Barracuda Web Security Gateway vs. Sophos Web Content Filtering

Barracuda Web Security Gateway is a secure solution. This solution offers advanced filtering for web content, application control, access control, network monitoring, and user authentication to control network access. It is easy to use, helps prevent access to harmful content. Therefore, I highly recommend the Barracuda Web Security Gateway to enhance your network security, secure remote administration, and approve and control application usage.

Incentivized

Before Sophos, I would receive scammers regarding tradeshow lists. People wanted me to pay for lists, but these people weren't actually from the tradeshows. I can now block those, and have received much fewer of those scams. I am also able to open emails within quarantine to view them before deleting, releasing, allowing, or blocking. I use this to my advantage, and am able to make better decisions on what to do with the emails.

Incentivized

• It can integrate with active directory to place restrictions based on a specific user or group if required - or alternatively to allow a user/group to access more on the web if needed.
• The application blocking features have been especially useful in our enterprise, and there is a large number of applications & web applications available to block/allow as needed.

Incentivized

• Allowing options: I am able to choose from several different options (release, release and allow, delete, block, block and report to Spam)
• Warning labels: emails have labels at the top to define if an email is from a trusted sender or the email is from an external sender and may not be trusted. I can block those emails, if I choose to
• Quarantine emails: I appreciate the 2x daily emails detailing which emails have been quarantined, and if I would like to release them or delete them

Incentivized

• There are 2 different policies; authenticated and unauthenticated. Sometimes the filter does not pick up the user that is logged in. When this happens, that user could potentially access sites that would normally be blocked.
• Sometimes blocking one thing could block something you need. We had an instance where we use remote software. We block BitTorrent but for some reason, the filter was seeing this remote software as BitTorrent traffic. I got support on the line and we were eventually able to figure out a solution.
• We put in certain applications. One of them is supposed to be blocked but a lot of the time it doesn't get blocked.

Incentivized

• Initial Setup Guide could be more detailed
• WebGui Interface, needs some smoothness
• More simple models (in the hardware version) for smaller organizations to be able to implement this system

Incentivized

There are a lot of settings you can adjust. The web log is easy to use. If a user is having issues accessing a website, you can go in and see what's being blocked and why. After that, you can make adjustments fairly easy. The GUI is easy to navigate and updating the software is a simple click of a button.

Incentivized

Barracuda support is always available, 24/7. They are always friendly, supportive, and follow-up with anything they promise. Any ticket that is opened is touched constantly by the support team until it is remedied

Barracuda Web Filter is superior to the built-in content filters of any firewalls (even next gen) that we have encountered. It's a misconception that the built-in filtering on a SonicWALL or WatchGuard is enough. I don't believe that Barracuda has any direct competitors in this space that it's not head and shoulders above.

Sophos competes well with other content filtering products. It's categorization is on par if not better than the competition. What stands out most for me is it's ability to integrate seamlessly with the Sophos XG and XDR and Endpoint solutions. Like most network security products, it's often best integration to stick with the same family and the Sophos solution is no different. Because of that, I feel the overall product offering from Sophos (outside of Content Filtering) is on-par with other solutions as well so it's a no-brainer if you use Sophos firewalls, Sophos Content Filtering is the best choice.

Incentivized

• We had several of our divisions that we thought needed to increase their internet bandwidth, due to decreased speed and productivity. After installing the Barracuda Web Security Gateway, we realized we had some abusive behavior going on with online activity. We set some controls and the bandwidth usage decreased by at least 30%, allowing us to maintain the current bandwidth and not spending more money.

• Increased productivity of employees by not being distracted so much.
• Economic savings by preventing computers from being infected by viruses.
• Better use of company resources.

Incentivized