Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs Cisco Umbrella comparison

Check Point Software Technologies and Cisco are both solutions in the Secure Web Gateways (SWG) category. Check Point Software Technologies is ranked #7 with an average rating of 8.5, while Cisco is ranked #1 with an average rating of 9.2. Check Point Software Technologies holds a 2.5% mindshare in WSG, compared to Cisco’s 16.9% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Check Point Software Technologies users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 97% of Cisco users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 21, 2025

Cisco Umbrella, OpenDNS, and Check Point Harmony SASE are leaders in network security, competing in the secure web gateway market. Cisco Umbrella appears to have an edge with its DNS-based threat protection and content filtering capabilities, combined with investigative features, while Check Point Harmony SASE excels due to its comprehensive security platform and real-time threat intelligence integration.

Features: Cisco Umbrella provides DNS-based threat protection, content filtering, and phishing protection, with features such as domain history investigation. OpenDNS offers DNS layer security, intuitive controls, and low resource overhead. Check Point Harmony SASE integrates Zero Trust Network Access, Secure Web Gateway, and data loss prevention, providing real-time threat intelligence through ThreatCloud.

Room for Improvement: Cisco Umbrella could improve with enhanced integration with external threat feeds, more comprehensive reporting, and additional security features like DLP. Users also request more granular user-level control and improved malware protection. Check Point Harmony SASE could benefit from better third-party integrations, improved mobile support, and more intuitive management interfaces.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco Umbrella is often deployed in public cloud environments, offering generally prompt and professional technical support, though its pricing model can be complex. Check Point Harmony SASE is widely used in various cloud types including hybrid and private clouds, receiving praise for customer service and technical support despite initial setup complexities related to ZTNA.

Pricing and ROI: Cisco Umbrella's pricing is fair but may appear expensive outside the US; it offers significant ROI through improved security and reduced hardware dependency. Check Point Harmony SASE offers a cost-effective solution comparable to industry standards, though it requires a minimum license purchase, potentially limiting suitability for smaller organizations. Both solutions are considered beneficial in terms of ROI by improving security and operational efficiency.

To learn more, read our detailed Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. Cisco Umbrella Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. Cisco Umbrella

September 2025

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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

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Secure Web Gateways (SWG) category, the mindshare of iboss is 2.2%, up from 1.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is 2.5%, up from 2.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Umbrella is 16.9%, down from 19.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Secure Web Gateways (SWG) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Cisco Umbrella	16.9%
iboss	2.2%
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)	2.5%
Other	78.4%

Secure Web Gateways (SWG)

Featured Reviews

Matt Crockford

Head of Cybersecurity at SES Water

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

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Nasseer Qureshi

Pre Sales Consultant at Redington Group

Delivers seamless and secure remote access while enhancing security posture

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) offers strong features, but there are areas that could be improved. One area for improvement is integration with third-party identity providers. It works with standard SAML and SSO, but we would prefer deeper integrations with solutions such as Ping for more advanced identity-based policies. Additionally, a mobile-specific client or lightweight agent would be helpful for securing access from smartphones, especially in BYOD environments. We would appreciate more granular reporting and analytics, including better drill-down capabilities to investigate specific users or app activity. The logs are comprehensive, but filtering them can sometimes feel messy. The user interface on the management portal could be more intuitive, especially when managing multiple sites or remote offices. Some of the policy configuration steps are nested and could be streamlined.

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Emilio Montoya

CTO at PROA

Ensures internet navigation safety and boosts productivity

The features of Cisco Umbrella I prefer most are DNS protection and traffic redirect. With Cisco Talos's threat intelligence, we reduce the impact of malware traffic in our network, and we currently see the behavior of equipment and choose the correct sites. Cisco Talos has helped us reduce the impact of malware traffic. We can see the behavior and choose the correct sites. We're currently testing secure access with Umbrella in order to secure access to core applications. It's a product that the user doesn't even know is there, even though it is protecting them. It's not hard on the equipment. And, for us, it centralizes everything, which improves productivity. With the Experience Insights feature of Cisco Secure Access, we've seen impacts on the management of user connectivity by allowing us to deliver safe connectivity. We are testing the Secure Access product with Cisco Umbrella to improve our connectivity with our users in order to secure access to the corporate applications. Cisco Umbrella is in the cloud, which is nice.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The console is cloud-based, which is something I really appreciate."

"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."

"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."

"From a use-case scenario, what I like the most is the plug-in. I like the fact that we can do the filtering of these devices offsite independent of the network they are connected to, and we do not have to have traffic coming back inside our network."

"Content filtering is the most useful feature of iboss."

"The iboss system is highly reliable. The false positive rates are small compared to some other systems we've experienced through other partner agencies who use competing solutions."

