Cisco Secure Access Reviews

My team's use case for Cisco Secure Access is that we currently have, or just had, a system with VDI connections, and it was quite difficult to handle because this VDI session is not optimized for video and telephony, especially Webex meetings.

We are now glad to have the opportunity to move to the SSE environment.

The feature of Cisco Secure Access that I appreciate the most is the ability to use Webex directly with the cloud.

We do not have to go through our on-premise system as we did before.

We can go directly from the home office workplaces to the cloud and we do not have to go through the on-premise infrastructure.

The benefit is that I can specify which traffic goes to the on-premise site and which traffic goes to the cloud.

Cisco Secure Access benefits my company considerably from my perspective, because we had some problems with integrating with the VDI infrastructure. In the end, it worked, mostly because of the thin client architecture we used. However, we were looking for something more powerful, better, and optimized for our environment, so we chose the SSE.

The deployment of Cisco Secure Access has impacted help desk ticket volume and the end-user experience. With the new SSE, we are rolling out new hardware. This is impacting the way our colleagues work with their electronic devices, and it is getting better now.

I am not using the AI assistant feature of Cisco Secure Access at this time.

I am not sure about using the VPNaaS in Cisco Secure Access, as in SSE, I am functioning as an end-user and I assist the guys who are implementing it. My part was mostly determining what ports are needed and what servers connect to on-premise and need to work with them. The implementation of this solution was quite easy.

I do not use ZTNA in Cisco Secure Access.

I have not used the Experience Insights feature of Cisco Secure Access, as I am not involved with it. It is just the underlying platform. I am implementing the voice features on it. I can speak from my opinions and insights on what I observed when implementing UC above the platform. It was quite good and acceptable.

I have not used the multi-organization management capability of Cisco Secure Access, so I cannot describe its usability and efficiency.

I come from a user perspective and user experience, because I am responsible for the UC clients which are working with the platform. From that, I can say it was quite easy to implement it and to bring the systems to work with SSE. However, I am not deeply involved in the capabilities of SSE.

I have been using Cisco Secure Access for about two to three weeks for my daily work, and I have to admit that I am using it part-time because our colleagues have not fully migrated to Cisco Secure Client.

We are in the process of transitioning from one system with VDI to the SASE and SSE.

I have not had any interaction with the customer service or technical support of Cisco regarding Cisco Secure Access, as I support other things, and we did not have a problem with UC communication. It was no problem to implement it.

Before choosing Cisco Secure Access, I was using the VDI infrastructure I already discussed, which included thin clients at home and now includes laptops at home. From my perspective, it will be easier in the future.

My experience with the pricing, the setup costs, and the licensing of Cisco Secure Access is that from my perspective, we made quite a good deal with Cisco.

We were in the process of supporting the older hardware of our VDI infrastructure again and again, year after year. For us, it was more economical to move to SSE than to continue supporting the VDI infrastructure, so that was a good point for us to transition from VDI infrastructure to the SSE platform.

From my perspective, it was the right decision to move to that platform, as I expect the product to be ideal for having secure access to your network system, especially as we will see a transition from mostly on-premise to mostly cloud.

My relationship with Cisco is that my company is a long-time user of Cisco software and hardware. I have been working with Cisco since about 2003, and I am quite satisfied with dealing with Cisco.

There are many advantages. We have documentation, we have events such as this one, and we have partners in Germany that we can work with.

My advice to any companies considering Cisco Secure Access is to plan it. Talk to your Cisco partners and your Cisco representatives; I think it is worth it.

I rate this product overall as a 10.

My adventure with Cisco Secure Access started when I began my work, and my main use cases are focused on ensuring secure connectivity and protecting sensitive data.

My favorite feature of Cisco Secure Access is incredibly beneficial for a company, as it enhances security and user experience significantly.

Using ZTNA in Cisco Secure Access has positively affected my transition and my clients' transition to Zero Trust and least privilege principles, reinforcing the security posture.

