Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASBs) are security solutions that sit between an organizations users and cloud services. They monitor user activity, ensure security policies are being enforced and provide control and visibility over usage of cloud applications and tools such as Microsoft 365, Salesforce and Google Workspace.
Key features of CASB solutions include enhancing visibility into cloud applications, ensuring companies their meet compliance needs with data loss protection policies, enforcing data security policies with access controls and encryption, and providing a strong level of threat protection across cloud accounts.
In this article, we’ll cover the top 10 Cloud Access Security Brokers on the market. We’ll explore their key features, recommended use cases, customer feedback and pricing, to help you find the right solution for your organization. depending on your specific needs and requirements.
Cisco Cloudlock is a comprehensive, cloud-native CASB solution that protects users, data and cloud-applications. The platform is fully API based, providing a simplified way to secure access and manage security in cloud applications.
Cisco Cloudlock Features:
- Advanced machine learning algorithms used to detect behavioral anomalies and prevent account compromise
- Configurable DLP policies that automate data protection and remediate threats automatically
- Detects, controls and protects cloud applications connected to the enterprise environment
- Application control, including the ability to ban or allow specific apps and users
- Integrations with Cisco’s enterprise security stack
Cisco Cloudlock Pricing: Cisco Cloudlock pricing can be obtained by contacting Cisco directly.
Expert Insights’ Comments: Cloudlock is a simplified, open and automated CASB solution. It provides visibility into clou- based threats, providing add discovery and analytics. Admins are able to look into each vendor and application to view risk details aimed at securing cloud adoption. The service also helps organizations to meet legal compliance regulations, protecting data and managing access to cloud applications.
Forcepoint offer a powerful CASB service that provides enhanced security for cloud applications, allowing organizations to analyze risks and enforce controls. The service allows IT teams to discover, assess and protect applications in the cloud. Forcepoint uses contextual risk-assessment to assess the security of these applications, alerting admins about risky users and configurations. Forcepoint protects these apps from malware and cloud-based threats with threat protection and context-aware policy enforcement.
Forcepoint CASB Features:
- Advanced data security to protect cloud applications and prevent data loss
- Cloud app discovery, which uses log files to automate discovery and categorization of cloud apps
- Aggregated discovery reports in the centralized discovery dashboard
- Advanced risk metrics, with detailed cloud application risks analysis with customizable ratings
- Real-time activity monitoring and analytics, allowing admins to monitor users by group, location, device, application and more
- Integrates with identity providers such as Ping and Okta
Forcepoint CASB Pricing: Contact Forcepoint directly for pricing information on this solution.
Expert Insights’ Comments: Forcepoint CASB is a market leading CASB solution, strong on data protection policies and behavioral analysis. Their solution is highly scalable. The service integrates with DLP solutions to provide unified data protection across both on-premises and cloud-based applications and offers granular policies for both mobile and endpoint devices to enable access control and data protection.
iBoss offer a comprehensive platform for cloud security, including CASB, malware defense and data loss prevention. Their CASB solution delivers granular controls and comprehensive visibility into cloud applications and services to prevent security breaches, and prevent breaches of compliance, particularly for regulated industries such as healthcare.
iBoss Cloud Platform Features:
- Cloud applications controls to ensure compliance
- Protection for data-at-rest within cloud applications
- Reporting and analytics into application use
- Clear, easy-to-mange admin console with granular reporting
- Powerful web security features including web filtering, malware defense and DNS protection, with all firewall and proxy capabilities delivered in the cloud, delivered as part of the iBoss platform
iBoss Cloud Platform Pricing: iBoss is delivered in three packages, Zero Trust Core, Zero Trust Advanced and Zero Trust Complete. The CASB service is available as a module alongside this package. Pricing can be obtained by contacting iBoss directly.
Expert Insights’ Comments: iBoss offer a comprehensive, scalable cloud security suite designed for enterprise’s, particularly those looking to implement a Zero Trust architecture to secure users and data. Their CASB solution offers powerful data protection capabilities and clear reporting and analytics designed to prevent data loss, and ensure organizations meet compliance standards.
Lookout CASB (formerly CipherCloud) allows organizations to secure data stored in the cloud. The platform provides visibility into cloud threats, with end-to-end data protection, threat protection and compliance capabilities. The service can be deployed in the cloud or as a hybrid service, integrating with major enterprise cloud applications to provide threat protection.
Lookout Security Features:
- Continuous layers of security; deep visibility, adaptive access controls, data loss protection, risk compliance, and zero-day threat protection
- Detailed risk assessments into cloud applications
- Auditing and intelligence into behaviors and application usage
- Adaptive access management with continuous risk assessment of users connecting to cloud applications
- Real-time malware detection, sandboxing and user anomaly detection
Lookout Security Pricing: Contact Lookout’s enterprise sales team for pricing information for this solution.
