Cisco Umbrella vs Symantec Proxy comparison

Cisco and Broadcom are both solutions in the Secure Web Gateways (SWG) category. Cisco is ranked #1 with an average rating of 9.2, while Broadcom is ranked #12 with an average rating of 8.3. Cisco holds a 16.9% mindshare in WSG, compared to Broadcom’s 2.0% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 80% of Broadcom users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 21, 2025

Cisco Umbrella and Symantec Proxy compete in the cybersecurity and web content filtering category. Cisco Umbrella seems to have the upper hand due to its ability to stop threats at the DNS level, providing an edge in decentralized environments.

Features: Cisco Umbrella provides extensive query options and domain investigations via its API, allowing insights into potential threats and domain history. Its capability to filter web content at a granular level helps comply with security standards and boosts productivity. Integration with other security measures is seamless, and protection through DNS queries is a strong defense mechanism. Symantec Proxy is known for its robust content inspection, excellent SSL encryption, and caching abilities, enabling it to provide secure web proxy services effectively. Its comprehensive inspection capabilities make it a favorite for more robust site traffic evaluations.

Room for Improvement: Cisco Umbrella could enhance support for IPv6 queries, provide more customization in reporting, and improve its integration with third-party tools. There is also a need for more flexibility in policy creation. Symantec Proxy needs to streamline deployment processes and enhance reporting features, and smoother integration with other systems would improve user experience. Both products can benefit from improving price competitiveness and user management features.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco Umbrella offers hybrid and cloud solutions that provide ease of management and integration, supported by robust customer service. High ratings for technical assistance highlight its customer support advantage. Symantec Proxy, while focusing on on-premises deployments, has reported challenges in flexibility and support services, making its cloud-first model less manageable compared to Umbrella's approach.

Pricing and ROI: Cisco Umbrella is considered well-priced in alignment with its value, especially when replacing broader security infrastructures. Its flexible licenses and transparent pricing contribute positively to its perceived ROI from threat mitigation. Conversely, Symantec Proxy is often viewed as expensive, with concerns raised about licensing renewal processes and cost-effectiveness. Umbrella's flexibility and transparency in pricing provide a more favorable ROI perception.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Umbrella vs. Symantec Proxy Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Umbrella vs. Symantec Proxy

September 2025

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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 October 2025, in the Secure Web Gateways (SWG) category, the mindshare of iboss is 2.2%, up from 1.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Umbrella is 16.9%, down from 19.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Symantec Proxy is 2.0%, down from 2.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Secure Web Gateways (SWG) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Cisco Umbrella	16.9%
iboss	2.2%
Symantec Proxy	2.0%
Other	78.9%

Secure Web Gateways (SWG)

Featured Reviews

Matt Crockford

Head of Cybersecurity at SES Water

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

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Emilio Montoya

CTO at PROA

Ensures internet navigation safety and boosts productivity

The features of Cisco Umbrella I prefer most are DNS protection and traffic redirect. With Cisco Talos's threat intelligence, we reduce the impact of malware traffic in our network, and we currently see the behavior of equipment and choose the correct sites. Cisco Talos has helped us reduce the impact of malware traffic. We can see the behavior and choose the correct sites. We're currently testing secure access with Umbrella in order to secure access to core applications. It's a product that the user doesn't even know is there, even though it is protecting them. It's not hard on the equipment. And, for us, it centralizes everything, which improves productivity. With the Experience Insights feature of Cisco Secure Access, we've seen impacts on the management of user connectivity by allowing us to deliver safe connectivity. We are testing the Secure Access product with Cisco Umbrella to improve our connectivity with our users in order to secure access to the corporate applications. Cisco Umbrella is in the cloud, which is nice.

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Ganesh Basappa

Network Security Consultant at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

Granular control for web traffic with enhanced content inspection, but support needs improvement

There are many use cases in terms of content inspection, such as having granular control for file type extensions when trying to download file types by default. It depends on the requirements, and based on that, we customize policies. We have deployed it in an Azure infrastructure, and we have…

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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

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

"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."

"First of all, the security policies are essential. I do not have to rely solely on Active Directory for our users."

"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."

"I would definitely recommend iboss for web filtering purposes to other organizations or individuals."

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

"I would rate the technical support of iboss a solid 10 without a shadow of a doubt."

More iboss pros

"Stability-wise, it's good. I have never encountered any bugs."

"It has excellent resilience in cybersecurity. Cybersecurity for my organization is very important because we are a banking organization. We need this security to protect the personal information of our clients. This is very important for our security."

"When it comes to hybrid work it's pretty effective. We've got the agents. We can protect people inside our building and, when they're using their laptops out in the field, they're still protected. It's working well."

"Using this solution has meant that we've needed to make fewer firewall changes."

"One of the great advantages of Umbrella DNS is that it's really simple to deploy. It's easy to install, the users do not notice that it's there, and it doesn't interfere with your work. The simplicity and transparency are great advantages of Cisco Umbrella."

