Managed Security Services Product Manager at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Easy to navigate with good technical support and an easy initial setup
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is easy to navigate."
  • "AlgoSec can probably do better at introducing features for the cloud firewall scenarios. This is something that will probably help customers. It needs a hybrid scenario that includes private cloud, public cloud, and on-prem things. If a feature could cover all three different types of deployment, that could probably make it even more desirable for clients."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use AlgoSec to just have a check on what firewall rule sets have been configured over a period of time, and if there are any redundancies within those rules, that we can eliminate without any confusion within the ruleset. It allows us to have the optimum support and effectiveness of the firewalls.

What is most valuable?

Doing the analysis of rule sets is very useful for us.

Being able to make and implement changes within a timeline is a very valuable aspect of the solution.

The solution is easy to navigate.

The initial setup is straightforward.

What needs improvement?

AlgoSec can probably do better at introducing features for the cloud firewall scenarios. This is something that will probably help customers. It needs a hybrid scenario that includes private cloud, public cloud, and on-prem things. If a feature could cover all three different types of deployment, that could probably make it even more desirable for clients.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been dealing with the solution for two and a half years at this point.

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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We've not received any complaints so far when it comes to stability. So far, our capabilities mapped with AlgoSec has always achieved the best of results for our customers. There don't seem to be bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We haven't heard anything from clients that would lead us to believe they couldn't scale the solution if they needed to.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is quite good. I would rate them eight or nine out of ten.

There are some points wherein when it comes to support, my engineer may not have gotten direct support immediately. In the past, my engineer might have to wait half an hour or one hour to get an answer, and then, of course, the customer is also waiting. That slightly impacts my customer experience. Due to that aspect, I am reducing one or two points for that. However, overall, we're pretty satisfied with the solution.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I use a few other solutions as well. More often, I would advise clients to go with AlgoSec. Of course, as a secondary option, if our customers personally had some other preference, my experience is that they tend to go for Tufin rather than Skybox.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is pretty straightforward. It's not complex. We don't face any challenges on that front.

What about the implementation team?

We both deploy the solution and manage the solution for our customers.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

In terms of pricing, it would be useful if they could be a bit more aggressive to their competition in the market. They need more aggressive pricing. That would be certainly more helpful to the market overall.

What other advice do I have?

We have relationships with AlgoSec, Skybox, and Tufin. We are resellers as well as value-added service partners of all three solutions.

Our experience is across the board. What we advise depends on our customers' requirements and preferences. Based on that, we suggest select solutions.

We have a cloud model that we have worked out with AlgoSec. We are their managed security service partners. Along with that, we also do the on-prem deployment, especially in the Indian government sector.

Overall, I'd rate the solution a nine out of ten. I've had a fantastic experience with it so far.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
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reviewer1432929 - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Security Engineer III at Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma
Real User
Gives us confidence in our firewall configuration and facilitates compliance
Pros and Cons
  • "The firewall analyzer is great if you deploy a new firewall platform and need to see if it provides an adequate level of protection, where you don't have any dangerous rules."
  • "I like the training available as it is very informative, but, I wish it was just available from YouTube and I could easily play it from my cell phone without additional logins."

What is our primary use case?

We use AlgoSec to see where our firewalls stand, configuration-wise, and where we can make the policies safer for the environment. We are a large Government organization that provides critical services to the community.

We have a mix of ASA and Firepower that we use in the environment. The tempo is pretty high and there is a large amount of opportunity for error due to the size of the team and sometimes lacking in technical experience with configuring the firewall platforms.

This tool allows us to check the config really easily.

How has it helped my organization?

Our pen testers were constantly using AlgoSec for the firewall assessments, even when going with different vendors. We decided to buy the product in order to check the policy in real-time and ensure there were not miss-configurations that would linger until next year's pen test.

We also get an automated email of firewall changes in addition to being able to see if there are any rules that are poorly configured.

I am less stressed thinking there could be a glaring misconfiguration that could cause an incident.

What is most valuable?

We primarily use the firewall analyzer feature. It is really great for looking at stuff like PCI, HIPPA, etc. There are sometimes false positives but I don't know of a product out there that does not have false positives.

The firewall analyzer is great if you deploy a new firewall platform and need to see if it provides an adequate level of protection, where you don't have any dangerous rules.

