Cisco Secure Email vs Microsoft Defender for Office 365 comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 6, 2023
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Secure Email
Ranking in Email Security
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Number of Reviews
58
Ranking in other categories
Cisco Security Portfolio (10th)
Microsoft Defender for Offi...
Ranking in Email Security
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Number of Reviews
43
Ranking in other categories
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (9th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2024, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Cisco Secure Email is 10.7%, down from 13.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 13.8%, down from 20.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Security
Unique Categories:
Cisco Security Portfolio
2.0%
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP)
13.5%
Microsoft Security Suite
1.9%
 

Featured Reviews

JoseSilva - PeerSpot reviewer
Mar 30, 2023
Provides reliable protection, brings awareness, and has adaptable pricing
One benefit is the resilience of the solution when implemented in conjunction with other solutions, and the other one is the new features that Cisco is adding to the solution itself, such as awareness of advanced phishing threats. The environment that Cisco is building around this primary product in its catalog is helpful. We offer almost all of the Cisco Security solutions, but recently, we've been working more with cloud solutions. It's easier for customers to adopt them. We also continue to deploy some of the firewall solutions with the physical devices and also email protection solutions either with the VM solutions or with the physical appliances. We've been seeing evermore integration of the products based on the browsing console, which is very nice for customers because they only need to have a browser to access all the different consoles of different products. They can be consolidated with SecureX. It's an advantage for the customer to be able to handle all the different consoles for different integrations that the customer has in one place. Cisco Talos is a very nice complementary solution to the email protection suite. It gives you the threat intel regarding the latest news and infections that can be problematic for the customers. They become aware of what's happening and any latest vulnerabilities they may have on-prem.
Chris-Atkinson - PeerSpot reviewer
Nov 28, 2023
Provides good visibility and increased security and enables organizations to take proactive steps against threats
We get a lot of good visibility. When we look for something, it's pretty easy to see the IP from which the user signed in. We get to know where the person is logging in from. It lets us know quickly whether a particular IP should be logged in at a particular time. The solution does not help us prioritize threats. It helps us mitigate some of the threats we identify. I don't think prioritization is important. Whoever makes the most has the highest priority. The solution’s threat intelligence helps us take proactive steps, especially with Safe Links. It helps us track down and look at logs, see what document libraries a threat might have gone to, and try to review the exposed data and potentially exfiltrate it. The solution has saved my company's money. The tool has decreased our time to respond by a couple of hours per incident. I don't have to involve my network or security teams. We could click through to determine whether an access is legitimate. There may be more cost-effective solutions in the market. Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten for its functionality.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The product's initial setup phase was easy."
"It blocks bulk marketing messages, graymail, spam, and provides advanced malware protection."
"It has an intuitive, clear graphical interface where you can deploy your policies and understand the overall flow. There are a lot of things that you cannot handle on the graphic interface, like message filters. For this, you need to go to a lower level where you have more power, like command line interface. So, this solution has the best of both worlds. There are not a lot of bells and whistles. It is more practical with access to most features that you can configure."
"I love the Advanced Malware Protection feature. It works very well... The appliance has more security such as SDF, DKIM, DMARC, and encryption."
"Administration of the email domains and custom filters are easily done via the web interface."
"The filtering is definitely better at catching both spam and malicious messages, and there's a lot of extremely granular ability for setting up rules. You can do it the way you want to. The Microsoft solution tends to be pretty limited in how it allows some of that to be done."
"The system enables end users to manage their own whitelists/blacklists."
"The tool comes with AI features. It is good for clients who already use Cisco products due to integration."
"I would say that 90% of the spam and phishing attack emails get blocked right off the bat."
"The benefit that stands out to me is the ability for multiple individuals to collaborate simultaneously within the same document. Additionally, there is the option to save the document directly in the integrated OneDrive or SharePoint."
"Some of the valuable features on the email side are anti-phishing, anti-malware, and Safe Links."
"Defender enables us to secure all 365-related activity from a single place. It gives us visibility into everything happening in Outlook, protecting us against phishing and other email-based threats. Defender helps us detect any suspicious behaviors."
"There are several features that I consider valuable."
"The product's scalability is good."
"One of the best features of the tool is its capability to aggregate insights from different workloads, basically from the Office 365 and endpoints part."
"Defender is a SaaS platform, so it offers more flexibility. Managing the permissions is easier. The solution's automated detection and response features are scalable."
 

