Saad Qaiser - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager (Network Design) at Comstar - Information Systems Associates Ltd.
Real User
Top 5
Offers an easy initial setup phase to users
Pros and Cons
  • "It is one of the best products when it comes to stability."
  • "As a tool, Sophos SafeGuard is not optimized."

What is our primary use case?

I use the solution in my company as an encryption solution, meaning that it is useful if you want encryption features. The new name of Sophos SafeGuard is Sophos Central Encryption.

What needs improvement?

As a tool, Sophos SafeGuard is not optimized. I suggest that Sophos SafeGuard should be optimized so that it takes less time to provide encryption features to users. I want Sophos SafeGuard to consider another encryption solution since it currently uses BitLocker. The solution must have alternate encryption methods that users can use to make the tool more effective and a good solution.

From an improvement perspective, I would like to see more integration capabilities being offered by the product. The product is good and works properly in different environments.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Sophos SafeGuard for eight years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution. It is one of the best products when it comes to stability.

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What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is a scalable solution. It is easy to use the tool's scalability features.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I have experience with Trend Micro and Kaspersky. My company likes Sophos SafeGuard over the other products we have used in the past.

How was the initial setup?

The product's initial setup phase is easy and not very difficult. Sophos SafeGuard is a cloud-based product. Users have to consider their assets to be encrypted. Sophos SafeGuard is not a very complex solution, meaning it is an easy tool to handle.

You must buy a Sophos Central Encryption license if you have a Sophos Central account. Once you get the license, you have to install the agent on your devices to encrypt the data. The deployment process is not complex and consists of simple steps.

What other advice do I have?

In case of device loss or theft, you know that all your data is encrypted, and no one can use the data if you are using Sophos SafeGuard in your company, ensuring that the device encryption feature is useful.

In Sophos SafeGuard, the management of encryption keys is easy.

The product's seamless integration capabilities with existing systems have improved the company's data security posture. The product is well integrated with different environments like Windows, Mac, and other solutions. The tool has good integration features and works fine with Windows, Mac, and other products.

I recommend the product to those who plan to use it. I suggest others go for Sophos Endpoint Protection and Sophos Firewall, as both products work fine if configured properly.

The product's compliance with data protection regulations makes it easy for our company to use. The compliance with data protection regulations makes it a good solution to be deployed for some of our company's clients who follow NIST or CIS benchmarks.

The product is beneficial for those who suffer from data losses in their company. I recommend the product to others since it is really helpful to protect data.

I rate the overall tool an eight and a half out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller
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PeerSpot user
IT Consultant & Trainer at ReallySimpleTech, Inc.
Real User
Good stability and performance, easy to use, and has one pane of glass that does everything
Pros and Cons
  • "I like its ease of use the most. The management console is really nice. I like having one pane of glass that does everything. It does the Sophos anti-virus and encryption. Everything that you need is in one place. It is easy to use, and it is also pretty fast. It provides some pretty good details, and it lets you know who has access to a file. You can also add additional people to the encrypted documents, which is pretty good. Its stability and performance are also very good."
  • "It just needs a little bit more on the reporting side. Its reporting can be improved a little bit in terms of being able to know that things are in the right status. I should be able to pull a report to make sure that everything is all right. It could also have cloud integration. At the time I was using it, it wasn't a cloud product."

What is our primary use case?

It is used in environments where there are mobile executives and the data can't be compromised. For example, if a laptop is lost or stolen, you have to ensure that the data is not compromised. I have deployed it at a motor company in the Bay area for securing the local laptops. It is used at a hospital for securing medical records and CFO-related files. It is also used at a Law firm for encrypting pleadings and legal documents. 

What is most valuable?

I like its ease of use the most. The management console is really nice. I like having one pane of glass that does everything. It does the Sophos anti-virus and encryption. Everything that you need is in one place. It is easy to use, and it is also pretty fast.

