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Systems Engineer at eFinancialCareers Ltd.
Real User
Top 20
Has efficient authentication features and supports remote access security
Pros and Cons
  • "It has continuously evolved by introducing new solutions and products to address emerging security threats in our industry, demonstrating its commitment to staying ahead of evolving security challenges."
  • "The product price needs improvement."

What is our primary use case?

My primary use case for Cisco Duo revolves around multifactor authentication, which serves as a secondary layer of security for all users within our organization.

What is most valuable?

The authentication and single sign-on features of Cisco Duo have been particularly valuable for enhancing user identity verification and providing an additional layer of security for our organization.

What needs improvement?

The product price needs improvement. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Cisco Duo for approximately six to seven years. I am using the latest version available.

Buyer's Guide
Cisco Duo
June 2025
Learn what your peers think about Cisco Duo. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
857,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the platform stability a nine. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We can scale Cisco Duo up or down to accommodate our company's requirements. Around 120 executives in our team utilize it. I rate the scalability an eight.

What was our ROI?

While implementing Cisco Duo may require additional time for secondary multifactor authentication, it has significantly enhanced our organization's security posture, providing valuable returns in terms of heightened security measures.

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

I rate the product pricing a seven out of ten. 

What other advice do I have?

The platform plays a crucial role in supporting our organization's remote access security needs by serving as the secondary email security for our VPN, thereby enabling secure remote access for our employees.

It has continuously evolved by introducing new solutions and products to address emerging security threats in our industry, demonstrating its commitment to staying ahead of evolving security challenges.

If the pricing aligns with their budget, I recommend considering Cisco Duo for its robust security features and scalability.  It is highly adaptable and scalable, making it suitable for organizations of various sizes within the industry. Thus, there are no significant considerations to be made regarding infrastructure compatibility.

I rate it an eight out of ten overall.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
reviewer2212659 - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Administrator Team Lead at a construction company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Real User
Establishes trust for every access request, no matter where it comes from
Pros and Cons
  • "It's easy to deploy. It's easy to manage. It's easy to integrate with other applications."
  • "The new smart license model doesn't always work. It's very complicated."

What is our primary use case?

We use it for multi-factor authentication. That's the only use case we have now. We're not using it to its maximum capabilities but we'll use it for more functions moving forward.

How has it helped my organization?

Duo Security has improved our cybersecurity resilience. Multi-factor authentication gives us another layer of protection. Having another layer of security is very important for us.

Duo Security establishes trust for every access request, no matter where it comes from. This is something that's absolutely needed.

What is most valuable?

It's easy to deploy. It's easy to manage. It's easy to integrate with other applications. 

We also use it for single sign-on with Meraki and VPN access for non-Cisco firewalls, but we're now migrating to Cisco firewalls. It's easy to deploy, and it works.

What needs improvement?

I'm not using it as much as I could. So far, it has everything I need. I don't have any requirements or improvements. Everything is working smoothly, and we're happy with it.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using Duo Security for about two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Its stability is great.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have 1,500 users that use Duo Security. We're planning to use Duo Security for more applications, but the number of users won't increase anymore, so in terms of scalability, I don't think we'll have any issues.

How are customer service and support?

We have opened some cases with Cisco for questions and things at all, and they were very helpful. They're very good. They answer questions quickly, and the people who work there are knowledgeable, so I can't complain. I'd rate them a ten out of ten because I got prompt responses and knowledgeable people.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We were using Microsoft Authenticator before, but we had a lot of problems with that, so we had to move away from that. Initially, we didn't have any multi-factor authentication, so having a multi-factor authentication for multiple applications and services that we provide helps us in making our network more secure.

How was the initial setup?

You synchronize your AD with Duo Security and create all the groups for access.  You send the emails to do the deployment, and you load the cell phone numbers. That's for the end-user side, and for the firewall, we have the proxies. We're using a proxy for one of the products. Our firewall sends RADIUS requests to the proxy, and the proxy communicates to Duo Cloud. The virtual machine deployment for the process was very easy. The configuration takes a few steps, but it's easy.

We've both on-premise and cloud deployments. We're using the tool on the cloud, but we don't have any infrastructure on the cloud.

What about the implementation team?

We did the deployment ourselves.

What was our ROI?

