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Cisco Secure Firewall

Score8.5 out of 10

267 Reviews and Ratings

What is Cisco Secure Firewall?

Cisco Secure Firewall delivers comprehensive threat protection for modern, distributed networks. Built to support hybrid workforces and multicloud environments, it enables Zero Trust access, application visibility, and secure remote connectivity. With integration across the Cisco Secure portfolio, including SecureX and Talos threat intelligence, the firewall powers organizations to detect and stop more sophisticated threats. Centralized management simplifies policy enforcement, orchestration, and automated response — reducing complexity while strengthening security across physical, virtual, and cloud-based deployments.

Categories & Use Cases

Media

Cisco Secure 1200 Series Firewall Family
Cisco Secure 4200 Series
Cisco Secure 4200 Series
Cisco Secure Firewall 1200 Stack Family
Cisco Secure Firewall 200 Series
Cisco Secure Firewall 200 Series
Cisco Secure Firewall 200 Series
Secure Firewall 1200 Series
Secure Firewall 1200 Series
Firewall Management - Network Discovery
Secure Firewall 3100 Series
Secure Firewall 3100 Series
Secure Firewall 3100 Series
Secure Firewall 3100 Series
Secure Firewall 3100 Series
Secure Firewall 3100 Series
Secure Firewall 3100 Series
Secure Firewall 3100 Series
Secure Firewall 3100 Series
Secure Firewall 6100 Series
Secure Firewall 6100 Series

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Top Performing Features

  • High Availability

    Built-in capacity to prevent exposure if primary firewall stops working

    Category average: 8.9

  • VPN

    VPN's implement encryption and anonymize IP addresses

    Category average: 8.9

  • Stateful Inspection

    Stateful inspection analyzes packet headers and contents of packets

    Category average: 8.6

Areas for Improvement

  • Visualization Tools

    Visualization tools present administrators with data on applications traversing the network, who is using them, and the potential security impact.

    Category average: 7.7

  • Proxy Server

    A proxy server changes your IP address and masks the origin of your network traffic

    Category average: 8.2

  • Reporting and Logging

    Custom and summary reports, and log files enabling analysis of security incidents, application usage and traffic patterns

    Category average: 7.8

#1 most frequent

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

140 installations of 635

I am using Cisco Secure Firewall as a firewall and Remote Access VPN.

Senior Network Engineer, Datawave (201-500 employees)

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#2 most frequent

Information

73 installations of 635

In our organization, we use Cisco Secure Firewall and the Firewall Management Center for administration. Due to the structured configuration, the rules can be rolled out to multiple devices and systems simultaneously via the firewall management center.

System Engineer, Deutsche Telekom (10,001+ employees)

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#3 most frequent

Manufacturing

69 installations of 635

In our organization, we utilize Cisco Secure Firewall to enhance security and protect ourselves from cyberattacks. We use the tool as our first line of defense for all the outgoing and incoming network traffic. The tool offers reliable protection against any kind of cyber threat and attack.

Vice President of Sales, Agriges Srl (201-500 employees)

Verified Review

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200 hours back no breaches one uninterrupted connection.

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Working at Coitiar, where we support hundreds of Industrial Engineers, our IT team needed a reliable system to secure the network and provide consistent access to technical documentation, certification systems, and the PEGASSO platform. Previously, we experienced outages during critical submissions and latency issues when members were verifying installations. However, with the Cisco secure framework in place, we no longer face those problems. Our team no longer has to worry about perimeter security, allowing us to focus on keeping our engineers connected to the systems they rely on.

Pros

  • Cisco's firewall actually does its job of blocking what it is supposed to block. We had an old Firewall that led to slippages. Cisco catches 97% of malware and vulnerabilities during testing. For Coitiar, that means an engineer who clicks a link with malware is handled quickly.
  • We actually tested if failovers would affect running sessions. We pulled our primary unit during a certification submission period. The firewall just switched, and the connection kept running.
  • The AI assistant in policy management is excellent, and for our lean team, it makes the whole process easy and efficient. I don't have to audit 200 policies manually; the AI steps in and does its thing.