It provides some pretty good details, and it lets you know who has access to a file. You can also add additional people to the encrypted documents, which is pretty good. Its stability and performance are also very good.

What needs improvement?

It just needs a little bit more on the reporting side. Its reporting can be improved a little bit in terms of being able to know that things are in the right status. I should be able to pull a report to make sure that everything is all right. 

It could also have cloud integration. At the time I was using it, it wasn't a cloud product.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been in the IT industry for several years. I work with a lot of different companies, and I've deployed and managed Sophos SafeGuard at quite a few companies over a period of about three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Its stability and performance were good. I never had any crashes. I didn't notice it causing any performance problems or high CPU usage, making applications slower. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We had Sophos in the image. We rolled out the machines, so it was already there. It was already part of our base image, and then for servers, we use SCCM. Sophos also has its own console that you can use for deployments, but we didn't use that.

Most of our clients are large businesses. Most of the time, smaller businesses can't afford to call in consultants to roll out stuff for them.

How are customer service and technical support?

I have never used their tech support.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Different companies used different solutions. They usually switched when their license agreements ran out. The company for which I did the biggest installation had ESET and McAfee ePO. I removed both ESET and McAfee ePO and placed two different environments with Sophos. This switch was a result of viruses happening and not getting caught by their protection systems.

The initial setup of Sophos is also easier than other solutions such as Trend Micro and BitLocker. The setup of both these solutions is much more complex. If you try to go old school with PGP, it has a command-line setup, and it gets a lot more complex.

I am currently using BitLocker, which is a little bit more difficult. You have to use some power show commands. Sometimes, you have to use scripting and create GTOs. There are many different places you have to go to for configuring policies and rules to make it all work. In Sophos SafeGuard, everything that you need is in one place.

How was the initial setup?

It was pretty straightforward. If you don't know how encryption works, it could be a little bit complex, but it would still be easier to do it with Sophos than any other tool in the market, such as Trend Micro and BitLocker.

What other advice do I have?

It is a good product. I would advise calling an expert to deploy it. 

I would rate Sophos SafeGuard an eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Sophos SafeGuard
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about Sophos SafeGuard. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
765,386 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Technology Engineering and Solutions Architect at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Simple to use with good encryption capabilities and helpful technical support
Pros and Cons
  • "It's a straightforward solution."
  • "It would be ideal if the solution had different features within one agent."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution for endpoint encryption. 

What is most valuable?

It's a straightforward solution.

The solution is pretty simple to use.

We haven't had any real issues with the product.

Technical support has been helpful and they are responsive. 

The encryption is very good.

Overall, Sophos is a great product.

What needs improvement?

BitLocker comes from the OS license with Windows. It's a free solution. However, Sophos is a product we need to pay for. Therefore, using it is more expensive for our organization. It's also, in general, a pricey option. We'd like to lower costs.

Sophos requires separate BAU operations and separate infrastructure. We require a server and few other things, as well as portals. However, a solution like BitLocker is integrated with the CCM now. It doesn't require any other infrastructure. 

It would be ideal if the solution had different features within one agent. 

For how long have I used the solution?

Sophos has been used in our bank for between three to four years (or more) at this point. We've used it for a while. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have about 24,000 users on the solution right now. We have many users in our organization.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support has been very good. They are helpful and responsive. We are satisfied with their level of support.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We need to pay for this solution currently, however, if we switch to Bitlocker, it would be free as it's a part of Microsoft's OS. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We are currently doing a POC with Bitlocker. I want to decommission the Sophos Safeguard and enable BitLocker for my bank. I'm working on that right now.

What other advice do I have?

We're basically an end-user. We're a bank. We have a vendor the provides resources to us. 

I'm a solution architect and not fully working on the solution directly, per se. I'm looking for a way to switch over from Sophos to Bitlocker. 

