Every day, cybercriminals carry out attacks against targets of all sizes and industries. Worse yet, cyberattack strategies are constantly evolving. To contend with modern cyber threats, it is crucial that every business has strong cybersecurity.
Despite the prevalence of news stories about network security breaches involving millions of dollars of damage, many companies don’t have the IT security resources they need to safeguard themselves against attacks.
Finding qualified cybersecurity experts and bringing them in-house can be prohibitively expensive as these experts often command high salaries. The average salary of just one cybersecurity engineer is $96k/year, according to PayScale—and total compensation can be much higher depending on specific skills and experience. Demand for these experts is high, so they may get poached by other companies. In fact, according to CSO Online, “40 percent of IT leaders say cybersecurity jobs are the most difficult to fill.”
To help improve cybersecurity while controlling costs, many companies have turned to managed security service providers (MSSPs). What is an MSSP? What do these security services specialists do to protect your company? What are the benefits of using a managed security service provider?
What is a Managed Security Service Provider?
An MSSP is a company that provides outsourced security services to their customers in exchange for a set fee. The specific activities involved may vary from one service provider to another, but commonly include monitoring and management of network assets and security devices, security training, and penetration testing.
Security service providers are able to offer the services of a team of cybersecurity experts for a far lower cost than what an organization would normally spend to hire a similarly-skilled team internally. This is partly because the MSSP can divide the cost of their cybersecurity team amongst several customers—which helps reduce the cost per customer.
Types of Security Services
As mentioned earlier, there are many different kinds of managed security services that an MSSP might provide. Some MSSPs may even customize the services they offer based on a customer’s specific needs or goals.
Some examples of cybersecurity services that an MSSP might provide include:
- Security Education Training and Awareness (SETA) Program Management. MSSPs may help businesses create and administer training programs that help the organization’s employees learn about cybersecurity (and ensure they’re aware of critical security requirements).
- Dark Web Services. The “dark web” is a series of servers and websites that aren’t reachable with normal web search engines. This part of the internet is often used to conduct the sale of illicit services and stolen data. Dark web monitoring services scour these hidden sites for signs of the client’s data and the latest cyber threats.
- Penetration Testing and Consulting. A penetration test is a service where the MSSP attempts to breach a client’s network security to identify potential weaknesses. Then, the MSSP will compile a report noting any major security flaws and recommended fixes.
- Data Breach Investigations/Compromise Assessments. In many cases, clients will approach an MSSP only after suffering a cyberbreach of some kind. Data breach investigations (aka compromise assessments) take a look at a breach to try and identify the cause of the breach, what data or systems were affected, and what steps should be taken to prevent future breaches.
- Backup Disaster Recovery (BDR) Setup and Management. Having a remote backup of critical data that can be used to recover from is a crucial step in preventing data loss. MSSPs can help their clients find appropriate BDR solutions to store their data and set them up for optimal efficiency.
- Written Information Security Program (WISP) Creation and Management. Many municipalities require businesses operating in their jurisdiction to have a document detailing their cybersecurity policies, procedures, and tools to verify if they meet key security guidelines. MSSPs can help create and manage these documents, as well as track progress towards key cybersecurity goals.
Benefits of Outsourcing IT Security to an MSSP
Why would a company want to outsource their network security to a third-party company like ideaBOX? There are a number of benefits:
- Saving Time and Money on Recruitment. As mentioned earlier, cybersecurity experts are difficult to find and expensive to retain. They frequently command six-figure salaries and are prone to being poached by competitors. Hiring an MSSP is much faster and provides access to a whole team of experts at a fraction of the cost of hiring internally.
- Gaining Near-Immediate Cybersecurity Improvements. MSSPs have the resources and expertise needed to quickly identify the “low-hanging fruits” in an IT security setup—those items that are big security risks, but are relatively easy to fix. This helps to rapidly shore up a company’s defenses and thwart common cyberattack strategies.
- Alleviating Pressure on the IT Team. In many companies, the IT department is tasked with tackling cybersecurity issues. However, this stretches their resources thin, and they may be forced to prioritize uptime and ease of access over security. Outsourcing cybersecurity to a team of experts frees up IT personnel to focus on tasks that add value to the business.
Are you ready to transform your IT security? Reach out to the team at ideaBOX now to learn more about how you can protect your business from modern cyber threats.
