Sophos Central Reviews

Our primary focus at this site is on enhancing security measures through the acquisition of a firewall. We are specifically addressing security needs at the moment, with other aspects being managed using existing solutions.

It is highly effective because it operates in real-time, swiftly detecting malware and viruses on both endpoints and firewalls. The synchronization between endpoint detection and firewall response is a key advantage. For instance, if malware is identified on an endpoint, the information is seamlessly synchronized and applied to the firewall, allowing for immediate group-level blocking. This integrated approach is immensely beneficial as it eliminates the need for separate management of endpoints and firewalls, streamlining our security operations.

There is considerable room for service improvement, especially based on a recent experience with the RMX. The device we requested took seven to ten days to be delivered, and the inconvenience continued as we had to travel over thirty kilometers to pick it up. The current service level is not as efficient as desired, but we acknowledge that it presents an area for improvement, particularly in terms of support concentration. Occasionally, the firewall seems to cause a complete traffic halt, even though the system indicates that traffic is flowing. To resolve this, we have to restart the Sophos firewall. It would be beneficial if Sophos could provide options for shorter-term licenses, such as one or two months, allowing for more adaptability in licensing and cost management.

I have been using it for three years.

The stability of the system has been a concern as we had to reboot Sophos in random scenarios. Instances of traffic getting stuck and load-balancing issues have been observed. It's worth noting that load-balancing is not automated in my current device; instead, I have to configure it manually.

I would rate its scalability abilities seven out of ten. 

The technical support provided is commendable, even though it might take some time. The support team demonstrates a high level of expertise and foundation, earning them a score of nine out of ten in terms of skill level.

Positive

In comparison to our previous use of CyberArk, the current system proves to be significantly better. CyberArk is excellent, especially in an enterprise context. While I won't make direct comparisons with other solutions like Tabidoo, FortiGate, or Cisco, FortiGate stands out as a strong and competitive option.

The initial setup was straightforward.

The deployment process may take more than three to four hours, but it's relatively straightforward. A single engineer should be able to configure the firewall model without encountering any issues.

Apart from the mentioned licensing issue, Sophos has proven to be a very effective and cost-saving solution. The dashboard provides a wealth of reports, including customer reports, at almost no additional cost. The integration between the endpoint and CyberArk through the support center has resulted in significant cost savings. The return on investment is impressive, especially considering the quick access to comprehensive reports on malware attacks and other issues within our virtual settings. It has provided substantial benefits and streamlined our operations effectively.

Sophos is more cost-effective than other vendors. However, we've encountered an issue regarding license flexibility. For our corporate offices and multiple sites across India, we sometimes need short-term licenses due to the nature of our projects. While purchasing a new firewall solution, we requested a license for the next two months, but Sophos only offers licenses for one or two years. This lack of flexibility can be a hindrance, especially when considering the cost implications.

Overall, I would rate it eight out of ten.

My role is to bridge the gap between customer needs and my team's technical expertise. We collaborate to design and implement solutions that fit their specific requirements.

We cater to a wide range of organizations, from large enterprises in banking to small and medium businesses, call centers, and warehouses. Essentially, any company registered in Pakistan that requires endpoint security, next-generation firewalls, or other cybersecurity solutions can consider us.

The ransomware protection is exceptional, offering a strong defense against outsider attacks and viruses. This has proven extremely valuable to customers facing ransomware threats.

One significant advantage is its competitive dashboard compared to Trend Micro. 

I did encounter a limitation during a Proof of Concept with a large customer. The DLP (Data Loss Prevention) functionality wasn't fully functional when enabled in the central dashboard. I reported this to the distributor and technical team but couldn't get a definitive answer.

In future releases, I would like to see a complete XDR solution in Sophos. I want to see its capability. I want to understand how it works compared to Trend Micro, specifically its features and how it gears up.

Moreover, integration options with Trend Micro would be ideal, too.

I've been with Sophos Central for about three and a half years now, so I've been exposed to Sophos Central through customer interactions and team collaborations.

