Why MSPs Need a SOC

back of man's head sitting in a security operations center

If you are a professional in the cybersecurity space, you’re already aware that the growing number of cyberattacks affecting businesses is increasing daily. According to a research study, global cybercrime has increased 62% since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic and has increased 158% in North America. As a result, businesses of all sizes and across all industries are beginning to prioritize cybersecurity. In fact, 77% of SMBs plan to increase their budget for cybersecurity in 2022.

It can be added that there is an increasing demand for cybersecurity solutions among MSP customers. To help your business deliver cybersecurity as a service to your clients, let’s focus on how your team can get started selling cybersecurity services.

 

Cybersecurity-as-a-Service

Offering cybersecurity “as-a-service” to your clients means bundling together the hardware, software, support, and services you provide for a fixed monthly cost. Some of the top cybersecurity-as-a-service tools that MSP clients are eager to implement are endpoint monitoring, managed patching, threat detection and response, threat intelligence, security operations center (SOC), security information and event management (SIEM), and backup and disaster recovery (BDR) services. Bundling security solutions and services on an ongoing basis for your clients will result in predictable recurring revenues, a decrease in customer churn and business growth.

Managed Security Services Providers, also known as MSSPs, are primarily focused on security services utilizing enterprise-level tools coupled with a full staff of cybersecurity experts to serve big organizations. However, for your business to transition into an MSSP, it requires high upfront costs and ongoing investments to build and sustain in-house security infrastructures. Because of this, there has been an increasing number of MSPs that are seeking to become an MSP+, or a cybersecurity-first MSP. Below are the steps that your MSP can take to implement the cybersecurity-as-a-service model for your customers.

 

Inspect your Systems 

You cannot protect your clients until you have protected yourself first. Conduct an internal cybersecurity risk assessment to evaluate your cyber posture and the areas that require improvement. Upon completion of a risk assessment, your MSP will be aware of its vulnerable areas and next steps to mitigate those vulnerabilities found during the assessment.

 

Train Your Employees

Your company is only as strong as its weakest link. By training your employees to follow best practices that align with your cybersecurity strategy, you will ensure that your staff is on the same page moving forward.

 

Offer Risk Assessments for Your Clients

In this stage of becoming a security-first MSP, you should begin offering risk assessments to evaluate weak spots in their own infrastructures. Once an assessment is complete, your team should begin initiating risk management conversations with clients that clearly have a need to fill in their cybersecurity strategy. You can start off by talking about cybersecurity standards and services that your MSP will recommend for its clients.

 

Operating as a Security-First MSP

In this stage your MSP prioritizes security and actively researches and prepares for emerging threat environments and strategizes selling cybersecurity services to clients to bolster their defense plan and keep them as secure as possible. Once your MSP is here, you can begin offering cybersecurity-as-a-service solutions to potential customers in need.

 

AgileBlue Partner Program

It is important to find a true Channel Partner to support you while you enable your sales team, build your brand and accelerate your growth. Start with the basics. Does the vendor provide the tools for you and your team to ACQUIRE new business? Is the technology strong enough to RETAIN your current clients? Is the platform built to help your team operate with greater EFFICIENCY?  AgileBlue is committed to delivering a best-of-breed Partner Program and ultimately providing the best Partner Experience we can. Ready to Partner with us? Request your demo.

Written by Gillian Sweny

Gillian is Director of Marketing at AgileBlue with over 13 years of experience in the marketing industry. Gillian resides in Cleveland, OH with her husband and 3-year-old son.

December 7, 2021

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