I like the peace of mind that we get from seeing what our overall score is for the configs. I also like that I can check against PCI requirements.

What needs improvement?

This is a tough one because it has a lot of good features.

I think that the rate of false positives can be improved. I would like a FireFlow or packet-tracer-like capability at a lower licensing level.

I liked the additional capabilities for an analyst or lower-level network admin or service desk tech to be able to check the rules to see if there is something blocking the traffic. However, I was not able to get the licensing approved above just FA.

I like the training available as it is very informative, but, I wish it was just available from YouTube and I could easily play it from my cell phone without additional logins.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using AlgoSec for a few years.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We just relied on tech skills and pen tests. This way led us to be reactionary instead of getting ahead of problems.

How was the initial setup?

Setup was not too difficult.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The cost is kind of high but I really did not check any other vendors.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I did not evaluate other options. I do like NetBrain's Path tool. This gives us a similar capability to FireFlow and has some other really great tools. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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AlgoSec
April 2024
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Sergi - PeerSpot reviewer
Service Delivery Manager at Schneider Electric
Real User
Increases security and efficiency by more directly involving the end-user
Pros and Cons
  • "We can easily and quickly identify all of the rules on the firewall and avoid the individual review and analysis of each rule."
  • "It would be easier if the network maps could be updated using the GUI portal instead of from the OS."

What is our primary use case?

The AlgoSec solution is really helpful for us, as we need to review all of the rules that have been implemented or we intend to implement, everywhere in our organization, independent of the country or even region.

With AlgoSec, it is possible to check the risks for each rule in terms of security and it is possible to easily decide if the implementation is valid or risky. This allows us to keep only the rules that are following our internal security standards.

AlgoSec helps to keep order and improve efficiency for operations teams supporting the solution.

How has it helped my organization?

In short, this solution makes it possible to increase efficiency by simplifying the life of our engineers. They support the daily interactions with the Firewalls through the implementation of the requested rules. We can easily and quickly identify all of the rules on the firewall and avoid the individual review and analysis of each rule. This keeps the firewalls clean and under our security policy, following our internal standards.

What is most valuable?

I think that perhaps FireFlow could be the most valuable feature, according to the feedback from our technical teams. This allows them to easily add, modify, and remove rules from the firewalls.

Another good point is that we avoid the old procedure of end-users requesting rules, a security team in the middle validating, and then the final implementor doing the job. With this feature, you can directly permit the end-user to request what he or she needs, and if the security policy is respected then it can directly be approved and implemented.

What needs improvement?

What the technical teams report to me is that the network maps are a concern and should be improved. It would be easier if the network maps could be updated using the GUI portal instead of from the OS. This would benefit the operations teams working daily with this tool.

In the end, we are striving to improve efficiency, and taking into account that Operations are really under pressure from SLAs to keep support ticket queues clean, and with the least amount of backfill possible, it is key to get better tools that make it easier and faster to update the network maps.

For how long have I used the solution?

I think we are roughly in the third year since the first time we started using the AlgoSec tool in our company.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

In terms of stability, this tool is really good and more than you could expect.

We are still involved in debugging a lot of stuff because we have to accommodate the solution to our large IT network. As our company and network are really large, we have a lot of jobs to do. Even with this powerful tool, it is not immediate.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability is really good with this tool as it is flexible, as long as we can move this solution to hybrid or fully cloud deployments. This is something we are really focusing on right now.

How are customer service and technical support?

As I know, until today, all issues raised so far have had a good response time and solution. No bad reports or specific or important complaints were reported from the technical teams.

Overall, technical support is really pleasant and smooth.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Before knowing and using the AlgoSec tool, we were managing daily activities with Firewalls the standard way. It was done rule by rule, creating, modifying, removing, analyzing, and finally compiling once all it was decided that everything was under control and following internal security policies.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was hard and made more difficult because of the network map configuration. There is no visibility on the provider because they cannot grant access to us. So, the configuration has to be manually done for the most part. This part was really hard and time-consuming.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

My team was not involved in testing or pilots of any other solution prior to making a decision. Another global team was part of the negotiations, study, and comparison. My team and I were involved once the decision was made.

What other advice do I have?

It is clear that it is difficult to have the perfect tool with all that you need. As we expect, it is not an ideal world. AlgoSec is, in general, doing fine.

