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Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs Google Cloud Platform Cloud Identity-Aware Proxy comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 9, 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

iboss
Sponsored
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (10th), Internet Security (4th), Web Content Filtering (3rd), Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) (8th), ZTNA as a Service (11th), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (10th)
Check Point Harmony SASE (f...
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (5th), Firewalls (16th), Anti-Malware Tools (7th), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (7th), ZTNA as a Service (5th), ZTNA (4th), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (7th)
Google Cloud Platform Cloud...
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
45
Ranking in other categories
ZTNA (8th)
 

Featured Reviews

Matt Crockford - PeerSpot reviewer
It's easy to roll out, and their understanding of our business made it seamless
One aspect we value about iboss is its simplicity. Their customer service is brilliant, and they are super responsive and knowledgeable. It's easy to roll out, and their understanding of our business made it seamless. We were impressed by the solution's mental health function, which can detect if someone needs help. It scans what users are browsing and flags warning signs so we can check to see if they are okay. We've had to use it a couple of times. The user interface is highly intuitive. Our IT team picked it up with minimal training. It's arranged so that it's easy to find where things are. Another advantage is the single pane of glass console, which gives you visibility into what's happening. We're not fully there yet because we haven't implemented zero trust, but we're excited about the possibilities from the demos we've seen. We launched a POC of iboss' ChatGPT Risk Protection feature two weeks ago. AI is a great tool, but you need to be careful what you put into it. My biggest fear is employees inputting sensitive corporate information or customer PII data into one of these chatbots. I was impressed by our trial of the feature. It's exactly what we wanted. Now, when a user goes to ChatGPT, there's a banner warning them not to share information, and we can block conversations containing customer data like bank details and email addresses. I don't want to stop people from using it, but we need visibility. We've only tried it on a test group of 15 people. You can configure it to look for specific keywords or integrate it with your DLP policy if you have that configured
reviewer8099174 - PeerSpot reviewer
Secure access with an intuitive design and straightforward controls
In terms of improvement, Perimeter 81 could enhance its reporting and analytics capabilities to provide more detailed insights into network activity. Additionally, expanding integration options with a broader range of third-party tools would be beneficial for seamless compatibility with various existing systems. As for additional features in the next release, it would be great to see advanced threat detection and response capabilities integrated into the platform. This would further enhance security by proactively identifying and mitigating potential threats. Additionally, improved mobile device management features and more comprehensive user behavior analytics would be valuable additions to meet evolving cybersecurity needs.
Kodanda Ramji C.S - PeerSpot reviewer
Involves an initial setup phase that is straightforward in nature
My company evaluates whether the product is capable of fulfilling the requirements of our customers, and we may even do it with the other OEM tools in the market. Based on the use cases given to my company by its customers, we evaluate whether Azure, AWS, or GCP can be helpful. Among the three cloud options, the ones that are able to fulfill our company's customers' requirements will be evaluated, and their report will be submitted to the manager. Based on the costing part, customers can decide which OEM tool would be the best for them. My company does technical and financial evaluation of the products. As there were no operational changes and only initial implementation was required, which was a part of the PoC phase, there wasn't much of an impact on the user experience. All the three service providers, like GCP, Azure and AWS are used to meet the same requirements. I would say that the same benefits are made available to users by all the service providers. The differentiation part can be considered only on the basis of the costs. I rate the tool an eight out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"iboss is easy to use despite its complexity. Multiple engineers manage it, but it's significantly more straightforward to administer than traditional VPNs and web proxies."
"iboss is among the few products providing inline filtering where no application is needed on the device. It operates on the network side and is not device-based. This feature was one of the main reasons why we stayed with them for so long."
"Its initial setup was straightforward."
"The solution has massively improved our security posture, giving us full visibility into what our staff does online."
"We were impressed by the solution's mental health function, which can detect if someone needs help. It scans what users are browsing and flags warning signs so we can check to see if they are okay. We've had to use it a couple of times."
"The iboss system is highly reliable. The false positive rates are small compared to some other systems we've experienced through other partner agencies who use competing solutions."
"The security aspect of the solution, particularly the malware behind it, is excellent. That's something that really helped us out. It's not just a simple proxy that just blocks the insights of potential threats that come on behind it. They do malware detection and that helps us a lot."
"Valuable features: Within the filter: Controls (Web categories, applications, and Allow/Block list) and Network (local Subnets). Within the reporter: Logs (Event Log) and Reports."
"The DRP is the most valuable feature."
"Its most effective feature is controlling employee access to specific applications. I can manage and monitor every step of the access process."
"It is a scalable solution."
"It has centralized management that allows administrators to supervise and control the security of the entire network."
"The integration that this solution has with the different routers or perimeter equipment is exceptional."
"The feature that I have found to be most valuable is the reputation that the company has regarding privacy. Nowadays, this is critical, especially when you do all of your work online."
"The solution offers ATP features and management features."
"It keeps us all accountable and ensures secure internet connections while we all work remotely."
"The app provides ready-made services that we can talk to without issue."
"Functions well and has good features."
"The most valuable features of Google Cloud Platform are the Kubernetes engine, CI/CD, and BigQuery."
"Since the solution works with Terraform, it makes Infrastructure as Code (IaC) easier."
"It's reliable."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is easy to use."
"I find the GCS Portal to be particularly valuable. It is more user-friendly and easier to navigate compared to other cloud providers, such as AWS. I particularly appreciate the user interface of GCS."
"The solution can be used for building the infrastructure on the cloud."
 

