CyberArk and BeyondTrust are two leading vendors in the Privileged Access Management (PAM) space, each offering a suite of solutions designed to secure privileged accounts, manage credentials, and control access. Here’s a comparison between the two:
1. Core Focus and Offerings
• CyberArk: Known as a pioneer in PAM, CyberArk focuses heavily on securing privileged accounts with features like credential vaulting, session management, and threat analytics. CyberArk also offers solutions beyond PAM, including identity security and DevOps security.
• BeyondTrust: Offers broader privileged access security solutions with an emphasis on both PAM and endpoint privilege management. Their platform covers everything from privilege elevation on endpoints to session management for remote access.
2. Credential Management
• CyberArk: Focuses on enterprise-level password vaulting, credential rotation, and enforcement of strong password policies. CyberArk’s Enterprise Password Vault (EPV) is highly regarded for its scalability and secure vaulting capabilities.
• BeyondTrust: Provides robust password vaulting capabilities but also emphasizes least privilege access and privilege elevation at the endpoint level, ensuring users only access what they need, when they need it.
3. Session Monitoring and Management
• CyberArk: Has comprehensive session recording and monitoring features, capturing detailed logs and video of privileged user sessions. CyberArk’s Privileged Session Manager (PSM) allows for remote session management with strong auditing features.
• BeyondTrust: Also offers session recording and auditing capabilities. It excels in securing remote access and third-party vendor access with real-time session monitoring.
4. Endpoint Privilege Management
• CyberArk: While CyberArk has endpoint management capabilities, its primary focus remains on centralized privileged account management and vaulting.
• BeyondTrust: Excels in endpoint privilege management (EPM). It provides tools to enforce least privilege on endpoints, allowing users to run with standard permissions but elevating access only when needed. This is critical in reducing attack surfaces on individual devices.
5. Deployment Flexibility
• CyberArk: Offers both on-premise and cloud-based deployment options. CyberArk has evolved to provide SaaS-based PAM solutions, which are more flexible for organizations adopting cloud-first strategies.
• BeyondTrust: Also provides both on-premise and cloud solutions but emphasizes a smooth hybrid environment transition, with specific products tailored for remote support and endpoint management in the cloud.
6. Ease of Use
• CyberArk: Known for its robustness but can be complex to deploy and manage, especially in large, complex environments. Organizations often need specialized knowledge for configuration and management.
• BeyondTrust: Generally regarded as more user-friendly and easier to deploy, especially for smaller to mid-sized enterprises. It has strong automation and intuitive interfaces, which make implementation smoother.
7. Third-Party Vendor Access
• CyberArk: Provides advanced capabilities for securing and monitoring third-party access, including vendor remote access management with secure connection auditing.
• BeyondTrust: Stands out in this area with dedicated tools for securing third-party vendor access, offering features like remote session recording, approval workflows, and integration with other security tools for real-time auditing.
8. Analytics and Threat Detection
• CyberArk: Offers advanced threat detection features through CyberArk Privileged Threat Analytics (PTA), which helps identify anomalous activities and potential insider threats using behavioral analytics.
• BeyondTrust: Also provides analytics for identifying anomalies and risky behaviors, but it is more focused on managing privileges dynamically to mitigate risk rather than the in-depth behavioral analytics CyberArk offers.
9. Scalability
• CyberArk: Designed for large enterprises with highly complex environments. It is considered a gold standard in sectors like finance, healthcare, and government.
• BeyondTrust: Suitable for both mid-sized enterprises and large organizations, but its flexibility makes it appealing to smaller companies needing comprehensive PAM without as much overhead.
10. Integration Capabilities
• CyberArk: Integrates with a wide variety of tools, including SIEM, ITSM, and other IAM tools. CyberArk is known for its strong API support and third-party integrations, especially in complex ecosystems.
• BeyondTrust: Also offers strong integration options with SIEMs, ITSMs, and cloud platforms, but BeyondTrust tends to simplify the integration process, focusing on ease of deployment and management.
Conclusion:
• CyberArk is often seen as the leader for large, enterprise-level PAM solutions with complex needs and a high focus on vaulting, session management, and advanced threat analytics.
• BeyondTrust excels in ease of use, endpoint privilege management, and remote/third-party access, making it a strong contender for mid-sized businesses or enterprises looking for both PAM and endpoint management in a more streamlined solution.
Your choice between the two might depend on your organization’s specific needs, complexity, and whether you’re more focused on privileged account vaulting (CyberArk) or privileged access and endpoint management (BeyondTrust).