Sophos to Give MSPs Cloudy Endpoint Tools

Sophos, a longtime player in the security space, is moving from packaged, on-premises wares to the cloud, and hopes to take MSPs along for the ride.

The company already has an MSP partner program in place and serves this community with its existing set of products, the company recently told CRN.

The idea of the cloud and Web approach is to let MSPs sell security services, and manage them all remotely, said Gerhard Eschelbeck, CTO at Sophos. "There's a push for a significant cloud-based model, and partners have expressed interest in providing cloud-based services as well," Eschelbeck told the magazine.

The long-standing endpoint protection platform is currently being reworked as a cloud solution aimed SMBs. Sophos hopes the exact same platform will catch the interest of MSPs.

The packaged security software space is clearly under pressure as PCs sales slump, and users opt for free tools such as those that come with Windows, or choose from the growing number of cloud tools.

Sophos is starting with endpoint protection in the cloud, but plans to add mobile and Web filtering in the coming year. "We're now in an era where we need to provide the ability to bring all these products to market in a unified way through the cloud," Eschelbeck said. "It's about having integrated products, a common user interface and common reporting."

The company believes it has a compelling story, helping MSPs expand into new areas. “You can extend your service offerings beyond traditional infrastructure monitoring and maintenance to provide complete security as a service, allowing you to stand out from competitors,” the company said.

The Sophos Story

Sophos, now a mature 18-year-old company, protects some 100 million users and more than 100,000 companies. It is particularly strong in the education market, with over six million clients served, and in the government space where it boasts more than two million users.

In 2012, it brought in over $400 million in revenue.

Other Sophos tools for MSPs include Unified Threat Management, e-mail protection, and mobile device security.