The impact of Cisco Secure Access deployment on help desk ticket volume and the end-user experience has been remarkable, and I am using the AI assistant feature, which streamlines support. Cisco Secure Access has helped in preventing users from uploading sensitive and proprietary information to LLMs effectively, and I have heard from my clients regarding how they see it. They find that it works well and meets their security requirements.

In terms of usability and efficiency, the multi-organization management capability of Cisco Secure is robust. I believe Cisco Secure Access can be improved by changing some features, enhancing the user interface, and streamlining reporting.

I used VPNaaS in Cisco Secure Access, and it has greatly influenced my transition from VPN to ZTNA by simplifying secure access for users.

I evaluate the customer service and technical support of Cisco as consistently reliable.

Positive

I would describe the deployment experience of Cisco Secure Access as straightforward, without major challenges.

From my point of view, the biggest return on investment when using Cisco Secure Access is the significant reduction in security risks and improved operational efficiency.

My experience with the pricing, setup costs, and licensing of Cisco Secure Access has been favorable.

I have worked with other tools that do similar things to Cisco Secure Access.

My advice to other companies thinking of deploying or getting Cisco Secure Access is to thoroughly assess their needs and goals, as it is crucial for maximizing the benefits. I gave this review a rating of 9.

I use Cisco Secure Access for VPN resources in my day-to-day work to implement the VPN tunnel to the data center.

The best features Cisco Secure Access offers include stability. With 4,000 people using it and not many tickets, Cisco Secure Access has positively impacted my organization by providing stable VPN access to the data center.

This stability has led to measurable outcomes, as we have fewer tickets.

Cisco Secure Access is good, and I feel nothing more is needed for improvement. I chose a rating of nine out of ten because of the zero downtime, but that is nearly not possible, and I cannot tell you what to do better.

I have been using Cisco Secure Access for eight years.

Cisco Secure Access is good, and I feel nothing more is needed for improvement.

With 4,000 people using it and not many tickets, Cisco Secure Access has positively impacted my organization by providing stable VPN access to the data center.

I will contact our partner manager if the vendor has any questions or comments about my review.

Neutral

We do use VPNs in Cisco Secure Access, and we already have Zero Trust, which has influenced our transition.

Cisco Secure Access is deployed in our own on-premise data center.

We are a partner of this vendor, which represents our business relationship beyond being just a customer.

The stability has led to measurable outcomes, as we have fewer tickets.

We do use VPNs in Cisco Secure Access, and we already have Zero Trust, which has influenced our transition.

We do use VPNs in Cisco Secure Access, and we already have Zero Trust, which has influenced our transition.

I would evaluate the AI access feature of Cisco Secure Access for providing deep visibility and control over AI applications, tools, and large language models by saying we will keep an eye on it and talk to our partner manager about the use cases of the AI implementation. My advice to others looking into using Cisco Secure Access is that it is a good solution. I gave this review a rating of nine out of ten.

On-premises

Other

Cisco Secure Access has many features, and I want to clarify whether the discussion pertains to Cisco ISE or the Cisco client, as the new product name created some confusion with other Cisco products. The solution allows users to connect with our organization's assets from anywhere in a secure manner by providing controls, including firewalls and URL filtering, to deliver comprehensive security for our users and protect them from advanced malware and harmful websites. Overall, its purpose is to safeguard our users during access to our infrastructure on the cloud.

The no-cost migration tools from Umbrella have assisted in streamlining our security policy migration. We also have the cloud to manage all of these products, which works very well for us. We have comprehensive rules from Umbrella, acting as our main firewall. We also implement controls on application control, URL filtering, allow lists, and destination lists to permit or block specific access, including our domain. Therefore, this is very helpful to streamline the implementation for Cisco Secure Access.

Regarding the AI Access feature, I used to use OpenAI, but I will try Cisco's AI tools next time to search for logs. I have tried one, and I think it is very good at allocating logs and knows exactly where the product is and where the issue is. I find it very helpful for us.