Whether or not this is the right solution depends on each individual company. They have to decide if it is compatible and comparable with a paid solution or a free solution. I advise users to go with a free solution, such as BitLocker, as when we compare Sophos and BitLocker both cover the same aspects such as encryption. We can do what we need to do with both solutions and yet we only have to pay for one.

I'd rate the solution at a nine out of ten. It's a very good product overall. The main reason I would like to switch is based on the cost. If I don't have to pay for something, I would prefer not to. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Head of IT at Digital Oak LTD
Real User
Top 20
An excellent endpoint solution that's easy to setup, very stable, and highly secure
Pros and Cons
  • "With Sophos, I only need to generate the password and give that to a user to be able to allow them to login to the admin page of the Endpoint and do whatever they need to do. The user cannot go ahead and uninstall it. It's kept us much more secure because of this. Should any event happen on a particular system, I'm given the username and the system IP address. I get notifications and can deal with issues right away."
  • "If it's possible, they should make all the features available because it's got a lot of features on offer, but you have to buy the license in order to add those features to the normal Endpoint. If they could make all those features available and/or offer a bundling option it would be better."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution as an endpoint antivirus action for the system.

How has it helped my organization?

In terms of security, we were a bit lacking before we introduced Sophos. I was using another Endpoint solution before. While we were using that, I realized that I was seeing a few security challenges. The biggest plus for me is the fact that I could manage web traffic, web services or other traffic using the Endpoint solution. I can lock it, and basically I'm the only person that can control everything. 

What is most valuable?

I use all the features. they're all excellent. One of the aspects of the solution that I like the most is the fact that I can control my peripherals without having to use it for part of the application.

With Sophos, I only need to generate the password and give that to a user to be able to allow them to log in to the admin page of the Endpoint and do whatever they need to do. The user cannot go ahead and uninstall it. It's kept us much more secure because of this. Should any event happen on a particular system, I'm given the username and the system IP address. I get notifications and can deal with issues right away.

With Central Synchronisation, the Sophos Endpoint can be linked with Sophos firewall to constantly monitor the health status of computers on your network.

A policy on the health status of each computer can be configured to determine actions that will be take should a computer be found infected.

if the health status of the computer changes, the computer can be denied access to the internet and other segments of the network and reported to the admin and Sophos Endpoint will disinfect the system, report the health status to Sophos firewall and access to the internet and other segments of the network will be granted to the computer.

all of these is done without human intervention.

Sophos Sandstorm is a powerful, cloud-based, next-generation sandbox that detects, blocks and reports on ransomware and evasive threats. A sandbox is an isolated environment used to execute suspicious files attached to emails and downloaded from websites to determine if they contain malware

What needs improvement?

If you're talking about technical support, their endpoint support needs improvement. Their UTM is doing well, however.

If it's possible, they should make all the features available because it's got a lot of features on offer, but you have to buy the license in order to add those features to the normal Endpoint. If they could make all those features available and/or offer a bundling option it would be better.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is 95% stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

In terms of scalability, if you have a license, you could add more licenses, except that, for instance, if I already bought a 50 user license, and then I want to buy an additional 50 later. The new license will not read the new date. It will be reading the old date of the old license. Both license will expire at the same time. In that sense, I don't think it's really that good for scalability purposes. 

Currently, we have 110 users. We have plans to increase usage in the coming months.

How are customer service and technical support?

The customer service has really improved.

They ensure that your case is treated same day and assign a case ID for future reference.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We previously used Kaspersky Advanced. We switched because we discovered that there were a lot of features that we didn't have on Kaspersky that were available on Sophos. One is Intercept X which takes care of whatever infection there is on your system before you even know it.

You could synchronize Sophos Endpoint with a Sophos UTM and define which system or what category of system should be allowed access to the internet, based on their health status. That's not available with the previous antivirus I was using.

In the end, Sophos gave us a better price, with better features and better offers.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward, except for the fact that because it has to download the installation file online, it takes a while. It would be easier if they could make an offline installation possible. Deployment takes from 20 minutes and up.