Cons

"I would like more functionality and how to use it for Level 2 type staff. The biggest issue is it needs to be easier to use and navigate."
"We would like to see more options for the customization of content filters."
"One of the things that Cisco could improve on with IronPort is the support. Cisco doesn't really have enough engineers who have full, hands-on knowledge of IronPort. Knowledge of it is not something you can find easily compared to other security appliances."
"While Cisco offers excellent solutions and innovations, the pricing may not be suitable for everyone. The cost of the software is relatively high. In the current market, there are numerous competitive alternatives that focus on security, enterprise networks, and various other aspects. Cisco, being a comprehensive provider, extends its expertise across data, servers, storage, and security, making them a preferred choice for many enterprises. However, when it comes specifically to security solutions, there are other vendors that specialize solely in this domain, offering competitive options."
"Licensing is quite complicated for a number of customers, including ourselves."
"We cannot manage multiple devices from a single UI."
"Cisco Secure Email can be improved from the administrator's point of view. Usually, you have to work with different areas, and they can try to make it easy for the administrator to use different functions."
"I would like them to add some clustering or high availability features."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 should be more proactive."
"The phishing and spam filters could use some improvement."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 could improve by giving customers information on techniques to prevent threats. For example, information about best practices on how to protect their own devices against hackers and scammers, such as educational information or training. This would help others have a better understanding of cyber security. Additionally, there can be more security features added."
"There is room for improvement with the UI."
"The XDR dashboard has room for improvement."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 must improve the overall management style, including the GUI. It also needs to change the filters so that it is easy to whitelist and blacklist data."
"They can improve their security in a way where a customer can know if all their attachments are safe or not to open through a report. The solution does its job perfectly, but it never reports to the customer whether those attachments have been stopped before or not."
"It would be better if it were more scalable. It depends on the architecture, but we would like to make it more scalable for both data centers."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"At times, we feel the pricing is a bit too high, but then, there is also room for discounts. We enjoy a lot of discounts, and that is why we are still with them. There are no costs in addition to the standard licensing fees."
"I would rate the pricing a ten out of ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive."
"We do annual licensing for Cisco Secure Email Gatewayand SMA together, and possibly SmartNet support. Packaged together, the cost is just under $38,000."
"The pricing is good."
"The licensing was all transferred."
"In addition to the standard licensing, there is a cost for SMARTnet as well."
"It's adapted to the market. It's similar to other vendors. We at least don't have many problems regarding that because Cisco is adaptable on that side. When we present the solutions to the customers, we tend to achieve the goals that the customer has in terms of the budget for such implementations."
"It is not that costly. We pay for the solution through a contractor and pay an annual fee."
"It's a user-base subscription."
"For licensing, it's usually a yearly package for customers who are subscribed to Office 365, but they can also pay on a monthly basis."
"The pricing is normal. Considering its popularity, it's not overpriced."
"Compared to other brands, Microsoft Defender for Office 365's pricing is competitive."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 comes with Microsoft Windows. It is free with the operating system."
"The product is expensive."
"The solution saves money so we have seen a return on investment."
"Defender for 365 comes in various plans and licenses, along with other Microsoft security solutions. Purchasing this kind of package or security bundle gives good value for money, and that's what I recommend."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
19%
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco Secure Email?
Cisco Secure Email is a budget-friendly solution.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Secure Email?
The pricing for Cisco Email Security Appliance involves recurring costs for licenses based on the contracted time frame, such as one year, three years, or five years. Renewals are required after th...
What needs improvement with Cisco Secure Email?
The discontinuation of physical hardware solutions is a significant area for improvement in the Cisco Email Security Appliance. This decision has posed challenges as virtual appliances are now the ...
What do you like most about Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Threat Explorer is an invaluable tool for me, and it plays a crucial role in helping me discern the origins of various email campaigns, pinpointing where they emanate from, and identifying the indi...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
While Microsoft Defender for Office 365 necessitates pricier E3 or E5 subscriptions, the extensive functionality offered by these licenses across various Microsoft products justifies the investment.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps is a very good solution that allows you to use a single port or tool to control everything happening with your organization's different cloud applications. Configu...
 

Also Known As

Cisco Email Security, IronPort, Cisco Email Security, ESA, Email Security Appliances
MS Defender for Office 365
 

Learn More

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

SUNY Old Westbury, CoxHealth, City of Fullerton, Indra
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Email vs. Microsoft Defender for Office 365 and other solutions. Updated: July 2024.
793,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.