Cisco Umbrella Competitors: Cisco Umbrella vs. WebTitan Guide

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Every business needs robust network security, and DNS filtering plays a massive role in preventing cyber attacks that can result in data loss. These attacks are growing at an alarming rate as data becomes more valuable, and this has led to the proliferation of new Cisco Umbrella competitors.

The problem is that not all DNS filters like Cisco Umbrella DNS and its main competitors are created equal.

If you are looking to bolster your network security by securing your DNS, you might be considering a product like Cisco Umbrella. Although Cisco Umbrella is a good tool and certainly has its place, it might not be the right one for your business.

The good news is that there are lots of Cisco Umbrella alternatives available on the market that provide an equally — if not more — powerful and high-quality product and service at a more palatable price point.

With so many alternatives, it makes sense to shop around and compare the many Cisco Umbrella competitors that are available. 

In this article, we are going to discuss the main features of Cisco Umbrella DNS and compare it to WebTitan, our tool which is one of the leading Cisco Umbrella competitors available today.

Let’s take a look at how the two stack up against one another and why WebTitan is the best of all the Cisco Umbrella competitors available on the market right now.

 

What is Cisco Umbrella?

Cisco Umbrella is Cisco’s cloud-based Secure Internet Gateway platform that was launched in 2015. It provides protection against internet-based threats and integrates many tools, including secure web gateway, firewall, DNS-layer security, and cloud access security broker functionality to safeguard against threats.

Cisco Umbrella, and our own alternative tool WebTitan DNS Filter, identify and block access to malicious links and websites via the DNS layer. The filter steps in to do this before a user has the chance to access a malicious website and potentially open your system up to attacks.

This type of DNS filtering has become one of the main ways that businesses protect against attacks such as malware and ransomware attacks, which are estimated to cost the world $US10.5 trillion annually by 2025.

In the years since its launch, Cisco Umbrella has shaped the way organizations protect against cyber threats through DNS protection and web filtering. However, many customers have begun migrating away from Cisco Umbrella to a range of Cisco Umbrella competitors.

These competitor products — including our own, WebTitan — are built on the same core principles of Cisco Umbrella and provide the same high-quality managed services backed by AI-driven threat protection but for a better price and with better customer support.

 

Cisco Umbrella problems and challenges

While we cannot deny that Cisco Umbrella is a good product, customers face a range of challenges when they sign up for it.

One of the most common complaints we hear from people looking for Cisco Umbrella competitors is that there is a total lack of product support. When a customer has a problem with Cisco Umbrella, it can be nigh impossible to access help. This is not only annoying but also dangerous when you consider the potential impact on your business if its DNS security becomes compromised and cannot be immediately solved.

Another common complaint is how difficult Cisco Umbrella can be due to its user interface. Cisco assumes that customers will have a certain level of technical knowledge and it can therefore be difficult for non-technical individuals to set the product up. Given the lack of support available, this can be problematic for businesses that don’t have high-level technical resources available and need a solution that works out of the box.

These and other challenges such as the rising cost of Umbrella have led customers to seek out Cisco Umbrella competitors who are able to provide the same high level of security and protection with a tool that’s cheaper and easier to use.

Over the last three years, many Cisco Umbrella customers and MSPs have jumped ship and made the switch to WebTitan DNS Filter, the leading Cisco Umbrella competitor.

 

WebTitan, an easy-to-deploy Cisco Umbrella competitor

Comparing Cisco Umbrella to WebTitan is like comparing apples to oranges. When it comes to doing this, the biggest difference is simplicity.

While Cisco Umbrella is difficult to use and assumes existing technical knowledge, you can use WebTitan to get going in a matter of minutes regardless of your technical capability. If you can use a computer at a basic level and can follow basic setup instructions, you’re good to go.

What’s more, if you are an existing Cisco Umbrella user, you can swap it out for WebTitan and start benefitting from AI-driven threat intelligence almost immediately, without suffering from any DNS protection downtime or opening your system up to attacks.

Here’s an overview of some of the other powerful features that WebTitan includes:

• Real-time URL threat protection powered by 650 million+ end users
• A real-time database containing 3 million+ malicious URLs, phishing sites, and IPs
• Real-time categorization for domains, full-path URLs, and Ips
• 99.9% coverage and 99T accuracy of ActiveWeb URLs and IPs
• 100% coverage of the top 1 million most visited websites
• Granular categories including malicious, objectionable, and topic-based groups

Why should I use a Cisco Umbrella Competitor like WebTitan?

Here are four reasons why you should strongly consider using a Cisco Umbrella Competitor like WebTitan:

1. An intuitive user interface

Something as simple as a good user interface (UI) can have a big impact. UI defines how users engage with a product like WebTitan, and a robust UI can be the difference between a product being used to its full potential to extract maximum value versus being used at a basic level. When it comes to securing your systems, you can’t afford to compromise on this.

WebTitan’s highly intuitive user interface makes it easy for businesses to deploy and use the product and view actionable, up-to-date insights on threat traffic and web activity. This gives teams a much clearer overview of threats and signals of dangerous user activity that would otherwise potentially go unseen, enabling them to improve their security standing by taking preventative and remedial action.

2. A more affordable solution that doesn’t compromise on quality

It’s no secret that at a starting price of $US2.70 per user per month, Cisco Umbrella has become more expensive in recent years despite overall service declining. For some businesses, these cost increases can be prohibitive and may lead to vulnerabilities as use of the tool is set aside in favor of saving money — especially in the current pandemic climate.

In contrast, WebTitan’s pricing, which starts at $US0.90 per user per month, benefits both MSPs and SMBs. In the case of the former, more marginal profits can be achieved while for the latter, WebTitan offers a more affordable solution that can be deployed rapidly and scale easily in response to business needs.

3. Customer support that truly cares

One of the hallmarks of a quality technical product like a DNS tool is the inclusion of customer support who are on-hand to assist with anything. Whether it’s a sales query or a technical support request, your business is entitled to high-quality, reactive customer support that is ready to step in and help at all times — not just when something goes wrong.

WebTitan DNS Filter beats Cisco Umbrella in six key success rating factors, including in ‘Quality of Support’ which our users rated us 9.2 out of 10. Our comprehensive knowledgebase covers a wide range of common support queries while our customer support team is available to contact for a quick, considered response via our ticketing system.

4. Set up a policy in minutes

WebTitan DNS Filter makes it possible for users to set up their own DNS filtering in a matter of minutes. Once you redirect your DNS to WebTitan Cloud, you’re ready to begin. Using our intuitive UI, it’s simply a case of adding your external IP address and choosing a pre-built policy that fits your requirements or creating your own from inside WebTitan.

Unlike with Cisco Umbrella, there is no requirement for advanced technical knowledge, nor will you need to waste time fiddling around with complicated settings. In just a few clicks, you’ll be fully protected against the latest threats.

 

Try WebTitan for free — The #1 Cisco Umbrella Competitor

Still not convinced?

We know that there’s a lot of information out there and that every Cisco Umbrella competitor likes to shout from the rooftops about how great their tool is.

That’s why we offer a completely free, no-nonsense 14-day trial that gives you full access to the complete WebTitan DNS Filter tool.

No credit card or phone number is required. Simply input your business email address to get started.