We work with a range of solutions, including Sophos XDR, Endpoint Protection (both cloud and on-prem), and Central. Additionally, we've sold the XG Firewall in the past.

The stability is almost a ten out of ten. We haven't encountered any issues.

The solution has been very stable. 

I would rate the scalability a ten out of ten. It is very good in terms of scalability.

We have around seven to eight customers using this solution.  We have large enterprises and small to medium enterprises as our customers.

The OEM support is excellent, and the second-level distributors like SoftStack and Avan Distribution have the technical expertise. 

As a partner, we also have sales and after-sales teams with expertise in troubleshooting and resolving customer issues. 

Positive

Setting it up is easy. Compared to Kaspersky or Trend Micro, it's no more difficult. Sophos is user-friendly. 

I would rate my experience with the setup a nine out of ten; one is difficult, and ten is easy. It is very easy; there's always room for improvement.

We have both cloud and on-premises deployment models. The cloud is a bit expensive compared to the on-premises version. The deployment model depends on the customers. 

We actually operate as a cloud solution provider ourselves. We have a sister company called CloudKind, and we offer various cloud environments through our own data centers. We deploy HCI solutions and complete cloud solutions and even offer VM solutions for customers. They can get Infrastructure as a Service, Platform as a Service, Software as a Service, Disaster Recovery as a Service... everything comes from our cloud, not AWS or any other external provider.

I focus on commercial aspects like pitching features and convincing customers. Once we receive a confirmed order and payment, we send it to our distributor, EZ Technology, which handles license key distribution and activation over email. The post-sales team then takes over, working with the customer to configure and manage the deployment based on their specific needs and devices.

The deployment usually takes around three to four weeks. It's safe to say three to four weeks. It depends on our team's workload and the customer's availability. Since customers are running live applications, they usually provide us access outside their working hours, like after 6:00 P.M. or 8:00 PM. That's why deploying the DDR and Central dashboard solution takes three to four weeks.

I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten, with one being the cheapest and ten being the most expensive. It is rather expensive. 

Compared to Kaspersky's EDR and centralized solution, which offers more discounts, Sophos Central seems a bit more expensive. That's our observation so far.

I always tailor my advice to the customer's specific needs. If their top priority is protection against ransomware and ICS/IDH attacks, I recommend Sophos. 

For complex networks with a large threat landscape, Trend Micro's XDR solution might be a better fit. Ultimately, I analyze the customer's network and requirements before suggesting the most suitable solution. I don't favor any specific brand like Trend Micro, IBM, or Kaspersky.

Overall, I would rate the solution an eight out of ten.

Sophos Central provides a unified security platform that simplifies the management of our firewall, EDR, XDR, endpoint security, email security, and access points. The synchronized collaboration among these components ensures a cohesive defense against cyber threats through a streamlined, centralized console. This integrated approach not only enhances security but also simplifies administration.

Our clients have found significant advantages in using Sophos extensively. One key benefit is its efficient use of bandwidth, especially in medium-sized organizations. In the Bangladesh market, where enterprise solutions are common, Sophos stands out for being cost-effective.

What I find most valuable in Sophos Central is its clear and detailed threat visibility on the dashboard. Unlike some other security products, Sophos shows every threat it catches and it makes it stand out in my analysis. In my monthly reports, Sophos consistently outperforms others, especially in inspecting and handling threats. This transparency is a big plus, especially when managing clients.

I would like to see improvements in the password recovery process within the Sophos Central solution. Currently, the process of recovering a forgotten password involves unnecessary complexity, and it takes a considerable amount of time, often up to 15 minutes or more. This aspect doesn't seem to be a security feature but rather a system-related issue.

I have been working with Sophos Central for four years.

The solution is very stable. A while back, some clients got hit by ransomware, so I installed Sophos Central on over four hundred PCs, and there haven't been any more ransomware issues since then.

Sophos Central is quite scalable. 

The initial setup was incredibly easy, more than easy. There is zero task provision support, making the process smooth and straightforward. Deploying Sophos Central to a customer's side is straightforward. I create an account using the client's email on Sophos Partner Central, manage their chosen products, and configure everything to fit the needs of each department. It is generally a speedy deployment.