We have seen an ROI. The cost of not having it means you're vulnerable to hacking and other things. Nowadays, multi-factor authentication is required for insurance. It's a must now.

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

It's very simple. Its price is fair. We use the hardware tokens as well. You get what you pay for.

In terms of licensing, Cisco has very complicated products, but Duo Security was surprisingly easy. The licensing model is easy. The license is based on the intent. You can see how many licenses you have. It's one of the easiest solutions I have deployed, so I'm very happy about it. Every other Cisco product—such as switches, APs, wireless, and controllers—has a very complicated license model. The new smart license model doesn't always work. It's very complicated. The vendors will put your license somewhere else. You need to talk to vendors. It's complicated, but Duo Security licensing is simple.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated RSA, Microsoft, and Duo Security. We evaluated these three, and we realized that Duo Security had better reviews, and it was easier to deploy and cost-effective, so it made sense to use it.

What other advice do I have?

Overall, I'd rate Duo Security a ten out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Cisco Duo
June 2025
Learn what your peers think about Cisco Duo. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
857,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Network Engineer at a recreational facilities/services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Reduces the risk of breaches and is helpful for 2FA for our portal
Pros and Cons
  • "It's simple. It's reliable. I haven't had any issues with it."
  • "There might be a little slowness, but that could be my connection."

What is our primary use case?

We use it for two-factor authentication (2FA) for accessing our portal.

How has it helped my organization?

From a security standpoint, 2FA is very crucial, and having a multitude of ways for consumers in your property to utilize 2FA is helpful.

Duo Security has its place in securing our infrastructure. It's great for that, but not for securing our infrastructure end to end because there's no such thing as an end-to-end cure for all the security.

It is great for reducing the risk of breaches. Having 2FA and making it simple for users, it reduces the risk of getting phished or scammed.

Duo Security considers all resources to be external, which is a good idea because everything is done in a completely untrusted model. It's absolutely important for us.

Our cybersecurity resilience has improved in one way. We were successfully able to deploy it to a base system. It's uniform across the whole property, and everyone is using it.

What is most valuable?

It's simple. It's reliable. I haven't had any issues with it.

What needs improvement?

It's fairly simple. Our end users don't have many issues with it other than getting locked out for administrative purposes, but it's not something to do with Duo Security. There might be a little slowness, but that could be my connection.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution in our company for about two years. I have been with the company since we started using it.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I haven't had any problems. In a worst-case scenario, there might be a little slowness, but that could be my connection. They're pretty proactive when they do have issues. I get alerts right away saying that Duo Security is having problems, and they are being looked into.

How are customer service and support?

Their support is okay. They always respond. Sometimes you get really good engineers, and sometimes you don't, but at least they're there. I'd rate them a seven out of them.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

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

We had a few other systems. It was piecemeal. We were trying Okta at one point. We were doing demos of the products trying to find the right one. I've limited experience with them, but our security team did a full evaluation. A few times, I've seen demos, which was a while ago, they all seem to be pretty close. It's pretty tough out there. We might have been roped into Duo Security with some other deal that we did with Cisco.

How was the initial setup?

I was not involved in its deployment. Our security team does most of the deployment factor on that. I do remember the provisioning process, and it seemed pretty painless. We have about 5,000 employees, and I'm sure getting the education to the users about what we're doing would have been an effort, but overall, it was pretty easy.

In terms of deployment, it's on the cloud. It's probably a hybrid cloud, but I'm not sure.

What was our ROI?

There's definitely a return on investment because one compromise can cost billions of dollars.

What other advice do I have?

I'd rate Duo Security a nine out of ten. I haven't had any problems. It's great.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Mike Troop - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Director at a non-profit with 201-500 employees
Real User
Top 10
Keeps us secure, allows us to be remote, and is simple to deal with
Pros and Cons
  • "We're working remotely. It helps us keep people more safe. Its adoption has been fine. I like the fact that you can bypass it if you need to because there are situations where the internet doesn't work, etc."
  • "We use Yubikey for pushing it to the phones. Yubikeys can get expensive because people tend to lose those for some reason. Fifty dollars a device is pretty high."

What is our primary use case?

We use it for multifactor authentication for getting in with cell phones and PCs.

How has it helped my organization?

Duo Security allows us to be remote, and it keeps us secure. It has been very good for securing our infrastructure from end to end. We haven't had any issues.

