At this point, the primary use case of Cisco Duo is to secure access to systems, applications, and data through multi-factor authentication (MFA), and we use Cisco Duo, which we also provide to other clients. We implemented it and use it ourselves. The IT and finance departments should be involved in the process.
Senior Information Security Engineer at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Security measures and seamless updates improve organization
Pros and Cons
- "All features of the solution are effective, particularly those involved in identifying vulnerabilities and updates."
- "My overall rating for the solution is ten out of ten."
- "There was an issue related to integration with third parties."
- "There was an issue related to integration with third parties."
What is our primary use case?
How has it helped my organization?
Simplified Access Management with a centralized admin control, security remote access even with their BYOD etc.
What is most valuable?
All features of the solution are effective, Duo supports BYOD policies by allowing users to authenticate securely from their personal devices. This flexibility allows employees to work from anywhere while ensuring that only secure devices can access corporate data. This has been very effective for our organization, and we have not encountered any issues. We use Cisco Duo and provide it to our clients as well. We implemented it and also use it internally. The IT and finance departments should be involved.
What needs improvement?
I found some issues yet do not remember them specifically. There was an project requirement related to facial recognition integration imbedded in duo.
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For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of the solution is okay. We have not found any issues.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Until now, we did not find issues related to scalability as we did not implement the solution at a large scale.
How are customer service and support?
The customer service is okay. However, the response time could be faster.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup consists mostly of demos, so it is not very hard to implement.
Additionally, there is also online support available. The setup took around a week, depending on how big the infrastructure is.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The setup cost is reasonable, estimated at around six euros per month.
What other advice do I have?
We did not find any issues. The clients who want to acquire this product need to change something in the security infrastructure by implementing MFA security authentication, like Duo, and so on. My overall rating for the solution is ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Has efficient authentication features and supports remote access security
Pros and Cons
- "It has continuously evolved by introducing new solutions and products to address emerging security threats in our industry, demonstrating its commitment to staying ahead of evolving security challenges."
- "The product price needs improvement."
What is our primary use case?
My primary use case for Cisco Duo revolves around multifactor authentication, which serves as a secondary layer of security for all users within our organization.
What is most valuable?
The authentication and single sign-on features of Cisco Duo have been particularly valuable for enhancing user identity verification and providing an additional layer of security for our organization.
What needs improvement?
The product price needs improvement.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Cisco Duo for approximately six to seven years. I am using the latest version available.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I rate the platform stability a nine.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We can scale Cisco Duo up or down to accommodate our company's requirements. Around 120 executives in our team utilize it. I rate the scalability an eight.
What was our ROI?
While implementing Cisco Duo may require additional time for secondary multifactor authentication, it has significantly enhanced our organization's security posture, providing valuable returns in terms of heightened security measures.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I rate the product pricing a seven out of ten.
What other advice do I have?
The platform plays a crucial role in supporting our organization's remote access security needs by serving as the secondary email security for our VPN, thereby enabling secure remote access for our employees.
It has continuously evolved by introducing new solutions and products to address emerging security threats in our industry, demonstrating its commitment to staying ahead of evolving security challenges.
If the pricing aligns with their budget, I recommend considering Cisco Duo for its robust security features and scalability. It is highly adaptable and scalable, making it suitable for organizations of various sizes within the industry. Thus, there are no significant considerations to be made regarding infrastructure compatibility.
I rate it an eight out of ten overall.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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January 2026
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Security Specialist
Effectively safeguards against unauthorized access attempts or server breaches
Pros and Cons
- "They are users who, as mentioned before, utilize RDPAP and MDPAP. It includes functionalities related to finance, specifically in single sign-on."
- "I believe there are two new features. I am interested in adding auto-admin services and incorporating icons for easier navigation. This could contribute to a new business idea platform. I have seen the features, and they make things easier, resolving issues from before. The platform has been updated, and there's now another link in my platform for media access. When it comes to improvements, the UI can be more user-friendly, and there is room for easier navigation. Perhaps there could be enhancements in customization. I haven't faced issues in storage or backup, but I am open to improvements in customization functionality. It's not my environment, but I see possibilities for improvement in the deployment of funds. The addition of new features is appreciated, and for customization, it could provide more freedom for users."
What is our primary use case?
On my end, Cisco Duo suits my account needs well. The application remains in place. We generally apply Cisco Duo across various use cases. Many customers, including banks and private organizations, use it for enhanced security, particularly in financial and general security tasks.
What needs improvement?
I am interested in adding auto-admin services and incorporating icons for easier navigation. This could contribute to a new business idea platform. I have seen the features, and they make things easier, resolving issues from before. The platform has been updated, and there's now another link in my platform for media access.
When it comes to improvements, the UI can be more user-friendly, and there is room for easier navigation.
