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IBM Security Secret Server vs One Identity Safeguard comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 6, 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

IBM Security Secret Server
Ranking in Privileged Access Management (PAM)
28th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
One Identity Safeguard
Ranking in Privileged Access Management (PAM)
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
52
Ranking in other categories
User Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) (6th), Non-Human Identity Management (NHIM) (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Privileged Access Management (PAM) category, the mindshare of IBM Security Secret Server is 1.2%, down from 1.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of One Identity Safeguard is 3.7%, down from 4.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Privileged Access Management (PAM) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
One Identity Safeguard3.7%
IBM Security Secret Server1.2%
Other95.1%
Privileged Access Management (PAM)
 

Featured Reviews

AsifIqbal - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Information Security Officer at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Easy to set up and manage and has good scalability and stability, but its technical support team needs to be more aggressive in solving issues
What needs improvement in IBM Security Secret Server is support. The local partner provides good support, but IBM itself doesn't. Most of the time, the IBM support team does not aggressively resolve issues reported through chat or the IBM website. In the next version of IBM Security Secret Server, I want to see more lightweight recording, architecture, or infrastructure requirements. Currently, it's heavy, so I want it reduced to make adapting IBM Security Secret Server much more effortless.
SachinShelar - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager, Account Services Delivery at Softcell Technologies Limited
Privileged access has become centralized and streamlines multi-client audits and compliance
The best features we can highlight are privileged password vaulting and automatic password rotation, just-in-time privileged access, and session monitoring and recording. These features together stand out because they significantly reduce credential exposure, enforce least privilege access, and provide full auditing visibility across multiple client environments, as we are a service delivery and IT service delivery company with multiple customer environments and access. We rely most on just-in-time privileged access with credential vaulting. It is easy for the team to use day-to-day because access requests and approvals are streamlined and automated. Credentials are never exposed and sessions are automatically logged. After initial setup, adoption was smooth and it fit well into our existing operational workflows without adding stress to our operational team to adapt to the new technology. One Identity Safeguard has strengthened privileged access security across our multiple client environments. We have seen a reduction in shared credentials and unauthorized access. We have also seen faster approval for admin tasks and improved audit readiness. It has streamlined compliance reporting and reduced the operational risk of managing multiple client environments manually. Implementing this solution, we have reduced privileged account-related incidents by thirty percent. We have also cut manual password management time by nearly fifty to sixty percent. Just-in-time access has sped up admin task completion and improved our overall compliance reporting, allowing audits to be completed nearly half the time compared to earlier.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The live recording is a very useful feature."
"What I like best about IBM Security Secret Server is its single-access console. It's also easy to manage and fulfills the requirements with the least resistance."
"As a PAM solution, Secret Server performs all the use cases in our environment."
"Stability-wise, I think it is a very good solution."
"One of the most valuable features is scalability, and how it allows you to scale it without affecting the underlying core components."
"We use the solution’s Approval Anywhere feature which enables us to add an extra layer of security for critical passwords without adding time-consuming approval processes. By using this platform, if someone goes on a vacation, out of office, or needs urgent/planned leave, then our setup will select the functions tied to that person and automatically delegate them to the next person. That person can start performing that duty based on their access. No sharing of passwords is required."
"There is ease of implementation."
"We use the solution’s “transparent mode” feature for privileged sessions. It is very easy because it is only a simple configuration for our users. We don't have to modify our network. We install it, configure it, and it works. So, it is super easy. The rollout for our users is seamless."
"We deployed it into our company for controlling a client's behavior in our data center. It is very useful to control their connections, such as RDP."
"One of the most important aspects is that it is very easy to use and install. It is also agentless, so all of the operations happen more smoothly than any other product."
"The implementation time was quick. It was basically up and running within a week."
"I like that One Identity Safeguard lets you configure the maximum number of connections to the target, a configuration I didn't find in its competitor."
"The solution transparently integrates into the infrastructure and users do not notice it. I would give this feature the highest rating."
 

Cons

"It would be preferable if the full proxy was included in the IBM Security Secret Server."
"What needs improvement in IBM Security Secret Server is support. The local partner provides good support, but IBM itself doesn't. Most of the time, the IBM support team does not aggressively resolve issues reported through chat or the IBM website."
"The newer interface is more difficult to use than the previous one, and consequently, new users might need more training."
"The nonclustered index is working in an area with a problem that needs improvement."
"Secret Server should have the ability to discover privileged accounts in the servers, like the administrator or users, from SQL and Oracle without having to import a script."
"I find it complicated to implement HTTPS monitoring because the documentation is unclear."
"There is room for improvement in the launch module. They built in a launch button but they don't have effective instructions for configuring it to allow it to launch an RDP session. They're working on that, but the button is in the live product. If they were going to install something that wasn't useful, they should have just disabled it and not rolled it out with the product."
"One Identity Safeguard can improve by having more integration with multiple devices."
"We would like to be able to generate certificate signing requests (CSRs) from the interface for certificates."
"The interface is better now, but it still could be improved a lot. It needs more organization, menus, automatic refresh of information, and Web 2.0."
"The Transparent Mode could be somewhat easier to use."
"It needs more marketing."
"From a management point of view, it would be beneficial if One Identity Safeguard Privilege Password and One Identity Safeguard Privilege Session had a more similar interface."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price could be better. I think it's a good price for the on-premises environment and the high availability for enterprises the solution provides."
"My rating for the IBM Security Secret Server pricing is seven out of ten. It could be cheaper."
"I believe that we paid 35,000 or 40,000 US dollars for it."
"The full license is expensive but if you plan to use it in a big organization then it is the best option because it is more flexible."
"They offer a fair price for a robust solution."
"They have comparable pricing. All identity products are essentially priced in a similar way. It's a per-user base."
"It is a bit on the pricey side, but you get what you pay for. You don't want to get anything too cheap because then you get cheap stuff and cheap support. That really never helps anybody."
"We bought their other products, so it was not that expensive. It is one of those where the more you buy, the cheaper it is."
"One Identity Safeguard is expensive and the cost goes up as we scale."
"It is cheaper than CyberArk. Its price is fair."
"It was definitely cheaper than the other two products that we evaluated."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Performing Arts
12%
Insurance Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Computer Software Company
11%
University
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Large Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business29
Midsize Enterprise17
Large Enterprise19
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for One Identity Safeguard?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing has been a good experience overall, as the back and forth with One Identity is something that is acceptable; other tools have options to do thi...
What needs improvement with One Identity Safeguard?
One Identity Safeguard could be improved with a password manager and an identity manager as one big access management system. I believe improvements could be made around integrating with other tools.
What is your primary use case for One Identity Safeguard?
My main use case for One Identity Safeguard is using only one module for privileged session, which we use for admins and contractors. A quick specific example of how my team uses One Identity Safeg...
 

Also Known As

IBM Secret Server, Secret Server, IBM Security Privileged Identity Manager
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Cavium
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Security Secret Server vs. One Identity Safeguard and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.