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Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 9, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

iboss
Sponsored
Ranking in ZTNA as a Service
11th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
19
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (7th), Internet Security (3rd), Web Content Filtering (3rd), Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) (8th), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (9th)
Check Point Harmony SASE (f...
Ranking in ZTNA as a Service
5th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
60
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (6th), Firewalls (16th), Anti-Malware Tools (8th), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (7th), ZTNA (5th), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (7th)
Cisco Secure Client (includ...
Ranking in ZTNA as a Service
10th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
75
Ranking in other categories
SSL VPN (2nd), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (4th), Cisco Security Portfolio (3rd)
 

Featured Reviews

Matt Crockford - PeerSpot reviewer
It's easy to roll out, and their understanding of our business made it seamless
One aspect we value about iboss is its simplicity. Their customer service is brilliant, and they are super responsive and knowledgeable. It's easy to roll out, and their understanding of our business made it seamless. We were impressed by the solution's mental health function, which can detect if someone needs help. It scans what users are browsing and flags warning signs so we can check to see if they are okay. We've had to use it a couple of times. The user interface is highly intuitive. Our IT team picked it up with minimal training. It's arranged so that it's easy to find where things are. Another advantage is the single pane of glass console, which gives you visibility into what's happening. We're not fully there yet because we haven't implemented zero trust, but we're excited about the possibilities from the demos we've seen. We launched a POC of iboss' ChatGPT Risk Protection feature two weeks ago. AI is a great tool, but you need to be careful what you put into it. My biggest fear is employees inputting sensitive corporate information or customer PII data into one of these chatbots. I was impressed by our trial of the feature. It's exactly what we wanted. Now, when a user goes to ChatGPT, there's a banner warning them not to share information, and we can block conversations containing customer data like bank details and email addresses. I don't want to stop people from using it, but we need visibility. We've only tried it on a test group of 15 people. You can configure it to look for specific keywords or integrate it with your DLP policy if you have that configured
reviewer8099174 - PeerSpot reviewer
Secure access with an intuitive design and straightforward controls
In terms of improvement, Perimeter 81 could enhance its reporting and analytics capabilities to provide more detailed insights into network activity. Additionally, expanding integration options with a broader range of third-party tools would be beneficial for seamless compatibility with various existing systems. As for additional features in the next release, it would be great to see advanced threat detection and response capabilities integrated into the platform. This would further enhance security by proactively identifying and mitigating potential threats. Additionally, improved mobile device management features and more comprehensive user behavior analytics would be valuable additions to meet evolving cybersecurity needs.
Wouter Beer - PeerSpot reviewer
Generates revenue through service offering while needing additional safety features
The primary use case for Cisco Secure Client, including AnyConnect, is as a VPN for remote access I use AnyConnect because I have Cisco infrastructure. It utilizes certificates, which allows for automatic setup. The security features are beneficial, and the whole idea of the app is that it should…

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The security aspect of the solution, particularly the malware behind it, is excellent. That's something that really helped us out. It's not just a simple proxy that just blocks the insights of potential threats that come on behind it. They do malware detection and that helps us a lot."
"iboss has significantly lowered the number of security incidents. It is crazy how much it blocks and how much it is aware of the outside danger."
"We were impressed by the solution's mental health function, which can detect if someone needs help. It scans what users are browsing and flags warning signs so we can check to see if they are okay. We've had to use it a couple of times."
"First of all, the security policies are essential. I do not have to rely solely on Active Directory for our users."
"iboss is easy to use despite its complexity. Multiple engineers manage it, but it's significantly more straightforward to administer than traditional VPNs and web proxies."
"I would rate the technical support of iboss a solid 10 without a shadow of a doubt."
"Its initial setup was straightforward."
"The solution has massively improved our security posture, giving us full visibility into what our staff does online."
"The tool's implementation marks a significant step forward among our enterprise clients, showcasing our commitment to staying ahead in the rapidly evolving landscape of blockchain technology. The robust security measures implemented not only protect the integrity of financial transactions but also contribute to maintaining the trust and credibility of our clientele."
"Providing access and security allows our company employees to work from home and remotely."
"What I like about Harmony Connect is that every packet through the network is screened and filtered so that only clean packets can enter the PC. This is useful for a variety of security reasons because you no longer need to worry about things like DDoS attacks."
"It helps to quickly get access to the pages I need."
"The features are excellent, particularly the user interface and user accessibility."
"The integration that this solution has with the different routers or perimeter equipment is exceptional."
"HTTPS decryption is a valuable service and not always found in cloud-based secure web gateways."
"It is a very stable solution."
"The product is easy to use."
"Advanced malware protection helps us to prevent any virus from contaminating computers. We also have DLP for prevention. And AnyConnect has a feature that lets us do some sandboxing to evaluate files that arrive from the outside. So before opening them, we can check them with the sandbox."
"Cisco Technical Support is very good, very friendly, and helpful."
"Support does solve our issues."
"This is a secure product that has had zero stability issues since I started using it in 2019."
"The VPN is the most valuable feature. In general, I like the solution and it helps me connect to my corporate site."
"The initial setup is easy."
"The most valuable feature of the Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client is its ease of use and simple interface. It's always available as long as I have a good network connection."
 