Expert Insights’ Comments: Lookout CASB offers powerful threat protection to identify and remediate threats within cloud-based applications. It provides data loss prevention, encryption, and tokenization in one scalable platform to make managing data protection in cloud applications easier and more efficient. Lookout allows organizations to manage cloud applications across multiple countries in one secure dashboard, with configurable controls and management policies.
Defender for Cloud Apps is a CASB solution offered by Microsoft, designed to enhance visibility, protection and control over cloud applications. It integrates natively with Microsoft’s own cloud apps and provides visibility into threats and user behaviors, greater control over data and sophisticated analytics to combat cyber threats across cloud applications. The service is built to support Microsoft’s cloud suite, providing centralized management and automation of security processes.
Microsoft Defender For Cloud Apps Features:
- Analytics to evaluate risk levels across more than 90 risk factors for over 28,000 applications
- Granular policies and automation processes for controlling data
- Prevents unauthorized application usage with behavioral analysis
- Admin controls, including real-time policy management
- Integrated threat protection with Microsoft’s SIEM and XDR solutions
Microsoft Defender For Cloud Apps Pricing: Pricing for Microsoft Defender For Cloud Apps varies by program and agreement type.
Expert Insights’ Comments: Microsoft’s CASB is a good option for Microsoft 365 customers as the service integrates natively with Microsoft’s applications and offers a strong level of control and security, with granular analytics and policies. This solution is a leading CASB service and has one of the largest customer bases on this list, leveraging the Microsoft brand and integrations with M365.
Netskope is a market leading CASB service that enables IT teams to manage the use of cloud applications more efficiently. Netskope prevents data loss and secures cloud services such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Box and AWS, providing comprehensive security across these cloud services to protect against cloud threats and malware. Netskope deploys 100% in the cloud, with on-premises and hybrid options.
Netskope Cloud Security Platform Features:
- Provides deep visibility into threats from their cloud dashboard
- Control over activities across thousands of cloud services and millions of websites, with enhanced data protection policies
- Strong threat protection features, using 40 threat intelligence feeds to identify malicious sites, detect anomalous user behavior, and remediate against cloud-based malware
- Rule-based access controls enforceable across cloud applications
Netskope Cloud Security Platform Pricing: To request pricing of the Netskope Cloud Security Platform, contact Netskope directly.
Expert Insights’ Comments: Netskope provides enhanced visibility and control over web threats, as well as encryption and tokenization policies. Admins can set granular and customizable data loss protection policies to meet compliance and protect sensitive data. Granular security policies and data loss protection make Netskope a strong solution for organizations that need to meet compliance requirements and protect sensitive data.
Palo Alto offers a market leading range of cloud security solutions, including an SASE-native, next generation CASB solution, designed to help minimize the risk of account compromise and data breaches caused by new and emerging cloud threat. Their approach to CASB aims to ensure complete coverage of apps, using ML-powered technologies to protect data, reduce misconfigurations and ensure complete coverage of connected cloud applications.
Palo Alto Next-Gen CASB Features:
- Covers all traffic, ports and protocols; automatically identifies new cloud applications
- Adaptive data loss prevention with content-aware technologies to prevent data loss
- Simplified remediation of misconfigurations with streamlined workflows
- Enforces data protection policies at scale
- Comprehensive visibility across all endpoints, networks and applications
Palo Alto Next-Gen CASB Pricing: Contact Palo Alto directly for pricing information.
Expert Insights’ Comments: Palo Alto is a market leading cloud security provider; their solutions offer granular policies and manage cloud applications, with powerful data loss prevention policies and threat detection capabilities. A key differentiator for this solution is it’s ability to remediate misconfigurations, streamlining workflows to help enterprise organizations with complex configurations ensure is secured and meet compliance requirements.
Proofpoint’s CASB platform protects cloud applications and users from malware threats, data loss and compliance risks. It secures access and data within cloud apps like Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Box and more. The solution provides visibility and control over cloud applications, with analytics to help IT teams grant the right levels of access to users. Proofpoint are one of the world’s leading security vendors, with a range of services including email security, threat response and browser isolation.
Proofpoint Cloud App Security Features:
- Threat protection powered by multiple sources of threat intelligence including their own market-leading systems, which span email, web and cloud- based threats
- Sandboxing and analytics can to detect unsafe files uploaded to cloud accounts
- Comprehensive Data Loss Protection policies, with customizable rules and templates
- Browser isolation to prevent web-based threats
- File quarantines and permission management
- Behavioral monitoring, so IT teams can identify malicious activity and compromised accounts
Proofpoint Cloud App Security Pricing: Contact Proofpoint directly for pricing information.