What about the implementation team?

I handled the implementation myself.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We have a yearly license with Sophos which is around $1000-$1200 or so per annum. There are no additional costs beyond the standard licensing fee.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We did not evaluate other options before switching from Kaspersky to Sophos.

What other advice do I have?

We use the on-premises deployment model.

I would recommend the solution. New users should ensure that they get every module that they need. 

I had a friend whose server was attacked by ransomware. It became a challenge for them. However, by installing Sophos Intercept X for servers, you could lock down that server, so that no executive file or no program would run unless you unlock them. The programs that would function would only be the ones that you have listed on Sophos. I didn't know that existed until I started using Sophos Endpoint. The antivirus is not just running on my system to protect it against viruses, it's also allowing me to lock my systems so that nobody can execute anything without my authorization. It gives me enormous peace of mind.

I would rate the solution ten out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Mohamed Abdel Hassanein - PeerSpot reviewer
Managing Director at FORESEC
Reseller
Top 10
Provides accessible and responsive technical support
Pros and Cons
  • "I like that Sophos SafeGuard provides excellent technical support."
  • "What would make Sophos SafeGuard better than competitors is if its management console also includes firewall management. In the future, I want Sophos SafeGuard to be more scalable."

What is our primary use case?

The use cases for Sophos SafeGuard include protecting customer data and securing customer premises.

What is most valuable?

I like that Sophos SafeGuard provides excellent technical support.

What needs improvement?

What would make Sophos SafeGuard better than competitors is if its management console also includes firewall management.

In the future, I want Sophos SafeGuard to be more scalable. The solution also needs a better management console. It would also be good if Sophos SafeGuard could surprise its customers a little bit more.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been working with Sophos SafeGuard for three years now.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

So far, Sophos SafeGuard is stable. I have yet to receive any negative feedback regarding stability from customers.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Sophos SafeGuard isn't one hundred percent scalable because sometimes, you need to replace the product to upgrade the bandwidth. It's more optimal for a small number of users because, to a certain extent, you may need to change the product if you have more users.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support for Sophos SafeGuard is excellent because it's accessible, and the response time is good.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Before working with Sophos SafeGuard, I worked with Forcepoint and WatchGuard. Forcepoint does a lot of marketing, so it sells, while Sophos SafeGuard though it's doing very well in the market, needs to concentrate a little more on marketing.

How was the initial setup?

I need to be more technical to deploy Sophos SafeGuard, but to my knowledge, it's easy to deploy, but you sometimes need to configure the policy. It could take three days to deploy the solution.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing for Sophos SafeGuard is in the middle. It's not the most expensive, but it's not the lowest. In terms of size, the solution typically fits small to medium-scale customers.

Pricing for Sophos SafeGuard could be improved because it could reach a thousand dollars depending on the product, edition, and software key purchased. Sometimes, the price increases, and sometimes, Sophos SafeGuard is free for the first year. It depends on Sophos' strategies to compete with other solutions, such as Forcepoint.

What other advice do I have?

I have experience with Sophos SafeGuard.

The solution is for the customer. I'm a sales manager, and I sell Sophos SafeGuard to the end user.

If you're marketing Sophos SafeGuard, it's booming now as a cyber security appliance or product. Still, you'll need to concentrate more on marketing and rely on good distributors and partners.

My rating for Sophos SafeGuard is eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner/Distributor
PeerSpot user
ManojNair2 - PeerSpot reviewer
Founder/Director at Augesys Solutions Pvt Ltd
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Very efficient at virus protection with good functional and mechanical reliability
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution can block a virus attack and prevent it from moving across the system."
  • "The solution lacks direct connectivity to Azure AD."

What is our primary use case?

I have deployed a couple of Sophos firewalls for our clients recently. We are customers of Sophos. 

What is most valuable?

