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Ping Identity Platform vs Symantec Advanced Authentication comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Ping Identity Platform
Ranking in Authentication Systems
7th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (6th), Data Governance (11th), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (5th), Access Management (6th), Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) (3rd), Directory Servers (1st)
Symantec Advanced Authentic...
Ranking in Authentication Systems
23rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
8.7
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of Ping Identity Platform is 3.2%, down from 3.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Symantec Advanced Authentication is 1.5%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Authentication Systems Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Ping Identity Platform3.2%
Symantec Advanced Authentication1.5%
Other95.3%
Authentication Systems
 

Featured Reviews

AmitRathod - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Analyst at Toll Holdings Limited
Single sign-on has simplified access while adaptive authentication protects complex user journeys
Regarding areas for improvement in Ping Identity Platform, there is not much. In terms of licensing and implementation costs, it has premium pricing, and it has a very complex implementation. It provides greater feasibility, but it takes a very long time in terms of complete building. There is a very limited number of legacy support, which can pose potential difficulties in integrating with certain older or legacy systems. Additionally, issue troubleshooting can be difficult at times. Sometimes issues can be difficult to diagnose and require extensive technical expertise. There is also a very steep learning curve for administrative purposes and potential difficulties with offline authentication scenarios.
Umair (Abu Mohaymin) Akhlaque - PeerSpot reviewer
Group CEO at Flexsolutions
Ensures robust security features and ease of deployment, although it may lack some of the more modern authentication options
There has been a need for aggressive development to modernize the product and align it with contemporary security requirements. While the rebranding has been a step forward, further enhancements are essential to meet the evolving demands of the market. It lacks features such as ActiveSync Exchange security, and it doesn't offer alternatives like password-less authentication via biometrics or patches. While Symantec mainly relies on traditional token-based or password-based methods, newer authentication methods are missing from its repertoire. Support services often lack promptness and depth of knowledge, leaving customers waiting for weeks to resolve issues. In the realm of multifactor authentication, swift resolution of problems is critical, as any slowdown or interruption can significantly impact operations. Urgent improvement is necessary to ensure that support responses are faster and more effective, aligning with the demands of MFA implementation.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We use the product to run different reports."
"Setting up the infrastructure with Ping Identity Platform is very easy compared to other IAM products."
"PingFederate gives you granular control over the settings. There are many options for fine-tuning policies."
"PingFederate is a good product but there are limitations."
"Personally, I appreciate Identity Orchestration the most about Ping Identity Platform, as with a simple drag-and-drop interface and the correct options we can build a complex and personalized process very efficiently and effectively for registration, login, and profile management."
"I like the self-service feature. The 502 and UBP systems are also excellent. PingID's ability to authenticate with SSH, RDP, and Windows login is pretty handy. It covers the entire spectrum of use."
"It gets a mobility portal in place in conjunction with Office 365. It provides very good possibilities and it's much better than other technology that we have used before which was unstable and slower."
"It is a stable solution. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"One of the most valuable features of this solution is that it's a strong authentication solution that's able to integrate with applications."
"One of the most valuable aspects is its remarkable stability."
"CA products are the best fit with our backend systems."
"It tells us exactly what we want in terms of authentication to various applications and provides protection for users who access them."
"It actually increases our revenue and the customer base."
"Being able to issue a soft token, but still having fairly strong security, is a big factor for us."
"Symantec Advanced Authentication can be useful for wherever you require a strong authentication."
"The most valuable feature is that we get a wide range of authentication methods and authentication integrators, so different platforms can get service authentication with transparency to the final user while providing strong authentication forms and connectors."
 

Cons

"The product's community has certain shortcomings that require improvement."
"I think that the connection with like Microsoft Word, especially for Office 365, is a weak point that could be improved."
"They should promote more buyer's authentification, like a fingerprint or face recognition, something that's more convenient."
"It has a long way to go until it is a cloud-based solution."
"Sometimes, there are issues with its stability."
"If the solution is going to compete with Microsoft, they need to offer more unique functionality to keep their current user base."
"Many times when we are authenticating, we'd like the freedom to set the time; maybe it needs to be slightly longer, and before we can authenticate it, it ends up in an error and then we have to create everything all over again in terms of launching the application."
"One significant challenge was ensuring smooth user migration during system upgrades in Ping."
"We have seen quite a few issues with bugginess. It is indeed pretty buggy and we have had to install some fixes."
"The initial setup of the tenant is a big cost element of the service and we were doing multiple tenants for our customer."
"It needs faster implementation on the cloud for our customers."
"Symantec has very bad support, so I have no words for it. It's one of the worst support experiences I've ever had."
"Arcot itself is based on a browser technology. This means that the office ID is effectively stored as a cookie in the browser."
"Sometimes getting this set up does take a bit longer. It's not always install, next, next, next, finish."
"Advanced Authentication talks about the Device ID. But how the device ID is captured, I want to know more about that."
"They definitely need to automate a few processes like the Wiley process."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Ping offers flexible pricing that's not standardized."
"Ping Identity Platform is not an expensive solution."
"The platform's value justifies the pricing, especially considering its security features and scalability."
"Ping Identity Platform is not very expensive."
"The product is costly."
"PingID pricing is a ten out of ten because it's a little bit cheaper than other tools, such as Okta and ForgeRock, and supports multiple tools."
"The pricing is neither too expensive nor too cheap."
"PingID's pricing is pretty competitive."
"The price is reasonable."
"There are eventually going to be implementation costs. Sometimes you're required to have custom code developments there, so that has to be part of the implementation price."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
21%
Retailer
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
23%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Construction Company
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise21
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business2
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for PingFederate?
The product is affordable and starts at 20,000 dollars/year, depending upon the license and maintenance requirement. It makes our work easier and saves a lot of time.
What do you like most about PingAccess?
PingFederate is very flexible. We can do many customizations, and it also provides an SDK to tailor it to our specific requirements. There are also numerous plugins available. I've worked with tool...
What needs improvement with PingAccess?
From the improvement perspective, they could bring IGA capability, which right now they only have in their SaaS offering. Other than that, Ping Identity Platform has multiple products for access ma...
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Also Known As

Ping Identity (ID), PingFederate, PingAccess, PingOne, PingDataGovernance, PingDirectory, OpenDJ
CA Advanced Authentication, CA Strong Authentication, CA Risk Authentication, Arcot WebFort, Arcot RiskFort
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Equinix, Land O'Lakes, CDPHP, Box, International SOS, Opower, VSP, Chevron, Truist, Academy of Art University, Northern Air Cargo, Repsol
Global bank, Large Filipino Bank and SK Infosec
Find out what your peers are saying about Ping Identity Platform vs. Symantec Advanced Authentication and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.