Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs Netskope Private Access comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Cisco and Netskope are both solutions in the ZTNA as a Service category. Cisco is ranked #12 with an average rating of 8.1, while Netskope is ranked #15 with an average rating of 8.5. Cisco holds a 2.7% mindshare in ZaaS, compared to Netskope’s 2.3% mindshare. Additionally, 92% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Netskope users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) and Netskope Private Access based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two ZTNA as a Service solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs. Netskope Private Access Report (Updated: September 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs. Netskope Private Access

September 2026

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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

iboss

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the ZTNA as a Service category, the mindshare of iboss is 3.4%, up from 2.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is 2.7%, down from 4.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Netskope Private Access is 2.3%, down from 4.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

ZTNA as a Service Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
iboss	3.4%
Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect)	2.7%
Netskope Private Access	2.3%
Other	91.6%

ZTNA as a Service

Featured Reviews

Ashok Ananthula

Senior Consultant Proxy Engineering at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

Cloud gateway has strengthened remote web security and now needs better Mac and ISP support

The problem our organization had is that iboss failed for the Mac devices. It is not able to give a successful agent for the Mac agents. That is where in 2025, we had to migrate to the Palo Alto-based platform. If your use case is for just Windows laptops,you can consider this platform as an option One issue is the data center resiliency part. In India especially, they are not tied up with the Tier 1 ISPs like Tata or Airtel; they were having Tier 2 ISPs and encountered many issues reaching few major sites that my organization depends on, and they were having problems that they could not fix quickly. They also lack a mechanism to route that traffic within their data center; rather, they ask customers to make a pac file change to route it to Singapore explicitly. It would be better if they route from their backend , i mean even if I send it to India DC, they should be able to route it internally to make that work; however, they fail to do that and ask the customer to route it in the pac file. Another suggestion is that in China, they do not have the proper setup; they used to have numerous problems with slowness and lack of premium circuits in China as well. That leads to multiple sites working slowly with latency-related issues. So the main issue is the ISP-related problems that need to be solved.

Read full review

AJAY SARPAL

Manager - Projects at airtel

Offers work-from-anywhere flexibility but navigates occasional proxy confusion

The analytics I downloaded from your site as a free download did not carry the information that was actually required. I was looking at the market segmentation and market share, along with some USPs which differentiated them from each other. The free download had two issues: many things were repetitive, and it was designed to not release any relevant information. Only headers were present, so I was not able to determine whether the final report would be worthwhile. I have not worked with enterprise tools that I could share feedback on for website publication. I see benefits from using Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect). However, I would not recommend it because future adoptions will be towards Zscaler, as SSC is a better model than VPN. On a scale of 1-10, I rate this solution a 7.

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Prathamesh Samant

Presales Manager at a manufacturing company with 201-500 employees

Has ensured secure remote access through real-time device checks and policy controls

There is a mixed review on the integration part of Netskope Private Access. Wherever they have out-of-the-box support, it is quite easy to integrate. Wherever customization is needed, it depends on the openness of the application being integrated with. If the other application has an open architecture where you have easy API integrations, then it becomes easier. However, in some cases, it is a tedious task to do the integration where the application is not that open or it is not supported out-of-the-box from Netskope. They can introduce the DLP feature for Netskope Private Access. Zscaler has that DLP feature. It is in their roadmap, but currently, they don't have it. If they have data protection or data loss prevention within their NPA, that would be a significant advantage.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Granular setup, which was able to set different levels of filters using the OUs in the AD."

"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."

"Content filtering is the most useful feature of iboss."

"iboss has significantly lowered the number of security incidents. It is crazy how much it blocks and how much it is aware of the outside danger."

"As I mentioned, the return on investment is significant, as it saved our office locations' bandwidth because when you are working remotely at home, your internet traffic routes directly to iboss and will not go to your office building, saving bandwidth bottlenecks and ensuring that issues with our building internet circuits will not impact your internet connectivity because you are directly going to the iboss data center."

"The security aspect of the solution, particularly the malware behind it, is excellent."

"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."

"The main advantage of iboss is its cloud-based security centralized policy management, which helps organizations protect users working from different locations, secure access to cloud applications, and reduce security risks."

More iboss pros

"What I like most about Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client is that it's easy to use, and that is its main advantage, as you can use it without the need for any setup because it's centrally pre-installed, so you just need to log in with your username and password, and I didn't experience any problems with the solution in terms of losing connectivity, as it works very well every time."

"Cisco Technical Support is very good, very friendly, and helpful."

"Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is established in our network with no teething issues."

"Every time I have to connect to the network I use this solution; it is a customizable solution, it makes life easier for me, and it makes the global workforce work much easier and more secure."