The solution has the intelligence to block a virus attack and prevent it from moving across the system. It's easy to use and a very reliable firewall, functionally and mechanically.

What needs improvement?

The solution lacks connectivity to Azure AD so it can connect to the regular internal Windows AD server but there's no direct connection to Azure AD. That would be a product improvement that needs to be implemented given that almost everyone is now on the cloud.  

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for nine years. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

From what I have seen, this is a very scalable product. It's a major plus point for them.

How are customer service and support?

I've had a very good experience with customer service, particularly recently as I've also been managing other Sophos firewalls for customers.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

What other advice do I have?

It's worth taking the time to figure out how the solution can fit your needs. Sophos satisfies a large number of requirements and gives you unified security. It's something that has become a standard function with all other solutions in the market including with Palo Alto, SonicWall. I think Sophos leads in that space and if you're looking at a unified security function, then I recommend Sophos because of the protection from the endpoint to the gateway. It's a strong and capable system. 

I rate this solution nine out of 10. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Customer Support Engineer at a computer software company with 11-50 employees
Real User
Beneficial system scanning, effective malware detection, but memory intensive
Pros and Cons
  • "The malware protection and the scanning features are most valuable in this solution."
  • "There are times that this solution takes up too much memory that needs to be resolved. If it is not fixed it will definitely create issues in the future."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution primarily for email scanning.

What is most valuable?

The malware protection and the scanning features are most valuable in this solution.

What needs improvement?

There are times that this solution takes up too much memory that needs to be resolved. If it is not fixed it will definitely create issues in the future.

In an upcoming release, there should be more reports on the health status of the systems that we could fix, such as memory health, CPU utilization, and CPU health. These types of additions would be a great help.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the solution for approximately six months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I have found the solution to be stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution has been scalable. Most of my clients are enterprise-size organizations using this solution.

How are customer service and technical support?

Since I have been using the solution I have not had any errors or any issues I would need to contact support about.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I have used Trend Micro and Symantec antivirus previously. We have had a lot of issues with Trend Micro antivirus. We were facing so many issues related to the support and integration with some applications. There were times when applications would stop running. The solution also took up too many resources that were impacting the system's performance which is why we needed to move on from that particular antivirus.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

It would be great if the price of the solution was lower than the current price. If we are to sell this particular solution to smaller businesses and not just enterprise businesses, it needs to be lower.

What other advice do I have?

I rate Sophos SafeGuard a seven out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Head of Security at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
The firewall is great but configuration and integration could be improved
Pros and Cons
  • "The intrusion detection system."
  • "The Office 360 integration could be improved."

What is our primary use case?

I'm the head of security at our company and we are customers of Sophos SafeGuard. 

What is most valuable?

The valuable feature is the intrusion detection system, the firewall itself.

What needs improvement?

The Office 360 integration could be improved, it's not so straightforward. It's been a challenge. When I moved from my mail in-house, on-prem, to Office 360 on cloud, I had a lot of challenges getting my mail to pass through the firewall. That's something I'm currently working on.

Additional features I'd like to see would be more help results to the product. Maybe they could provide a way to train on the product, provide tutorials that could be easily accessed for people to easily understand the product quickly. I think that would help. The issue is not always the product but the configuration and the know-how to easily manage the system that sometimes make you not get the best out of the system. It's a matter of making resources available. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for five years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's a stable solution, I haven't had any challenges except when I was doing the migration.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable, we have over 500 staff using it. 

How are customer service and technical support?

We purchased the solution in Ghana through a rep who has not been helpful. The company doesn't provide any support, we do everything in-house. If necessary, I sometimes go to the community to see if somebody has reported something that can help us. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The price could be lower. I think it's one of the disadvantages of the solution. 

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend that people choosing this solution find the right technical people or  vendor to provide support and assistance to ensure the product is working fine.

I would rate this product a six out of 10. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Sophos SafeGuard Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: March 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Sophos SafeGuard Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.