Partner content: How MSPs can spark recession-resistant growth with cyber security services
A growing number of managed service providers (MSPs) are branching out into security, with some rebranding themselves as managed security service providers (MSSPs). This will not come as a surprise to those in the cyber security community, with the global managed security services market predicted to grow from $22.8 billion in 2021 to $43.7 billion by 2026.
As organisations face daily sophisticated cyber threats—without the necessary resources to deal with them—they are turning to third parties to oversee their security infrastructure rather than managing it in-house. In the context of a possible recession, cyber security-based managed services offer MSPs a reliable revenue stream. While some digital initiatives will be deprioritised in the face of greater scrutiny of business value, cyber security budgets and needs are likely to maintain their steady upwards trajectory.
When it comes to deciding what security tools to bring into your MSP stack, email security should be top of mind, as email is a consistent target for cyber criminals. According to end-user research conducted by CRN, 78 per cent of respondents said that phishing attacks had at least somewhat increased and 65 per cent said social engineering had at least somewhat increased. Furthermore, most of these email-based attacks found targets within the Microsoft 365 application ecosystem.
Traditionally, email communications have been protected by secure email gateways or servers that incoming and outgoing emails pass through, but today's sophisticated threats must be countered with a new approach to email security, one which MSPs must be on-hand to deliver to their customers.
However, MSPs themselves are not immune to the cyber skills shortage, and may struggle to develop the necessary cyber skills to keep pace with customers' needs without drastically increasing headcount. This is where the best vendors help to train and support MSPs, offering easy to use yet capable solutions that scale efficiently. MSPs must invest in the right tools and partner with those with the right cyber know-how to pass onto their customers.
Manageable services
For many MSPs, the challenges of managing security for multiple clients with unique environments makes cyber security difficult to scale, and high administrative costs will make it difficult to achieve a profit on such services.
That is why it's important to have a solution that's easy to administer for a wide array of clients. This must be controlled from an easy-to-use dashboard, which not only simplifies the task of managing and remediating threats across tenants but also improves visibility across customers' networks.
Organisations have come to expect the MSPs they partner with to offer a one-stop-shop of services, and security is no different. To make this possible, products from different vendors must easily integrate with existing services on one platform, making daily operations more efficient.
To achieve this, MSPs and MSSPs need to choose cyber security vendors with portfolios that match the needs of their customers and offer services they cannot provide in-house.
Before choosing a vendor, ensure that they offer services that will complement and enhance your business, such as a channel partner program, specialist training, and round-the-clock support. From there it is possible to create a robust managed security service that is easy to bundle, sell, and manage.
Developing a product
When it comes to developing these services, automation and cloud capabilities are essential qualities. A high degree of automation helps achieve greater efficiencies, saving resources and reducing alert fatigue. Additionally, all products must be available in the cloud to allow for remote access. MSPs may also consider security solutions that can be deployed via an API, making them easier to configure.
These capabilities not only make it easier for MSPs to administer tools but are also essential to keeping up with sophisticated ransomware, phishing, and spear phishing attacks. By using machine-learning-based threat detection to analyse and block malicious emails at speed, it is possible to go beyond simple signature-based threat detection methods to identify and stop more sophisticated and evasive threats.
Modern solutions such as these not only give customers the peace of mind that their email security is taken care of but creates opportunities for ongoing revenue for MSPs. Solutions that are easy to deploy, manage and integrate with other services mean that customers are protected from evolving threats without significant administrative costs for your organisation.