"Iboss is a solution that prevents advanced persistent threats, and has a zero tolerance for attacks."

More iboss pros

"Using the preboot VPN option, we can reset a user who is working remotely that has forgotten their Windows login credentials."

"Distributing the agent was very simple, allowing us to enforce security posture on our devices (i.e. S1, Disk-encryption, etc.)."

"Logging back into Perimeter 81 is relatively user-friendly as I just need to re-type my Windows credentials in to access the VPN."

"It has provided a seamless gateway to much-needed platforms."

"SD-WAN is one of the primary solutions offered by Perimeter 81."

"Perimeter 81 has increased my security and privacy while maintaining solid internet performance."

"The application control and granular access feature are very easy to use, intuitive, and effective."

"Its software solution also ensures connectivity and protects against NSF filtering."

More Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) pros

"The features of Cisco Umbrella benefit my company by allowing us to do protective DNS instead of URL filtering, which lets us avoid having to backhaul traffic and run it through a firewall in a data center."

"Web proxy adds an effective layer for security."

"The biggest return on investment when using Cisco Umbrella for me is the ease of use of the fact that we've deployed this with our Cisco VPN Secure Client, so every computer has the Umbrella module in it."

"The most valuable aspect is that it is hosted with Cisco and can detect any new anomalies, acting almost like an XDR."

"Cisco's support is fantastic, providing assistance when needed, especially during the initial installation process."

"The security and access control features."

"Meraki features and cloud-based functionality are advanced and easy to manage centrally."

"I was able to implement it myself. It was really easy to install. You could install it on a server locally if you want to. If you have the biggest site, you would do that, but for my site, it was just directing all the traffic out through the Cisco Umbrella DNS. It was really handy. When the owners of the company went overseas, I knew that they would be secure because even if they were not on the company network, they would still go through the Cisco Umbrella servers. It was a complete solution for protecting the company with outgoing data."

More Cisco Umbrella pros

Cons

"Our iboss subscription access should be more secure with an OTP or VPN etc. It is easy to gain access if, for example, hackers obtain my username and password."

"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."

"One thing I would like to see differently with their Zero Trust platform is that some of the AI aspects related to high-risk activities have more false positives."

"For zero trust implementation, we encountered complexity issues, especially with a large infrastructure company ExxonMobil."

"To scale up, a new iboss Node Blade Chassis must be purchased."

"File integrity monitoring would be very advantageous as an additional feature."

"Our biggest problem with their service was it did not recognize the device and filtering did not always work correctly."

"Its pricing could be better."

More iboss cons

"There is an issue when installing the Check Point client."

"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."

"I don't know if it is technically feasible, however, if the Desktop App could be used as a Web App or a Chrome Extension it would be very nice."

"The suspend feature needs more control."

"The complex initial setup phase of the product is an area that can be improved"

"Providing USB control in a Linux environment will give more control over data security."

"Its initial setup process is complex for a hybrid environment."

"Sometimes downloading PDF files can be slow."

More Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) cons

"Cisco Umbrella should add some more documentation on proxies."

"It could be improved by having a local data center and caching, which can provide protection support. I would like to be able to channel my intel and my network traffic to their clouds, and this feature is not available. Advanced protection or any malware file support, which might be required, is not available."

"I would like to see a graphical representation of the entire network."

"I would like to see more integrations with more products. Some of the integrations need to be simpler as well. For example, the integration with Cisco Secure Firewall could be simpler. It would be good to make reporting simpler. For those who don't use SecureX, it would be good to make Umbrella really simple to use upfront. It's not a difficult product, but it can be daunting for someone who isn't exposed to it because there are so many options."

"Overall, I'm quite happy with Cisco products, but there could be one place where you can check what's going on. There could be one place where you get all the information about these products so that you don't need to look around. You get the status, information about what lately happened, and if there was anything on the machine in one single place."

"The pricing changes too fast. We get the license and we need to relicense it because they already made changes to it. We always need to be on top of the licenses because they're always changing."

"Although Cisco Umbrella has an excellent global network footprint, there is still room for improvement and growth in this area. Additionally, there are bandwidth limitations associated with the connectors that need to be addressed. To be a viable solution for larger offices, Cisco Umbrella must continue to expand and improve its capabilities in these areas."

"The design of the screens could be improved. Sometimes you're trying to look for information, for what you think is critical that should be on that first screen of the dashboard so that you can quickly take screenshots to have people help out, but you have to hop between screens to find little pieces of evidence."

More Cisco Umbrella cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is expensive compared to one of its competitors."

"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."

"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 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."

"We have not priced the solution recently, but they were competitive with other vendors in the past."

"Regarding pricing, I can say that the more the number of users, the less they have to pay."