Today, this tool is very stable and permits us to improve the efficiency of the day to day work by our technical teams. It also allows the end-user to be more directly involved in the requests, highly reducing the time between the request and the final implementation.

The only advice or remark I can add here is what concerns me with the network maps. This is the cause of what makes the initial setup harder than expected. The reason is because of the network map configuration. There is no visibility on the provider because they cannot grant us access, meaning the configuration has to mostly be performed manually.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
Global Network and Security Team Leader at Ormat Technologies Inc
Real User
Unused rule optimization and rule tracking help keep our team up to date
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature is the unused rule optimization, where it clears the policy when appropriate."
  • "The pricing for smaller installations should be lowered because sometimes there is just no ROI to add AlgoSec to the small branch offices with only 10 rules."

What is our primary use case?

The primary use case is for firewall rule optimization and rule tracking for changes in 80 Palo Alto firewalls. There are 30 clustered and 20 standalone in the environment. Formerly, it was Check Point with almost the same quantity.

How has it helped my organization?

This solution has helped the team to be updated with changes globally.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is the unused rule optimization, where it clears the policy when appropriate.

What needs improvement?

The pricing structure is not good because there is no difference between a Data Center firewall for a small branch. The pricing for smaller installations should be lowered because sometimes there is just no ROI to add AlgoSec to the small branch offices with only 10 rules.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using AlgoSec for seven years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This solution looks very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Our impression of the scalability is great.

How are customer service and technical support?

I have no experience with technical support.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Other than Check Point, we did not use another solution prior to AlgoSec.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward.

What about the implementation team?

We had assistance from Bynet. They are very good professionals.

What was our ROI?

There is not so much ROI for us. We are using it basically for SOX purposes but find it useful on the way.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Pricing is great if you have a small number of large firewalls, otherwise, it does not bring ROI.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We did not evaluate other options before choosing this solution.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Key-Account-Manager at DATAKOM Gesellschaft für Datenkommunikation mbH
Real User
Integrates well with other solutions to enhance efficiency and transparency
Pros and Cons
  • "With the solution, we can uncover bottlenecks, streamline, and clean up our firewall rules."
  • "We would like to have a kind of "Time Capsule" to be able to restore to a certain state from a backup."

What is our primary use case?

AlgoSec helps us by giving an overview of our Layer 3 network devices. With the solution, we can uncover bottlenecks, streamline, and clean up our firewall rules.

How has it helped my organization?

AlgoSec saves our IT department a lot of time and also creates transparency. A large number of reports can be generated quickly. The reports are based on all known catalogs and are important for management and department heads. The products interlock and share relevant information with each other.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is the interaction between AlgoSec's different solutions. From Firewall Analyzer to FireFlow to BusinessFlow, the solutions add value for us and our customers. The basis with the Firewall Analyzer and the corresponding Network Map is one of the core features for transparency.

The ticket system informs all of the people involved with respect to the next steps.

The reporting and documentation components help us to comply with the ISO catalog.

What needs improvement?

It is always possible to improve the product.

We would like to have a kind of "Time Capsule" to be able to restore to a certain state from a backup.

We would like to have a BSI Compliance Report for Germany.

Interfaces are worked on continuously, and small firewall manufacturers such as Sophos should still be included as standard.

For how long have I used the solution?

More than eight months.

What other advice do I have?

All manufacturers on the market are constantly improving. The beautiful and simple thing about AlgoSec is the short distances and that you are heard. If you want a feature implemented, or a report for a certain country adapted or created, then they will take your request seriously right up to the C-Level. The implementation takes place promptly and is customer-friendly.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: As a consulting and integration partner, we use AlgoSec products ourselves, but are also responsible for solution sales in the DACH market.
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reviewer1114632 - PeerSpot reviewer
Works at a maritime company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Firewall rule optimization and extensive reporting helps both with efficiency and compliance
Pros and Cons
  • "Breaking down a rule to specify used objects within groups and protocols has proven invaluable for us because we are able to narrow exposure to potential threats, and more generally, areas in which we are exposed."
  • "Some UI experience is a little clunky (for e.g. MAPS module) and could be made more user-friendly."

What is our primary use case?

The solution helps us to accurately determine rule use and where we can make improvements across our checkpoint firewall products. We had originally designed a few dozen clusters of firewalls that experience a heavy network flow with a multitude of rules, and it has been a doddle to harness the power of AFA to get the ball rolling.

