Cisco Security Cloud vs Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Cisco and Zscaler are both solutions in the Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) category. Cisco is ranked #33, while Zscaler is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.4. Cisco holds a 0.8% mindshare in SASE, compared to Zscaler’s 8.8% mindshare. Additionally, 98% of Zscaler users are willing to recommend the solution.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 8, 2026

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform and Cisco Security Cloud are competing in the cybersecurity space with unique capabilities. Zscaler leads in streamlined security controls and management, while Cisco stands out with extensive feature effectiveness and integration.

Features: Zscaler offers network security features like URL filtering, application segmentation, and seamless user authentication. Cisco provides advanced malware protection, security analytics, and superior integration with existing infrastructure. Zscaler focuses on zero trust architecture, while Cisco delivers a comprehensive security suite.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Zscaler's cloud-based deployment allows for quick setups and optimization. Cisco, with its extensive feature set, involves more complex configurations but offers robust customer support and detailed resources. Zscaler simplifies deployment, whereas Cisco offers comprehensive assistance during the process.

Pricing and ROI: Zscaler presents competitive pricing focused on cost efficiency and scalable returns, appealing to tight budgets. Cisco, despite a higher upfront cost, offers significant ROI through comprehensive security capabilities and integration benefits. Zscaler emphasizes affordability and quick returns; Cisco focuses on a long-term investment in security infrastructure.

To learn more, read our detailed Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Report (Updated: September 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE)

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 September 2026, in the Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) category, the mindshare of iboss is 3.2%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Security Cloud is 0.8%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform is 8.8%, down from 11.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform	8.8%
iboss	3.2%
Cisco Security Cloud	0.8%
Other	87.2%

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE)

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.

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AdnanKhan

Senior System Administrator at Ovrlod

Useful for data storage and API calls

Currently, the organization is not utilizing the Cisco Security Cloud for its live web applications or real-time traffic. My clients mostly use the tool for enterprise security. If you are a new user or student interested in security cloud systems, consider approaching Cisco Cloud for a free account. I rate the product a four out of ten.

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Vibin Thomas

Technical Team Lead - Content Security at Valuepoint Systems

Zero trust access has transformed remote connectivity and now simplifies secure app usage

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform, especially Zscaler Private Access, is very strong, though there are a few areas where improvements can be made. One challenge observed is around initial troubleshooting and visibility. While Zscaler Private Access provides logs, it can sometimes take time to pinpoint the exact cause of access issues, especially in complex environments with multiple policies and identity integration. Another area is the dependency on identity and connector health. Since Zscaler Private Access is heavily reliant on app connectors and identity providers, any issues with these components can impact user access, making proper monitoring critical. During the initial setup, policy configuration and application onboarding require careful planning, especially for larger environments with many applications. These challenges are manageable with proper design and monitoring. Overall, the platform delivers strong security and user experience. I would recommend a few improvements, especially around user interface, reporting, and troubleshooting experience. From a user interface perspective, while the platform is powerful, the policy configuration and navigation can feel complex, especially for new users. A more simplified and intuitive layout for policy mapping and application access would help reduce the learning curve. In terms of reporting, Zscaler Private Access provides logs, but having more built-in customizable dashboards and analytics would be very helpful. Better visibility into user access patterns, application performance, and real-time troubleshooting insights would improve operational efficiency. From a support and troubleshooting standpoint, it would be beneficial to have more granular centralized visibility, allowing for quick end-to-end tracing of a user request from authentication to application access without switching between multiple views. These improvements would make the platform even more efficient, especially for large-scale enterprise environments.

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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

"Technical support is pretty sharp and very responsive."

"Because of iboss, I did not have to assign web filtering tasks to my techs on a daily basis."

"We chose iboss for both zero trust and proxy (SWG) because their SWG was superior."

"It was a very easy product to install. It can be deployed very fast."

"Iboss is a solution that prevents advanced persistent threats, and has a zero tolerance for attacks."

"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."

"I would say iboss is a very good product; its scalability is very good, and it's seamless for the user."

"iboss is pretty scalable. They provide good support. The case managers you work with to coordinate what you need are pretty good."

More iboss pros

"The product offers a user-friendly interface, making it easy for newcomers and experienced professionals to work on the platform. Its most valuable feature is the security layer."

"The product’s most valuable features are inbound and outbound scanning and API control."

"The most valuable features are the File Type Control and SSL bypass policies. We"

"It is a very scalable solution. Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

"The initial setup is easy."

"Zscaler SASE is probably the number one cloud-based proxy security solution."

"The product's most valuable features are cloud-based services and secure internet access. We don't have to set up any physical appliances."

"It is easy to use."

"Its impressive scalability allows the combination of multiple dictionaries and using them as one engine, resulting in narrower data loss gaps."

More Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform pros

Cons

"The area I would like to see improvement in is the ability with in the reporter to navigate directly to the content the user is traversing. It is kind of there, but it's not perfect. Quite frequently, I receive links that lead me to pages with error messages."

"Their on-premise hardware's network interface is capped at one gigabit, which is sort of a problem. If you stand a filter up where all traffic flows through that, according to them, in order to go above a gigabit, you have to have multiple devices, which in today's IT seems a little bit silly. They could easily put in an SFP port into their device that could accommodate 10 gigs or at least offer a box."

"Fold that in with the risk intelligence they're getting from all of the different subscriptions they are a part of. Now, these security companies subscribe to things like emerging threats, databases, etc. You can fold all this intelligence to decide what's happening on an endpoint. I would love to see them start moving into that space. That would compete directly with Microsoft. Maybe that's why they haven't. Having that ability native within the solution would be great. The other area in which I would love to see improvement is more detailed descriptions of why they block websites."

"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."

"For zero trust implementation, we encountered complexity issues, especially with a large infrastructure company ExxonMobil."

"iboss can be improved because the integration could be better; you need to import all the sites that you access today, and there are a few problems whenever you import thousands of websites, making the integration process messy for the users."

"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, and that is where in 2025 we had to migrate to the Palo Alto-based platform."

"File integrity monitoring would be very advantageous as an additional feature."

More iboss cons

"Cisco Security Cloud needs to improve its pricing."

"There could be additional ways to define proximity. Additionally, they should provide some exclusion options for specific policies and an ability to control the DLP engine."

"Zscaler Private Access could improve by improving external access. If external parties want to access locally to my company's services, we need to onboard them into our domain, otherwise, it doesn't work. Additionally, if their company also has Zscaler Private Access, then it doesn't work. They need to log in with our domain ID, not their company ID."

"There is improvement in enhancing proper manageability, policies, and logs. So, log management could be improved."

"The scalability is a weak point right now. Its scaling capabilities are lacking, and we'd like to see that improve in the future."

"The product must allow users to check logs for an entire year in the local console."

"It has massive room for improvement. The Zscaler product itself is okay, but it doesn't give enough granularity for us as an organization to stipulate rules or processes, especially for data-driven services."

"The granularity in blocking is not sufficient, as new domains are automatically blocked for 30 days without further information."

"SCMP support would be one of the biggest improvements in my opinion. More speed improvements are also required."

More Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"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."

"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 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."

Information not available

"There is definitely an ROI."

"As per industry leads, Zscaler CASB is an expensive solution."

"Zscaler DLP solution is expensive, with a fixed pricing structure that is billed annually and monthly. There are no additional costs for licenses."

"The pricing is quite high, especially when it comes to the gateway."

"The pricing is expensive and on the higher end. Honestly, in my opinion, it is not worth the price."

"Pricing for Zscaler Private Access is moderate. It's acceptable, though I can't give you the exact price currently. It's not too expensive, and on a scale of one to five, I would rate it a four out of five in terms of pricing."

"In the long run, cloud services are not inherently costly."

"The price is competitive."

More Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

11%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Construction Company

No data available

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Outsourcing Company

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	12
Midsize Enterprise	7
Large Enterprise	10

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	17
Midsize Enterprise	12
Large Enterprise	45

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with iboss?

I think iboss could be improved by making reporting and dashboard customization more flexible, and simplifying troubl...

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What is your primary use case for iboss?

I use iboss as a cloud-based secure web gateway to provide secure internet access, web filtering, and protect remote ...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for iboss?

My experience with iboss's pricing structure, setup cost, and licensing model has been positive, straightforward, and...

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What is the better solution - Prisma Access or Zscaler Private Access?

We looked into Prisma Access before choosing Zscaler Private Access (ZPA). Palo Alto’s Prisma Access is a secure ac...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zscaler Cloud Protection?

This is an area where I have candid feedback from our organization regarding pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Z...

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What needs improvement with Zscaler Cloud Protection?

After three years of working with Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform, I do have genuine feedback on areas where I f...

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

iboss

September 2026

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Buyer's Guide

Managed Security Services Providers (MSSP)

August 2026

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Buyer's Guide

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform

August 2026

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform report

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Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform

No data available

Zscaler SASE, Zscaler DLP, Zscaler CASB, Zscaler CSPM, Zscaler Browser Isolation, Zscaler Posture Control

Overview

Iboss offers a comprehensive cloud-based security platform valued for its scalability and autonomous features, ensuring robust security with easy deployment and management capabilities.

