Cato Networks
Israeli single-platform SASE vendor with its own points of presence and regional contracting entities in the EU
Quick Overview
| Company | Cato Networks Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Category | SASE and Zero Trust Network Access |
| Headquarters | Israel, Israel |
| Founded | Not stated |
| EU Presence | Yes - Israel, with legal entities in Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and France |
| Data Location | Regional management instances in the US, EU, India and Japan |
| Open Source | No |
| GDPR Compliant | Yes |
| Self-Hosting | Partly - private PoPs and private management instance for sovereign deployments |
| Main Features | SD-WAN, FWaaS, secure web gateway, IPS, CASB, DLP, ZTNA, remote browser isolation, AI security, geo-fencing |
| Pricing | No prices found; licensed per user group and ZTNA user |
| Best For | Multi-site organisations that want networking and security from one vendor with regional contracts |
| Replaces | Netskope, Zscaler, Palo Alto Prisma Access |
Detailed Review
Cato describes its service as one platform with one control plane, one data plane and one data lake, covering SD-WAN, FWaaS, SWG, IPS, CASB, DLP, ZTNA, RBI and AI security.
Its main site blocked automated access, so the facts below come from Cato's knowledge base and from excerpts of its legal pages. Which entity signs your order depends on your region.
Regional entities and data planes
A Cato document lists regional legal entities in the US, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, France, Singapore, the UK, Australia, Japan, the Philippines and Israel, each acting as the contracting party in its region. Management instances run in the US, EU, India and Japan, and geo-fencing keeps traffic on regional PoPs.
Three sovereignty models
Beyond the public service, Cato describes a version run through a national telecom or MSSP with private PoPs, and one where the customer hosts both the PoPs and the management instance. The feature set is stated as identical across all three.
Licensing
The product terms define ZTNA user licences, each allowing up to 3 devices through the client, application portal or browser extension. No price list was reachable.
Limitations to Consider
Cato's site could not be fetched directly, no prices were found, and the contracting entity varies by region, including a US one. It is a single-vendor platform, so leaving it later is a full migration. The private deployment models are aimed at governments, carriers and large enterprises.
Who Should Use Cato Networks
Larger European organisations with many branches that want one SASE contract signed with a local Cato entity, and can accept a vendor that is not EU-headquartered.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Broad single platform
- EU legal entities as contracting parties
- Regional management instances and geo-fencing
- Sovereign deployment options
- Own PoP infrastructure per its docs
Cons
- No public prices
- Direct site blocked automated access
- Entity depends on region
- Single-vendor lock-in
Alternatives to Cato Networks
Other European sase and zero trust network access worth comparing before you decide:
NetBird
Germany · Berlin WireGuard mesh network with a free plan and public per-user prices
Defguard
Poland · Self-hosted WireGuard platform that asks for MFA on each connection
Systancia
France · Zero trust access and privileged access for IT and industrial systems
Open Systems
Switzerland · Zurich operator running SASE as a managed service with a 24 by 7 team
See all European sase and zero trust network access or compare them directly against Netskope on our alternatives page.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is Israeli, which this directory counts as European, and it lists legal entities in several EU countries. Check which entity your order names.
Its sovereignty document describes private PoPs and a private management instance for service providers and for customers.
None were found in the pages that could be read.