inbuilt authenticator for multifactor authentication, that would be ideal. Currently, we have to depend on a third party for multifactor authentication. 

It would help us greatly in securing the remote access users if Mac binding can be done for remote access VPN users in mobile. It would be helpful if we could enable URL and application traffic control remote access. 

The logging and reporting are good, but it would be helpful if more report templates were available.

I have been using Check Point Security Gateway for more than 7 years.

The stability is great.

The scalability is great.

Technical support is good.

Positive

The company has been using Check Point for a long time. It's been more than 10 years. I have been with the company for past 7 Years.

The initial setup is straightforward.

We had assistance from our Vendor Team (ISecurenet). They are very good.

Our ROI has been above expectations.

The price is high but worth it.

Check Point is one of the top leaders in security solutions.

Throughout my professional career I have operated, implemented, and designed solutions with Checkpoint's NGFW for clients of all kinds - public and private, small and large.

For all scenarios, there is a suitable solution with this manufacturer. Its decades of experience make it one of the undisputed leaders in the industry.

In recent times, the platform has evolved significantly to meet the latest threats. I would recommend at least valuing it as an option whenever an opportunity arises to cover cybersecurity needs.

Having a central point to manage all its capabilities makes it much easier to react quickly and accurately to a threat, which is essential in this day and age where attacks can be lethal to our network if not dealt with quickly.

I have actively participated in the defense of very important customers who were able to overcome the challenge thanks to the great visibility that the console offered them. The other additional capabilities that we can integrate into the platform are also a very important added value.

One of the features that attract me the most is being able to activate different functionalities through its blades, having centralized point access to all of them, and being able to activate and deactivate them as needed.

In addition, the fact that everything starts from the same unified management console makes it very easy to integrate new equipment or functionalities once the operator has become familiar with it, as everything will follow similar management or operation mechanisms.

This is one of the aspects I value the most.

In my experience, the place they can improve the most is in the technical support where I have had some serious problems that could not be solved in time due to a lack of knowledge of the assigned engineer.

It would be a good policy to try to assign senior engineers when it has been verified that an incident is critical and urgent for a client and not to resort to less-experienced technicians that can put at risk the recovery of the attacked assets.

Apart from that, at the architectural level, it is a very competent and versatile solution.

I've used the solution for more than 15 years.

Overall, it is a very mature and stable solution.

With the arrival of Quantum Maestro, the platform's expansion capabilities have increased tremendously. Its new architecture is promising.

In general, they work very well, however, it should be prioritized and they need to assign senior technicians when the issue has been verified that it is very critical for the customer.

Due to working in an international MSSP, I have worked and continue to work with all manufacturers.

We always try to do the implementation work with our own SOC of experts.

It depends a lot on each case and on the customer's needs and capabilities.

It's not the cheapest solution, but one of the most advanced and competent.

We always evaluate alternatives and try to see what fits the client best. Fortinet, PaloAlto, Checkpoint, Cisco, et cetera.