Renowned for its robust security architecture, Iboss integrates seamlessly within diverse networks, delivering efficient granular filtering and advanced content categorization. Its single pane of glass console provides ease of management, allowing rapid scalability suitable for rapidly deploying environments. Operates in BYOD setups due to inline filtering without device installation. Integration with cloud-based applications enhances user control, and features like SASE, SSL inspection, and ChatGPT risk protection stand as highlights. Despite its strengths, users have pointed out areas for enhancement like direct navigation in reports, SSL decryption, and better cloud integration while having room to improve data loss prevention.

What are the most important features of Iboss?

Scalability: Supports rapid deployment across diverse networks.
SASE: A consolidated approach to secure access.
SSL Inspection: Ensures safe data transmission.
Granular Filtering: Detailed control over accessible content.
Single Pane Management: Unifies control through a centralized console.

What benefits should users consider in reviews?

Cost-effectiveness: Offers competitive pricing with robust features.
Autonomous Operation: Reduces management overhead.
Responsive Support: Provides assistance when needed.
Flexible Deployment: Available for both cloud and on-premises environments.

The usage of Iboss spans educational institutions, specifically K-12, to enforce internet policies, protect data, and support remote work environments. It provides web filtering and security frameworks to ensure safe browsing. Its platform-as-a-service model offers flexibility for both cloud-based and on-premises requirements, integrating seamlessly to deliver enhanced security features suitable for various deployment needs including zero trust, CASB, and network security for work-from-home setups.

iboss

Cisco Security Cloud offers comprehensive security solutions suited for diverse corporate requirements. With its advanced features, it is designed to address key security concerns while enhancing data protection and compliance.

Cisco Security Cloud provides a robust suite of features that protects critical assets by leveraging cutting-edge security technologies. Its integration capabilities enable organizations to unify security processes, offering scalable solutions that grow with company demands. Many users appreciate its innovative approach to security with practical use cases, highlighting the strength in defending against threats. However, users suggest improvements in analytics and reporting functions.

What are the key features?

Threat Intelligence: Real-time detection and prevention of potential threats.
Compliance Management: Assists in adhering to industry regulations.
Scalability: Expands security measures as business needs grow.
Integrated Security Architecture: Unifies diverse security applications, ensuring cohesive operations.

What benefits can users expect?

Enhanced Protection: Improved defense against cyber threats resulting in safer environments.
Regulatory Compliance: Simplifies the process of meeting compliance standards.
Cost Efficiency: Reduction in security management costs through advanced automations.
Increased Efficiency: Streamlined processes allow IT teams to focus on critical tasks.

In industries such as finance and healthcare, Cisco Security Cloud is implemented to maximize data security and compliance. These sectors depend on the platform's scalability and integrated security features to secure sensitive information and ensure adherence to compliance norms. By incorporating Cisco Security Cloud, businesses achieve a well-rounded and responsive security infrastructure that aligns with industry-specific demands.

Cisco

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange enhances security with seamless cloud-based connectivity and VPN-less operation, offering integration with multiple identity providers and advanced security features, suitable for remote work environments.

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange provides secure, adaptive connectivity without traditional VPNs, allowing organizations to replace legacy systems and bolster remote work security. The platform offers cloud-based protection, single sign-on, dynamic URL categorization, and scalable solutions. While advanced security features like DLP and threat protection enhance data protection, users may face issues with speed, connectivity, and some customization options. Integration challenges, latency due to multi-tenant hosting, reporting delays, and licensing costs require consideration. It supports secure internet access and private application security, ensuring traffic control and data compliance.

What are the key features of Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange?

VPN-less Connectivity: Enables secure remote access without traditional VPNs.
Cloud-based Security: Offers scalable protection utilizing cloud infrastructure.
Single Sign-On: Integrates with multiple identity providers for streamlined access.
Dynamic URL Categorization: Provides real-time URL filtering to enhance security.
Advanced Threat Protection: Detects and mitigates sophisticated threats effectively.
Customizable Policies: Allows tailored security protocols to fit unique requirements.
Comprehensive DLP: Protects sensitive data through robust data loss prevention.
Integration Capabilities: Connects seamlessly with cloud services and applications.

What are the benefits of using Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange?

Enhanced Security: Delivers consistent protection regardless of user location.
Improved Compliance: Ensures adherence to data protection regulations.
Streamlined Access: Simplifies connectivity to private and cloud applications.
Scalability: Supports expanding organizational demands with cloud scalability.
Real-time Visibility: Provides instant insights into security incidents and network traffic.

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange is deployed across industries to secure remote access and enforce zero trust principles. Organizations in finance, healthcare, and technology sectors utilize it for secure internet access and visibility into cloud applications, enhancing performance and compliance in dynamic environments.

Zscaler

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.

Information Not Available

Siemens, AutoNation, GE, NOV

Buyer's Guide

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE)

September 2026

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