Cons

"Iboss is growing so fast that it is often hard for them to keep up with the challenges."
"If they could implement an extra security layer preventing access to iboss from the open internet, it would be great."
"Sometimes the agent stops working in iboss, and we have to reinstall the agent."
"I'd like to see them accelerate development on the security side, particularly around data loss prevention."
"The area I would like to see improvement in is the ability with in the reporter to navigate directly to the content the user is traversing. It is kind of there, but it's not perfect. Quite frequently, I receive links that lead me to pages with error messages."
"Their on-premise hardware's network interface is capped at one gigabit, which is sort of a problem. If you stand a filter up where all traffic flows through that, according to them, in order to go above a gigabit, you have to have multiple devices, which in today's IT seems a little bit silly. They could easily put in an SFP port into their device that could accommodate 10 gigs or at least offer a box."
"Sometimes, obviously, there are bugs."
"The reporting feature needs improvement. It doesn't give you the expected results. It is quite difficult to get the specific reports needed, and it is not as intuitive as the rest of the platform."
"One of the more negative experiences using Perimeter 81 is the fact that I am logged off after a pre-determined amount of time which cuts off access to some of my company's resources."
"Automation and scalability are areas where the solution lacks and needs to improve."
"My customers want more remote functionality. They need another routing option after they connect to the enterprise intranet. For example, let's say a user tries to connect to a remote branch office and headquarters through Harmony Connect. They need a local breakout after connecting to the headquarters, especially in China. They need to put local breakout in the Chinese internet. The current version cannot do something like this."
"Although the interface is user-friendly, further simplification and customization options tailored for non-technical users would benefit smaller firms without dedicated IT teams. Intuitive dashboards and guided setups can help in reducing the learning curve."
"They could improve on the available public documentation."
"Harmony lacks this ability when anything more than a vanilla access policy is used (we use layers and source user objects in our policy which make this impossible according to Check Point)."
"When it comes to firewall configuration, sometimes we encounter issues."
"The solution requires you to buy a minimum of 50 licenses and that is not practical."
"The various licensing options make it challenging to manage, and the cost is a significant issue for customers."
"The solution could improve the setup, it is complex."
"Setting up Cisco Secure Client, especially when using certificates, is quite a job and complicated."
"Complicated scenarios are difficult to deploy. On a scale from one to ten, with one being the most difficult, I'd give a rating of between two and three for the initial setup."
"When using Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client when my laptop goes into sleep mode the VPN wants me to enter the password again. I should not have to enter the information again. If the laptop is on and it is not switched off, the password should be in the VPN saved and secured."
"The setup could be simplified for solutions engineers with a wizard."
"I think, in general, most of the applications are slow, but this is everyday stuff. I think this is more related to the link speed — the links, the lossage, etc."
"The support could be more proactive in their recommendations. I noticed that the Cisco support agents tend to leave customers to do what they need to do in many ways, and you can choose how you want to do it. However, it would be great if they could proactively be involved in best practices and let other customers know how most people are doing it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is not expensive, and it is also not cheap. iboss is priced right in the sweet spot for the number of features it offers."
"It is expensive compared to one of its competitors."
"We had the cost of purchasing a new appliance along with the implementation and licensing costs. However, the following year, the cost of just licensing was similar to what was paid the previous year for a new appliance along with the implementation and licensing costs."
"The overall pricing for iboss is very competitive and transparent."
"It is probably in line with other solutions, but I do not deal with the financial side."
"We have not priced the solution recently, but they were competitive with other vendors in the past."
"Perimeter 81 charges separately for gateways and VPN connectivity, but compared to Azure, it seemed more reasonable."
"Regarding pricing, I can say that the more the number of users, the less they have to pay."
"The product's pricing model accommodates diverse needs and deployment sizes."
"Annual licenses cost $30 to $40 each."
"The solution's pricing model may not be suitable for smaller companies, as they might find it expensive. Larger companies tend to receive more value due to many users."
"Overall I am very happy with the solution’s flexibility and pricing."
"The cost of the solution's licenses depends on the particular use cases."
"I would rate Harmony Connect's pricing at six out of ten. It wasn't particularly expensive, but it wasn't super cheap either."
"The initial cost is the ASA and other items, but after that, it is relatively inexpensive."
"One thing I've noticed is the price in comparison to other VPNs."
"The licensing costs are reasonable."
"The price is okay."
"It is not a free solution and the user needs to buy license."
"It costs around 80,000 Indian rupees for a hundred licenses, so approximately $1,020 USD."
"I am using a paid version of Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client."
"The solution is reasonably priced and costs $600 for a five-year license in our scenario."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
19%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Comms Service Provider
5%
Educational Organization
41%
Computer Software Company
21%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Government
4%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about iboss?
Content filtering is the most useful feature of iboss.
What needs improvement with iboss?
I have a couple of thoughts for improvement, but usually when I address them with my rep, they put it into the featur...
What is your primary use case for iboss?
We use it primarily for simpler filtering because we're a K12 entity.
What do you like most about Perimeter 81?
Even after restarting, it tries to quickly reestablish connection which is very helpful.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Perimeter 81?
It's essential to consider the organization's specific requirements and budget. Here are some general recommendations...
What needs improvement with Perimeter 81?
In terms of improvement, Perimeter 81 could enhance its reporting and analytics capabilities to provide more detailed...
What do you like most about Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?
The tool is user-friendly, robust and easy to use in any environment.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?
The price of Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is acceptable. I do not have detailed information about the c...
What needs improvement with Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?
The deployment process should be improved, specifically making it easier. Fully automated deployments are quite chall...
 

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform
Check Point Quantum SASE
Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

More than 4,000 global enterprises trust the iboss Cloud Platform to support their modern workforces, including a large number of Fortune 50 companies.
Aqua Security, Cognito, Multipoint, Kustomer, Postman, Meredith
MST, Molina Healthcare, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Arup, New South Wales Rural FireService
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.