The pricing structure of Sophos is notably lower compared to other security vendors, making the ROI percentage higher for our clients.

Unlike pricier and less customer-friendly alternatives, Sophos provides a robust solution at a reasonable price.

Sophos Central is great for syncing security across different tools and works well with Azure Cloud. However, some competitors, like Palo Alto, don't have the same level of security sync in the cloud dashboard. Sophos might be the better choice for streamlined security.

My advice to new users would be to focus on Sophos XDR and EDR, as they have proven to be excellent products in my experience. While Sophos Central is not a standalone product, the XDR and EDR services offer robust cybersecurity solutions. However, I have encountered some issues with Sophos firewall, particularly related to firmware updates causing productivity disruptions. To avoid these challenges, I suggest prioritizing Sophos EDR, XDR, and MDR services, as they consistently deliver reliable performance in the Sophos portfolio. Overall, I would rate the solution as a seven out of ten.

Regarding use cases, our main focus with the solution is on endpoints and endpoint security. We've acquired around a hundred licenses and deployed them to our employees to ensure comprehensive security and avoid any potential security risks.

The user interface of Sophos Central is excellent. One standout feature is the ease of identifying endpoints. If you have the serial number, that's sufficient to fetch the relevant endpoint. For instance, if you want to identify devices with the solution, you can easily do so using the serial number. Another noteworthy aspect is the real-time visibility into malware threats. In the malware alerts, you can precisely see the issue, where it occurred, and the recommended actions for IT personnel. This real-time insight is incredibly valuable.

Integration with third party applications should be improved.

I used the solution for around three years but last used it in September 2022, about a year ago.

The solution is stable.

We have had 100 people using the solution in our organization.

I contacted them two or three times, and they responded promptly each time. They addressed my queries and concerns quickly.

Positive

The initial setup was straightforward.

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

Users can check out other solutions like CrowdStrike too.

We are a vendor. In the last company, we were a platinum partner of Sophos. So we provided services to other businesses, like corporate businesses or many businesses.

I have deployed it in many scenarios. Many customer days come to us, and they're migrating their services, like, services to Sophos, like the other firewall to Sophos. They deploy a new one. So we tried different scenarios, like an active firewall with central services, central with active-active firewall, and the support central endpoint services. There are so many scenarios.

Sophos Central is good. It's also free for all those firewalls because, from Sophos Central, we manage the firewalls and push the policies to the firewall. 

Also, we manage the Endpoint with the endpoint and firewall, with Sophos Central in view, monitoring all the policies, logs, and various features in the Sophos Central orchestration features. 

We can push templates to all the firewalls, and they are updated automatically with the Central. It syncs automatically, and all the firewalls appear in Sophos firewall in our environment. So we can manage all firewalls, push policies, log our endpoint to endpoints, and update endpoints. Also, see the protection policy and all the various features.

There are areas of improvement because there are license restrictions.

In future releases, I would like to see more awareness about this product. Most customers don't know about Sophos Central. Sometimes, I have to ask customers to use Sophos Central because they don't know it exists. 

It's not well-marketed, so many customers don't know about this feature. Many vendors use firewalls, but they don't use Sophos Central. For example, if you have five firewalls, the reporting limit might be reached. So, many customers don't know about Sophos Central, and I sometimes have to force them to use it.

The stability of Sophos Central is generally good. Sometimes, issues arise due to server distribution, particularly from my region in Pakistan. There are two data centers, which can cause browsing delays. Overall, most of the time, it functions well, but there are occasional lapses due to these data center issues. Overall, I would rate the stability as seven out of ten.

I've noticed regional difficulties, such as high latency from the vendor's server. Generally, it's about eighty percent effective, but there are times when it's problematic.

I would rate its scalability an eight out of ten. As a partner, we handle multiple scenarios. Sometimes it's hundreds of end users, sometimes thousands, and sometimes it's even more. The number of end users varies from time to time.

