Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs Symantec VIP Access Manager comparison

Cancel
You must select at least 2 products to compare!
Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Fortinet FortiAuthenticator and Symantec VIP Access Manager based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Authentication Systems solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
To learn more, read our detailed Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs. Symantec VIP Access Manager Report (Updated: March 2024).
765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"The product is good, cost-effective, and functionally efficient.""The solution's most valuable aspect is that it easy to install. The user experience is very good.""Enables easy integration, allowing for 2FA with our VPN.""The logs have great detail that make it easier to evaluate and control the security environment.""The initial setup is very easy.""The initial setup of Fortinet FortiAuthenticator is easy.""We use this product for SSL two-factor authentication and FortiToken management.""The initial setup is so easy and there is no problem in the implementation."

More Fortinet FortiAuthenticator Pros →

"The tool has been very stable, in my experience. Also, I haven't faced any issues or problems with integration or connectivity.""In this version 9.1, lots of changes are done for the dashboard, User Store etc.""It is easy to use.""Cloud-based service and management.""Other than it provides us with remote access, so it's fairly easy to install, fairly easy to set up, and provides us the ability to get into our corporate environment.""It's a good tool. It's pretty straightforward.""It offers more platform support, like Apple, Android, and Microsoft.""The two-factor authentication is most definitely valuable and moves us closer to being able to check off those important boxes for compliance."

More Symantec VIP Access Manager Pros →

Cons
"For improvement, Fortinet needs to ensure that they provide quick support to users...Fortinet sometimes needs to respond to users facing issues within an hour.""It does the job I paid for, but the graphical interface could be improved.""I would like to see integration and customization capabilities with the end-user portal to solve authentication issues with diverse implementation scenarios.""Fortinet FortiAuthenticator's initial setup process could be easier.""If you want some other FortiAuthenticator from one site to another site, you should have requirements, but really if you have authentication and directory or another solution, you should change the password of the authenticator between the solution and the directory and other things. So transfer of data and other information should be simpler.""No SMS gateway from the ISP""It can not use SQL to query FortiAnalyzer directly.""There are multiple areas that are in need of improvement. It is not a mature product."

More Fortinet FortiAuthenticator Cons →

"The gateway server is a RADIUS server, but it lacks the functionality of returning RADIUS attributes other than those that are required for the gateway to authenticate the users.""It is challenging to use when installing a new version.""In the next release, I would like the ability to work offline with remote access.""The User Store synchronization part needs to improve. Also, the logs, reports, and dashboard can be improved.""It gets out of sync with Active Directory or whatever it might be, whatever the authentication piece is on Active Directory, and they just reset it on the backend. I never have to contact the vendor.""Geofencing needs improvement.""Maybe Symantec could consider providing a step-by-step guide for first-time users.""If they had dashboards or a report for managers or executives, then it would allow them to see the status and have it make sense to them."

More Symantec VIP Access Manager Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "I would start off with a VM including the base license and scale according to the number of users you need to authenticate."
  • "You can pay as you go with them. You purchase a base license and add to it as needed."
  • "The product could be more competitively priced."
  • "It costs more to license the high-availability option."
  • "The licensing structure is cost-effective for us compared to some of the other solutions that have recurring monthly costs."
  • "FAC is an affordable solution for Middle Range (200E/400E) and also needs a package of mobility agents (2,000) perpetual."
  • "The cost of the license could be less expensive. The license is paid on a yearly basis."
  • "We pay for licensing on a yearly basis."
  • More Fortinet FortiAuthenticator Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "Licensing and pricing seems very fair."
  • "There is a one-time setup fee plus the licenses are provided as per the number of users. For SMS and voice calls, the costs are separate."
  • "There are additional costs for maintenance."
  • "I can say that the solution is worth the money."
  • More Symantec VIP Access Manager Pricing and Cost Advice →

    report
    Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Authentication Systems solutions are best for your needs.
    765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.
    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:The product's on-premise version doesn't have recurring costs.
    Top Answer:We pay a yearly support cost for the solution. It is very small. The cost of FortiToken is high. I rate the pricing a five out of ten.
    Top Answer:Fortinet FortiAuthenticator's initial setup process could be easier.
    Top Answer:The product is useful for providing user access from an in-built office server as we follow the work-from-home model.
    Top Answer:The pricing would most likely charge per user based on how many accounts have access to the IT managers.
    Top Answer:The product's connection speed needs improvement. Sometimes, I need help connecting my mobile to the main office's system due to a version upgrade. It is challenging to use when installing a new… more »
    Ranking
    3rd
    Views
    8,096
    Comparisons
    5,628
    Reviews
    24
    Average Words per Review
    427
    Rating
    8.2
    15th
    Views
    2,087
    Comparisons
    1,787
    Reviews
    3
    Average Words per Review
    490
    Rating
    8.0
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    FortiAuthenticator
    Symantec VIP
    Learn More
    Overview

    Fortinet FortiAuthenticator is the primary secure point of approved access into the Fortinet network, authorizing users, reviewing access permissions, and relaying the information to all Fortigate devices for comparison with identity-based protocols. Fortinet FortiAuthenticator is a top-ranked authorization and SSO solution.

