As businesses increasingly rely on digital infrastructure, the specter of data breaches looms larger than ever. According to IBM’s report, the average cost of a mega-breach of 50 to 60 million records in 2024 is $375 million, a $43 million increase from 2023. This unsettling trend shows no signs of decreasing, instead the frequency and sophistication of attacks have escalated in 2024.
Cybercriminals are becoming increasingly adept at exploiting vulnerabilities in everything from cloud services to remote work environments. Hence, businesses must rethink their approach to data protection.
One strategic decision for enterprises to consider is whether they should manage their security operations in-house or outsource to Managed Security Service Providers (MSSP).
In this blog, we will explore how MSSPs can help mitigate risks and what are the key evaluation criteria when selecting an MSSP to outsource your security to the Role of MSSPs in Preventing Data Breach!
A managed security service provider monitors your on-premises and cloud infrastructure 24/7, manages firewalls, EDRs, XDRs, and other security technologies you have, continually patches vulnerabilities, and may also run your security awareness program. More specifically, an MSSP can provide the following capabilities:
- 24/7 Detection and Response: Cybercriminals don’t work 9-5! Attacks can happen at any hour of the day or night, even on weekends and holidays. A managed security service provider (MSSP) provides constant vigilance, detecting threats as soon as they appear. MSSPs can also extend their capabilities into your infrastructure and respond to these threats as per agreed upon SLAs.
- Continuous Threat Exposure Management: An MSSP can scan your infrastructure using vulnerability scanners, attack surface management tools, and application security testing tools to determine your risk exposure across your technology stack. Combining this with security alerts, the right MSSP can provide contextually relevant intelligence about your current security posture.
- Threat Intelligence and Dark Web Monitoring: MSSP service portfolios also include monitoring public and proprietary information sources of threat intelligence as relevant to your industry, geography and technology stack. Further, MSSPs can also provide Digital Rights Protection service by monitoring the dark web and social media for any signs of a targeted attack or data leakage or brand misuse.
- Security Device Management: With the spread of security technologies throughout an enterprise, finding the right skillsets to manage and optimize these technologies can be a challenging task. MSSPs can help alleviate this concern by bringing shared teams of security experts that can manage your CSPM, CNAPP, WAF, EDR, XDR, PAM and other security products.
- Incident Response Planning: Security solution providers work closely with organizations to perform regular drills and update the response strategies. They ensure that organizations are well-prepared to act swiftly when a breach occurs, reducing downtime and potential losses.
- Employee Training and Awareness: Human error is a major cause of data breaches, making employee training essential. Partners help organizations by providing comprehensive cybersecurity awareness programs that teach employees to recognize phishing attacks, follow secure practices, and avoid common mistakes.
Hence, MSSPs offer a comprehensive range of services, allowing businesses to entrust their IT security and monitoring needs to professionals. However, the advantages of partnering with managed security services extend far beyond just this!
Choose Wisely: Picking the Right MSSP!
Not all managed security providers are equal, and the decision should be made with careful consideration of various factors. Here’s what to look for:
- Certifications & Compliance: Look for MSSPs with recognized certifications like ISO 27001, SOC 2, or compliances with industry-specific regulations like HIPAA (for healthcare) or PCI DSS (for financial services). If you are a healthcare organization, look for an MSSP with HIPAA, GDPR, HITECH, and other compliances. This ensures they handle sensitive patient data securely and follow all regulatory guidelines to prevent legal issues.
- Industry Experience: The provider should have a proven track record in dealing with threats and challenges that are unique to your sector. A financial firm should choose an MSSP with experience in defending against data leakage, financial fraud, phishing attacks, ransomware, DDoS, spoofing, etc., which are most prevalent in the finance industry. Proven expertise will help detect and mitigate industry-specific threats faster.
- Service Offerings: Ensure the MSSP offers a comprehensive range of services and should also support solutions with advanced technologies such as threat intelligence, SIEM, and automated response mechanisms and should be able to deal with complicated threats. Also, their team should stay up to date on the latest threats and trends in the cyber world.
- Data Protection Capabilities: The security provider should not only focus on securing data but also on how they handle data breaches. Along with data protection, they should be able to provide a post-breach plan to minimize damage, restore services, and prevent future incidents. For instance, Data Recovery & Restoration Plan, Root Cause Analysis, Incident Containment and Immediate Response, are some of the post-breach plans. If a financial organization experiences a breach in their transaction data, the MSSP should have protocols for immediately isolating compromised servers and identifying how the attack vector entered.
- Scalability Alongside Your Growth: If you are a fast-growing tech company, ensure your MSSP can scale their services as you expand. This might include handling larger volumes of data or providing more robust threat detection as your business scales globally.
- Customization: Your organization’s security needs are unique, and a one-size-fits-all MSSP won’t provide the tailored protection your business requires. Choose an MSSP that understands your specific environment and can customize its solutions.
- For a financial organization, they should be able to implement tailored security protocols for real-time monitoring of suspicious financial activities, preventing fraud and safeguarding customer assets, while complying with PCI DSS and other compliances.
- For a retail organization, they should be able to secure payment processing and protect consumer data during high-traffic periods.
- And if you are a manufacturing company, look for MSSP whose team has capability to design security measures that protect both IT and OT environments without unnecessary overlap.
Hence, choosing the right MSSP can be the difference between a fortified defense and a costly threat. Make sure they check all the boxes before entrusting them with your organization’s security.
Our Key Differentiators
At Network Intelligence, we have been providing security monitoring services since 2010. Starting with open-source technologies such as OSSIM, we migrated from our SOC to Arcsight, and then to IBM QRadar.
Today, our SOC teams support customer environments on Splunk, Sentinel, LogRhythm, ELK and Sumo Logic. Our shared SOC runs on state-of the-art technologies such as Palo Alto XSOAR, Cortex XDR, Prisma Cloud, Tenable CTEM, and Acalvio.
We focus intensely on training and upskilling our teams on a continuous basis. This includes advanced qualifications and practical simulations, ensuring our professionals can handle intricate cyber threats and react quickly to emergencies.
We have a comprehensive ADVISE engagement model that helps us assess your cybersecurity requirements holistically and ensure the MDR services we provide are aligned to your organizational size, risk, and technology stack.
By investing in our own proprietary technology stack – Transilience – we ensure our clients get the benefit of AI-powered security as a service.
If this piques your curiosity, we would love to hear from you!
If you are curious about how we have successfully protected businesses in diverse industries, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.