Cons

"Our iboss subscription access should be more secure with an OTP or VPN etc. It is easy to gain access if, for example, hackers obtain my username and password."
"Sometimes the agent stops working in iboss, and we have to reinstall the agent."
"Iboss is growing so fast that it is often hard for them to keep up with the challenges."
"SSL decryption: We had issues with learners using apps instead of using web browsers. This type of encryption is tough for any appliance in a BYOD environment."
"I am currently doing a PoC of the zero trust aspect of it. Compared to other similar solutions, it is hard to get around each feature. It takes a while to get used to it."
"The reporting feature needs improvement. It doesn't give you the expected results. It is quite difficult to get the specific reports needed, and it is not as intuitive as the rest of the platform."
"I'd like to see them accelerate development on the security side, particularly around data loss prevention."
"The solution could be stronger on the integration side and offer more cloud applications like G Suite or Oracle."
"When it comes to firewall configuration, sometimes we encounter issues."
"I don't know if it is technically feasible, however, if the Desktop App could be used as a Web App or a Chrome Extension it would be very nice."
"The integration from a management perspective could be improved so that the management can, from an existing Check Point firewall, manage a Harmony firewall through one pane of glass."
"Support is one of the points of improvement."
"There is a very small amount of downtime."
"Sometimes, the product is very slow."
"The tool could be more user-friendly."
"One of the more negative experiences using Perimeter 81 is the fact that I am logged off after a pre-determined amount of time which cuts off access to some of my company's resources."
"The initial setup was quite complex."
"The UI of the solution is an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required."
"The support can be more efficient. Google has different layers of support, like layer one, layer two, and layer three, but normally, the response from layer one is not very useful."
"There is room for improvement in the pricing."
"The product is expensive. Its price needs improvement."
"There is room for improvement in the tools and features available on the GCP. In particular, the managed databases and queues could be improved, and it would be beneficial to have more offerings in areas such as data science and data warehousing. Additionally, GCP could benefit from offering similar tools to those offered by its competitors, such as Amazon AWS's Redshift."
"People who don't have experience in IT may find the tool challenging. It needs to improve its pricing."
"There are certain shortcomings with the product's stability where improvements are required."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The overall pricing for iboss is very competitive and transparent."
"We have not priced the solution recently, but they were competitive with other vendors in the past."
"It is expensive compared to one of its competitors."
"It is probably in line with other solutions, but I do not deal with the financial side."
"We had the cost of purchasing a new appliance along with the implementation and licensing costs. However, the following year, the cost of just licensing was similar to what was paid the previous year for a new appliance along with the implementation and licensing costs."
"It is not expensive, and it is also not cheap. iboss is priced right in the sweet spot for the number of features it offers."
"The product's pricing model accommodates diverse needs and deployment sizes."
"I would rate Harmony Connect's pricing at six out of ten. It wasn't particularly expensive, but it wasn't super cheap either."
"Perimeter 81 charges separately for gateways and VPN connectivity, but compared to Azure, it seemed more reasonable."
"I consider the product to be a medium-priced solution. There are no additional costs attached to the tool."
"Overall I am very happy with the solution’s flexibility and pricing."
"The solution is priced appropriately considering its uses. For an essential license, a user pays only 30 USD per month. For an enterprise version, the prices can be negotiated with the company."
"The solution's pricing model may not be suitable for smaller companies, as they might find it expensive. Larger companies tend to receive more value due to many users."
"The cost of the solution's licenses depends on the particular use cases."
"Google Cloud Platform is cheaper than Microsoft Exchange."
"I think that the cost is metered based on the data, but I don't have the details."
"When comparing the price of GCP to other solutions it provides more value for the money."
"The solution is inexpensive for personal use."
"The service is quite affordable. We have to pay yearly for it."
"There is a need to make yearly payments toward the solution's licensing."
"There are different pricing plans depending on data volumes and services, but it's comparable to other providers. The value and benefits depend on what we're developing and the specific use case."
"My organization makes yearly payments towards the licensing charges attached to the tool."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
21%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Comms Service Provider
5%
Computer Software Company
18%
Comms Service Provider
15%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about iboss?
Content filtering is the most useful feature of iboss.
What needs improvement with iboss?
Our biggest problem with their service was it did not recognize the device and filtering did not always work correctl...
What is your primary use case for iboss?
We used it for student and faculty filtering on campus.
What do you like most about Perimeter 81?
Even after restarting, it tries to quickly reestablish connection which is very helpful.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Perimeter 81?
It's essential to consider the organization's specific requirements and budget. Here are some general recommendations...
What needs improvement with Perimeter 81?
In terms of improvement, Perimeter 81 could enhance its reporting and analytics capabilities to provide more detailed...
What do you like most about Google Cloud Platform Cloud Identity-Aware Proxy?
I can access the information whenever I want. It's integration is easy. The tool's GUI is easy to use with an IT back...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Cloud Platform Cloud Identity-Aware Proxy?
There are different pricing plans depending on data volumes and services, but it's comparable to other providers. The...
What needs improvement with Google Cloud Platform Cloud Identity-Aware Proxy?
Google Cloud Platform Cloud Identity-Aware Proxy should improve stability.
 

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform
Check Point Quantum SASE
GCP Cloud IAP, Google Cloud Platform Cloud IAP, Cloud Identity-Aware Proxy
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

More than 4,000 global enterprises trust the iboss Cloud Platform to support their modern workforces, including a large number of Fortune 50 companies.
Aqua Security, Cognito, Multipoint, Kustomer, Postman, Meredith
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. Google Cloud Platform Cloud Identity-Aware Proxy and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
850,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.