It has helped free up our IT staff, but I don't have the metrics on how much time it has actually saved. We don't worry about it. It just works.

It has been good for establishing trust for every access request, no matter where it comes from.

What is most valuable?

We're working remotely. It helps us keep people more safe. Its adoption has been fine. I like the fact that you can bypass it if you need to because there are situations where the internet doesn't work, etc.

Its ability to help reduce the risk of breaches is pretty good. I like its ability for user authentication and device verification.

What needs improvement?

We use Yubikey for pushing it to the phones. Yubikeys can get expensive because people tend to lose those for some reason. Fifty dollars a device is pretty high.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for a couple of years.

How are customer service and support?

I don't deal directly with their tech support myself. I've got some other folks that do that for me, but I don't hear any complaints, so I'd rate them really high.

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

We did use another solution. I can't remember the name of it, but it had a lot of flaws and a lot of issues. It did not connect to the equipment that we had to use. It would break down, so we had to find something else.

We didn't consider another solution. While researching, Duo Security came out to be the best. The last one was terrible, and this one ranked a lot higher.

How was the initial setup?

We have a hybrid deployment. It was very easy to implement it. 

It integrates well with other systems. We have Cisco Umbrella and Cisco routing and switching. We had Cisco firewalls, but I wouldn't recommend them. 

What was our ROI?

We've seen an ROI in using this product. There is stability and ease of use. It isn't a problem to handle. It's simple to deal with.

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

It falls in line with everything else.

What other advice do I have?

To someone researching this solution who wants to improve cybersecurity in their organization, I'd say that it has been very beneficial.

Overall, I'd rate Duo Security a ten out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Paul Mhiripiri - PeerSpot reviewer
Networks and Infrastructure Manager at a financial services firm with 201-500 employees
Real User
Easy to integrate, good VPN capabilities, and technical support is quick to assist with problems
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature is the ability for users to connect securely to the office using the VPN."
  • "We have had instances where Duo Security stops working on a user's device, which we have fixed by uninstalling and then reinstalling it."

What is our primary use case?

We began using Duo Security just after the pandemic began. We set up the VPN for our users so that they could connect from home and use the business applications. It is a security feature that is used on your mobile device, rather than something that is fixed in the office. You can use it at any given moment, as long as you have your mobile device with you.

Prior to implementing it, they were using just a username and password. That was not secure enough, so there had to be the second level of authentication. As it is now, it is integrated with the firewall. You put in your password and it is followed by a six-digit code that needs to be entered.

We operate in the financial sector so this product is crucial for our business.

The security codes are not generated locally, or on-premises. Rather, they are generated and sent from the cloud.

It is integrated with our Check Point firewall, which is used across different departments. People can connect from anywhere, including from home, and then utilize the business applications in different departments. All of them authenticate using the same firewall.

Importantly, it's not limited to one vendor or one firewall. You can use it to connect through a primary DC and a secondary DC, even if they are different vendors.

How has it helped my organization?

Using this product has improved our organization, primarily with respect to security. Even the system administrator, in charge of setting up the users, would not be able to use another person's ID to connect. This is because they would then need to use Duo Security, which resides on the user's device. This is something that other people cannot do because they can't generate the six-digit codes.

In terms of securing access to the applications on our network, this solution is very reliable.

With respect to our users feeling safe, secure, supported, and included, Duo Security is among the best solutions that we have ever used. We have not fully utilized all of the features. However, we're looking at using Duo to authenticate internet banking solutions. Providing a second level of authentication in these situations, perhaps in mobile banking, would be valuable.

Our regulatory requirements necessitate creating a very secure connection for financial services, which is what we get from this product.

Having a single solution for multifactor authentication makes it comfortable for the users. They only need to train on one product.

Maintaining network connectivity is not difficult. We are integrated with Fortinet and Check Point solutions. The Check Point solution is in a different data center than Fortinet, and Duo Security integrates with both of them, despite being from different vendors.

Overall, this product has helped us to remediate threats more quickly. There is no way that others can generate the security code, such as by using another server. They will not be able to connect or authenticate themselves another way.