The support is good. Initially, they escalate issues through the L1 and L2 engines. Often, the first few emails or days can be less productive, but after that, the L2 team becomes more engaged. For partners, I suggest a different support channel, which should allow direct quality reporting.

Neutral

We worked with Kaspersky and other key solutions. Each has its strengths, but for robust security and support features, Sophos Central is preferable. I find its antivirus software and firewall solutions to be highly effective.

The initial setup is easy. It's very user-friendly. We can push policies through the GUI, like threat protection and file protection. Scanning protection begins with the GUI. It's no problem. 

But for deployment, it's difficult, just like deployment purposes. If you're going to deploy the endpoint, it is difficult to deploy the central. We can go through the systems or through the active directory or something, but there are no other features like this.

There's no need to deploy. It's on the cloud. We have to create an account and sync our antivirus. It takes about three to five minutes to sync.

The pricing is very competitive. When compared to other vendors like Fortinet, Sophos stands out, especially in terms of firewall and endpoint pricing. It's more affordable than other American brands, and while not as cheap as Chinese brands, the quality and pricing balance is excellent.

On a scale, I would rate it a ten out of ten.  I would emphasize the range of features like DLP, file label protection, and user policies that align with your organizational needs. Sophos Central offers comprehensive protection and a variety of policy-based solutions that are highly beneficial for any organization.

My clients have 120 firewalls. They are all on Sophos Central. The tool can be used for firewall management.

I appreciate the fact that all my firewalls are in Sophos Central. Some of our customers do not have public static IPs. They're on DHCP through service providers, and I can manage and monitor my firewalls through it. It makes my life a lot easier. The tool enables me to see the security of my customers’ PCs at a glance.

The product must be made a little bit quicker. It sometimes takes me up to three to five minutes just to log in and see my dashboard. Once we’re in, it’s alright. The initial login is time-consuming.

I have been using the solution for more than five years.

The tool is very, very stable. We have had no issues.

The tool is very, very scalable. Our customers are medium to enterprise-level businesses.

We had a small language barrier with the support staff. The call center is in India. They have great knowledge, but they have very heavy accents. A lot of times, we struggle to understand what they are saying. Normally, I ask them to put it in an email to me and do my research about everything.

Positive

I have worked with Symantec. Broadcom and Veritas bought it. However, none of these solutions are anywhere near Sophos. When I used Symantec, I struggled to log in to the enterprise console in the cloud. Symantec used cookies to authenticate my browser.

Once, the cookies were changed and were not updated on my side. So, I had to re-authenticate and run through the whole process again to find the latest version of the software and download it. I had to physically log a support call just for them to point me in the correct direction of where I could download the latest software. It became a very tedious and time-consuming operation every single time I had to do an update.

The solution is very easy to install. One person can install the product in about five minutes. When I deploy the tool, I copy the initial setup file onto my server. I go through all the PCs and click on the setup. Upgrades and version updates are automatic. I don't have to worry about anything. When there's an alert on my email, I log in to Sophos Central and do some checks.

The tool is a little more expensive than other solutions. However, we get more value for money from Sophos. We pay an annual license fee for the tool. The monthly licensing option is more expensive than the annual license.

I would recommend the solution to others. Anyone who wants to do a trial with Sophos can engage with the software support people. The team will help do a case study, which will help convince the management to choose the product. Overall, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.

I use the solution in my company as an EPP or an endpoint protection platform and for management purposes.

The solution's most valuable feature is that we use it predominantly for monitoring and anomaly detection. The tool also makes some recommendations regarding what action to take for those anomalies.

I will also have to check with my operational team to see what enhancements they want to see in the product.

The solution's performance drops at times because it is a SaaS-based tool, making it an area that requires improvement. Some customers have complained about the tool's slowness. When we click on certain menus, it gets really slow, and when my company reached out to Sophos's team, they said that this is normal behavior. Customers have always complained about the product's slowness.

I have been Sophos Central using for a year and a half.

I have not faced any stability issues with the product. Sometimes, the product gets slow.