How has it helped my organization?

AlgoSec has highlighted to us a huge number of unused rules and restored the confidence in us to remove them where appropriate. At the same time, it enables us to consolidate and enforce the point of reach prior to searching a rule base to check access for an application or user. Breaking down a rule to specify used objects within groups and protocols has proven invaluable for us because we are able to narrow exposure to potential threats, and more generally, areas in which we are exposed.

Reporting features are a godsend when it comes to executive review and monthly directorship calls.

What is most valuable?

Most of the features proved to be very useful within our massive setup, with some getting additional airtime during production changes. Our perimeter team uses the policy optimizer to search out unused objects in rules and determine when the rule was most recently hit accurately.

From my personal experience, the traffic simulator can be used to check if a request from a user or project is already a function enabled, or instead, we have an access change to implement. This saves an enormous amount of time during CAB calls.

The risk and compliance area is key to ensuring we conform to company regulation and our perimeter detection policy. Having a number of compliance options to baseline ensures that we get the basics right before looking at advanced risks and remediation.

What needs improvement?

Some UI experience is a little clunky (for e.g. MAPS module) and could be made more user-friendly.

We experienced some initial challenges with technical support, although this considerably improved once the teams got to know one another.

The API support isn't as versatile as we would like it to be. It needs more integration.

For how long have I used the solution?

Six months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The product and appliances have been very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

This solution has no problem with scalability and is easily able to integrate with firewalls in their thousands.

How are customer service and technical support?

We had some initial struggles due to communication, but once ironed out it was smooth sailing.

How was the initial setup?

Straightforward initially, and versatile well into production.

What about the implementation team?

We implemented this solution through our vendor.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1000023 - PeerSpot reviewer
Works with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Its ability to highlight filtering rules that would mask other more specific rules leads to an optimization of the system

What is our primary use case?

  • The flagship feature used is its correlation of filtering rules (ACL/firewall).
  • The audit of changes made in our environment is also very useful in the investigation of failure.

In an environment where onion layer security is strongly implemented, the filter elements can be configured in various places, and the traffic simulator proves, in this case, to be life-saving, whether in diagnostic time or in efficiency.

How has it helped my organization?

The AlgoSec solution has allowed us to achieve a clean-up and optimization of our filtering rules across our entire environment. The rules analysis allowed us to delegate the tool for operational purposes for the evaluation of firewall opening and audit requirements.

What is most valuable?

  • The filter rules correlator allows us not only to have a clear view of the blocking points but also the quality of the filtering performed on the various firewalls highlighted by their risk index.
  • Another interesting feature of the product is its ability to highlight filtering rules that would mask other more specific rules and thus lead to an optimization of the system.
  • AlgoSec also allows us to have a history of changes. This feature is especially useful in the event of an outage or an unwanted change.

What needs improvement?

Although I'm very satisfied with the product, one of the ways of improving the product could lie, perhaps, in the acceleration of the analysis process and especially in the section — traffic simulation query.

Another improvement would be the support of an orchestration of different firewalls in a heterogeneous environment, mainly at the level of the management of the objects so as to have a homogeneous nomenclature.

For how long have I used the solution?

More than five years.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
AJC-2000 - PeerSpot reviewer
Security Consultant at Total System Services, Inc.
Real User
It has simplified rule optimisation and compliance.

What is our primary use case?

My organisation has used Firewall Analyser for many years to simplify and automate rule set management across an estate of hundreds of Checkpoint firewalls. Key functionality provided covers compliance reporting and identification of duplicate and unused, as well as risky rules.

How has it helped my organization?

Algosec is a game changer for our environment due to core functionality provided by Firewall Analyser. It has simplified rule optimisation and compliance. We are now building on this by deploying AlgoSec FireFlow which we expect to massively reduced the time and complexity around firewall change requests and approval. 

What is most valuable?

Compliance and risk reporting are the most valuable features of the product, closely followed by FireFlow, which builds on the analysis engine. I have also found the team to be engaging and customer focused.

What needs improvement?

I look forward to cloud service integration, which is coming in future releases and this should help make the product more of a complete solution. I would also like to see AlgoBot integrate with other communication systems such as Rocket Chat.

For how long have I used the solution?

One to three years.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free AlgoSec Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: April 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free AlgoSec Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.