The resilience that Duo Security provides is valuable in terms of meeting our audit requirements. This is important to us because it helps us to meet our regulatory requirements, which are set by the central bank and enforced by our cybersecurity team.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is the ability for users to connect securely to the office using the VPN. There's no way to breach security using Duo. No user can connect from a different device, which guarantees access on a per-user basis. The only way somebody else can connect is if the user shares their VPN password, as well as the six-digit code. This is a well-accepted, business solution.

It is very easy to set up, configure, and integrate this product. It is also easy, from the user's side of things.

The interface is such that all of the management can be done from a single pane of glass. You can integrate as many applications as you want, and it's up to the enterprise that dictates that. Overall, it's easy to manage and administer. There are not too many moving pieces, which would make things more difficult to administer and troubleshoot when there are problems.

From our employees' perspective, they are confident that they are the only people that can connect to their accounts. Access to their own accounts remains under their control, and they are the only ones that can connect. 

What needs improvement?

The reporting feature is somewhat limited. All that you get is the list of times that the user connected. Given that it's only a secondary authentication, it may not be possible to enhance the reporting.

We have had instances where Duo Security stops working on a user's device, which we have fixed by uninstalling and then reinstalling it.

For how long have I used the solution?

I am in my third year of using Duo Security.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Due Security is a very stable product. We have never had issues in that regard.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

This is a very scalable solution. It's not limited to specific applications and we can use it across multiple ones.

We have 175 end-users.

How are customer service and support?

If we need to reach out to them, they would quickly assist us. At any given time, you can get support from Duo Security. This is not a free product and the technical support team is very reliable.

I would rate the technical support a nine out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

Prior to implementing Duo Security, our users were not using multifactor authentication. They were simply authenticating with a username and password. That was not secure enough, which is why we implemented the second level of authentication.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is easy and straightforward. It is very quick to integrate and manage. As it is very easy to integrate, it works well to secure our infrastructure from end to end, helping us to detect and remediate threats.

You just download the application and within a minute or so, you have an admin panel. After that, it is integrated with the firewall and the users can then quickly connect.

The integration is easy because Duo gives you a list of steps that vary based on the application and vendor that you want to integrate with. For example, if you want to integrate with a Check Point product then you have one set of instructions, whereas if you want to integrate with a Fortinet product, there is an alternate set for that.

In total, the deployment took less than two hours to complete.

What was our ROI?

Our ROI is mainly from the security side. Because of the regulator's requirement, it's worth the procurement. That said, on our end, we're not fully utilizing the product because you can integrate it with different applications. At this point, we are just using the basic feature, which is to connect to the VPN.

The administration is comfortable knowing that no user can connect to the system without using Duo authentication.

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

From a business perspective, it is a little bit costly. The licensing is on a per-user basis. However, it's worth the cost.

We began with a free trial of the product that lasted for one month. After that, we paid for the license to use it.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We had an option to use Google Authenticator. It is also a secure solution but we chose Duo Security because it was recommended to us, and it has been acquired by Cisco.

What other advice do I have?

We do not utilize all of the features that are offered by Duo Security.

I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Other
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Homer Martinez - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Administrator at a retailer with 1,001-5,000 employees
Video Review
Real User
Establishes trust with every integration or any sort of application that you are using
Pros and Cons
  • "It is really scalable. It is easy once you get an application in. You can import users from Active Directory and enroll users really fast."
  • "They could just continue to add more integrations."

What is our primary use case?

We were really looking for two-factor authentication to secure our applications. We are basically looking for it to reduce risk.

I am in the retail space at a company with more than 2,500 employees.

It is SaaS. For VPN, we have our on-prem RADIUS servers, and there is an agent on our servers for RDP.

How has it helped my organization?

I definitely had some places where employees had password breaches in other locations, and it saved us there.

It has definitely decreased our security risk.

It does a really good job of helping workers feel safe, secure, supported, and included. In the beginning, it was new to everybody, so there was a little bit of friction with the onboarding. However, after everybody got used to it, they were quickly able to run with it and had very few problems using it. This has definitely been important for us. 

Duo has helped us remediate threats more quickly by having one spot to look at. We can see whether a user authenticated it from somewhere or if they were denied a two-factor request.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is just the ease of use. Out-of-the-box, there are so many integrations that are really easy to set up and use in a matter of minutes, depending on what the application is.

It establishes trust with every integration or any sort of application that you are using, whether it is VPNs, Azure AD, or remote desktop.

