Compare IBM Guardium Data Protection vs. Imperva SecureSphere Database Security
IBM Guardium Data Protection is ranked 1st in Database Security with 23 reviews while Imperva SecureSphere Database Security is ranked 2nd in Database Security with 9 reviews. IBM Guardium Data Protection is rated 8.2, while Imperva SecureSphere Database Security is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of IBM Guardium Data Protection writes "Proven record of preventing unauthorized access and modifications to our customer's data". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Imperva SecureSphere Database Security writes "Assesses the vulnerability of the database while it is running". IBM Guardium Data Protection is most compared with Imperva SecureSphere Database Security, Oracle Audit Vault and Informatica Secure@Source, whereas Imperva SecureSphere Database Security is most compared with IBM Guardium Data Protection, Oracle Audit Vault and Fortinet FortiDB. See our IBM Guardium Data Protection vs. Imperva SecureSphere Database Security report.
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 Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Guardium Data Protection vs. Imperva SecureSphere Database Security and other solutions. Updated: January 2020. 396,781 professionals have used our research since 2012. | |||||
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros | |
It allows us to put in controls to make sure that only the right persons access the proper records in the database. Audit Process Builder – Workflow generator to enhance audit tasks and compliance workflows. Compliance Quick Start – Quick, GUI, step-by-step guide to automate compliance and give the customer a quick ROI. The most valuable feature is using the capture operation mode “S-TAP/K-TAP agent”, because all activities in the database are captured, including direct access to the database server by privileged users. This is useful because, even if the database server logs were deleted, the Guardium Collector has already stored such data to enable traceability of access. The possible number of databases and database servers which can be monitored by Guardium is high. For me, this is a differentiator of IBM. Encryption is not straightforward, but Guardium made the setup easy for us. Supports security initiatives and ensures compliance policies. We now have the ability to begin to understand how people, applications, and service accounts are interacting with data to better protect it. | As we are very sensitive to financial impacts, this product provides great protection for our organization. The most valuable feature is the Data Masking. Flexible reporting allows for customization that keeps the admins from having to interact with system automation. A solution which does what other name brand products do for a lower cost. This solution has helped secure our Internet-based services, protecting us against DoS and other types of web-based attacks. The most valuable feature of this solution is the database security policy. The functionality is very useable and easy to understand. It has a lot of different components that cover the needs of our customers. |
Cons | |
The biggest complaint that I hear from customers and users is that using this solution requires database skills, yet it is a security and monitoring tool. Needs easier integration with custom applications. I have already mentioned to IBM that a primary need is to improve the number of records in the reports above 65,535. It needs an integration with Optum. It will not go as fast as you want. Initial setup is very complex. Once you start interacting with people's databases, they get very hesitant. Then, the amount of social tasks to socialize the solution ensuring people are comfortable with it became a much heavier lift. Initially it did not have support external applications like, say, Tableau, ServiceNow, Remedy, and the like. They have started growing into it, but I would like to have more and more integration with outside applications. I am struggling getting through to social. | I would like to see improvement in the integration part of the tool. This should be an easy process. The firewall features are not very strong and should be improved. Performance can be slow under heavy loads, but this should be adjusted by scaling. The interface is not user-friendly. The GUI for this solution could use some improvement. Technical support for this solution needs improvement. It would be better to update the solution by using a GUI that guides me, rather than through a CLI. Integration with other databases or third-party products would be useful. |
Pricing and Cost Advice | |
One of the deployments that I know of had three databases, and the yearly fees are approximately $50,000 USD. The price of Guardium is higher than the main competitor, Imperva. In addition, it's complex as the calculation of the licensing is done by Processor Value Unit (PVU). However, before purchasing a DAP solution, it is important to analyze specific points to evaluate the cost-benefit of each tool. For example: Does the environment to be monitored have mainframes? If so, it's a point for Guardium. If not, a point for Imperva. Note: IBM is looking into a new licensing policy and reducing the price of Guardium. The biggest challenge is the cost associated with the product, and the cost of maintaining. Everything is not translated directly to the benefits we see. There are benefits, yes, but if I were writing the check, would I buy Guardium? No. Guardium won mostly because of our scope and scale. It was able to perform at the scale that we wanted to use it. If you are researching this type of solution, work with IBM. Guardium has not saved us time or money. | We have all the licenses, which we pay for annually. The price is a little high, but the product is good. The pricing over-all depends on the entry level. For example, if support and maintenance are about $20,000 - $25,000, the initial cost can be five times more. It is less expensive for the company to maintain the client than to make the deployment. Pricing is low and scalable to add features and volume. There is an annual licensing fee for upgrading the device. Licensing fees are on a yearly basis, and it is a good value for the money. The cost of support for this solution is very expensive. |
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Ranking  | |
Views 15,333 Comparisons 7,199 Reviews 22 Average Words per Review 605 Avg. Rating 8.2 | Views 9,674 Comparisons 5,868 Reviews 8 Average Words per Review 661 Avg. Rating 8.3 |
Top Comparisons | |
 Compared 45% of the time.  Compared 23% of the time.  Compared 7% of the time. |  Compared 58% of the time. Compared 15% of the time.  Compared 9% of the time. |
Also Known As | |
| InfoSphere Guardium, Guardium, IBM Guardium | |
Learn | |
| IBM | Imperva |
Overview | |
The IBM Security Guardium portfolio empowers organizations to grow their business and prove compliance with smarter data protection capabilities. It provides complete visibility, actionable insights, real time controls and automated compliance workflows throughout the entire data protection journey, to support your most critical data protection needs. IBM Security Guardium delivers discovery & classification, vulnerability & risk assessments, real-time monitoring & alerting, encryption, advanced analytics and compliance reporting across structured, unstructured, and semi-structured data in on-prem (including mainframe), cloud, and across hybrid cloud environments.
| Imperva SecureSphere Database Security:
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Offer | |
Learn more about IBM Guardium Data Protection | Learn more about Imperva SecureSphere Database Security |
Sample Customers | |
| BlueCross BlueShield, eHarmony, EMF Broadcasting, GE Healthcare, Metro Bank, The Motley Fool, Siemens | |
Top Industries | |
Financial Services Firm46% Insurance Company17% Healthcare Company13% Government8% Software R&D Company25% Comms Service Provider14% Financial Services Firm12% Insurance Company7% | Financial Services Firm46% Energy/Utilities Company15% Pharma/Biotech Company8% Media Company8% Software R&D Company29% Financial Services Firm15% Comms Service Provider13% Government6% |
Company Size | |
Small Business24% Midsize Enterprise11% Large Enterprise64% Small Business14% Midsize Enterprise3% Large Enterprise83% | Small Business21% Midsize Enterprise18% Large Enterprise61% |
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Guardium Data Protection vs. Imperva SecureSphere Database Security and other solutions. Updated: January 2020.
396,781 professionals have used our research since 2012.
See also IBM Guardium Data Protection Reviews, Imperva SecureSphere Database Security Reviews, and our list of Best Database Security Companies.
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