"It is easy to scale."

"Configuration policy, posture assessment, and other things can be done in great detail."

"It does not slow down anything, unlike other solutions."

"Cisco Secure Network Analytics has impacted our organization by securing each endpoint device properly through VPN usage, enabling us to understand what end users are using and what they are trying to access, and filling the gap between the monitoring and management side by allowing us to check end user activity clearly from the Cisco Secure Network Analytics console."

More Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) pros

"The initial setup of Netskope Private Access is pretty simple and straightforward."

"Netskope Private Access covers a wide range of use cases with solutions for client-server and server-to-client connectivity patterns."

"In the firewall, we don't have a user-based policies list, and we can't create them. Netskope helps us to create user-based policies. For example, if there are specific teams like HR or more than nine teams, and we want logs from access over particular URLs, and we don't want to allow that specific URL for certain users, we can create these policies in Netskope. It's handy, easy to use for new users, and has a cool GUI interface. We can create multiple policies, and as for the proxy, it's a leading solution."

"The main benefit for users from Netskope Private Access would be secure access from anywhere; they can easily access their systems or applications in their office premises or on-premises environment in a very secure way and the organization can also be assured knowing that whatever access they have been providing to their remote users goes through proper checks and balances before access is provided."

"Netskope enables users to securely access private applications remotely without a VPN."

"The base features have been fantastic. The ability to be able to granularly assign application access to end-users has been really good."

"They do one software or one platform; they are the leading CASBY platform in the world, and what they can do, nobody can do."

"In the VPN scenario, what was happening, the user would get back to the complete source. But in NPA, the application will go to the user. There is an outbound connection. There is no inbound. Storage providers are also not there. It's the best feature because it is the replacement of the VPN."

More Netskope Private Access pros

Cons

"It is stable, but due to growth, it can sometimes be less stable than wanted."

"The dashboards for local use could be better."

"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."

"To scale up, a new iboss Node Blade Chassis must be purchased."

"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."

"The endpoint-type solution is an area that needs some improvement."

"I appreciate that iboss's single pane of glass console gives centralized visibility into web traffic, user activity, security policies, and alerts from one dashboard, allowing us to quickly investigate incidents and monitor policy violations without switching between multiple tools, improving operational efficiency; however, the dashboard customization and reporting could be more flexible."

"I would rate iboss an eight out of ten because it provides strong cloud-based security threat protection, centralized policy management, and visibility into web traffic. I would give it a higher rating if automation, reporting, and troubleshooting capabilities could be improved further."

More iboss cons

"The solution is great, but perhaps the security could be improved."

"If you're just turning on your laptop, it should connect automatically without keying in the credentials."

"However, when different configurations need to be completed, we need to get in touch with Cisco Technical Assistance Center because we don't have enough documentation on the website."

"The setup is a bit difficult to handle on the server-side."

"The solution could offer tighter integration with endpoint protection to make it easier to use when routing security applications from other vendors."

"The deployment of the agent software for the final customer could be simpler and more helpful."

"The GUI really needs to be upgraded."

"The solution could improve the setup, it is complex."

More Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) cons

"Netskope detects certain data or contents, but there are some limitations on how we can customize those policies for DLP."

"In some cases, it is a tedious task to do the integration where the application is not that open or it is not supported out-of-the-box from Netskope."

"The product is not easy to use."

"I would like to see them go down the path of including SD-WAN. Currently, they don't do SD-WAN. If they could somehow natively do that inside of the platform, that would be amazing. I don't know if they're going to do it, but it would be amazing if they do."

"Netskope Private Access only supports TCP and UDP ports and does not support ICMP or ping."

"Netskope Private Access allows mapping only one DNS server. If a user uses a secondary DNS on-premises, Netskope fails to disconnect them. This is an issue that needs to be addressed."

"There could be an ability to access one server from another when we have console access to the first server."

"I would rate the stability around seven out of ten. Sometimes, we face some difficulty, but it depends upon the complexity of the environment."

More Netskope Private Access cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is expensive compared to one of its competitors."

"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."

"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."

"We have not priced the solution recently, but they were competitive with other vendors in the past."

"The overall pricing for iboss is very competitive and transparent."

"It is probably in line with other solutions, but I do not deal with the financial side."

"I am using a paid version of Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client."

"The solution is reasonably priced and costs $600 for a five-year license in our scenario."

"My company has a three-year or a four-year license. In scenarios attached to a solution where the product may be reaching an end-of-support or end-of-life phase, Cisco provides OS support in such environments."

"It costs around 80,000 Indian rupees for a hundred licenses, so approximately $1,020 USD."

