Security Onion vs Sophos Central comparison

Security Onion Solutions, LLC and Sophos are both solutions in the AWS Marketplace category. Security Onion Solutions, LLC is ranked #5 with an average rating of 7.7, while Sophos is ranked #8 with an average rating of 8.3. Security Onion Solutions, LLC holds a 1.2% mindshare in AWSM, compared to Sophos’s 0.3% mindshare. Additionally, 66% of Security Onion Solutions, LLC users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 94% of Sophos users who would recommend it.

Security Onion

Read 3 Security Onion reviews

829 Views
722 Comparison Views

66% willing to recommend

Sophos Central

Read 38 Sophos Central reviews

340 Views
122 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

Security Onion

Sophos Central

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Security Onion and Sophos Central based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two AWS Marketplace solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Security Onion vs. Sophos Central Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Security Onion vs. Sophos Central

April 2025

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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

Security Onion

Ranking in AWS Marketplace

5th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

5.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Log Management (18th)

Sophos Central

Ranking in AWS Marketplace

8th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

8.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the AWS Marketplace category, the mindshare of Security Onion is 1.2%, down from 6.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Central is 0.3%, down from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

AWS Marketplace

Featured Reviews

Jörg Kippe

Scientist at a educational organization with 10,001+ employees

A mature and affordable solution that is easy to install and easy to update

The product takes time to learn, it's not that easy. In the beginning we had a lot of questions. If you want to use such a tool in an real (industrial) environment, you have to ask how to get the network data. Can we do a full packet capture? Can we provide agents to our end systems? There are no simple solutions to these questions. It's a general problem when running such systems in an industrial environment.

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Sandeepraj Gatla

SOC Analyst at Wydur

Cost-effective security management with a user-friendly interface, efficient resource utilization, and rapid response capabilities

While Sophos Central has demonstrated commendable functionality, there is room for improvement in the realm of automation. Specifically, addressing ransomware attacks often requires leveraging external tools, deploying virtual machines, and utilizing supplementary tools like Caliper Analytics for operations and security communication. The integration of these essential functionalities directly into the software would represent a significant enhancement, streamlining the incident response process and bolstering the platform's comprehensive threat mitigation capabilities. Furthermore, a valuable addition to future releases could involve augmenting the new screen component with advanced capabilities such as XML utilization and rule integration. This enhancement, especially pertinent to tools involved in sandboxing and virtual machines within the investigation process, would greatly streamline the analysis of logs and reports. This would prove particularly beneficial in the context of email analysis, spam attack detection, and other critical security aspects. By incorporating these features, Sophos Central could further elevate its utility in facilitating in-depth security analyses and response strategies.

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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

"The most valuable feature of Security Onion for security monitoring is its ability to find infected ports."

"We use Security Onion for internal vulnerability assessment."

"Security Onion is the most mature solution in the market."

"The primary benefits include complete control over hardware devices and the valuable assistance provided in log shipment."

"The solution's most valuable feature is the ease with which admins can monitor and troubleshoot issues related to any emails coming into our environment with malware or viruses."

"Sophos Central provides reports on downloads. It alerts the admin when users use their personal computers. The product is also flexible."

"The interface, especially when using the software center, is quite user-friendly and easy to navigate."

"One of the most valuable features of Sophos Central is its Synchronized Security."

"The user interface of Sophos Central is excellent. One standout feature is the ease of identifying endpoints. Another noteworthy aspect is the real-time visibility into malware threats. The solution is stable. I contacted the support team two or three times, and they responded promptly each time. They addressed my queries and concerns quickly. The initial setup was straightforward."

"It is very useful to deploy policies centrally and monitor the status of our appliances, especially given that we are the main branches. With Sophos Central, you can centrally manage and deploy security policies and updates, saving time and eliminating the need for the technical team to travel to each branch individually."

"The standout feature is its focus on indexing, primarily designed for managing reports and logs from 500 to 1,000 endpoints, including Windows 10 hosts within the network."

More Sophos Central pros

Cons

"Security Onion's user interface could be improved."

"The initial setup of the solution is a little bit difficult."

"The product is not easy to learn."

"Additionally, Sophos Central can be resource-intensive, demanding servers with a minimum of eight gigabytes of RAM, which may pose considerations for larger organizations dealing with legacy applications tied to specific OS and hardware configurations."

