As cyber threats continue to becoming more sophisticated and diverse, securing business IT has become a formidable challenge. This is especially true as the global digital landscape continues to expand and the volume of data created and stored online grows exponentially.
The overarching impact of the rapid evolution of cyber threats is that security is no longer purely an IT concern. Rather, it has become a central business issue, with ramifications that extend far beyond the walls of the server room. Data breaches can result in severe financial losses, damage to brand reputation, loss of customer trust, and potentially hefty regulatory fines. In an interconnected world, every business, regardless of size or industry, is at risk.
However, implementing effective cyber security measures is a challenging task for many businesses. The complexity of modern IT environments, with a mix of legacy systems, on-premises infrastructure, and cloud-based services, creates numerous potential vulnerabilities. Keeping up with emerging threats and staying abreast of the latest best practices in cyber security requires specialized knowledge and significant resources.
Couple that with the global shortage of skilled cyber security professionals and the problem becomes even more pronounced. (ISC)² estimated the gap stood at 3.12 million in 2020 and grew to 3.4 million last year. This lack of in-house expertise and resources makes it difficult for businesses to establish and maintain robust cyber security defenses.
This need for skilled security services is one of the reasons managed security services delivered by MSPs and MSSPs continue to grow and are a key growth opportunity. In fact, over the past couple of years, security-related topics have been some of the most heavily attended conference sessions at MSP Expo. Next year’s event, taking place February 13-15, 2024, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, will again ensure MSPs have access to a wide range of security education to help them better navigate the security landscape and deliver effective tools and services to their customers.
For businesses, outsourcing security to an MSP/MSSP allows them to leverage their partners’ expertise and technology to secure their IT environments, freeing up their internal resources to focus on core business activities.
While reactive security is often a key focus of cyber strategies – and they are necessary. After all, it’s commonly recognized that most companies will experience a cyber incident (if they haven’t already), and they need to be prepared to handle those situations. But, one of the keys to a successful cyber strategy and minimizing risk is through proactive cyber security. This includes regular risk assessments, penetration testing, and threat hunting to identify potential vulnerabilities and threats before they can be exploited. Businesses also need to invest in employee training and awareness programs to minimize the risk of human error, which remains one of the leading causes of data breaches.
Another emerging strategy is using Breach and Attack Simulation (BAS) as part of a cyber security toolkit. BAS solutions help assess an organization's cyber defenses by simulating a variety of attacks and allowing businesses to identify and address vulnerabilities before real attackers can exploit them.
Take GuidePoint Security, for instance, which recently announced its Breach & Attack Simulation as a Service (BASaaS) offering (yes, yet another “aaS” acronym). GuidePoint’s service is designed to help organizations maximize the value of their BAS tools, improve their security postures, and maximize the ROI from their non-BAS security stacks.
GuidePoint’s BASaaS provides simulation strategies built around the unique technology within their customers’ environments and threat intelligence around their related industry verticals. It provides customized dashboards and reports to meet specific requirements and maintains a direct line of communication with BAS tool vendors to ensure swift new feature implementation and issue remediation.
The BASaaS offering is part of GuidePoint’s complete portfolio of threat and attack simulation services, which includes traditional and cloud pen testing, p testing as a service, Purple Teaming, Red Teaming, and social engineering.
GuidePoint’s goal is to become a trusted cyber security partner and help organizations make informed decisions to minimize risk. While no security measure can offer a 100% guarantee against breaches or attacks, logic dictates that adopting a proactive, layered approach can significantly reduce the likelihood of successful attacks and mitigate the impact of any potential breaches. This approach includes implementing robust security controls, staying updated with the latest threat intelligence, conducting regular security assessments, and using advanced tools.
Of course, cost is always a factor. But, in the face of increasing cyber threats, it’s almost a certainty that the cost of a data breach will outweigh the cost of investing in effective cyber security as part the overall business strategy that combines proactive measures, advanced technologies, and expert guidance to create robust and resilient defenses.
Edited by
Erik Linask
