Earlier this year, EasyJet announced that it was a victim of a cyber-attack. The attack exposed email addresses and credit card data of thousands of customers. The Verizon Business 2020 Data Breach Investigations Report showed that money remains the primary underlying motive for cybercrime.
The Marriott Group had announced in November 2018 that attackers had stolen data on nearly 500 million customers between 2014 and 2018. From big corporations to small, cyber-crime is here to stay.
The prevailing global pandemic has now opened floodgates for potential cybercrime, hacking and frauds. Remote working and work from home have increased pressures on the IT infrastructure. MSP or MSSP. Companies now require additional time, manpower and cash flow to keep the systems running smooth and safe. And very importantly, connected.
The Need for MSP
- An MSP has its role cut out. They work as an outsourced IT department. They ensure network performance is optimal. Health audits. And that the infrastructure set up in line with the organizational goals.
- As the organization grows, so do its IT needs. And a lean IT resource structure would not be able to handle the workload effectively.
- Without a doubt, MSPs help bring down costs, provide varied skillsets and expertise and are geared for a 24 x 7 working environment. And since they usually operate remotely, the benefits can be witnessed immediately.
An MSP will always be abreast of the latest software and technologies. They will ensure minimal downtime due to maintenance. They will grow with you and support your growing IT requirements.
Security is Key
Security for your IT infrastructure is key. This means protecting every important piece of information and data that one has. This could mean data, customer info, financial facts and figures, intellectual property and much more.
The burgeoning rise of the cloud has increased risk of evermore. A combination of a weak IT defence mechanism along with smarter hardened cybercrooks means a successful cyberattack or a possibility of a data breach is quite imminent.
The Case for MSSP
- An MSSP has its role cut out. Its security and compliance. All decisions made for your organization are keeping these two requirements in mind.
- The MSSP is on its toes keeping the security of your IT systems and infrastructure in the pink of health. And to make sure that it stays that way. It studies the flow and exchange of data and information within the organization, its network of offices, factories, warehouses, customer service hubs, etc. It uses this information to create an intelligence and defence strategy against all kinds of invasions and attacks. And how.
- An MSSP is focused on providing a security solution based on what is happening in these environments and how data flows in and out of the client’s network. The key piece here is the ability to provide the insight needed to proactively make changes to policies and procedures.
- This is needed to prevent security incidents that might result in a breach, data loss, or any other incident that could negatively impact a business.
No matter how hardworking and ready, the organizational security teams are, it will never be in a state of perpetual readiness against cybercrime. The MSSP has the foresight and insight on how to prevent and thwart imminent attacks. They make use of a SOC. The Security Operations Centre is powered and armed with a comprehensive and robust platform.
The MSSP has visibility and insight into the entire gamut of operations across the organization. It can keep track of all vendors, suites, software and programmes that are prevalent in the system.
So, Do We Need an MSSP and MSP
The answer is yes or no. Organizational size is one parameter to judge.
Managed Service Providers ensure that the business IT systems are fully operational as per requirements. The MSP is primarily focused on IT administration. It helps ensure that all systems are safe, secure and compliant. The MSP is primarily engaged in usability and performance issues. A Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP) can offer total security as a service. The MSSP is primarily focused on IT security while ensuring that the systems are useful and secure only to the employees, the business and possibly its customers.
Let’s consider a small-sized organization and especially a service-based one. In this case, since the requirements are not very heavy and the office network is limited, then a case may not arise for an MSSP. The MSP can equip itself to handle security requirements.
The Need for Plurality
For large organizations, the need arises for both a services provider and a security services provider. This is required to get the best advantages of IT services.
- There is a need to have a proficient service provider so that the business need not worry about systems, hardware and other factors for the smooth running of the enterprise.
- However, a security services provider can detect online attacks and threats on time and hereby plays an important role. It moves from operating beyond basic protection and starts to track suspicious behaviour patterns through its reports.
- Both the services and the security service provider must coexist together in synchronization. This would help plug and fill all gaps with regards to IT. When the MSSP proactively detects a potential security threat, an incident is immediately issued and a remediation plan is put in place.
- The MSP can seamlessly execute the remediation of the incident generated. Hence the MSSP uses its proficiency in security to draw the plans for countering threats while the MSP can execute it.
Hence for large complex organizations with complex processes, the Managed Services Provider and the Managed Security Services Provider can both play a vital role. MSP or MSSP. And like an insurance premium, the extra cost is worth it. Because, in the case of hacks and breaches, the damage to the business could be irreparable and extremely expensive.