Expert Insights’ Comments: Proofpoint’s CASB is a strong cloud app security solution, especially for existing customers of Proofpoint’s enterprise solutions, which it integrates with for holistic protection. Customers report the service is easy to set up and manage, with strict policies and admin controls.
Broadcom Symantec CloudSOC is a multi-featured CASB platform offering cloud application assessments, cloud usage analytics, malware analysis, and remediation. It provides organizations with a comprehensive solution for cloud application security, including auditing, real-time threat detection, protection against data loss and compliance violations, and post-incident analysis. Symantec was acquired by Broadcom in 2019.
Broadcom Symantec Cloud SOC Features:
- Comprehensive protection for cloud data
- Deep visibility into user analytics and shadow IT
- Adaptive policies and risk assessments based on advanced ML systems
- Granular control over applications usages and data
- Covers both cloud and on-premises applications
- Enforces compliance policies with secure access management and auditing
Broadcom Symantec Cloud SOC Pricing: Contact Symantec directly for pricing information.
Expert Insights’ Comments: CloudSOC provides admins with greater visibility and control over cloud IT applications. Comprehensive contextual data reporting, powerful threat protection and intrusion detection capabilities protects data stored in cloud applications and ensures compliance with data regulations. CloudSOC is based on Symantec’s huge global threat intelligence network, and can be integrated with Broadcom’s range of enterprise security solutions.
Trend Micro Cloud App Security is a CASB solution that provides advanced threat and data protection, as well as email security, for Microsoft 365, Google Workspace and cloud file-sharing services. The platform offers a range of security controls to protect against ransomware, business email compromise and other forms of cyberattack. This CASB solution enforces compliance across cloud file-sharing services including Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive and Teams.
Trend Micro Cloud App Security Features:
- Machine learning and sandboxing analysis to detect advanced threats
- Detects Office 365 credential phishing, scanning links within emails for signs of malicious URLs in real-time
- Data loss protection policies for cloud file-sharing applications with 240 pre-built compliance templates and policies to manage users and groups
- Simple integration and configuration, with no MX record changes required for O365 security
- Sandbox malware analysis for M365, Google Workspace, DropBox and more
Trend Micro Cloud App Security Pricing: Contact Trend Micro directly for pricing information.
Expert Insights’ Comments: Trend Micro’s CASB solution has a focus on simplicity and creating a minimal admin overhead for IT teams. The system deploys via API integration, ensuring there is a high-level of performance and scalability. It integrates seamlessly with other Trend Micro solutions such as their Apex One endpoint protection platform, which can be managed from the same threat detection dashboard. Trend Micro Cloud App Security is a strong CASB solution for mid-sized organizations looking to detect unknown threats in cloud environments and enforce legal compliance.
FAQs
What Are CASB Solutions?
CASB (Cloud Application Security Broker) solutions are a security tool which enable organizations to manage and secure their cloud applications, such as Microsoft 365 and Salesforce. These applications can quickly become vital to an organization, running key tasks and processes. But as they sit outside of your own network, it can be difficult to manage data, access policies, and tracking how many different applications are actually in use.
CASB solutions mitigate against these issues by providing a unified admin console connected to cloud applications and services which provides oversight and additional layers of security controls. This includes threat detection capabilities, user activity monitoring, policies and reporting and more. Capabilities of specific solutions can vary, some are integrated into wider web security solutions, some into endpoint and device security services, providing holistic security across an organization’s network.
CASB solutions are also important tools to prevent data loss. Many solutions provide data loss protection policies, access management and auditing to track where data is stored, and who has access to it. This is important to prevent data breach, but also to ensure compliance requirements are met, and best practices are enforced.
Learn more about the top CASB solutions in our CASB Hub.
How Do CASB Solutions Work?
Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASBs) are security tools that sit between users and cloud-based applications, enforcing security policies and security controls. These services secure data moving from your local network environment to the cloud and vice-versa, based on your security policies such as encryption and authentication.
CASBs help to prevent, monitor, and mitigate against cybersecurity risks. Many solutions offer alerting for malicious activity or potential compliance violations, to help security teams keep on top of cloud risks. They can be used to help detect threats like ransomware, as well as preventing cloud-based account compromise by enforcing security policies such as single-sign on and device profiling.
CASBs are commonly deployed via Proxy Deployment, sitting between users and the SaaS cloud application, or via API deployment.