I have not yet used the Experience Insight feature, powered by ThousandEyes, but I will do so next time.

I have used the AI assistant feature in Cisco Secure Access. I find it very helpful for viewing logs, analyzing logs, and assisting with issue resolution whenever I am searching for issues. The replies I receive are very quick, professional, and helpful for us.

I am using the Hybrid Private Access feature for varying the enforcement location for ZTNA private traffic. We provide access for our users while enforcing security using these features. It is very good technology overall, and Cisco simplifies it for us and for their customers.

I have tried integrating Cisco Secure Access with Identity Intelligence; we have a trial license for it, and we have gained insights from this license. It is very good and helps us to identify and protect our digital assets. We are considering a decision to purchase this after trying it for the first time.

I have used the policy verification feature to help reduce policy misconfigurations. It acts as a health check for policy configurations and is a powerful tool that recommends settings and configurations for policies.

The effectiveness of AI supply chain risk management is currently under testing. One of my team members is configuring this or working on it, but it is still under evaluation.

What I like the most about Cisco Secure Access is that it has continuous updates for signatures for advanced ransomware; for example, Cisco Umbrella also does this. We can implement controls to prevent access to newly observed domains, with Cisco providing signatures and this information as quickly as possible compared to other vendors. This means if a new website can be malicious and contain ransomware, Cisco ensures that we have immediate information about it. It is fast to gather more information about ransomware and malware, including newly observed domains. Thus, we can say that Cisco provides updated signatures rapidly.

While it is not technically a downside, I think Cisco Secure Access needs more marketing, and the licensing cost should be bundled with other products. This approach would enhance marketing effectiveness, but technically, I do not believe the solution is missing anything.

I have been working with Cisco Secure Access for more than six months.

I have not experienced any lagging, crashing, or downtime; we have gone more than six months without any issues. It is very good.

It is not practical for me to comment on scalability; we have just our one-year product. However, according to the licensing model, I believe it provides scalability.

I have contacted their technical support before, and I consider Cisco TAC to be very professional and very good.

Positive

The initial deployment of Cisco Secure Access is easy, and as it is very common from Cisco, they have a very professional team.

Cisco TAC is very helpful and professional. I reached out to them one day, not during the implementation but after we implemented this product along with other Cisco products. They are a very professional and supportive team.

Cisco Secure Access always requires monitoring for updates and signatures, similar to a health check, but not intensive maintenance. It is very good and very stable. I provide this product with an overall rating of ten out of ten.

Hybrid Cloud

Other

We primarily use Cisco Secure Access based on customer requirements, especially in the BFSI sector. They require Cisco Secure Access for their external branches and remote users. We mostly work with BFSI sectors who need Cisco Secure Access for their network. We have been resellers and integrators for this solution for more than eight years.

The most valuable feature of Cisco Secure Access is the level of security it provides. Cisco's dedication to the security industry is evident with how it remains up-to-date on current situations and recent attacks. Updates are frequent, and firmware upgrades are delivered promptly. It is very easy to stay updated, which is crucial for maintaining security.

The main area for improvement is pricing. Prices are high when compared to competitors, which makes it challenging to position the product with customers. If Cisco wants to enhance its product position in regions like South Asia, it needs to consider its pricing strategies seriously.

We have been working with Cisco Secure Access for more than eight years.

Implementation is very easy. Even if challenges arise, relevant documentation is readily available.

The solution is stable enough, and I did not experience any latency or performance issues.

Cisco Secure Access is scalable. I did not find any issues with scalability, and we did not receive any negative feedback from customers.

Our engineers are very satisfied with the features, technical assistance, and documentation provided by Cisco.

Positive

This solution is very easy to install.

Implementation requires two people. For maintenance, the same number of people is involved.

