Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Cisco Web Security Appliance vs GoodAccess comparison

Sponsored
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 4, 2024

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 Secure Web Gateways (SWG)
7th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
19
Ranking in other categories
Internet Security (3rd), Web Content Filtering (1st), Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) (7th), ZTNA as a Service (8th), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (8th)
Cisco Web Security Appliance
Ranking in Secure Web Gateways (SWG)
11th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
31
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
GoodAccess
Ranking in Secure Web Gateways (SWG)
5th
Average Rating
9.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (8th), ZTNA (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Secure Web Gateways (SWG) category, the mindshare of iboss is 2.1%, up from 1.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Web Security Appliance is 2.4%, down from 2.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of GoodAccess is 0.2%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Secure Web Gateways (SWG)
 

Featured Reviews

Matt Crockford - PeerSpot reviewer
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
Vusa Ndlovu - PeerSpot reviewer
Advanced protection features offer robust security while integration process presents challenges
With the WebAssign integration, it is not easy when I am integrating policies within the company, especially with NAND and wireless policies. The challenge arises when traffic is blocked from either wireless or wired connections. Although implementing it as a standalone is quicker, integrating BYOD with Cisco I and FTB can be tiring. Once it is done correctly, the functionality and reports become valuable, although the implementation part can still be challenging.
Itai Rieur - PeerSpot reviewer
A stable service with good support and little downtime
The best aspects of GoodAccess include: 1. Support system (available 24/7, quick to respond, and highly knowledgeable). GoodAccess offers a very available professional support service - it can be via chat service, email, or phone. The relevant representative was very professional, and responsive questions were answered in a prompt manner. 2. Stable service. Since we rely daily on a VPN to connect with multiple connections, VPN stability is crucial to us. in that sense, GoodAccess never fails. In the two or more years we have been using this service, there have been only one or two downtimes. each for 20 minutes or less. That's impressive.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"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."
"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."
"Technical support is pretty sharp and very responsive."
"First of all, the security policies are essential. I do not have to rely solely on Active Directory for our users."
"I would rate the technical support of iboss a solid 10 without a shadow of a doubt."
"Granular setup, which was able to set different levels of filters using the OUs in the AD."
"Iboss is a solution that prevents advanced persistent threats, and has a zero tolerance for attacks."
"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."
"The best feature of Cisco Web Security Appliance is its policy framing. It also has a good UI and it can handle traffic well. Cisco Web Security Appliance is a good product."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"The solution provides good web reputation and anti-malware protection."
"The solution offers content filtering and micro-content controls, such as regulating the types of images and their resolution."
"What we liked best about it was the ability to apply policy to either a user ID or an IP-based network."
"Since working with the tool, we have not found any threats in our organization."
"Cisco Web Security Appliance is user-friendly and easy to manage. It protects your environment while accessing the internet."
"The most valuable feature is that we can use it as a proxy."
"Their user interface is intuitive as it is easy to navigate."
"We love the simple interface and speed and reliability of the system."
"Access control allows us to manage permissions efficiently, ensuring secure and tailored access."
"GoodAccess simplified our infrastructure and how we interact with clients."
"GoodAccess is allowing us to give first-hand support and access to critical client systems, in a secure way."
"The speed of the connections is excellent. We have two gateways set up, one for the East Coast US and one for West Coast. Both have excellent speed and the GoodAccess team allowed us to test several gateways to determine which worked best for us prior to locking in the gateways."
"The VPN's role in facilitating remote work has improved internal efficiency."
"GoodAccess offers a very available professional support service - it can be via chat service, email, or phone."
 

Cons

"The reporting feature needs improvement."
"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."
"Sometimes the agent stops working in iboss, and we have to reinstall the agent."
"SSL decryption: We had issues with learners using apps instead of using web browsers. This type of encryption is tough for any appliance in a BYOD environment."
"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 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."
"The solution could be stronger on the integration side and offer more cloud applications like G Suite or Oracle."
"For zero trust implementation, we encountered complexity issues, especially with a large infrastructure company ExxonMobil."
"Technical support needs to be improved because they take a very long time and there is no communication or notification."
"The solution is not very compatible with other products."
"Customer support is good but could be improved."
"WSA is lacking firewall features."
"The tool needs to improve cloud-based decryption."
"This solution could be more secure."
"The reporting needs improvement."
"The support for this solution could be improved. We have experienced issues with their SMARTnet support system."
"There is one minor drawback to mention: occasionally, the Internet connection tends to slow down noticeably while using the VPN."
"Their recent revision in pricing was a jolt. Though any business understands the need for periodic pricing evaluations, a clearer communication strategy and more gradual changes might have been more palatable for long-term clients like us."
"Adding one user at a time to the package as compared to blocks of five would be helpful. Currently, we end up with empty seats on our plans."
"It is worth mentioning that we do experience disconnects on rare occasions."
"The interface could provide more extensive information regarding the occurrence of threats. Currently, it only displays rudimentary threat data."
"We are having a problem with accessing Microsoft Copilot while connected. GoodAccess is working on the issue, but fixing this will be a help to us. There is nothing else at the moment that we need to have improved for our usage."
"The product could improve by extending its chat support beyond 8-5 CET, Monday to Friday, to a 24/7 service for better accessibility and immediate assistance."
"The logs do not go back very far."
 

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."
"The overall pricing for iboss is very competitive and transparent."
"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."
"The solution's cost depends on how many users you purchase. It was maybe $3 or $5 per user, which is a bit expensive."
"I rate the product price a ten on a scale of one to ten, where one is low price and ten is high price."
"I rate Cisco WSA a seven out of ten since it is costly."
"I know from the manager that the price is too high and that other solutions offer the same features for less."
"The licensing options begin with 100 users and this is a high threshold for smaller networks."
"The solution has a standard license."
"The tool's licensing is yearly."
"At the time, licensing fees were paid on an annual basis."
Information not available
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Secure Web Gateways (SWG) solutions are best for your needs.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Healthcare Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Non Profit
8%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with iboss?
For zero trust implementation, we encountered complexity issues, especially with a large infrastructure company Exxon...
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...
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...
What do you like most about Cisco Web Security Appliance?
The most valuable features of the solution are the functions of proxy for the users who use the internet and the secu...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Web Security Appliance?
Comparing with other products, Cisco has more functionality, but pricing is a challenge. Cisco is not a product for s...
What needs improvement with Cisco Web Security Appliance?
With the WebAssign integration, it is not easy when I am integrating policies within the company, especially with NAN...
What do you like most about GoodAccess?
GoodAccess offers a very available professional support service - it can be via chat service, email, or phone.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for GoodAccess?
Test multiple providers' solutions for speed and connection before signing up for service. Also, test the help desk r...
What needs improvement with GoodAccess?
We are having a problem with accessing Microsoft Copilot while connected. GoodAccess is working on the issue, but fix...
 

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform
Cisco WSA, Cisco Web Security
No data available
 

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.
New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Caixa Seguradora
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Web Security Appliance vs. GoodAccess and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.