IBM Security Guardium Data Protection vs McAfee Vulnerability Manager for Databases [EOL] comparison

IBM and McAfee are both solutions in the Database Security category. Additionally, 86% of IBM users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of McAfee users who would recommend it.

IBM Security Guardium Data ...

Read 80 IBM Security Guardium Data Protection reviews

4,973 Views
4,128 Comparison Views

86% willing to recommend

McAfee Vulnerability Manage...

Read 3 McAfee Vulnerability Manager for Databases [EOL] reviews

100% willing to recommend

IBM Security Guardium Data ...

McAfee Vulnerability Manage...

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between IBM Security Guardium Data Protection and McAfee Vulnerability Manager for Databases [EOL] based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about IBM, Imperva, Oracle and others in Database Security.

To learn more, read our detailed Database Security Report (Updated: January 2026).

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Database Security

January 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

IBM Security Guardium Data ...

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Database Security (1st)

McAfee Vulnerability Manage...

Average Rating

7.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Featured Reviews

David Plazer

Chief Executive Officer at Kipustec

Ensures data security and compliance with reliable alerts and protections

The manuals should be clearer. There needs to be an online course or tutorial for faster management training. The maintenance was slightly complicated. I had to read the manuals carefully and even failed the Guardium certification exam due to insufficient information or time. Improving the tool learning process would be beneficial.

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Wahidur Rahman

Senior Executive Officer at United Commercial Bank Limited

The solution's activity monitoring is valuable, but it should have more integrations and updates overall

Our primary use case for this solution is activity, authentication, and scans for audit purposes and priority assessments The feature I have found most valuable is activity monitoring. McAfee has not had many legacy features. They are not updating their value adjustment.In the next feature, I'd…

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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

"Setting up Guardium was easy and straightforward."

"Ability to define reports based on SQL query, especially when you have complex report criteria."

"I like the reporting mechanism. It's very good."

"It supports our audit compliance."

"Audit Process Builder – Workflow generator to enhance audit tasks and compliance workflows."

"It can help with PCI compliance. It includes features like data masking, especially during queries, which supports compliance efforts."

"The reporting side is also very, very good, especially its flexibility which allows you to tailor the reports to whatever information you want."

"Has a great Big Data Intelligence feature."

More IBM Security Guardium Data Protection pros

"The support is very good. They are very quick to respond when we have issues."

"The feature I have found most valuable is activity monitoring."

"The technical support is good; they are knowledgeable."

Cons

"I would like to see streamlining of some of the agent features, some of the patches; make it a little bit more user-friendly on the documentation."

"I would like to be able to upgrade appliances within major versions without needing to rebuild the appliance."

"Guardium could be improved in the area of data encryption."

"We have had some issues with patches breaking things unexpectedly in our environments."

"Initial setup is very complex. Once you start interacting with people's databases, they get very hesitant. Then, the amount of social tasks to socialize the solution ensuring people are comfortable with it became a much heavier lift."

"An improvement would be to make the pricing relative in terms of regions."

"They could enable the out-of-the-box feature to track application user activity."

"The installation should be a bit easier."

More IBM Security Guardium Data Protection cons

"In the next feature, I'd like to see more integrations and updates overall, specifically bottom tech."

"Technical support could be more responsive."

"The UI needs to be improved."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Its cost is good. With the new metric of licensing, such as PDO not being available now, customers are expecting a good price for the solution."

"The price is good for the quality of the solution."

"The product's pricing is reasonable and affordable. It is in the moderate range."

"It is a very costly product."

"The tool is not cheap, but it is not expensive."

"We haven't talked much about pricing and licencing. But it is not cheap for sure"

"The biggest challenge is the cost associated with the product, and the cost of maintaining. Everything is not translated directly to the benefits we see. There are benefits, yes, but if I were writing the check, would I buy Guardium? No."

"The price of Guardium is higher than the main competitor, Imperva. In addition, it's complex as the calculation of the licensing is done by Processor Value Unit (PVU). However, before purchasing a DAP solution, it is important to analyze specific points to evaluate the cost-benefit of each tool. For example: Does the environment to be monitored have mainframes? If so, it's a point for Guardium. If not, a point for Imperva. Note: IBM is looking into a new licensing policy and reducing the price of Guardium."

More IBM Security Guardium Data Protection pricing and cost advice

"It's not expensive compared to other products that are available."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

26%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Insurance Company

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	28
Midsize Enterprise	17
Large Enterprise	44

No data available

Questions from the Community

How does IBM Guardium Data Protection compare with Imperva SecureSphere Database Security?

IBM Security Guardium Data Protection is a solution for database security from IBM that gives complete visibility, control, and analysis to secure sensitive data and comply with regulations. IBM S...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Guardium Data Protection?

I don't remember the exact prices, but Guardium is an expensive tool because it is targeted towards corporate enterprises.

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What do you like most about IBM Security Guardium Data Protection?

The features I like are the robust policies, which allow us to create customized monitoring based on specific activities.

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Comparisons

Imperva Data Security Fabric vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 54% of the time

Oracle Audit Vault vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 14% of the time

DataSunrise Database Security vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 5% of the time

Oracle Database Vault vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 3% of the time

IBM InfoSphere Optim Data Privacy vs IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

Compared 3% of the time

More IBM Security Guardium Data Protection Competitors

No data available

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IBM Security Guardium Data Protection

January 2026

IBM Security Guardium Data Protection report

Download IBM Security Guardium Data Protection product report

Buyer's Guide

Database Security

January 2026

McAfee Vulnerability Manager for Databases [EOL] report

Download McAfee Vulnerability Manager for Databases [EOL] product report

Also Known As

InfoSphere Guardium, Guardium, IBM Guardium

No data available

Overview

IBM Security Guardium Data Protection offers automatic discovery and classification of sensitive data, real-time monitoring, and advanced analytics to identify unusual activities around data.

IBM Security Guardium Data Protection is designed to safeguard sensitive data across enterprises with real-time activity monitoring and comprehensive security features. Its capabilities include data discovery, classification, and compliance automation with pre-built templates for regulations like PCI, SOX, HIPAA, and CCPA. Supporting a variety of platforms, it facilitates seamless monitoring, making it a valuable asset for diverse environments in maintaining data security and compliance.

What are the key features?

Real-Time Monitoring: Provides alerts for unauthorized activities.
Data Masking: Protects data through masking techniques.
Access Control: Ensures only authorized users gain access.
Query Rewriting: Alters queries to maintain data integrity.
Platform Support: Monitors across multiple environments.

Why consider this for ROI?

Ease of Deployment: Simplifies the setup process for enterprises.
Robust Reporting: Enhances transparency through detailed audit trails.
Compliance Automation: Streamlines compliance with regulatory requirements.
Risk Management: Identifies and mitigates potential risks efficiently.

Industries like banking and finance utilize IBM Security Guardium Data Protection to enhance database security and compliance efforts. Enterprises employ it to detect incidents and manage vulnerabilities, focusing on protecting customer data and maintaining privacy standards. The technology aids in incident detection and supports adherence to security regulations.

IBM

McAfee Vulnerability Manager for Databases automatically discovers databases on your network, determines if the latest patches have been applied, and tests for common weaknesses.

Find out what your peers are saying about IBM, Imperva, Oracle and others in Database Security. Updated: January 2026.

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