The main issue with pricing is that it is higher compared to other competitors, making it challenging to work with customers unless they specifically request Cisco. Also, the discount rates provided by Cisco for Asian countries are not sufficient.

Apart from Cisco, we also deal with Palo Alto, Fortinet, FortiGate, and Check Point.

My overall rating for Cisco Secure Access is nine out of ten. Although I could rate it ten out of ten, the pricing factor brings it down to nine. In terms of technical support, I would rate it nine out of ten.

My main use case for Cisco Secure Access is to secure our network. A specific example of how I'm using Cisco Secure Access to secure my network is that we use it for our customers as an internet service provider to ensure everything is safe.

In my experience so far, I haven't noticed any best features that stand out with Cisco Secure Access. One feature that does sound useful to me is Zero Touch.

The Zero Trust feature in Cisco Secure Access works very well, but I have no idea about its specifics. Some common positive impacts I mention include faster troubleshooting, which I have noticed since using Cisco Secure Access.

Cisco Secure Access has helped with faster troubleshooting because when we were troubleshooting a loop in a network of our customers, with just a few clicks, I found where it came from and where it was going, so I closed this interface and everything is good.

I am using the AI Assistant feature in Cisco Secure Access, and it has helped in improving my security administrative tasks by summarizing pages or outputs of troubleshooting, which is helping so much. The most helpful thing the AI assistant has done for me is making recommendations for solutions during troubleshooting, which helps me focus on what to think about.

I think Cisco Secure Access can be improved, but as I said, I'm still new in this field, so I can't say something now. I plan to improve my skills more and gain more experience, and maybe I can send them an improvement by mail or something similar. I do not have more to add about the needed improvements.

I have been using Cisco Secure Access for approximately two months.

In my experience, Cisco Secure Access is very stable, and I do not have issues with downtime or reliability.

Cisco Secure Access' scalability seems to keep up with my needs as my organization grows.

My experience with customer support for Cisco Secure Access has been okay, but it is not very fast.

Negative

I did not previously use a different solution before Cisco Secure Access, so I'm not sure about that.

Cisco Secure Access is deployed in my organization on-premises. I'm not sure if we use VPNaaS in Cisco Secure Access. I haven't used the Experience Insights feature powered by ThousandEyes yet; I know about ThousandEyes, but we do not use it yet.

I'm not sure if I have integrated Cisco Identity Intelligence with Cisco Secure Access. I haven't used policy verification in Cisco Secure Access as I am still new and do not configure any policies. I help mostly with troubleshooting something that's already running, just looking for anything wrong here and there.

I do not have anything unique to add about how I or my customers are using Cisco Secure Access.

Since using Cisco Secure Access, I haven't seen a return on investment and I do not have this information regarding saved time, money, or fewer employees.

Before choosing Cisco Secure Access, we evaluated a few solutions such as Cisco Meraki, Cisco ISE, and Catalyst Center.

Since I started using Cisco Secure Access, I have noticed positive impacts on my organization. My advice for others looking into using Cisco Secure Access would be to try it; it is very nice to have in a good environment, such as service providers. I would give this product a rating of 8 out of 10.

On-premises

Managing Cisco Secure Access through the single cloud management console will not be difficult if you experience it once. This means once you have hands-on experience, you know how to operate it. In the first time, you might have a challenge because you need to understand the system. However, once you understand it, it will not be difficult anymore.

I find the zero trust approach helpful and beneficial in securing standard applications, which means you are accessing the applications directly instead of giving privilege to access the network itself. This is very beneficial in the context of security and is very effective.

Regarding the threat detection and response capabilities, because it's integrated in the cloud, users don't have to configure it to integrate with Talos. The feed that it has is already there, detecting malware and blocking it by itself from the Cisco Secure Access. The Intel is there, and we do not need to manually integrate with Talos.

My personal thinking about Cisco Secure Access is that because I'm also catching up on this solutioning, I'm not really seeing any improvement because I'm still learning. So far, it's good; I do not have any comment on this.