"It is a good cloud-based solution for DNS security."

"It enables us to go granular in the customization of blocking some categories on the DNS."

"Umbrella enables customers to be secure. We are happy with this and this is the most important benefit for customers."

More Cisco Umbrella pros

"This is a stable and robust solution with many features."

"I would rate the overall solution a nine out of ten."

"It is easy to use, and it is stable and scalable. You don't need a large team for deployment and maintenance."

"The developer's assistance is valuable, enabling seamless integration which allows for a comprehensive view of categories, even if not certified by the link."

"It enables us to manage bandwidth for users based on their privilege levels. For example, if a user wants to use a certain application or resource, we can provide access based on their privileges."

"The security features provided by Symantec Proxy, such as granular controls for web traffic and caching, set it apart from other secure web gateways."

"It's a stable solution."

"The most valuable features of this solution are the URL database, malicious URLs, policies, and policy creation."

More Symantec Proxy pros

Cons

"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."

"Sometimes the agent stops working in iboss, and we have to reinstall the agent."

"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."

"I'd like to see them accelerate development on the security side, particularly around data loss prevention."

"Its pricing could be better."

"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."

"Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, iboss is not cheap, and that's my only concern."

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

More iboss cons

"My biggest concern, and I'm sure everyone's biggest gripe with TAC, is just turnaround time. If you open a case in the evening, you might get an agent in another region, and then your ticket cycle only goes from 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM when you're out of work."

"It has happened in the past that Cisco Umbrella has denied us access to secure websites."

"If I want to see which users access a website, I need an Active Directory registered on Umbrella's cloud."

"If we're trying to deploy it to a Mac through Meraki, it's impossible. The method of deployment for a Mac, and the features available in Meraki, are not compatible at all."

"The only thing I can think of is that I'd like to see a little more flexibility in policy creation. The way that policy is currently structured is like a "first hit succeeds" kind of policy. It would be nice if it were more hierarchical."

"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."

"In the next release, I would like to see the integration of VDI NSX with Cisco Umbrella."

"The pricing is a bit high. Being outside of the USA, we have issues with the exchange rate."

More Cisco Umbrella cons

"The product needs improvement in support services, as they are lagging and not very responsive when we raise concerns or queries, especially in terms of significant impact."

"Technical support is an area that requires some improvement."

"AI features could potentially improve the proxy by helping build rules more efficiently, suggesting unused rules, and enhancing preference setting."

"The initial setup is actually quite complex to install because our users don't have admin rights on the boxes and there's no remote install option by an administrator."

"There are performance issues with all of the proxies."

"Support services are lagging and not very responsive. I rate their support as five out of ten."

"Prior to the Broadcom purchase, every appliance was application based, but now they have one ISG device and on top of it multiple applications are running. It has a single point of failure. If your device goes down, all of the applications would be down."

"Symantec Proxy needs to include content management capabilities."

More Symantec Proxy cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

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

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

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

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

"The pricing is fair."

"Cisco solutions are generally perceived to be rather expensive. We have constant internal discussions as to whether we should offer lower-priced security solutions from some of the competitors."

"Our licensing fees are on a yearly basis."

"In the region I'm from, that of EMAR, Europe, the Middle East, Eastern Asia and Africa, our organizations do not have many liquid cash assets, so the price could be better."

"Its value exceeds its pricing."

"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."

"Our costs were negotiated, and they are okay."

"Cisco has a set price for a single license up to 100, but whenever we get over 100, we have to ask for a quote."

More Cisco Umbrella pricing and cost advice

"The tool is pretty expensive."

"In terms of cost, it is expensive. Its pricing has been a challenge for us since its acquisition by Broadcom."

"The price is too expensive compared with that of another solution."

"Licensing is based on a subscription."

"The product is highly priced. There are no additional costs apart from the standard licenses."

"It's expensive. Clients often go to other products."

"The price of the solution is reasonable compared to others on the market."

"The solution is very expensive."

More Symantec Proxy pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

17%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Healthcare Company

Financial Services Firm

25%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	5

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	49
Midsize Enterprise	30
Large Enterprise	51

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	12

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with iboss?

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

See all answers

What is your primary use case for iboss?

Previously when I used iboss, we did the POC for iboss for ExxonMobil. Four or five people wanted to move from our ol...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for iboss?

Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, iboss is not cheap, and that's my only concern. There are cheaper alte...

See all answers

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...

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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...

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What do you like most about Cisco Umbrella?

Cisco Umbrella is easy to monitor, manage, and deploy.

See all answers

What do you like most about Symantec Proxy?

We can address and rectify issues promptly, resulting in consistently positive outcomes.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Symantec Proxy?

Pricing is difficult to specify as Broadcom sells platforms that include multiple products, making it hard to determi...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Symantec Proxy?

AI features could potentially improve the proxy by helping build rules more efficiently, suggesting unused rules, and...