Cons

  • I feel the management interface feels slow and not that intuitive. Clicking policies and saving changes while waiting for deployments is not slow, but it is not snappy either.
  • For us, we run active standbys for resilience, and Cisco charges for both units, even if they sit unused. I feel like a fairer HA licensing model would be much better.
  • Learning about critical system vulnerabilities the hard way from Security outlets, not Cisco itself. This needs improvement.

Return on Investment

  • We saved roughly 200 hours across our three shared units last year. That's raw statistics: our engineers had time to improve members' services instead of wrestling with rule bases.
  • Our members submit installation documents to the Aragon Government on tight schedules. Our old firewall dropped sessions often while the engineers were in the middle of submissions; the results were pure frustration and a loss of trust. With Cisco, we estimate 85% boost in trust, reliability, and productivity.
  • The years we have used Cisco Secure Firewall have saved us thousands of dollars in costs we would have incurred in the event of a ransomware attack or other threat.

Mandatory for network security with user based access.

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

In every organization, network security is one of the most crucial and important parts. Cisco played a key role in providing security to all types of networks by blocking malware or ransomware attacks. As well as providing full control over the network, we can use user-based access. Only organization employees can use the network for business purposes. It encrypts all the data and always ensures to provide high-grade security. It follows all standard security compliance. Works well on all types of networks, like virtual, hybrid, or cloud-based.

Pros

  • Encryption of all network data for better security.
  • Provide deep visibility or real-time insights into the network for better control.
  • Superior and comprehensive threat protection.

Cons

  • No as such but old network with low configuration takes time to integrate.
  • Pricing is a little bit complex.

Return on Investment

  • Always protects our data & networks.
  • Encrypt our networks and user based access.
  • Always alerts us to the network's abnormal activities.

FTDs are great for Performance vs Price go get one

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Cisco Secure Firewall in our office, and for enterprise customers. The problem that it addresses is pretty much Securing the office, and customer networks, provide VPN tunneling termination, and RA VPN for remote workers. It does Malware analysis and blocks unauthorized connections and blocks based on known attack vectors.

Reporting is top notch, I am able to show my customers, proof that the firewall is blocking threats and keeping harm out from their networks.

I'm also able to keep them secure, by intergrating the Firepower secure firewall, with Cisco umbrella for an additional layer of security.

This equipment has been a great value for our organization, and I would reccomend anyone looking for a security appliance to really take a look at Cisco's secure firewall portfolio.

Pros

  • Upgrading process
  • High Availability
  • The Threat defense engine
  • VPN termination

Cons

  • Always good to cut deployment time.
  • The Gui has room for improvement
  • I think also basic rate limiting blocking shouldnt be hard to configure.

Return on Investment

  • With the reporting I have been able to show customers that the Cisco Secure Firewall is keeping their networks safe.
  • I can now offer my customers a real secure WAN with attack pattern recognition and Malware analytics
  • I think no one can beat it in price vs performance category.

Other Software Used

Cisco Duo, Cisco AnyConnect, Cacti

Trusted Solution For Network Security.

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Our organisation uses this robust Cisco solution to protect our on-premises and cloud networks from threats. This solution is very helpful for addressing issues such as unauthorized access, malware attacks, and data breaches. It provides advanced threat protection and intrusion prevention across all our networks. We can monitor traffic on our networks using the centralised management dashboard. Also, it has a real-time threat intelligence system that detects & responds quickly. It is also very helpful for maintaining organisational security compliance.

Pros

  • It provides intrusion prevention for robust security.
  • Realtime visibility on all networks.
  • Centralized dashboard for better monitoring and maintain security consistency.
  • Easy to integrate with other Cisco services.

Cons

  • Management UI is little bit complex for new user.
  • Sometimes changing of policies takes time on large networks or environment.
  • Licensing cost or structure is little bit confusing.

Return on Investment

  • Saves from security issues and downtime of our environments.
  • Boost operation efficiency and reduce IT team manual work.
  • Boost visibility on our environments and ensure security compliance.

A product to be entirely reviewed

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use this Cisco Secure Firewall everywhere in our company.

Pros

  • Snort
  • Lina

Cons

  • Many bugs
  • Software upgrade reliability
  • Integration with FMC

Return on Investment

  • Many hours spent with TAC to troubleshooting day zero bug

Other Software Used

Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access