Regarding features about the UI, the pricing, and the learning curve of Cisco Secure Access that can be improved, the AI is already embedded in the solution. Because I haven't explored much and am not an expert, the features might be there, but I haven't tested them out.

When it comes to thoughts on the pricing, setup cost, and licensing cost of Cisco Secure Access, I cannot comment as I only did SSE for Cisco and did not have experience with other products. In terms of price comparisons, I cannot provide much insight.

The more competitive the pricing for Cisco Secure Access becomes, the better it would be for customers.

Throughout my experience with Cisco Secure Access, I have had some stability and reliability issues, including lagging when accessing the portal. Sometimes the response is fast, and sometimes it's slow, with response information that can be either correct or wrong. However, I consider these minor issues because they recover in a few minutes afterwards, though there are still glitches present.

In evaluating my experience with the technical support and customer service of Cisco Secure Access, during the POC, we did not leverage tech support at that particular moment; instead, we engaged directly with the SE team, the Cisco System Engineer teams.

Positive

Regarding the experience with the initial setup of Cisco Secure Access, it is important to communicate with the customers on the requirements, so they understand and prepare whatever we need to set up the POC. We need to communicate effectively with them and let them know what we need. Once our requirement is fulfilled, we can proceed. The key point is that communication with the customer must be maintained.

Once we have all of the requirements, the setup of the product itself is not that difficult. The first time requires understanding many things, but after the deployment and gaining experience, it becomes quite straightforward.

I give Cisco Secure Access a seven because I did study other products as well. While I haven't deployed any other SSE product, I went for the training. The way of deploying and the solution is quite seamless, but that's my current assessment without hands-on experience with the other products.

As a partner with Cisco, this relationship is more related to the partners agreements, which is why we are selling Cisco Secure Access.

My impressions of Cisco Secure Access on protecting organizations from threats such as phishing or ransomware attacks are based on my recent POC. There aren't many use cases I have shown to the customer, but I can confirm that the solution is effective.

I would evaluate my experience with the Cisco team as an eight on a scale of one to 10, where 10 is the best.

My advice for other users who would like to start working with Cisco Secure Access is to find a good service integrator. As I come from the service integrator background, my advice to end users is to collaborate with a reliable SI that has the expected expertise on the solutions they are going to purchase and enroll.

The overall rating for Cisco Secure Access is 7 out of 10.

I use this solution for securing security controls like Secure Security Control (SSC) for local Internet breakouts. It offers a unified security policy across Google sites, providing secure web gateways, DNS and web security filtering, and multi-malware protection. These features are essential for comprehensive security.

The main feature of interest to me and the customers is DNS security and Integrated Secure Web Control (ISWC).

There is a need for improved global coverage since the service relies on the cloud provider's data centers. We are seeking more granular and global coverage to meet our demands. 

Modernization is needed, specifically in the enhancement of security features and functionality. Utilizing AI-oriented features is also important, considering what other vendors offer and their marketing strategies.

According to the vendor's claims, the solution is adaptable and scalable. I would rate scalability at eight to nine out of ten.

I am not able to read their resources, but I understand they have a good support organization. This stems from their original business in networking, integrating router and switch operations, as well as security devices. I assume the same organization now bridges into customer support.

Neutral

Cisco is not well accepted in the market since they are somewhat behind their competitors.

I would rate the initial setup at seven out of ten. The commercial aspects are significant here, primarily the recognition level compared to other dedicated suppliers approaching the market with stronger messages.

I am on the presale side, and the delivery aspect is handled by other people in the organization.

Prices are determined in the Compass. I do not refer to the suggested detail or the suggested list price, however, it is highly case-oriented. In the competitive landscape, they offer some advantages with Cisco deal IDs. However, renewal prices have been surprisingly high.

They have a strong brand and are supported by Cisco's traditional organization. 

I would rate them seven out of ten overall. 

Google