IBM Security Verify Access vs Microsoft Entra ID Protection comparison

IBM Security Verify Access vs. Microsoft Entra ID Protection

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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

IBM Security Verify Access

Ranking in Identity Management (IM)

17th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Single Sign-On (SSO) (15th), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (17th), Access Management (15th)

Microsoft Entra ID Protection

Ranking in Identity Management (IM)

7th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Microsoft Security Suite (8th), Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) (2nd)

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Identity Management (IM) category, the mindshare of IBM Security Verify Access is 1.5%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Entra ID Protection is 2.0%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Identity Management (IM) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Microsoft Entra ID Protection	2.0%
IBM Security Verify Access	1.5%
Other	96.5%

Identity Management (IM)

Featured Reviews

Ateeq Rehman

Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited

Has improved secure user access while managing development through multiple technologies

I have already explained this in my previous call; I don't handle financial terms and commercials. Pricing is generally managed by functional teams and management looking after licensing matters. In Pakistan, vendors such as Oracle and IBM manage account relationships with clients and have tailored pricing models, so I do not have sufficient insights into that aspect.IBM Security Verify Access installation process is not straightforward; it requires underlying specialized knowledge upon which the IBM products are based. The complexity and scalability of the architecture necessitate in-depth technical knowledge and understanding of the system. Thus, installation is not as simple as clicking through; it requires extensive configuration of the underlying application servers, such as IBM WebSphere, where these products are deployed and configured.

Read full review

Luis Gabriel Mieles Benavides

Cloud Architect at Sonda S.A.

Identity protection has strengthened daily access control and improved passwordless security

The best features of Microsoft Entra ID Protection include the password dictionary, which we do not have in Active Directory. Conditional access is excellent because we can select the location from which users authenticate, and this is the best feature for me. Another valuable feature is the ability to identify critical or suspicious computers. If computers are too old or too suspicious, the system does not allow authentication, which is excellent. The effectiveness of automated remediation for handling identity threats is great. I use passwordless authentication with cellular phone authentication, which is excellent because we do not always need a password. Microsoft Entra ID Protection is a great solution overall because it improves security in the company through identity management. It improves integration with other solutions such as Google, Gmail, Hotmail, Outlook, and Facebook. We can create different applications and integrate with different services.

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

"IBM Security Verify Access, formerly known as ISAM, IBM Security Access Manager, now renamed to ISVA, integrates with central directory services for our organization and provides user management functionality."

"IBM Security Verify Access is providing a secure way of handling the user login journey, and secure user authentication is fully managed by ISAM or ISVA."

"From the integration point of view, it supports SAML, OIDC, and OAuth. For legacy applications that don't have support for SAML and other new protocols, it provides single sign-on access to end-users. From the integration compatibility point of view, it is highly capable."

"The most valuable feature of IBM Security Access Manager, at least for my company, is multi-factor authentication. That's the only feature my company is using. The solution works well and has no glitches. IBM Security Access Manager is a very good solution, so my company is still using it."

"I have found this solution to be really practical and when a user wants to log in, it is effortless and runs smooth."

"Its stability and UI are most valuable."

"The solution has powerful authentification and authorization. It offers a good way to increase security."

"It's a good solution for identification and access management."

More IBM Security Verify Access pros

"The most valuable features are the API apps, which I use to connect to my cloud Protection."

"The valuable features of Entra ID Protection include providing me visibility of my entire estate, managing access, and having a level of control."

"Microsoft's support is commendable. Their response time is quick, and they handle inquiries effectively, ensuring ongoing support processes."

"The reverse proxy feature provides additional security that is not available in other solutions."

"As an end-user, I find the experience to be quite seamless. My main advantage is that I only need to manage one login and one two-factor authentication method to access all the necessary tools. I don't have to set up separate logins and authentication for each application."

"For me, automatization is most valuable."

"I use conditional access most of the time."

"I find the most valuable feature to be conditional access."

More Microsoft Entra ID Protection pros

Cons

"The user interface for users and administrators could be improved to make it easier. Automating some functions could also be beneficial."

"They can improve the single sign-on configuration for OIDC and OAuth. That is not very mature in this product, and they can improve it in this particular area. OIDC is a third-party integration that we do with the cloud platforms, and OAuth is an authorization mechanism for allowing a user having an account with Google or any other provider to access an application. Organizations these days are looking for just-in-time provisioning use cases, but IBM Security Access Manager is not very mature for such use cases. There are only a few applications that can be integrated, and this is where this product is lagging. However, in terms of configuration and single sign-on mechanisms, it is a great product."

"IBM Security Verify Access installation process is not straightforward; it requires underlying specialized knowledge upon which the IBM products are based."

"There are a lot of areas that can be improved, but the main area is the lack of customization. You cannot easily customize anything in the product. It is not easy to tweak the functionality. It is challenging to change the out-of-the-box functionality."

"The user interface needs to be simplified, it's complex and not user-friendly."

"Configuration could be simplified for the end-user."

"The solution could be classified as a hilt system. There are a lot of resources being used and it is suitable for very large enterprises or the public sector."

"What we'd like improved in IBM Security Access Manager is its onboarding process as it's complex, particularly when onboarding new applications. We need to be very, very careful during the onboarding. We have no issues with IBM Security Access Manager because the solution works fine, apart from the onboarding process and IBM's involvement in onboarding issues. If we need support related to the onboarding, we've noticed a pattern where support isn't available, or they don't have much experience, or we're not getting a response from them. We're facing the same issue with IBM Guardium. As we're just focusing on the multi-factor authentication feature of IBM Security Access Manager and we didn't explore any other features, we don't have additional features to suggest for the next release of the solution, but we're in discussion about exploring ID management and access management features, but those are just possibilities because right now, we're focused on exploring our domain."