There could be enhancements in customization. I haven't had issues with storage or backup, but I am open to improvements in customization functionality. It's not my environment, but I see possibilities for improvement in the deployment of funds.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Cisco Duo for the past year. Customers request server protection using various servers, and it can integrate with applications. It is an MFA solution, designed for server access and data security.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Typically, I manage things directly from the GUI, and I handle whatever comes up. So far, stability has been an issue, but I am not the creator of the solution, so I cannot predict future occurrences.
Generally, it has been fine without any notable issues, but the future is uncertain. I would rate it 8 out of 10.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is scalable and I would rate it 8 out of 10. Regarding the size of your customers, they are mostly large enterprises.
How are customer service and support?
We haven't encountered any significant issues so far. The only time we need to contact support is when something arises, and they promptly address it. Everything else has been running smoothly.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
How was the initial setup?
I would rate it seven because it comes with numerous features that require continuous upgrades. I have observed the need for consistent updates in the inventory. It is beneficial for newcomers to the platform, as data is continuously added, and automation has reduced the effort required to find information. It roughly takes 12 hours to be deployed.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I am not aware of the pricing. There are two departments, and I don't have any information about them.
What other advice do I have?
Cisco Duo effectively safeguards against customer factors, such as unauthorized access attempts or server breaches. It provides a high level of protection, ensuring only authorized individuals have access to the environment. I am confident in its security features.
I would rate it 8 out of 10.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. partner
Telecom Engineer at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
Video Review
The easy remote access is the biggest benefit
Pros and Cons
- "At the moment, the ease of use is what is the best feature for me. Once it has been set up and the security can hoc to my mobile device, it's very simple to use my single sign-on, get prompted for a Duo Security, push, go to my phone, accept the push, and I'm done. It's a very simple process."
- "The only thing I can think of to improve for tech support is to have a dedicated engineer but then I would get an engineer that has priorities in one area or another and maybe not the scope I need."
What is our primary use case?
I work in an institution with about 6,000 people. I'm a telecommunications engineer. I use Duo Security as my access point when working remotely. Because I'm a telecommunications engineer, I have to have access to my systems remotely, and our VPN client requires that we go through second-level verification, for which we use Duo Security.
Ours is on-prem. We have on-prem Duo Security. We do not use cloud at this time.
How has it helped my organization?
The benefit of Duo Security, for me, is the very easy remote access. I don't have to go through repeated steps to log in to my platform, and it's the same process every time. It works quickly, and it's just that simple.
When it comes to securing our infrastructure from end to end, I wish I could speak more in-depth about that. I do know that Duo Security does identify me as a user, and the folks that need to track who's using it, when, and why. I know that there are very detailed and well-designed reports to let them do that. I am not on that side of Duo Security. Again, as a user, the best part is the ease of use.
What is most valuable?
At the moment, the ease of use is what is the best feature for me. Once it has been set up and the security can hoc to my mobile device, it's very simple to use my single sign-on, get prompted for a Duo Security, push, go to my phone, accept the push, and I'm done. It's a very simple process.
What needs improvement?
The only thing I can think of to improve for tech support is to have a dedicated engineer but then I would get an engineer that has priorities in one area or another and maybe not the scope I need.
I like the fact that when I open a ticket, I'm not getting the same caller calling back. I like the variety of support that Cisco offers.
Opening a technical assistant's request is a little challenging at times. I wish that the Cisco website could understand who I am from the chart and just let me in rather than forcing me to pick out my contract number, my address, or something like that. They should make it streamlined, make it simple.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been in this current position with Duo Security for two and a half years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
To my knowledge, we are relatively stable. I know there are times when in-house we may have difficulty with servers, connectivity, or databases, but it only happens sporadically. I think in my experience, we've had Duo not work maybe once or twice in the last two and a half years. It usually results in rebooting a server.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
When we speak of clients on which Duo Security is deployed, every user in my environment typically has a cell phone and a laptop and we use mobile push. I believe we do use PIN capabilities, as well, but primarily we use mobile push. I suspect that it's on a PC mobile platform.
How are customer service and support?
On average, Cisco's technical support is very good. There are times that I need to go through escalation processes, but once I escalate it, I know that I'm going to get the service I need. The more challenging part for me is defining the problems so that the technical solution reps can help me solve them.
My rating for Cisco technical support would vary depending on what they are supporting for me. I would say they've never dropped below, say, a 7.5, but pretty consistently range in a nine out of ten category.
I think Cisco support works very hard to satisfy my needs as a customer rather than frustrating me.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I believe that they did use a different solution. I actually believe that we did not have multi-level verification on our VPN login when we started out. As a result of COVID, it became necessary to have multi-level verification. That was when Duo Security was introduced. I also understand, this was prior to my employment, that Duo Security was enacted in less than seven days.
What was our ROI?