"Annual licenses cost $30 to $40 each."

"Perimeter 81 charges separately for gateways and VPN connectivity, but compared to Azure, it seemed more reasonable."

"The cost of the solution's licenses depends on the particular use cases."

"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."

"I consider the product to be a medium-priced solution. There are no additional costs attached to the tool."

"The pricing is good, especially when you compare it to other firewall or UTM solutions from FortiGate or SonicWall, where you would have to invest about four hundred thousand rupees for 100 users over a three-year period."

"Overall I am very happy with the solution’s flexibility and pricing."

More Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) pricing and cost advice

"Our costs were negotiated, and they are okay."

"The licensing fee is paid on a yearly basis."

"We were using the free version, and we implemented the paid version about two months ago. I'm paying a fair price, but everything is negotiable with Cisco. One of the benefits that I got by having Cisco Umbrella is the licensing of the Cisco AnyConnect VPN client."

"Cisco uses subscription models for the pricing and there are three subscription plans."

"The pricing is fair."

"It was a little bit expensive on a per seat basis, but the company I was running was only a midsize Australian company, and it was a reasonable budget per computer for that system. It started off being a free product, and then Cisco bought it, and it went to a reasonable price. I was using Cisco AMP as well. So, my per computer cost was reasonably high, but for a small company, it was within an acceptable level."

"The pricing model is easier compared to some of the other solutions, and it is also competitive."

"In the region I'm from, that of EMAR, Europe, the Middle East, Eastern Asia and Africa, our organizations do not have many liquid cash assets, so the price could be better."

More Cisco Umbrella pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Computer Software Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

Comms Service Provider

Government

Computer Software Company

18%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	5

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	53
Midsize Enterprise	18
Large Enterprise	15

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	49
Midsize Enterprise	30
Large Enterprise	51

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with iboss?

For zero trust implementation, we encountered complexity issues, especially with a large infrastructure company Exxon...

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What is your primary use case for iboss?

Previously when I used iboss, we did the POC for iboss for ExxonMobil. Four or five people wanted to move from our ol...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for iboss?

Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, iboss is not cheap, and that's my only concern. There are cheaper alte...

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What do you like most about Perimeter 81?

Even after restarting, it tries to quickly reestablish connection which is very helpful.

See all answers

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...

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What needs improvement with Perimeter 81?

In terms of improvement, Perimeter 81 could enhance its reporting and analytics capabilities to provide more detailed...

See all answers

Which is the better security solution - Cisco Umbrella or Zscaler?

Cisco Umbrella and Zscaler Internet Access are two broad-spectrum Internet security solutions that I have tried. Zs...

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Which is the better security solution - Cisco Umbrella or Microsoft Cloud App Security?

Cisco Umbrella is an integral component of the Cisco SASE architecture. It integrates security in a single, cloud-nat...

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What do you like most about Cisco Umbrella?

Cisco Umbrella is easy to monitor, manage, and deploy.

See all answers

Comparisons

Zscaler Internet Access vs iboss

Compared 14% of the time

Netskope vs iboss

Compared 14% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs iboss

Compared 14% of the time

Cloudflare One vs iboss

Compared 7% of the time

Cato SASE Cloud Platform vs iboss

Compared 5% of the time

More iboss Competitors

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform vs Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)

Compared 11% of the time

Netskope vs Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)

Compared 10% of the time

OpenVPN Access Server vs Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)

Compared 9% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)

Compared 9% of the time

FortiSASE vs Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)

Compared 4% of the time

More Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) Competitors

Zscaler Internet Access vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 17% of the time

Cisco Secure Access vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 9% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 7% of the time

Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 5% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 5% of the time

More Cisco Umbrella Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

iboss

September 2025

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Buyer's Guide

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)

October 2025

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) report

Download Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) product report

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Umbrella

October 2025

Download Cisco Umbrella product report

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform

Check Point Quantum SASE

OpenDNS

Overview

iboss offers a comprehensive security platform designed for diverse use cases such as web filtering, data loss protection, corporate proxy services, and URL filtering.

iboss integrates advanced features to address dynamic security needs, leveraging its strength in SASE, ZTNA, AI initiatives, and cloud integration, while ensuring seamless operations for remote work. It excels in historical forensics, malware protection, and flexible cloud deployments. Users benefit from comprehensive traffic scanning, robust malware detection, and PaaS capabilities that reduce hardware management. An intuitive admin console ensures efficient management with content filtering and low false positives. SSL decryption enhances security, while DLP protects data in AI conversations. Deployment is rapid and scalable, allowing effortless integration with emerging technologies.

What features does iboss offer?