Duo provides single-pane-of-glass management. This is pretty important, especially if you are trying to respond to a security event. You don't want to look at different places and potentially forget to look at one spot. Now, we can have all our logs in one spot.

The single-pane-of-glass management does a really good job of optimizing the user experience, especially with the updates that they provide. They really take in customer feedback. I have been on several customer feedback panels before, and they do surveys. They are constantly improving the product.

What needs improvement?

They could just continue to add more integrations.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using it for about seven years, since 2015.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is pretty stable. They are really proactive. So, if there is an issue with a certain cloud instance or feature, they are proactive. They email you and tell you what is going on, sending updates. Stability-wise, we have hardly had any issues using them. It hasn't affected our production at all.

Maintenance is minimal. There are some agent updates that you need to do every now and then, but for the cloud stuff, that is all taken care of.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is really scalable. It is easy once you get an application in. You can import users from Active Directory and enroll users really fast.

How are customer service and support?

I have only had to use them a couple of times. Every time, support was pretty easy to use. I would rate them as nine out of 10.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We previously didn't have any sort of two-factor authentication. We were just looking for more security so people wouldn't be reusing passwords or have data breaches. 

Earlier, we had solutions in the cloud and on-prem. So, it just helps having it in one spot. We can make sure any applications that we are using have been secured.

How was the initial setup?

The deployment took two months. We did a proof of concept, which didn't include that time. That time was just for the first application that we did, which was about two months. Then, as we grew into it, we added more applications so time was added as well.

What was our ROI?

We have seen ROI, but I wouldn't know what that metric would be. I don't have an off-hand, hard metric for that. It is for the unseen risk, and how do you measure an unseen risk?

It definitely offers resiliency. If you are managing all your applications in one location, you can lock people out of it. So, it is just a fast way to remediate any sort of security issues. It has been important for reducing all the risk that comes with users having access to internal applications or cloud applications.

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

It has a fair pricing model. I know they have different tiers, but it would be nice to have different types of licenses for certain groups of users in our organization. That way, we wouldn't have to lump everybody into one group. That would be also one complaint.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We did evaluate other options. Since it was so long ago, I can't remember which other ones we looked at, but I do remember they were not as easy to implement.

We chose Duo Security for its ease of implementation and the number of applications that they are integrated with.

What other advice do I have?

Definitely take the end user process or perspective into account when trying to choose something. I feel like that will make or break a product.

We did VPN. Network connectivity was a requirement for VPN. In that regard, it would be easy.

I would rate it as nine out of 10.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Senior Information Security Engineer at DAAC System Integrator
Reseller
Top 20
Security measures and seamless updates improve organization
Pros and Cons
  • "All features of the solution are effective, particularly those involved in identifying vulnerabilities and updates."
  • "My overall rating for the solution is ten out of ten."
  • "There was an issue related to integration with third parties."
  • "There was an issue related to integration with third parties."

What is our primary use case?

At this point, the primary use case of Cisco Duo is to secure access to systems, applications, and data through multi-factor authentication (MFA), and we use Cisco Duo, which we also provide to other clients. We implemented it and use it ourselves. The IT and finance departments should be involved in the process.

How has it helped my organization?

Simplified Access Management with a centralized admin control, security remote access even with their BYOD etc.

What is most valuable?

All features of the solution are effective, Duo supports BYOD policies by allowing users to authenticate securely from their personal devices. This flexibility allows employees to work from anywhere while ensuring that only secure devices can access corporate data. This has been very effective for our organization, and we have not encountered any issues. We use Cisco Duo and provide it to our clients as well. We implemented it and also use it internally. The IT and finance departments should be involved.

What needs improvement?

I found some issues yet do not remember them specifically. There was an project requirement related to facial recognition integration imbedded in duo.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of the solution is okay. We have not found any issues.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Until now, we did not find issues related to scalability as we did not implement the solution at a large scale.

How are customer service and support?

The customer service is okay. However, the response time could be faster.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup consists mostly of demos, so it is not very hard to implement. 

Additionally, there is also online support available. The setup took around a week, depending on how big the infrastructure is.

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

The setup cost is reasonable, estimated at around six euros per month.

What other advice do I have?