As a case for return on investment, I would stretch my exposure and say that the return has been remarkable because we went from full-time, on-premise workers, to full-time remote for everyone for several months. Subsequently, many of our staff now work a hybrid schedule, and Duo Security makes it entirely possible.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
When it comes to pricing, the only thing I can say is that working in education, when you buy a product, it has to have value. My assumption is that Duo Security has a great deal of value for its cost.
What other advice do I have?
To advise somebody about Duo Security, I would say it works. It works.
I have not experienced another security program like Duo Security. I don't have a way of rating it other than to say, I'm happy with how it works, and it makes my job easier.
I'll give it a 9.25 out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Network Engineer at a recreational facilities/services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Reduces the risk of breaches and is helpful for 2FA for our portal
Pros and Cons
- "It's simple. It's reliable. I haven't had any issues with it."
- "There might be a little slowness, but that could be my connection."
What is our primary use case?
We use it for two-factor authentication (2FA) for accessing our portal.
How has it helped my organization?
From a security standpoint, 2FA is very crucial, and having a multitude of ways for consumers in your property to utilize 2FA is helpful.
Duo Security has its place in securing our infrastructure. It's great for that, but not for securing our infrastructure end to end because there's no such thing as an end-to-end cure for all the security.
It is great for reducing the risk of breaches. Having 2FA and making it simple for users, it reduces the risk of getting phished or scammed.
Duo Security considers all resources to be external, which is a good idea because everything is done in a completely untrusted model. It's absolutely important for us.
Our cybersecurity resilience has improved in one way. We were successfully able to deploy it to a base system. It's uniform across the whole property, and everyone is using it.
What is most valuable?
It's simple. It's reliable. I haven't had any issues with it.
What needs improvement?
It's fairly simple. Our end users don't have many issues with it other than getting locked out for administrative purposes, but it's not something to do with Duo Security. There might be a little slowness, but that could be my connection.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using this solution in our company for about two years. I have been with the company since we started using it.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I haven't had any problems. In a worst-case scenario, there might be a little slowness, but that could be my connection. They're pretty proactive when they do have issues. I get alerts right away saying that Duo Security is having problems, and they are being looked into.
How are customer service and support?
Their support is okay. They always respond. Sometimes you get really good engineers, and sometimes you don't, but at least they're there. I'd rate them a seven out of them.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We had a few other systems. It was piecemeal. We were trying Okta at one point. We were doing demos of the products trying to find the right one. I've limited experience with them, but our security team did a full evaluation. A few times, I've seen demos, which was a while ago, they all seem to be pretty close. It's pretty tough out there. We might have been roped into Duo Security with some other deal that we did with Cisco.
How was the initial setup?
I was not involved in its deployment. Our security team does most of the deployment factor on that. I do remember the provisioning process, and it seemed pretty painless. We have about 5,000 employees, and I'm sure getting the education to the users about what we're doing would have been an effort, but overall, it was pretty easy.
In terms of deployment, it's on the cloud. It's probably a hybrid cloud, but I'm not sure.
What was our ROI?
There's definitely a return on investment because one compromise can cost billions of dollars.
What other advice do I have?
I'd rate Duo Security a nine out of ten. I haven't had any problems. It's great.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
IT Director at a non-profit with 201-500 employees
Keeps us secure, allows us to be remote, and is simple to deal with
Pros and Cons
- "We're working remotely. It helps us keep people more safe. Its adoption has been fine. I like the fact that you can bypass it if you need to because there are situations where the internet doesn't work, etc."
- "We use Yubikey for pushing it to the phones. Yubikeys can get expensive because people tend to lose those for some reason. Fifty dollars a device is pretty high."
What is our primary use case?
We use it for multifactor authentication for getting in with cell phones and PCs.
How has it helped my organization?
Duo Security allows us to be remote, and it keeps us secure. It has been very good for securing our infrastructure from end to end. We haven't had any issues.
It has helped free up our IT staff, but I don't have the metrics on how much time it has actually saved. We don't worry about it. It just works.
It has been good for establishing trust for every access request, no matter where it comes from.
What is most valuable?
We're working remotely. It helps us keep people more safe. Its adoption has been fine. I like the fact that you can bypass it if you need to because there are situations where the internet doesn't work, etc.
Its ability to help reduce the risk of breaches is pretty good. I like its ability for user authentication and device verification.
What needs improvement?
We use Yubikey for pushing it to the phones. Yubikeys can get expensive because people tend to lose those for some reason. Fifty dollars a device is pretty high.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using this solution for a couple of years.
How are customer service and support?
I don't deal directly with their tech support myself. I've got some other folks that do that for me, but I don't hear any complaints, so I'd rate them really high.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We did use another solution. I can't remember the name of it, but it had a lot of flaws and a lot of issues. It did not connect to the equipment that we had to use. It would break down, so we had to find something else.
We didn't consider another solution. While researching, Duo Security came out to be the best. The last one was terrible, and this one ranked a lot higher.
