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IBM Security Guardium Data Protection vs Trustwave DbProtect comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 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

IBM Security Guardium Data ...
Ranking in Database Security
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
78
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Trustwave DbProtect
Ranking in Database Security
4th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Database Security category, the mindshare of IBM Security Guardium Data Protection is 31.6%, up from 31.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Trustwave DbProtect is 4.3%, down from 4.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Database Security
 

Featured Reviews

Ahmer Faisel Khan - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers mature agents, compliance reporting and reliable database security
The solution should allow the data to shift to a centralized repository with elastic servers and big data infrastructure. If a customer searches for old logs for retention purposes, there are limitations on appliances once they are set with specific hardware, so they can only be changed by uninstalling or reinstalling the hardware. The solution's aggregator feature allows data aggregation, but for instance, if a customer wants a project ready in two years, having an Elasticsearch in DB or the capacity to store huge amounts of data would be beneficial in data investigation or evaluation at an affordable cost. Some AI features should be added to IBM Security Guardium Data Protection. For example, the AI features implemented in the solution can be anomaly detection or suspicious activity identification.
Marcelo Raza - PeerSpot reviewer
A tool that offers a proper view and division of all databases while also allowing users to do continuous monitoring
I have seen that the tool's installation phase has some problems regarding the versions, specifically the version of SQL. Trustwave DbProtect doesn't accept some versions of SQL. Some credentials when you are installing give some problems, but all of them did pass through the installation phase but gave a certain amount of hard work to be done during the installation phase. The aforementioned area needs to be considered for improvement. The pain points with Trustwave DbProtect were about the installation and problems with the different versions not being accepted. A more compatible version of the product with other databases and operating systems should be possible.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Guardium does a great job of capturing data and having the ability of trying to pull it out and make sense of it. Using it for business applications is its biggest capability."
"The reporting side is also very, very good, especially its flexibility which allows you to tailor the reports to whatever information you want."
"There are different modules but the most valuable ones are firewalling and masking. Additionally, the auditing of the entire database is helpful, which includes all the activity of the database users and administrators. We can monitor everything and log as well."
"he solution offers trouble-free access."
"The product has proven to be flexible"
"It is very easy to obtain reports and manage the reporting interface."
"The tech support is very knowledgeable."
"We appreciate its ease of implementation and the local support available for the product."
"This solution helps our clients to monitor their database use, and detect violations of the policy."
"Transfer and vulnerability scanning are the most valuable features of this product."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is that you can have a good view which is provided with a proper division of all your databases, which you can see in Trustwave DbProtect."
 

Cons

"More automation, user guides, and tips would make this solution better."
"The most important requirements for us are integration with new database solutions and the ability to manage things like Jailbreak or something like that. Its reduction feature can also be improved. It has a functionality called reduction, which is like masking data, but it is just a replacement of characters. Sometimes the customer needs more than this. It would be good if it was more advanced or complete. We also have a problem with this solution because the IBM aggregator isn't working very well. IBM has created big data intelligence for Guardium, and occasionally, customers need three or four months of data, but they can't run it from the collectors. It can have a better dashboard and more pre-defined use cases for those customers who don't have any idea about data protection or don't have expert personnel in this area. For example, they can include five use cases for banks and five use cases for retail."
"We are currently facing a challenge because it does not offer data encryption by default, only data masking."
"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."
"​It will not go as fast as you want. ​"
"It was difficult implementing it, configuring it, getting it up and running and in production. However, since then, I believe it has stabilized."
"Deployment process is very complicated as you need to now all advanced parameters. Almost not possible to figure out for yourself."
"An improvement would be to make the pricing relative in terms of regions."
"I have seen that the tool's installation phase has some problems regarding the versions, specifically the version of SQL."
"The product does not have encryption or data masking."
"We have not been able to integrate this product with a lot of standard incident response solutions, so an open API would help in this regard."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Guardium has not saved us time or money."
"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."
"I would suggest to review the type of data, need for security, and if the organizational structure needs the options IBM Guardium provides."
"On a scale from one to ten, where one is low price, and ten is very high price, I rate the solution's pricing a nine out of ten."
"Guardium won mostly because of our scope and scale. It was able to perform at the scale that we wanted to use it. ​"
"It's an expensive solution"
"IBM Guardium Data Protection charges you based on the number of users, e.g. based on the number of licenses, and it's either on a per-license or a per-data basis."
"​If you are researching this type of solution, work with IBM."
"I rate the pricing a five on a scale from one to ten, where one is the lowest and ten is the highest."
"The licensing fees, including support, are approximately $5,000 USD per database, per year."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
30%
Computer Software Company
9%
Insurance Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
17%
Government
10%
Healthcare Company
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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...
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.
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.
What do you like most about Trustwave DbProtect?
The most valuable feature of the solution is that you can have a good view which is provided with a proper division of all your databases, which you can see in Trustwave DbProtect.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Trustwave DbProtect?
Price-wise, Trustwave DbProtect falls in the mid-range category in Portugal. Many solutions similar to Trustwave DbProtect are expensive in the market. I rate the pricing a five on a scale from one...
What needs improvement with Trustwave DbProtect?
I have seen that the tool's installation phase has some problems regarding the versions, specifically the version of SQL. Trustwave DbProtect doesn't accept some versions of SQL. Some credentials w...
 

Also Known As

InfoSphere Guardium, Guardium, IBM Guardium
Application Security DbProtect
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Pax World Investments, Crest Savings Bank, Magnolia Hotels
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Security Guardium Data Protection vs. Trustwave DbProtect and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.