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Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense pros and cons

Vendor: Cisco
4.0 out of 5

Pros & Cons summary

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Prominent pros & cons

PROS

Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense provides visibility into east-west email traffic, helping identify and track internal compromised accounts effectively.
It offers comprehensive protection with multiple antivirus technologies, virus encryption features, and handles a complete email security portfolio.
Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense integrates cloud-based Talos for robust threat detection and offers efficient email filtering and anti-spam features.
The deployment and configuration of Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense are straightforward, reinforcing its stability and scalability.
Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense is highly recommended for exceptional email security, surpassing Microsoft's in-built Defender plan.

CONS

There is room for improvement in integration with both Cisco tools and third-party tools.
The search functionality and reporting features need enhancements to become more user-friendly and efficient.
Integration with Sandbox could enhance effectiveness, but pricing concerns remain.
AI functionality and better accuracy to reduce false positives are desired features.
Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense could benefit from advanced phishing protection, but this may result in higher costs.
 

Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense Pros review quotes

Mike Bulyk - PeerSpot reviewer
Nov 30, 2020
The ability to see east-west traffic is its most valuable feature. Traditionally, email defense focuses on north-south, inbound-outbound, egress-ingress traffic. With Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox, it's able to quickly identify, track, tag, and categorize emails that are internal. That can typically give us visibility into if there's an internal compromised account (for example). Someone can then use that internal compromised account to email additional accounts with either malicious software or links, but internal within that Office tenant. Effectively, that email message never leaves the tenant. Any of the mail gateways really do not have any method or way of seeing this traffic since it's not leaving the environment.
reviewer1378053 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jun 28, 2020
On ease of use, it rates very high. It's something that I was able to get into without really looking at any documentation. I wanted to see what it felt like before I started looking at any documentation on how to use it, and it was very easy to use. It works very smoothly. The user experience is very intuitive. They did an amazing job on that.
reviewer1927368 - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 4, 2022
The features and functionalities are much better than Microsoft's in-built Defender plan.
Learn what your peers think about Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.
reviewer2541525 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jun 12, 2025
Regarding stability, Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense is very stable.
Mukesh Tiwari - PeerSpot reviewer
Mar 24, 2022
Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox can handle a complete portfolio, which is required to protect any kind of attack coming from emails. However, it does not have advanced phishing, but it is available through Cisco. If you compare Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox with the competition, in the competition you have to have one or two solutions together to address the customer's requirement, whereas Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox is addressing everything, such as web domain and email protection. If there is any kind of challenge it will come across through email.
reviewer1740327 - PeerSpot reviewer
Dec 14, 2021
I would say it's very comprehensive, with multiple antivirus OEMs, virus encrypt features, encryption, and more.
reviewer2146809 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jun 21, 2023
Cisco has a threat mechanism called cloud-based Talos, where all the threats are inbuilt.
reviewer1927368 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jul 18, 2024
The solution is stable.
Enrique-Diaz Jolly - PeerSpot reviewer
Jan 30, 2025
The product offers protection, email security, anti-spam, and antivirus.
Karthik Venkataraman - PeerSpot reviewer
Sep 27, 2022
It's very easy to deploy and configure.
 

Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense Cons review quotes

Mike Bulyk - PeerSpot reviewer
Nov 30, 2020
There is still room for improvement in terms of integrations with other Cisco tools and non-Cisco tools. There is also some room for improvement needed in terms of the reporting.
reviewer1378053 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jun 28, 2020
The search area has room for improvement. When you go to the next page, it remains at the bottom of the current page that you're on. Also, under the reports section, it allows you to see any "convictions," but if you want to search for those convictions you have to remember when they all came in and go back and edit the search accordingly. You cannot click on the list of convictions to actually see if you had a spike at a certain time.
reviewer1927368 - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 4, 2022
The pricing could always be better.
Learn what your peers think about Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.
reviewer2541525 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jun 12, 2025
The behavioral analysis capability of Cisco Secure Email Threat Defense is not particularly helpful for identifying new, evolving threats within my company, as it keeps flagging legitimate emails as malicious.
Mukesh Tiwari - PeerSpot reviewer
Mar 24, 2022
Cisco Secure Email Cloud Mailbox can improve by adding advanced phishing, then the solution would become the best in the market. However, this could increase the price even more. Additionally, if CES with domain protection could be added it would be an even better solution.
reviewer1740327 - PeerSpot reviewer
Dec 14, 2021
Customers will benefit greatly from monthly billing because the majority of customers today use the cloud, be it Office 365, or Google Cloud.
reviewer2146809 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jun 21, 2023
From a technical point of view, Cisco is far behind in terms of cybersecurity, and it has to improve very much.
reviewer1927368 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jul 18, 2024
Cisco's multiple product lines and verticals made this just one of their many verticals, and we could see a shift in focus.
Enrique-Diaz Jolly - PeerSpot reviewer
Jan 30, 2025
The physical appliance has been discontinued, although the platform still exists.
Karthik Venkataraman - PeerSpot reviewer
Sep 27, 2022
The solution is a bit expensive.