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Cisco IOS Security vs Darktrace comparison

 

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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
8.1
Cisco IOS Security offers high ROI through improved efficiency, reduced risks, cost savings, and a beneficial subscription model.
Sentiment score
7.3
Users of Darktrace experience high returns and savings, enhanced system visibility, threat detection, and improved cybersecurity cost-effectiveness.
Using this solution provides financial benefits by securing from server attacks, which offers indirect savings.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.0
Cisco IOS Security offers expert support but faces criticism for slow responses and communication challenges, remaining a strong choice.
Sentiment score
7.7
Darktrace's customer support is highly rated for responsiveness and proficiency, with minor improvements suggested for complex deployments and specific regions.
The technical support from Darktrace is of high quality.
Darktrace provides excellent technical support with a monthly meeting to review platform incidents, ensuring the system functions as expected.
The challenge lies in waiting for a response after logging a ticket.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.5
Cisco IOS Security is praised for scalability and efficiency but may require additional hardware and specific Cisco equipment.
Sentiment score
7.6
Darktrace is highly scalable, adaptable to enterprise environments, and supports both cloud-based and on-premise expansion with careful management.
Darktrace has high scalability, and I would rate it a nine out of ten.
Since it's cloud-based, it expands easily.
For scalability, I would rate it an eight out of ten because they integrate with many technologies.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Cisco IOS Security is praised for stability and reliability, with few integration issues reported when not using Cisco equipment.
Sentiment score
8.5
Darktrace is highly stable, reliable, with 99.9% uptime, efficient performance, and excellent monitoring, rated favorably by users.
I find Cisco IOS Security to be a very stable product.
The stability of Darktrace is excellent, rated ten out of ten.
The appliance itself has never let me down.
For stability, I would rate Darktrace an eight out of ten.
 

Room For Improvement

Cisco IOS Security needs more intuitive management, better performance, advanced features, and improved integration, usability, and support.
Darktrace needs better integration, interface, pricing, reporting, user-friendliness, automation, documentation, and collaboration to reduce false positives and improve protection.
There is no dedicated salesperson in Egypt, and having one would help to improve focus on this market.
They say they can integrate with most firewalls, but when we did an integration with Meraki MX firewalls, that integration didn't work and still doesn't work to this day.
Darktrace could improve by integrating with email security gateways like Mimecast or Ironscales.
 

Setup Cost

Cisco IOS Security is pricey, subscription-based, aimed at medium-to-large enterprises, with recent SMB options, often seen as expensive.
Enterprise buyers have mixed pricing perceptions of Darktrace, with costs up to $350,000 annually and flexible payment options.
The licensing cost is approximately eight dollars a year.
The pricing is costly in USD, and they charge based on device counts.
The product is considered expensive compared to others.
 

Valuable Features

Cisco IOS Security enhances network security with robust features, user-friendly interface, and strong performance, preferred over competitors.
Darktrace provides AI-driven threat detection and autonomous response, offering real-time monitoring, high visibility, and minimal human intervention.
This solution, called Network Access Controller, handles authentication, authorization, and accounting for devices accessing the network.
I do not need to manually process incidents as Darktrace provides an incident summary, potential detection paths, and other details, all exportable with just a click.
If I am in a data center where I don't have layer two, it becomes an issue because the autonomous response is reliant on sending spoofed TCP resets to my core switch to block traffic, which is a major issue.
If more than 2.5 gigabytes of data have been pulled in a few minutes, it engages by blocking for one-hour intervals, alerts, and extends the block until it goes into full isolation if the violation continues.
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco IOS Security
Ranking in Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)
7th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (20th)
Darktrace
Ranking in Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
80
Ranking in other categories
Email Security (9th), Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) (1st), Network Detection and Response (NDR) (1st), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (6th), AI-Powered Chatbots (2nd), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (15th), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (11th), Attack Surface Management (ASM) (3rd), AI-Powered Cybersecurity Platforms (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) category, the mindshare of Cisco IOS Security is 1.0%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Darktrace is 19.4%, up from 17.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)
 

Featured Reviews

Karthik Venkataraman - PeerSpot reviewer
User-friendly and excels in documentation, making it easier to resolve issues
Cisco IOS Security is a mature product with extensive capabilities, serving as the base for the defense layer. It offers good network visibility, which helps in rapid response through the Rapid Threat Containment feature. Its deployment and configuration are straightforward. From a networking perspective, for instance, Cisco IOS incorporates time-tested security features. The zone-based firewall feature has significantly influenced our network security management. For instance, when managing multiple geolocations, it's essential to apply geographically appropriate policies. If a customer operates within the UK zone, I need to implement UK-specific policies. This approach is also applicable to customers in the Asia Pacific and UK regions. It enables me to tailor security policies based on the geographical location of my customers, such as adjusting policies for customers in China or Japan. This flexibility helps in creating a comprehensive zone list. Additionally, this feature allows for seamless service agreements between all zones from headquarters, providing access to all zones within the firewall we create. Essentially, it facilitates the creation of zones within the firewall.
Malebo Lethoba Group - PeerSpot reviewer
Have found the AI analyst and detection functions highly valuable for network operations while managing complexity in initial setup
The functions I find most valuable in Darktrace ( /products/darktrace-reviews ) are the AI analyst as well as the detection.The autonomous response capabilities of Darktrace are not crucial for me because it doesn't work in a network where there are no core switches. In a modern network, the autonomous response doesn't work, especially when sitting in a shared data center.If I'm running a traditional network where I am not in a shared data center with a layer two dedicated for my resources, then it can work for me. However, if I am in a data center where I don't have layer two, it becomes an issue because the autonomous response is reliant on sending spoofed TCP resets to my core switch to block traffic, which is a major issue.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
27%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco IOS Security?
Cisco IOS Security is a mature product with extensive capabilities, serving as the base for the defense layer. It offers good network visibility, which helps in rapid response through the Rapid Thr...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco IOS Security?
Pricing can be reduced. I rate the current price for the product a four out of ten.
What needs improvement with Cisco IOS Security?
While I do not have specific recommendations for improvement, pricing can be reduced.
How does Crowdstrike Falcon compare with Darktrace?
Both of these products perform similarly and have many outstanding attributes. CrowdStrike Falcon offers an amazing user interface that makes setup easy and seamless. CrowdStrike Falcon offers a cl...
Which is better - SentinelOne or Darktrace?
Which solution is better depends on which is more suitable specifically for your company. Darktrace, for example, is meant for smaller to medium-sized businesses. It is also a good option for organ...
What do you like most about Darktrace?
A very useful feature in Darktrace for real-time threat analysis is the packet inspection that analyzes the packet traffic in real time.
 

Also Known As

IOS Security
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Arup Group, Brunel University London, City of Biel, Gobierno de Castilla-La Mancha, K&L Gates , New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Offshore Northern Seas, Transplace
Irwin Mitchell, Open Energi, Wellcome Trust, FirstGroup plc, Virgin Trains, Drax, QUI! Group, DNK, CreaCard, Macrosynergy, Sisley, William Hill plc, Toyota Canada, Royal British Legion, Vitol, Allianz, KKR, AIRBUS, dpd, Billabong, Mclaren Group.
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco IOS Security vs. Darktrace and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.