It is a SaaS-based tool that can scale up quite easily without a problem.

My company deals with SMB-level customers who use the product.

The technical support for the solution is good, and they responded pretty quickly since our company has a good relationship with Sophos. At times, whenever we need some urgent support, we can push it to our own local contacts. I rate the technical support an eight out of ten.

Positive

It is difficult for me to compare Sophos Central with other solutions at the moment because we haven't worked much on other tools.

As Sophos Central is a SaaS-based tool, we don't have to deploy it. We just have to onboard the devices on it and start monitoring it. Get the right link configured, onboard the devices, and then we are good to go.

It is difficult for me to speak about the tool's ROI. The tool is cost-effective.

The tool is competitively priced.

My company chose to work with Sophos Central over the other products in the market since my company has a good relationship with Sophos and also because it offers good support. Our team is also well-versed in the tool, so we are comfortable deploying it to our various customers.

In terms of the benefits derived from the use of the product, I would say that we have a good kind of expertise with Sophos Central, so that is why we are comfortable with the tool internally within our organization.

The tool improves security posture overall since Sophos has multiple products, such as a firewall, SASE, and SD-WAN. The tool integrates very well with many products. The solution can serve as one or a single integrated tool for managing multiple products. The tool is mostly integrated with the suite of products offered by Sophos, not with some other solutions.

The tool provides very good visibility of all the endpoints. The product offers anti-ransomware capabilities.

The product has some AI features that help give recommendations to users. The tool has some automation options.

I rate the tool an eight out of ten.

I use the solution in my company to manage client firewalls. It is also used to manage all the endpoints.

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. The malware and viruses get blocked with the antivirus endpoint functions offered by Sophos.

I am okay with the product. I don't need any more features in the solution since it is already too large of a system.

The solution has new services that are a big improvement from Sophos and Tron, but my company hasn't utilized them because we don't need them. There are no customizations that we need to deal with in the product. My company is satisfied with the current features offered by the tool.

Compared to GFI KerioControl, Sophos Firewall can be made much faster at setting up VPN clients and site-to-site VPNs.

I have been using Sophos Central since 2017. My company operates as a reseller of the product. My company has a partnership with Sophos.

It is a very stable solution. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.

There is no need to scale up the product since it is a robust tool.

My company works mostly with e-commerce businesses, retailers, and accounting professionals.

There is no limit if we want to increase the use of the product since all we need to do is just add desktops or new computers for each customer every time they acquire a new device.

The solution's technical support is good. I rate the technical support a ten out of ten.

Positive

My company has used only two products, GFI KerioControl and Sophos. We only use Sophos for the endpoints. If we talk about firewall products, there are two different computations in GFI KerioControl and Sophos Firewall. Both the tools are easy to maintain, but compared to Sophos Firewall, GFI KerioControl is much faster at setting up VPN clients and site-to-site VPNs. Both the tools are pretty good for protecting offices with site-to-site connectivity.

The product's initial setup phase is straightforward. If ten were the easiest, I would rate the setup phase as a ten on a scale of one to ten.

Once you have the endpoint software through Splashtop SOS on the client's desktop, install and download the program. In less than five minutes, it can be installed and protected.

Only one person is required to deploy the product through Splashtop SOS.

The product does not require maintenance since it is not an automatically managed process.

The solution is deployed using the cloud services offered by Sophos.

In terms of ROI, the tool pays off within a few months. The tool has big clients with good businesses that are maintained on the tool, so the firewalls are not that much for them.

There is a one-time fee for the hardware and an annual subscription fee, which is pretty good because we can get free updates.

In terms of the product's integration capabilities with other security tools, I would say that they are centralized and easy to manage. You just click on the customer and launch that customer, and you will see everything from that customer, including all the endpoints and firewalls that are being monitored.

I don't know whether the product offers any AI features.

I am not really keen to find out if the product offers features like predictive analytics or automated responses.

As an admin, it will give you a feeling of ease since your endpoints are protected, meaning the real computers are protected from viruses and malware.

I rate the tool a ten out of ten.