Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks Reviews

I have been working with Prisma Access since 2019. We have a service reminder for some of our customers. Our usual cases involve the integration of end-user computing solutions with GlobalProtect VPN services, managing private access applications, SaaS, and cloud networks such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud Platform, using Prisma Access.

The most valuable features are ZTNA 2.0, CASB, Threat Prevention, and Autonomous Digital Experience Management (ADAM). These features are security-driven, providing robust protection against increasing cyber threats by integrating NG Firewalls, SD WAN, and CASB, all within a fully cloud-native solution. This enables easy integration with both legacy and modern platforms, allowing enhanced leverage and scalability.

We are an on-premises company at the moment, so we use GlobalProtect. Our firewalls are hosted in our on-premises data centers and offices. We have been using this solution for years and are exploring options like Prisma Access and Azure VPN to enhance security and support for remote workers.

GlobalProtect has been beneficial for its cloud security capabilities, which are vital as businesses seek hybrid options and need to support remote workers while addressing latency issues. By establishing regional hubs in the cloud, we benefit from good backbone services provided by cloud providers like Prisma Access or Azure, which enhances performance.

We are using Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks for networking and firewall solutions. The most common tasks I perform include modifying rules and traffic, and blocking indicators of compromise. We are not utilizing Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks to facilitate remote work in our organization.

The ThreatVault, which is the database of indicators of compromise from Palo Alto, is very useful, and that is probably the best feature I have worked with in Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks.

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks makes our life easier because the firewall solution we had before was totally outdated and performing poorly. This solution has completely transformed our operations.

Our primary use case for Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks is to control the internet and serve as an internet proxy. Additionally, we use it for secure remote work.

One of the most valuable features of Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks is the ability to manage on-premise firewalls. We can push policies directly from Prisma Access to FortiGate, which makes managing our on-premise firewall easier and more efficient.

We are an integrator. We are providing the services to a partner of Palo Alto. We are using Prisma Access, Cortex XDR, and Cortex Data Lake.

We are using two kinds of services for security: one is Zscaler and the other one is Prisma Access. For Internet security, we are using Zscaler, and for SaaS applications security, we are using Prisma Access. 

By implementing Prisma Access, we wanted to secure the traffic for SaaS applications such as Office 365. We had SaaS application traffic that was already bypassed, but because it was UDP traffic, it was still going to the Internet. There were some internal customer applications over the cloud, and we wanted to secure the content of those applications over the cloud. That is why we are using Prisma Access.

Prisma Access provides comprehensive security. It provides URL filtering, application control, SSL, DLP, etc. It provides complete security for the cloud environment.

We are using IPSec. If you compare it with Zscaler, there is no limit for IPSec bandwidth or throughput. Zscaler provides only 400 Mbps, whereas, with Prisma Access, we are not facing any such issues. We are getting unlimited bandwidth for IPSec. This is one of the main benefits when it comes to the cloud because sometimes the backplane could be very high. In such cases, Prisma Access is very helpful for us.

For our data at rest, which is our data stored in the cloud, we are using the CASB properties of Prisma Access. It provides security to our data at rest.

The way the product is designed is good. It does not take much time to identify a problem and what is going on because we have zone-based and site-based configurations. Whenever we have something coming from users, we get reported about the issue. It is very easy to troubleshoot. With the integration of Prisma Access with Cortex XDR, we can easily identify what is going on.

The logs that Prisma Access provides are also very detailed, so it is very easy to identify the issue and the root cause for resolution. Once you have identified the issue, the solution does not take much time.

We have a centralized dashboard. In the same dashboard, they have integrated multiple parts, such as Cortex Data Lake, GlobalProtect, and Prisma Access for Internet security or cybersecurity as well. There is a single dashboard integrated with different tools. It provides comprehensive security and is easy to manage.

In our infrastructure, we are getting 200 to 300 alerts on a daily basis. We get alerts about all kinds of issues, such as when the tunnel is fluctuating, reports are not getting generated, or there is some compliance issue in configuration. The alerting part is very good in Prisma Access. We get alerts instantly whenever there is a fluctuation. We, as administrators, look into them and resolve them on a priority basis.

These alerts reduce the resolution time and provide insights to proactively resolve an issue. This is a very helpful part of Prisma Access, but this capability is there in every product these days.

We have about 2,000 users, and everybody started working from home when COVID hit, so they needed to use Prisma Access to do their work securely. They told us that this was the best thing we'd ever used. Employees said Prisma was a lot better than Juniper and the previous mode access solution we had. 

We implemented it so that it's always on. A user doesn't need to do anything. It connects. Whether you're home or at the office, it cranks up, and you don't have to do anything.

The always-on feature is fantastic for the users. They don't have to think about it. When they go to a coffee shop to do work, there's no need to remember to toggle the VPN on. We'll protect them. URL filtering is the same at home as it is in the office. We can apply policies for URLs wherever our employees work. We see all their traffic and log everything they do as if they were in the office. 

When COVID hit, we suddenly had 2,000 users that all needed to use a VPN solution. We had to abandon our previous VPN solution because Pulse couldn't accommodate such a large volume of users at one time. We stood up this cloud environment and switched everybody over to the Palo Alto Prisma Access, GlobalConnect, and GlobalProtect.

The user experience was so much better. Our executives were impressed. We got many compliments. Our senior team tends to worry about security, but they didn't need to fret over our VPN. 

We use the solution for client-based VPN remote access.

The solution's most valuable features were the model's reduced complexity on the client side and its capability to provide security.

During the COVID times, the firewalls that were the on-prem gateways couldn't handle SSL decryption and VPNs. After everyone started working from home, the company faced the issue of not having enough firewalls for gateway and SSL decryption services. That's why we started using Prisma Access.

I used version 2.2 while working last with it two or three months ago. In terms of deployment, it was a Prisma Access hybrid solution with Panorama where we had firewalls and Prisma Access. It was not cloud-native Prisma Access with only cloud-based aspects.

We started using Prisma Access after everyone started working from home during COVID. Its auto-scaling feature was helpful for our organization. Prisma Access could scale depending on how many users were working from home. When we had additional users, unlike on-prem firewalls, we didn't have to worry about CPU and other things. It was also cheaper than on-prem firewalls because to handle a large number of users working from home, in the case of on-prem firewalls, we would've had to buy big firewalls. 

With Prisma Access, there is auto-scaling. When there are fewer mobile users, there are fewer Prisma Access gateways, and when there are more mobile users, more mobile gateways are created automatically. For example, if you have a company with 10,000 people, you should be able to handle the VPN traffic of 10,000 people and SSL decryption of that traffic. So, you need to buy a big on-prem solution. After COVID, even when people start working from the office, you would need the biggest firewall to be prepared for the future. 

Nowadays, most companies have started allowing employees to work from home. Most people don't want to return to the office. In many companies, many people are still working from home. Even in such a scenario, companies are expected to have a solution that provides flexibility for the workforce to work from home. 

We were able to use Prisma Access as a VPN solution. We used it as a proxy, and all the traffic was going through it. We wanted the same capability as an on-prem VPN. It was nice to be able to VPN all the traffic that we wanted. We were able to secure what we wanted to secure.