Fortra's Vera vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection comparison

Fortra and IBM are both solutions in the Database Security category. Fortra is ranked #9 with an average rating of 9.0, while IBM is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.7. Fortra holds a 0.6% mindshare in DS, compared to IBM’s 31.8% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Fortra users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 85% of IBM users who would recommend it.

Fortra's Vera

Read 1 Fortra's Vera review

148 Views
86 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

IBM Security Guardium Data ...

Read 78 IBM Security Guardium Data Protection reviews

5,040 Views
4,133 Comparison Views

85% willing to recommend

Fortra's Vera

IBM Security Guardium Data ...

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Fortra's Vera and IBM Security Guardium Data Protection based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about IBM, Imperva, Oracle and others in Database Security.

To learn more, read our detailed Database Security Report (Updated: July 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Database Security

July 2025

Download the complete report

Helped 865,295 peers since 2012

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

Fortra's Vera

Ranking in Database Security

9th

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Cloud and Data Center Security (14th)

IBM Security Guardium Data ...

Ranking in Database Security

1st

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Database Security category, the mindshare of Fortra's Vera is 0.6%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Security Guardium Data Protection is 31.8%, up from 31.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Database Security

Featured Reviews

Brando Diego

System Engineer/Consultant at Notable Frontier Sdn Bhd

Has good encryption features

Vera encryption is the most valuable feature. Additional improvement can be done as the issues are encountered. I have been using Fortra's Vera for two years. The stability is a nine out of ten. The scalability is a nine. The clients are small enterprises. The initial setup is an eight…

Read full review

Jared Ochieng

Information Technology Security Specialist at infoark

Used for monitoring database activity and tracking databases

The response time could be improved. Navigating support for the solution can be challenging, especially when finding the right contact for specialized issues. Improvements could make raising tickets and identifying the correct support channels easier. While general support information is provided, specialized support may require contacting different teams. We guide our clients through this process to ensure they know where to turn for various needs. Typically, we are the first point of contact for any issues, big or small, and then direct them to the appropriate resources. The quality of technical support largely depends on the expertise of the partner who implemented the solution. If you have a partner who is well-versed in IBM, the technical support is usually excellent. If not, support might be less reliable.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Vera encryption is the most valuable feature."

"It tests security to support SOX compliance."

"Guardium lets you centrally manage aggregators and collectors."

"The most valuable features have been how easy it is to deploy and use, as well as the comprehensive monitoring options. These are a few things that customers like most about this product."

"It protects sensitive data and blocks unauthorized access to the data."

"We now have the ability to begin to understand how people, applications, and service accounts are interacting with data to better protect it."

"It provides us regulatory compliance proof and evidence for audit."

"We use IBM Guardium to support security initiatives and combine policies within the organization."

"Database logging and audit functions are the most valuable features."

More IBM Security Guardium Data Protection pros

Cons

"Additional improvement can be done as the issues are encountered."

"The additional improvement can be done as the issues are encountered."

"Overall testing and quality need improvement. It is fairly buggy at times, so it feels like it could use additional staff on the product, testing and trying it out."

"Can't be used for a NoSQL database, which is limiting."

"The technical support is very poor."

"I am struggling getting through to social."

"The price of this solution is quite high for smaller organizations, so they should release a version that is affordable for small and medium-sized businesses."

"Needs easier integration with custom applications."

"The backup and recovery is very resource-hungry and requires a huge amount of storage capacity."

"I would like to see streamlining of some of the agent features, some of the patches; make it a little bit more user-friendly on the documentation."

More IBM Security Guardium Data Protection cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"One of the deployments that I know of had three databases, and the yearly fees are approximately $50,000 USD."

"Guardium has not saved us time or money."

"The tool is not cheap, but it is not expensive."

"It is not an expensive product. We purchase its yearly license."

"If you are researching this type of solution, work with IBM."

"Guardium won mostly because of our scope and scale. It was able to perform at the scale that we wanted to use it. "

"IBM solutions have fair price strategy, and operates on a yearly basis. If it's a SaaS solution, then you can opt for yearly basis."

"The price of Guardium is higher than the main competitor, Imperva. In addition, it's complex as the calculation of the licensing is done by Processor Value Unit (PVU). However, before purchasing a DAP solution, it is important to analyze specific points to evaluate the cost-benefit of each tool. For example: Does the environment to be monitored have mainframes? If so, it's a point for Guardium. If not, a point for Imperva. Note: IBM is looking into a new licensing policy and reducing the price of Guardium."

More IBM Security Guardium Data Protection pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Database Security solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Financial Services Firm

28%

Computer Software Company

Insurance Company

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Fortra's Vera?

Vera encryption is the most valuable feature.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Fortra's Vera?

Additional improvement can be done as the issues are encountered.

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Fortra's Vera?

Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

See all answers

How does IBM Guardium Data Protection compare with Imperva SecureSphere Database Security?

IBM Security Guardium Data Protection is a solution for database security from IBM that gives complete visibility, control, and analysis to secure sensitive data and comply with regulations. IBM S...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Guardium Data Protection?

I don't remember the exact prices, but Guardium is an expensive tool because it is targeted towards corporate enterprises.

See all answers

What do you like most about IBM Security Guardium Data Protection?

The features I like are the robust policies, which allow us to create customized monitoring based on specific activities.

See all answers

Comparisons

No data available

Imperva SecureSphere Database Security vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 50% of the time

Oracle Audit Vault vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 19% of the time

DataSunrise Database Security vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 5% of the time

Trustwave DbProtect vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 4% of the time

IBM InfoSphere Optim Data Privacy vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 3% of the time

More IBM Security Guardium Data Protection Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Database Security

July 2025

Download Fortra's Vera product report

Buyer's Guide

IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

August 2025

IBM Security Guardium Data Protection report

Download IBM Security Guardium Data Protection product report

Also Known As

No data available

InfoSphere Guardium, Guardium, IBM Guardium

Overview

The Vera platform enables businesses of all sizes to protect any kind of data, and then track, audit and manage the policies securing files in real-time, no matter how far they travel.

Fortra

IBM Security Guardium Data Protection automatically discovers and classifies sensitive data from across the enterprise, providing real-time data activity monitoring and advanced user behavior analytics to help discover unusual activity around sensitive data.

Deploy the solution to help discover regulated data in your data stores and use pre-built templates for regulations such as PCI, SOX, HIPAA, CCPA and many more, to streamline and automate compliance workflows.

IBM

Sample Customers

Box

Information Not Available

Find out what your peers are saying about IBM, Imperva, Oracle and others in Database Security. Updated: July 2025.

DOWNLOAD NOW

865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our list of best Database Security vendors.

We monitor all Database Security reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.