We did not find any issues. The clients who want to acquire this product need to change something in the security infrastructure by implementing MFA security authentication, like Duo, and so on. My overall rating for the solution is ten out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
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Telecom Engineer at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
Video Review
Real User
Top 20
The easy remote access is the biggest benefit
Pros and Cons
  • "At the moment, the ease of use is what is the best feature for me. Once it has been set up and the security can hoc to my mobile device, it's very simple to use my single sign-on, get prompted for a Duo Security, push, go to my phone, accept the push, and I'm done. It's a very simple process."
  • "The only thing I can think of to improve for tech support is to have a dedicated engineer but then I would get an engineer that has priorities in one area or another and maybe not the scope I need."

What is our primary use case?

I work in an institution with about 6,000 people. I'm a telecommunications engineer. I use Duo Security as my access point when working remotely. Because I'm a telecommunications engineer, I have to have access to my systems remotely, and our VPN client requires that we go through second-level verification, for which we use Duo Security. 

Ours is on-prem. We have on-prem Duo Security. We do not use cloud at this time. 

How has it helped my organization?

The benefit of Duo Security, for me, is the very easy remote access. I don't have to go through repeated steps to log in to my platform, and it's the same process every time. It works quickly, and it's just that simple.

When it comes to securing our infrastructure from end to end, I wish I could speak more in-depth about that. I do know that Duo Security does identify me as a user, and the folks that need to track who's using it, when, and why. I know that there are very detailed and well-designed reports to let them do that. I am not on that side of Duo Security. Again, as a user, the best part is the ease of use. 

What is most valuable?

At the moment, the ease of use is what is the best feature for me. Once it has been set up and the security can hoc to my mobile device, it's very simple to use my single sign-on, get prompted for a Duo Security, push, go to my phone, accept the push, and I'm done. It's a very simple process. 

What needs improvement?

The only thing I can think of to improve for tech support is to have a dedicated engineer but then I would get an engineer that has priorities in one area or another and maybe not the scope I need.

I like the fact that when I open a ticket, I'm not getting the same caller calling back. I like the variety of support that Cisco offers.

Opening a technical assistant's request is a little challenging at times. I wish that the Cisco website could understand who I am from the chart and just let me in rather than forcing me to pick out my contract number, my address, or something like that. They should make it streamlined, make it simple.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been in this current position with Duo Security for two and a half years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

To my knowledge, we are relatively stable. I know there are times when in-house we may have difficulty with servers, connectivity, or databases, but it only happens sporadically. I think in my experience, we've had Duo not work maybe once or twice in the last two and a half years. It usually results in rebooting a server.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

When we speak of clients on which Duo Security is deployed, every user in my environment typically has a cell phone and a laptop and we use mobile push. I believe we do use PIN capabilities, as well, but primarily we use mobile push. I suspect that it's on a PC mobile platform.  

How are customer service and support?

On average, Cisco's technical support is very good. There are times that I need to go through escalation processes, but once I escalate it, I know that I'm going to get the service I need. The more challenging part for me is defining the problems so that the technical solution reps can help me solve them. 

My rating for Cisco technical support would vary depending on what they are supporting for me. I would say they've never dropped below, say, a 7.5, but pretty consistently range in a nine out of ten category.

I think Cisco support works very hard to satisfy my needs as a customer rather than frustrating me.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

I believe that they did use a different solution. I actually believe that we did not have multi-level verification on our VPN login when we started out. As a result of COVID, it became necessary to have multi-level verification. That was when Duo Security was introduced. I also understand, this was prior to my employment, that Duo Security was enacted in less than seven days. 

What was our ROI?

As a case for return on investment, I would stretch my exposure and say that the return has been remarkable because we went from full-time, on-premise workers, to full-time remote for everyone for several months. Subsequently, many of our staff now work a hybrid schedule, and Duo Security makes it entirely possible. 

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

When it comes to pricing, the only thing I can say is that working in education, when you buy a product, it has to have value. My assumption is that Duo Security has a great deal of value for its cost. 

What other advice do I have?

To advise somebody about Duo Security, I would say it works. It works. 

I have not experienced another security program like Duo Security. I don't have a way of rating it other than to say, I'm happy with how it works, and it makes my job easier. 

I'll give it a 9.25 out of ten. 

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Buyer's Guide
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Updated: June 2025
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Cisco Duo Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.