How was the initial setup?
We have a hybrid deployment. It was very easy to implement it.
It integrates well with other systems. We have Cisco Umbrella and Cisco routing and switching. We had Cisco firewalls, but I wouldn't recommend them.
What was our ROI?
We've seen an ROI in using this product. There is stability and ease of use. It isn't a problem to handle. It's simple to deal with.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
It falls in line with everything else.
What other advice do I have?
To someone researching this solution who wants to improve cybersecurity in their organization, I'd say that it has been very beneficial.
Overall, I'd rate Duo Security a ten out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
IT Security Manager at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
The security products have good integration
Pros and Cons
- "We were considering purchasing other products, like AMP for Endpoints, and it was not properly integrated with the firewall function. It might be better now with SecureX."
- "We were considering purchasing other products, like AMP for Endpoints, and it was not properly integrated with the firewall function. It might be better now with SecureX."
What is our primary use case?
We use Cisco Firewalls, Cisco Umbrella, and we played a bit with Cisco Duo. The integration between has gotten better recently.
We use them for a security solution, multifactor authentication, and DNS protection.
How has it helped my organization?
It helps increase the security posture of the organization.
Cisco saves us time. We automate as many tasks as possible.
What is most valuable?
The integration is the most valuable feature. The products talk to each other.
The products help us to detect and remediate threats.
What needs improvement?
The integration has improved recently but it can still be better.
We were considering purchasing other products, like AMP for Endpoints, and it was not properly integrated with the firewall function. It might be better now with SecureX.
For how long have I used the solution?
My company has been using it since before the company was founded more than ten years ago.
How are customer service and support?
Their support can use improvement when it comes to responsiveness. It can take a few business days to convince an engineer that a device is faulty.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We also use other products from other companies for web applications and firewalling, besides Firepower. There are pluses and minuses for the other companies.
From Gartner's perspective, Cisco products are not market leaders in some areas.
How was the initial setup?
With good specialists and support, it's easy to implement multiple Cisco products.
What other advice do I have?
We should be protecting our network and the cost of security and the OpEx is important, but it is more important to have a protected network.
I would rate their security products an eight out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
CTO at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Fair price, improves security, and easily integrates with existing infrastructure
Pros and Cons
- "For me and my customers, the best feature is that it's very easy to integrate with the existing infrastructure. It takes a few minutes to configure it."
- "It already integrates with lots of products, but it can integrate with more products. There should be easy integration with Cisco products because sometimes, it can be quite complicated."
What is our primary use case?
It's an MFA solution, and we mainly use Duo Security for secure access to some of the servers with backup data.
How has it helped my organization?
With Duo Security, we can better secure our servers with backup data. It's very good for our customers for cyber resilience.
It can reduce time in case of a ransomware attack and so on. It protects the data but not directly.
What is most valuable?
For me and my customers, the best feature is that it's very easy to integrate with the existing infrastructure. It takes a few minutes to configure it.
What needs improvement?
It's already good, but there could be more integration. There could be ready-made integration. Other than that, it's a good product. It already integrates with lots of products, but it can integrate with more products. There should be easy integration with Cisco products because sometimes, it can be quite complicated.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using this solution for around two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I don't see any problems. It's very good.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It seems good.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We already have a different vendor's solution, but the way that Cisco works on global security helps us to sell more. That's because customers want one dashboard or one cockpit, and now, all the Cisco projects go through SecureX. For customers, it's an advantage because they only have to know one interface, not ten interfaces. They don't have to know the interface of each product they've got.
I like Cisco Talos because it's a good source of security information, but it doesn't impact the customers as such.
How was the initial setup?
We mainly work with the public sector, so its deployment is mainly on-premises, but we also have a few customers who have a hybrid setup. We don't have customers with a full public cloud, so it's mainly hybrid, and they mainly use AWS and Azure cloud. There is also one local provider called OVH, and because it's in the country, it's easier.
I don't take care of its deployment. I have a presales role, so I do demonstrations. I deploy it in our lab but not at the customer. It's my colleague who does that.
The deployment process in the lab is very easy. Duo Security is a cloud solution, so there is almost nothing to install on-prem, and there is also lots of documentation. It's very well-documented how to integrate it with an already existing solution. In one day, you can integrate it quite easily. The web interface is very easy to understand.
What about the implementation team?
One person is enough for its deployment. In terms of maintenance, it doesn't require any maintenance. It's a cloud solution.
What was our ROI?
The ROI is complicated to calculate. It improves security, and improved security is the return on investment.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Cisco's licensing is always a bit complicated to understand, but the price is fair. It could be more expensive than others, but the way they integrate everything, it has a fair price.
What other advice do I have?
You've got a trial version, so just try it, and you will adopt it.
I'd rate Duo Security a nine out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Reseller
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