"The solution is based on an annual licensing model and is expensive."

"We pay for an annual subscription. Additionally to the subscription, we thought in order to connect this solution to the Active Directory we had to purchase a Cisco ACS, Access Control System. It turns out we did not actually need it."

"One thing I've noticed is the price in comparison to other VPNs."

"Sometimes there is a problem with the number of licenses for the end-user. The number of concurrent users is limited due to a valid license."

More Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) pricing and cost advice

"The pricing of the solution is cheap."

"It is not cheap, but the value of the solution is there. It's worth the investment."

"The tool's price is normal. It is not very cheap but good compared to the competitors."

"Netskope Private Access is more inexpensive than other products."

"I believe that the price for Netskope Private Access is included in the features or functionality my company purchased from NetSkope."

"There was about 60% ROI, just in terms of savings. We had 40% to 60% reduction in monthly operational costs by using Netskope."

"It is not the most expensive option, being more affordable than Zscaler, but it's also not the most budget-friendly choice available."

"When it comes to pricing, Netskope Private Access is relatively cheap compared to other solutions."

More Netskope Private Access pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

Construction Company

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

Outsourcing Company

Comms Service Provider

Outsourcing Company

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Insurance Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	8
Large Enterprise	16

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	28
Midsize Enterprise	10
Large Enterprise	49

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	4
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	9

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with iboss?

iboss could be improved by making the dashboard more user-friendly, providing more detailed real-time alerts, and imp...

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What is your primary use case for iboss?

iboss is primarily used for cloud security, helping to protect users when they access websites and cloud applications...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for iboss?

The pricing and licensing for iboss were reasonable for the security features. The setup costs were manageable, thoug...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?

Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is somewhat expensive compared to others such as Fortinet or Palo Alto, wh...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?

There are no features that I wish Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) had that it does not currently provide. ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?

I primarily use Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) for VPN connections and network-related activities. We hav...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Netskope Private Access?

There is a mixed review on the integration part of Netskope Private Access. Wherever they have out-of-the-box support...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Netskope Private Access?

For secure remote access for people who are working out of the office, remotely, or traveling, my clients mostly use ...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Netskope Private Access?

I work with a system integrator, and nowadays, we have all these solutions in our portfolio for our customers. At tha...

See all answers

Comparisons

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs iboss

Compared 10% of the time

Netskope vs iboss

Compared 8% of the time

Fortinet FortiGate vs iboss

Compared 7% of the time

Cisco Umbrella vs iboss

Compared 6% of the time

FortiSASE vs iboss

Compared 6% of the time

More iboss Competitors

OpenVPN Access Server vs Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect)

Compared 6% of the time

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform vs Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect)

Compared 4% of the time

Tailscale vs Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect)

Compared 4% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect)

Compared 4% of the time

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) vs Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect)

Compared 4% of the time

More Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) Competitors

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform vs Netskope Private Access

Compared 14% of the time

Cato SASE Cloud Platform vs Netskope Private Access

Compared 11% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs Netskope Private Access

Compared 9% of the time

Appgate SDP vs Netskope Private Access

Compared 7% of the time

JumpCloud vs Netskope Private Access

Compared 4% of the time

More Netskope Private Access Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

iboss

October 2026

Download iboss product report

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect)

November 2026

Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) report

Download Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) product report

Buyer's Guide

Netskope Private Access

October 2026

Download Netskope Private Access product report

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform

Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client

No data available

Overview

iboss is the Zero Trust SASE platform that gives organizations complete visibility and governance over their AI, data, and applications through one unified platform, one console, one policy engine, and one data lake.

Your endpoints may already stop malware. Your data and application activity can still be invisible. iboss decrypts and understands every connection, then turns that signal into answers security leaders can act on.

The platform leads with three capabilities in this order: AI Security and Visibility, Data Security and Visibility, and App Visibility and Control. Zero Trust Network Access, VPN replacement, and SD-WAN sit underneath as the access fabric that carries those three. Trusted by global enterprises and government agencies.

What are the most important features of Iboss?

- AI Security and Visibility: conversation capture, shadow-AI discovery, AI DLP, and agent governance across Claude, Co-Work, ChatGPT, Gemini, and Grok, and emerging services.

- Data Security and Visibility: full SSL/TLS decryption, deep content inspection, MIP label compliance, and one-click compliance reporting.

- App Visibility and Control: signatureless CASB, dual risk scoring, in-app controls, and SSPM for major SaaS.

- Containerized Zero Trust SASE: dedicated containers, isolated SSL keys, one console, one policy engine, one data lake.

- Access fabric: ZTNA, VPN replacement, and SD-WAN under the same platform.

What benefits should users consider in reviews?

