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Cisco Umbrella vs Forcepoint CASB comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 29, 2026

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
Ranking in Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB)
6th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
24
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (6th), Internet Security (3rd), Web Content Filtering (1st), ZTNA as a Service (6th), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (6th)
Cisco Umbrella
Ranking in Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB)
2nd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
124
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (1st), Internet Security (1st), Domain Name System (DNS) Security (1st), Cisco Security Portfolio (3rd)
Forcepoint CASB
Ranking in Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB)
18th
Average Rating
7.2
Reviews Sentiment
5.6
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) category, the mindshare of iboss is 4.5%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Umbrella is 6.0%, down from 12.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Forcepoint CASB is 1.7%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Umbrella6.0%
iboss4.5%
Forcepoint CASB1.7%
Other87.8%
Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB)
 

Featured Reviews

Ashok Ananthula - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
SS
Sr. Technical Executive at a computer software company with 11-50 employees
Has required extensive customization for non-technical users and still needs better simplification
Customization for basic users can be complex, as it is targeted toward only technical users. It would be beneficial if Cisco simplifies the customization process while still ensuring strong security to prevent unauthorized access. Simplifying the customization part could enhance Cisco Umbrella, but overall, it is a good solution for me.
AlexOgbalu - PeerSpot reviewer
Director at LiveFromSpace Limited
Improving support responsiveness has remained critical while access monitoring and compliance needs have been fully addressed
We have the enterprise licenses for the scanning of the codes, both at runtime and in development, and we also have access to Veracode's e-learning platform as well as a bundle from Veracode.All that has been mentioned is the main benefits Forcepoint CASB provides to us, and it helps us to meet compliance requirements that are necessary in our industry. It's important for enterprises considering Forcepoint to work with very good system integrators and value-added resellers because a lot of things needed go beyond just getting the licenses. You need someone skilled to do all those configurations, write all the rules, and make sure you achieve a very stable environment. I am giving this review an overall rating of eight.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Because of iboss, I did not have to assign web filtering tasks to my techs on a daily basis."
"The students were always protected, and the content filtering worked very well, seeming to work better than other products we had tried previously."
"iboss is definitely very good in terms of service."
"Granular setup, which was able to set different levels of filters using the OUs in the AD."
"From a corporate perspective, I understand that it's important to keep the company data safe."
"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."
"I would say iboss is a very good product; its scalability is very good, and it's seamless for the user."
"From a use-case scenario, what I like the most is the plug-in. I like the fact that we can do the filtering of these devices offsite independent of the network they are connected to, and we do not have to have traffic coming back inside our network."
"We use various types of Umbrella and I'd recommend the solution as one of the best on the market that works well in different environments and is extremely easy to deploy."
"OpenDNS is either a good complement to your existing web content filtering solution at the enterprise level, or it is a good free or easy-to-deploy alternative for home and SMB use."
"The features of Cisco Umbrella benefit my company by allowing us to do protective DNS instead of URL filtering, which lets us avoid having to backhaul traffic and run it through a firewall in a data center."
"The initial setup is very easy and takes only a few minutes."
"Reports provide insight into internet usage and information helpful in creating QoS rules."
"The most valuable feature is the ability to block users from reaching places that they should not even try to reach has been a boon."
"The stability and reliability of the Cisco Umbrella platform are great."
"The various powerful query options are the most valuable features of this product to me."
"Forcepoint CASB ensures that access to cloud applications is properly vetted and monitored, helping us unify access across the board regardless of device or location, while advanced notifications and behavior analytics make it easy to detect unknown connections or baseline changes."
"Most of the features are valuable, primarily for the firewalls, the proxy, and Forcepoint CASB products."
"It gives you value for your investment."
"The tool's most valuable feature is its management ease."
"As it is based on AWS, it is not a problem."
"Macro integration is a good feature."
"The most valuable aspect for us is the fact that the product seamlessly integrates with the Forcepoint DLP."
"I like that the layout and configuration are easy compared to other solutions on the market."
 