    Appropriate secure access is fundamental to every role in an enterprise ecosystem. It is an integral function of every organization to ensure that every access and privilege is secure and to mitigate any possible risk to an organization. Approved users should only have access to the necessary information when they need it, from the appropriate location(s) to safeguard an organization's security at all times.

    Fortinet FortiAuthenticator is available as an appliance, virtual machine, or in the cloud.

    Fortinet FortiAuthenticator Methods

    • FSSO: FortiAuthenticator Single sign-on user will easily identify users and assign role or group access based on preset identity-based protocols. FortiAuthenticator integrates well with third-party LDAP or active directories, is very flexible, and combines these methods to provide effective security.

    • Active Directory Polling: Active directory access is securely identified by consistent polling of domain controllers. As users log in, username, IP address, and other details are logged into the database and can be shared across devices as directed by FortiAuthenticator protocols.

    • FortiAuthenticator Portal and Widgets: If a user system does not support AP polling, or for other reasons it is not feasible, FortiAuthenticator offers a unique secure authentication portal. Users can be manually authenticated and, to diminish the effect of numerous logins, an intuitive set of widgets is available to integrate into an organization's ecosystem that will automatically grant access to users when they access the organization's intranet homepage.

    • RADIUS Accounting Login: For organizations that use RADIUS authentication, RADIUS Accounting is available for user identification. This process will prompt user access information (IP and group, etc.) and eliminate the need for multiple levels of authentication.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Ernesto C., Presales Engineer at a comms service provider, shares,

    ”Key Features and Benefits

    1. Two-factor/OTP Authentication with FortiToken: Enforce user-based policies. Fortitoken is available in soft and hard versions for flexible usage. Most Valuable in Mobile Phones App for OTP.
    2. Integration with LDAP and AD: This solution integrates with existing enterprise systems and technologies from diverse vendors of user information management systems.
    3. LPAD/AD/RADIUS/SYSLOG/KERBEROS/REST API/FSSO and Web Portals: There is flexible integration with these services.
    4. It is usable in network, WAN, wireless, and VPN Scenarios.
    5. The domain and guest-users support are good.”

    Ibrahim M., Senior Network & Security Engineer at a tech services company, relates, "The initial setup is a valuable point on Fortinet products. Most of the time, putting the theory into practice on the devices is quite friendly and straightforward. As long as you can read English you can find your way around the solution and make it work. This is a high value point on Fortinet - the way everything is laid out in the web UI is user-friendly and quite straightforward. The UI is quite simple."




    Symantec VIP Access Manager is the next generation control platform that integrates Single Sign-On (SSO) with strong authentication, access control, and user management. It offers users and administrators control, convenience, and compliance for public and private cloud- based applications. Symantec VIP Access Manager solves cloud security problems using identity and/or context-based access control across multiple cloud applications. In the cloud, where a traditional enterprise perimeter doesn't exist, this solution fills the gap. Through Symantec VIP Access Manager, administrators can define policies that utilize the built-in user directory or existing identity management infrastructure to enforce security and compliance for applications without getting in the way of productivity. Symantec VIP Access Manager can also protect and consolidate access management for on-premise web applications. It also simplifies compliance auditing for cloud applications by consolidating logs across all applications it protects.

    Sample Customers
    Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
    Maine Medical Center, Aria S.p.A
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company29%
    Comms Service Provider13%
    Healthcare Company8%
    Transportation Company4%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company20%
    Comms Service Provider10%
    Government8%
    Financial Services Firm7%
    REVIEWERS
    Real Estate/Law Firm11%
    Hospitality Company11%
    Transportation Company11%
    Healthcare Company11%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Financial Services Firm18%
    Computer Software Company13%
    Healthcare Company12%
    Government8%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business56%
    Midsize Enterprise27%
    Large Enterprise17%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business30%
    Midsize Enterprise19%
    Large Enterprise51%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business25%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise63%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise11%
    Large Enterprise69%
    Buyer's Guide
    Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs. Symantec VIP Access Manager
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs. Symantec VIP Access Manager and other solutions. Updated: March 2024.
    765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Fortinet FortiAuthenticator is ranked 3rd in Authentication Systems with 50 reviews while Symantec VIP Access Manager is ranked 15th in Authentication Systems with 15 reviews. Fortinet FortiAuthenticator is rated 8.0, while Symantec VIP Access Manager is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of Fortinet FortiAuthenticator writes "A reasonably priced solution that can be scaled toward different functionalities and offers flexible SMS messaging". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Symantec VIP Access Manager writes "With its mobile application, this tool offers a convenient and user-friendly experience to its users". Fortinet FortiAuthenticator is most compared with Cisco ISE (Identity Services Engine), Fortinet FortiToken, Microsoft Entra ID, Fortinet FortiNAC and Cisco Duo, whereas Symantec VIP Access Manager is most compared with Microsoft Entra ID, Check Point Remote Access VPN, Yubico YubiKey and RSA SecurID Access. See our Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs. Symantec VIP Access Manager report.

    See our list of best Authentication Systems vendors.

    We monitor all Authentication Systems reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.