Granular Web Filtering: Provides precise control over web content access.
Traffic Scanning: Monitors data through multiple ports for security breaches.
Malware Detection: Ensures superior protection against malware threats.
PaaS Capabilities: Eliminates need for hardware management.
SSL Decryption: Enhances data protection by decrypting secure connections.
DLP Capabilities: Safeguards data during AI interactions.

What benefits and ROI should users consider?

Scalability: Adapts quickly to growing demands and emerging tech integration.
Rapid Deployment: Reduces time to implement security measures.
User-Friendly Admin Console: Facilitates efficient operations management.
Low False Positives: Increases accuracy of threat detection systems.

iboss finds significant application in sectors such as education, where web filtering for K-12 is crucial, and in corporate environments requiring robust proxy services and URL filtering for network security. Its adaptability is essential in scenarios demanding flexible, decentralized security frameworks, particularly for remote work setups.

iboss

Check Point Harmony SASE, formerly Perimeter 81, offers robust security features like split tunneling, MFA, and Zero Trust Network Access focused on secure remote access and optimized connectivity for remote teams.

Check Point Harmony SASE delivers advanced security through a user-friendly interface, efficient VPN connections, and a centralized management console. It enhances security with real-time threat intelligence from ThreatCloud and traffic management via built-in optimization. Firewall as a Service and Secure Web Gateway safeguard against unauthorized access and phishing. While users seek enhanced networking customizations and better integration with identity providers, there's an emphasis on improving reporting, real-time analytics, and policy management. Requests also include a Chrome extension, traffic balancing, and simplified configuration to address some resource-intensive aspects.

What are the key features of Check Point Harmony SASE?

Split Tunneling: Manages internet traffic more efficiently by routing only necessary data through the VPN.
MFA: Provides an additional layer of security through multi-factor authentication.
Zero Trust Network Access: Ensures secure connections by validating every user and device.
ThreatCloud: Enhances protection with real-time threat intelligence.
Firewall as a Service: Protects against unauthorized access and threats.
Secure Web Gateway: Prevents phishing attacks and unauthorized internet access.

How can organizations benefit from using Check Point Harmony SASE?

Improved Security: Real-time threat intelligence and robust authentication minimize risks.
Centralized Management: Simplifies control over network security and policies.
Optimized Connectivity: Efficient traffic routing enhances user experience.
Flexible Integration: Seamlessly integrates with existing IT infrastructure, enhancing strategic security deployment.

Check Point Harmony SASE is used across industries for secure remote access and connectivity, protecting sensitive data, and managing access to corporate resources. It is ideal for those with hybrid cloud models and requires comprehensive security measures combined with existing IT infrastructures to meet specific industry demands.

Check Point Software Technologies

Cisco Umbrella delivers rapid DNS security with over 30,000 customers, providing outstanding threat protection and handling more than 600 billion requests daily. It's recognized for high threat efficacy in the SSE domain and integrates elements like SWG, ZTNA, CASB, and more.

Cisco Umbrella is renowned for its effective DNS-layer security against ransomware and phishing. It offers flexible content filtering and integrates seamlessly with existing networks while providing single-pane-of-glass management for centralized monitoring. Its robust threat intelligence and customizable policies are central to its appeal. Users highlight room for improvement in areas like WHOIS data inclusion, malware enhancement, and reporting analytics. Integration with other threat feeds and better client support are requested for more comprehensive coverage.

What are the key features of Cisco Umbrella?

DNS-Layer Security: Blocks malicious domains, preventing ransomware attacks.
Web Content Filtering: Allows users to manage lists for strict content control.
Seamless Integration: Blends with systems like Active Directory and Meraki.
Remote Protection: Keeps remote users safe across different locations.
Single-Pane Management: Facilitates effective monitoring and reporting.

What should users expect in reviews about Cisco Umbrella?

Threat Intelligence: Provides comprehensive malware and attack data.
Customizable Policies: Enables tailored security measures for users.
Integration Options: Works with diverse systems for holistic security.
Ease of Use: Offers a straightforward experience for administrators.
Remote Worker Security: Ensures protection outside traditional networks.

Industries implement Cisco Umbrella primarily for DNS-level security, web filtering, and protecting remote employees. It strengthens cybersecurity frameworks by blocking malware and avoiding access to harmful sites. The tool is widely integrated with Active Directory and Cisco Meraki, providing consistent internet security for employees.

Cisco

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

Chart Industries, City of Aspen, Eastern Mountain Sports, FLEXcon, George Washington University, Jackson Municipal Airport Authority, Ohio Public Library Information Network, PTC, Richland Community College, Smart Motors, Tulane University, VeriClaim

Buyer's Guide

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. Cisco Umbrella

September 2025

Free Report: Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. Cisco Umbrella

Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. Cisco Umbrella and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.

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