See all answers

Comparisons

Netskope vs iboss

Compared 13% of the time

Zscaler Internet Access vs iboss

Compared 13% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs iboss

Compared 12% of the time

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs iboss

Compared 7% of the time

Cloudflare One vs iboss

Compared 6% of the time

More iboss Competitors

Zscaler Internet Access vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 17% of the time

Cisco Secure Access vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 8% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 7% of the time

Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 6% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 5% of the time

More Cisco Umbrella Competitors

Forcepoint Secure Web Gateway vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 21% of the time

Zscaler Internet Access vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 11% of the time

Skyhigh Security vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 11% of the time

Cisco Web Security Appliance vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 10% of the time

Advanced URL Filtering by Palo Alto vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 8% of the time

More Symantec Proxy Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

iboss

October 2025

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Buyer's Guide

Cisco Umbrella

October 2025

Download Cisco Umbrella product report

Buyer's Guide

Symantec Proxy

October 2025

Download Symantec Proxy product report

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform

OpenDNS

Blue Coat Encrypted Traffic Management, ProxySG Appliance

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 Umbrella delivers rapid DNS security with over 30,000 customers, providing outstanding threat protection and handling more than 600 billion requests daily. It's recognized for high threat efficacy in the SSE domain and integrates elements like SWG, ZTNA, CASB, and more.

Cisco Umbrella is renowned for its effective DNS-layer security against ransomware and phishing. It offers flexible content filtering and integrates seamlessly with existing networks while providing single-pane-of-glass management for centralized monitoring. Its robust threat intelligence and customizable policies are central to its appeal. Users highlight room for improvement in areas like WHOIS data inclusion, malware enhancement, and reporting analytics. Integration with other threat feeds and better client support are requested for more comprehensive coverage.

What are the key features of Cisco Umbrella?

DNS-Layer Security: Blocks malicious domains, preventing ransomware attacks.
Web Content Filtering: Allows users to manage lists for strict content control.
Seamless Integration: Blends with systems like Active Directory and Meraki.
Remote Protection: Keeps remote users safe across different locations.
Single-Pane Management: Facilitates effective monitoring and reporting.

What should users expect in reviews about Cisco Umbrella?

Threat Intelligence: Provides comprehensive malware and attack data.
Customizable Policies: Enables tailored security measures for users.
Integration Options: Works with diverse systems for holistic security.
Ease of Use: Offers a straightforward experience for administrators.
Remote Worker Security: Ensures protection outside traditional networks.

Industries implement Cisco Umbrella primarily for DNS-level security, web filtering, and protecting remote employees. It strengthens cybersecurity frameworks by blocking malware and avoiding access to harmful sites. The tool is widely integrated with Active Directory and Cisco Meraki, providing consistent internet security for employees.

Cisco

Symantec Proxy is designed to provide web security, web access control, and secure web gateway functionalities for organizations. It helps protect against web-based threats, enforce web usage policies, and provide secure access to internet resources.

Symantec Proxy Benefits:

Easy to use
Comprehensive security features
Ability to block malicious websites and applications
Efficient management of network traffic
Scalable and compatible with various operating systems and devices
Highly rated customer support and technical assistance

Symantec Proxy Features:

Web Filtering: Symantec Proxy offers web filtering capabilities to control and manage web access based on predefined categories or custom policies.
Malware Protection: The solution incorporates malware detection and prevention mechanisms to identify and block web-based threats, such as malware, viruses, and phishing attacks.
URL Filtering: Symantec Proxy uses URL filtering to categorize and assess the reputation of web domains and URLs in real-time.
SSL/TLS Inspection: The proxy solution supports SSL/TLS decryption and inspection to examine encrypted web traffic for potential threats or policy violations.
Data Loss Prevention (DLP): Symantec Proxy may include data loss prevention capabilities to prevent the unauthorized exfiltration of sensitive data through web channels.
User Authentication and Access Control: The solution supports user authentication and access control mechanisms to enforce user-based policies and provide secure internet access.
Reporting and Analytics: Symantec Proxy provides reporting and analytics capabilities to monitor web usage, user activities, security events, and compliance violations.

Reviews from Real Users

Below are some reviews and helpful feedback written by Symantec Proxy users.

PeerSpot user, Consultant at a financial services firm, says that Symantec Proxy "...enables us to manage bandwidth for users based on their privilege levels. For example, if a user wants to use a certain application or resource, we can provide access based on their privileges."

PeerSpot user, General Manager & founder at a engineering company, writes that Symantec Proxy has "A complex deployment, no proper user reporting, and a proxy component that works."

Muhammad Salahuddin, Unit Head - Network and Security Solutions at FPM Solutions, states that Symantec Proxy has "Good URL filtering but is expensive and doesn't have good technical support services."

Broadcom

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

Jefferies

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Umbrella vs. Symantec Proxy

September 2025

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