ON THE HORIZON
7Critical Rules To Save Your Customers And Your Business
Double Down On Cybersecurity And Compliance In The Second Half Of 2021
Corporate boundaries have expanded to the home and to the office , leading to a tremendous rise in the demand for managed services . The pandemic created a surge in the need for an MSP ’ s services . This shows no sign of slowing down , particularly security ( up 65 %) and cloud management ( up 54 %), according to the 2021 MSP Benchmark Survey from Kaseya .
The good news is that cybersecurity and remote workforce setups present the largest opportunity for growth for MSPs in the second half of 2021 . Your customers , employees , and business partners now expect to perform their work operations in physically remote environments while having access to all the tools necessary to work from anywhere . More than 90 % of organizations expect to increase their cybersecurity budgets in 2021 , a survey from IDG found , nearly matching the 96 % that boosted IT security spending in 2020 .
The flip side is that with employees and customers accessing cloud-based collaborating tools and apps , MSPs need to defend against growing threats from cybercriminals to their customers while also protecting their business , requiring both security tools and rigorous compliance . For cybercriminals , MSPs are an extremely attractive target representing the ability to scale their operations , as two-thirds of organizations use MSPs for at least one IT function , according to a COMPTIA Buying Guide . And today , cybercriminals are taking advantage of these less secure environments and are more active than ever , opening more MSPs up to financial and legal ruin .
Guidance For MSPs To Protect Themselves And Their Customers
All businesses must protect themselves from cybercrime , data compromise , and other security breaches — which is no different for an MSP . The massive SolarWinds breach is one extreme example that impacted thousands of companies , including the U . S . federal government , almost all the Fortune 500 companies , and many universities and colleges .
Take note ... MSPs Themselves Can Be The Gateway .
Given the access , control , and " one-to-many " relationships between an MSP and your customers , protecting your own business as well as your customers is critical . You must implement the proper safeguards , employ security tools , and have rigorous compliance in order to defend against today ’ s evolving threat vectors .
Here are seven rules to help guide you and your customers : 1 . Identify Threat Map
IDG found that nearly 80 % of IT and security leaders believe their organizations lack sufficient protection against cyberattacks , despite increased IT security investments made in 2020 to deal with distributed IT and work-from-home challenges .
Conduct an analysis of your preparations and defenses for a variety of possible attack vectors , including phishing , malware , and brute-force intrusion . Understand and assess the risk created by each for yourself and your managed clients .
2 . Build A Defense Plan
Identify the tools needed to generate or bolster your defenses in each of the identified attack vectors while encouraging your customers to do the same . A robust defense requires a complete security stack . These tool sets can help you avoid breaches and build customer trust .
• Anti-Malware And Identity / Access Tools ( MFA ): Anti-malware software protects against infections caused by many types of malware , including all types of viruses , ransomware , and spyware . MFA combines what the user knows ( password ), what the user has ( security token ), and what the user is ( biometric verification ). Access is granted only after an additional factor is verified , such as a one-time password ( OTP ) sent via SMS , and can also include a biometric check like a scan of the fingerprint or retina .
• Dark Web Monitoring , Anti-Phishing ( Technical Defense And Human Training ), And Firewalls : Deploy comprehensive dark web monitoring , anti-phishing training — including simulations to expose the employee behaviors that lead to credential theft — and more . Couple it with firewall , antivirus / anti-malware , and robust patching solutions , and you have a security stack that provides a complete blanket of protection .
• Backup And Disaster Recovery : Backup and disaster recovery are , in many ways , extensions of security — providing
6 | MSPSuccessMagazine . com • VOLUME 2 ISSUE 3