"It's not well-marketed, so many customers don't know about this feature."

"Pushing global rules and policies to all devices from Central isn't easy. You can do it for all endpoints, which is fine. But you can't do the same with firewalls. Firewall management with Central is very limited. You can connect one firewall to another and tell it, "I want one policy for all my customer's firewalls," but that's not possible. For a customer with multiple firewalls, you can't say, "This works for France, Great Britain, Canada," and push it. It's not possible."

"The tamper protection password is an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required."

"Improving the response time of the customer support team would be beneficial."

"The product's firewall servers and dashboard need improvement."

"Vulnerability protection and monitoring any changes are crucial aspects that require attention."

"The initial setup was moderately straightforward, around six or seven out of ten on the complexity scale. While it wasn't overly complicated, the multifactor authentication posed a challenge initially."

More Sophos Central cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Security Onion is a free solution."

"Security Onion is an open-source solution."

"It is an open-source solution."

"The pricing of Sophos is quite reasonable and generally cheaper compared to competitors like Fortinet and Check Point."

"The product's pricing was somewhat high. We paid Rs. 1500 INR per license, approximately equivalent to 20 USD."

"It is an expensive tool."

"The price is reasonable."

"Sophos Central is moderately priced."

"The product is not expensive."

"It's not considered a cheap solution and falls more in the moderate pricing category."

"The pricing is highly affordable, with no additional costs."

More Sophos Central pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

University

12%

Computer Software Company

11%

Government

11%

Comms Service Provider

11%

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Security Onion?

The most valuable feature of Security Onion for security monitoring is its ability to find infected ports.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Security Onion?

Security Onion is an open-source solution. On a scale from one to ten, where ten is expensive and one is cheap, I rate the solution's pricing a six out of ten.

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What needs improvement with Security Onion?

The initial setup of the solution is a little bit difficult.

See all answers

What do you like most about Sophos Central?

One of the significant advantages of Sophos is its affordability compared to other technologies like Check Point and Fortinet.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos Central?

The product has a reasonable price considering the cybersecurity services it offers.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Sophos Central?

The firewall capabilities of Sophos Central need improvement. I have found it somewhat limited, and I prefer to work directly on the device for firewall management.

See all answers

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Log Management

April 2025

Download Security Onion product report

Buyer's Guide

Sophos Central

April 2025

Download Sophos Central product report

Overview

Security Onion is an open-source Linux distribution for intrusion detection, network security monitoring, and log management. It offers comprehensive solutions for enterprises seeking to enhance their cybersecurity infrastructure.

Security Onion provides a full suite of tools to detect and respond to cybersecurity threats efficiently. As a robust and versatile distribution, it includes capabilities for real-time analysis, network visibility, and threat detection, making it indispensable for security operations centers. Users value this tool for its integration of open-source software with advanced analytics, affording professionals a detailed overview of network traffic and potential intrusions.

What are Security Onion’s most important features?

Intrusion Detection: Utilizes Suricata or Zeek for effective threat monitoring.
Network Security Monitoring: Offers powerful visualization tools for network analysis.
Log Management: Centralizes log collection and analysis.
Comprehensive Dashboards: Provides integrated dashboards for threat visibility.

What benefits or ROI should you look for in reviews?

Cost Efficiency: Reduced cybersecurity costs due to its open-source nature.
Improved Threat Detection: Enhanced ability to identify and respond to threats quickly.
Integration Capability: Seamless integration with existing security infrastructures.
Scalability: Support for scaling network security operations as needed.

Security Onion finds extensive application in industries such as finance, healthcare, and government sectors, where robust network monitoring is critical. Its ability to integrate with existing security tools makes it a preferred choice for organizations looking to strengthen their cybersecurity posture.

Security Onion Solutions, LLC

Sophos Central allows you to manage our award-winning Synchronized Security platform. Advanced attacks are more coordinated than ever before. Now, your defenses are too. Our revolutionary Security Heartbeat™ ensures your endpoint protection and firewall are talking to each other. It’s a simple yet effective idea that means you get better protection against advanced threats and spend less time responding to incidents. It’s so simple, it makes you wonder why nobody did it before.

Sophos

Buyer's Guide

Security Onion vs. Sophos Central

April 2025

Free Report: Security Onion vs. Sophos Central

Find out what your peers are saying about Security Onion vs. Sophos Central and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.

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