- Complete visibility over AI, data, and applications from one platform instead of separate point tools.

- Encrypted traffic is inspected by default so data decisions use content and context together.

- Shadow SaaS and new web tools appear as they are used, with enforceable controls in one console.

- Native data sovereignty through dedicated containers, in-region inspection, and per-customer SSL key custody.

- Scale proven in published materials: 10M+ users, 100+ countries, 150B+ transactions, 2.5B+ threats blocked.

Economic buyers are CISOs, CIOs, and VPs of Security. Champions include security architects, network and infrastructure leaders, SecOps, and GRC. Primary segments: enterprise and business, financial services, government (including FedRAMP Gov Cloud), healthcare, manufacturing, legal and professional services, retail and hospitality, and MSP/MSSP partners. Education, including K-12, is one vertical among these.

iboss

Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) provides reliable, secure VPN connectivity for remote access, integrating seamlessly with existing enterprise infrastructure and offering quick setup and scalability.

Cisco Secure Client, featuring AnyConnect, is recognized for its robust VPN capabilities, enabling secure remote access from anywhere, thanks to strong encryption and multifactor authentication. It offers seamless integration with Active Directory and other vendors for enhanced security and protection. Users value its scalability, whether for small teams or large enterprises, along with ease of setup. However, feedback suggests improvements are needed in auto-connection to VPNs, better licensing visibility, and simplified authentication processes. Modernizing its interface and configuration along with less frequent updates are also highlighted.

What are the key features of Cisco Secure Client?

Reliable VPN Connectivity: Ensures stable and seamless remote access to corporate networks.
Scalability: Supports a wide range of deployment sizes, from small teams to large enterprises.
Integration with Active Directory: Facilitates multifactor authentication for enhanced security.
Strong Encryption: Provides end-to-end secure network access, protecting data during transmission.
Third-Party Integration: Works with other vendors to offer comprehensive security solutions.

What benefits should users look for when evaluating Cisco Secure Client?

Improved Security: Offers encrypted connections and multifactor authentication to protect sensitive data.
Ease of Use: Quick setup and intuitive configuration make it accessible for varied users in the organization.
Enhanced Connectivity: Supports consistent access to necessary corporate resources and applications.
Reduced Costs: Potential for cost savings by enabling remote work without compromising security.
Scalable Support: Easily adapts to changing organizational demands, supporting business growth.

In industries such as finance, healthcare, and technology, Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is implemented to facilitate secure remote work environments. It ensures healthcare data confidentiality, supports financial services' compliance requirements, and maintains secure, consistent connectivity for tech companies' global operations. Organizations rely on its integration capabilities to work alongside firewalls, enhance security measures, and ensure secure access to critical resources, tools vital for productive collaboration and communication.

Cisco

Netskope Private Access is innovatively designed to offer secure remote access by eliminating inbound connectivity risks and requiring minimal maintenance, focusing on specific access controls and real-time adaptive policies.

Netskope Private Access stands out for its approach to securing connectivity without using conventional VPNs. It grants granular application access, implements adaptive policies, and ensures low latency with unrestricted bandwidth. Enhanced security features like device checks, Data Loss Protection, and content filtering align with its standard pricing. Meanwhile, its integration capabilities, although complex, facilitate secure connections to internal resources such as Active Directory, supporting compliance standards while migrating from legacy VPN solutions.

What are the key features of Netskope Private Access?

No Inbound Connectivity: Eliminates risks of unauthorized access.
Granular Application Access: Provides specific and detailed access control.
Adaptive Policies: Real-time policy adjustments based on user and device context.
Device Checks: Enhances security with thorough verification measures.
Data Loss Protection & Content Filtering: Protects sensitive data and monitors traffic content.

What benefits should users consider in reviews?

Secure Remote Access: Ensures safe connectivity for remote workforces.
Performance Optimization: Offers seamless, low-latency connectivity.
Scalability and Flexibility: Adapts easily to growing remote access demands.
Simplified Management: Streamlines management without traditional VPN issues.

In sectors like finance and healthcare, organizations deploy Netskope Private Access to enable secure remote access while maintaining compliance. These industries benefit by facilitating remote connections to critical internal applications, reducing downtime and inefficiencies typically associated with VPNs. Industries also leverage adaptive policies to ensure compliance with security protocols and real-time monitoring of remote access.

Netskope

Sample Customers

Trusted by global enterprises and government agencies.

MST, Molina Healthcare, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Arup, New South Wales Rural FireService

Evalueserve, Stroock, Apria, Ather Energy

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs. Netskope Private Access

September 2026

Free Report: Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs. Netskope Private Access

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs. Netskope Private Access and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.

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