Cons

"Our biggest problem with their service was it did not recognize the device and filtering did not always work correctly."
"Its pricing could be better."
"I have heard they are doing DDoS filtering, but I am not certain if they are implementing it correctly."
"One thing I would like to see differently with their Zero Trust platform is that some of the AI aspects related to high-risk activities have more false positives."
"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."
"Sometimes, obviously, there are bugs."
"It is stable, but due to growth, it can sometimes be less stable than wanted."
"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."
"One of the issues with Umbrella is as you get into endpoint detection and response, such as EDR point solutions, some of them will not integrate well with Umbrella. Sometimes when you want to use technology, such as Always On VPN, it will not work. There are some looming issues as one type of technology starts to crossover with Umbrella. That is the challenge and Umbrella should find a way to be more compatible with some of the endpoint response solutions that are coming out on the market."
"It has happened in the past that Cisco Umbrella has denied us access to secure websites."
"We faced an issue regarding virtual appliances (VAs) during deployment. They could improve the quality and management of the virtual appliances offered right now. You can't see much because it is a Linux machine, and they have customized it. You don't have any route access to the machine, only seeing limited things in it. When we opened a ticket, they didn't know much about VAs themselves. So, that is where it is lacking right now. I know this will improve in the long run."
"We would like them to add more features to Cisco Umbrella."
"I think it's a very basic solution, and because of that, we provide it to the small business market."
"It's somewhat pricey for us, however, it's an awesome solution."
"The API is very Cisco orientated, which is absolutely fine if you're using Cisco Firepower and SecureX kind of products, but if you want to integrate with third parties, it is a bit tricky."
"It would be good if the more complex versions of Umbrella are simplified so that we can offer them in a more standardized way. We, as a telco, do not operate the same as a traditional integration partner would, who can sell all its services. We try to have a standardized approach as much as we can so that we can sell the solution with as many services added to it as possible. If you look at the structure of businesses in Switzerland, 95% of them have 10 persons or less, and they do not have a security specialist. Therefore, the higher the automated and standardized features, the better it is for them."
"We are not happy with the solution."
"Forcepoint technical support in general could improve in this area."
"The deployment and initial setup can be quite difficult to install."
"Forcepoint CASB is mature and performing its function, but it is not easy to manage and not as fully-featured as competitors."
"It could be more robust, especially around custom applications."
"The solution needs to be easier to install, and they need to clean up the backend, so stuff doesn't break."
"Integration is an area of the solution that needs to be improved."
"If I was to sell a CASB product brand new to somebody, I would sell them Netskope. I wouldn't sell them Forcepoint."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The overall pricing for iboss is very competitive and transparent."
"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."
"It is expensive compared to one of its competitors."
"We have not priced the solution recently, but they were competitive with other vendors in the past."
"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."
"Cisco has a model called ELA. With ELA, if you buy the solution you will have the complete security portfolio and you can pay it yearly or after three years, it depends on the contract."
"It needs a better price point."
"Cisco is expensive. For example, we are looking at Nexus Dashboard, and it's costing about 250,000 euros. I ask, "What do I get from it?" I'm still not convinced that we have to spend on it, so pricing is a problem."
"I think it's worth the money."
"The price could be lower."
"Our costs were negotiated, and they are okay."
"The licensing part for Umbrella is really flexible."
"It has a reasonable price. It is certainly not as expensive as it used to be. It is in line with other offerings on the market. There are a number of different flavors of Umbrella. They could bring Umbrella SIG down a bit because its price is a little bit high for what it does, but I also understand why its price is high."
"The solution is not that expensive compared to Zscaler. Netskope is between Forcepoint CASB and Zscaler in terms of cost. Forcepoint CASB would be the first choice because it negotiates well and offers a perpetual license, though it may seem subscription-based. I rate its pricing a six out of ten."
"The pricing really depends on the size of the customer's business because it is price-relevant to the environment."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Outsourcing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Construction Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise8
Large Enterprise10
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business50
Midsize Enterprise31
Large Enterprise51
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise3
 

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...
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 ...
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...
Which is the better security solution - Cisco Umbrella or Zscaler?
Cisco Umbrella and Zscaler Internet Access are two broad-spectrum Internet security solutions that I have tried. Zs...
Which is the better security solution - Cisco Umbrella or Microsoft Cloud App Security?
Cisco Umbrella is an integral component of the Cisco SASE architecture. It integrates security in a single, cloud-nat...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Umbrella?
The pricing for Cisco Umbrella is fair compared to other platforms out there for DNS security. We acquired it as a bu...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Forcepoint CASB?
I would put the pricing of Forcepoint CASB at a five, closer to a four. I don't think it's very expensive, but it's a...
What needs improvement with Forcepoint CASB?
From a functionality perspective, I don't have any recommendations, but in terms of support, the speed of support is ...
What is your primary use case for Forcepoint CASB?
Forcepoint CASB ensures that access to cloud applications is properly vetted and monitored. We have a lot of remote a...
 

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform
OpenDNS
Imperva Skyfence
 

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.
Chart Industries, City of Aspen, Eastern Mountain Sports, FLEXcon, George Washington University, Jackson Municipal Airport Authority, Ohio Public Library Information Network, PTC, Richland Community College, Smart Motors, Tulane University, VeriClaim
Zions Bank, GE Healthcare, HomeAway, Logitech, Universal, California National Resources Agency and many mor
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Umbrella vs. Forcepoint CASB and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
913,806 professionals have used our research since 2012.