More IBM Security Verify Access cons

"Support or customer service with Microsoft Entra ID Protection can be challenging because you can get lost in the queue. You can open up a case, but sometimes it can be an hour or even a day between communications."

"Azure AD could improve by enhancing the availability of specialized courses for security, such as NETSCOUT security or other relevant certifications. It would be beneficial to have specific courses for security, to provide in-depth knowledge and skills related to Azure AD. While there are micro-learning resources available for various concepts, many people in the IT industry may not have the time to go through all the courses to properly configure and utilize Azure Active Directory. Simplifying the implementation process and making it easier for individuals to join a company with Azure AD could also be considered areas for improvement."

"There is room for improvement in the ability for Entra ID Protection to inherit roles and configurations from whatever solution I am migrating from, so that these don't have to be built from the ground up during the implementation process."

"The pricing could be improved."

"Identity labeling and sensitivity needs improvement."

"The platform's pricing and scalability need improvement."

"I did have some trouble finding specific documentation, particularly for troubleshooting."

"The recent CrowdStrike issue affected most systems."

More Microsoft Entra ID Protection cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It costs about 300K AED for a year. Its pricing is a bit on the higher end, but in comparison to other products in the market, its price is still better. There are lots of other products that are very costly."

"The product is not expensive. It depends on the number of users."

"The license and costs depend on the amount range of users you have. For just approximately 2,000 users, the price is practical and fair. However, when you have 20,000 users, it starts to become really expensive, and the discount per user is not attractive enough to go ahead and purchase."

"From one to ten, if one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the tool a seven out of ten."

"The price of Azure AD is not expensive."

"The product cost is on the expensive side."

"The pricing is competitive in the SMA segment and runs $5-$6 per user."

"Azure Active Directory Identity Protection is not very expensive."

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884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

16%

Insurance Company

12%

Government

10%

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

14%

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	3
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	4

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	5

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Security Access Manager?

The tool provides a password vault, single sign-on, and multifactor authentication. It offers various authentication methods like fingerprint integration, one-time passwords, or tokens sent via ema...

What needs improvement with IBM Security Access Manager?

What is your primary use case for IBM Security Access Manager?

We are still using the IBM BPM platform to automate the processes for our organization.I generally use Microsoft Project for project planning and schedule management, especially in relation to Orac...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Active Directory Identity Protection?

The pricing for Microsoft Entra ID protection is not expensive. It varies based on the company's size and quality.

What needs improvement with Azure Active Directory Identity Protection?

I do not think there are any areas that could be improved with Microsoft Entra ID Protection at this time.

What is your primary use case for Azure Active Directory Identity Protection?

I use Microsoft Entra ID Protection and provide support for features such as multifactor authentication and conditional access. I work with this solution every day.

Microsoft Entra ID vs IBM Security Verify Access

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Product Reports

IBM Security Verify Access

Download IBM Security Verify Access product report

Microsoft Entra ID Protection

Download Microsoft Entra ID Protection product report

Also Known As

IBM Security Verify Access (SVA), IBM Security Access Manager, ISAM

Azure Active Directory Identity Protection, Azure AD Identity Protection

Overview

IBM Security Verify Access is a complete authorization and network security policy management solution. It provides end-to-end protection of resources over geographically dispersed intranets and extranets.Provides a wide range of built-in authenticators and supports external authenticators.Provides permit and deny decisions for protected resources requests in the secure domain through the authorization API.Manages secure access to private internal network-based resources by using the public Internet's broad connectivity and ease of use with a corporate firewall system.

IBM

Microsoft Entra ID Protection enhances security through features like conditional access and multifactor authentication, optimizing identity management for enterprises. This robust solution ensures efficient control over access policies, supporting seamless integration and operational efficiency.

Microsoft Entra ID Protection provides advanced identity management, authentication, and authorization capabilities, supporting multifactor authentication and single sign-on to control digital identities effectively. It utilizes adaptive machine learning for security enhancements and automated risk-based actions, with seamless Microsoft Defender integration. Connectivity with third-party applications and real-time monitoring offers improved operational efficiency for managing large user bases. While it is a powerful tool, there is room to grow in areas such as identity labeling, password management, faster synchronization, better Mac compatibility, and improved scalability. Desired features include enhanced course availability for security training, streamlined implementation processes, and clarified interfaces.

What are the key features of Microsoft Entra ID Protection?

Conditional Access: Control access policies to secure identity-related activities.
Multifactor Authentication: Strengthen sign-in security with multiple verification methods.
Single Sign-On: Simplify access to applications with a single set of credentials.
Identity Governance: Maintain compliance and manage identities efficiently.

What benefits should be considered in reviews?

Enhanced Security: Adaptive machine learning and risk-based actions reduce vulnerabilities.
Operational Efficiency: Integration and monitoring capabilities facilitate large-scale management.
Compliance Support: Aids in maintaining security compliance strategies.
Seamless Integration: Works effectively with Microsoft Defender and third-party apps.

Organizations leverage Microsoft Entra ID Protection to manage identities and access across sectors such as finance, healthcare, and technology. They integrate hybrid environments, enforcing multifactor authentication and conditional access policies, which enables them to secure digital identities and align with compliance operations. Many synchronize on-premises Active Directory with cloud services, effectively managing users, groups, and licenses.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

POST Luxembourg

Information Not Available

IBM Security Verify Access vs. Microsoft Entra ID Protection