Cybercrime costs the U.S. economy about $100 billion each year, and that number is consistently rising.
With so much awareness and effort being directed towards the rise in cyberthreats, why does it seem like the situation is only getting worse? Most experts agree that there are three main factors:
- Cybercrime is profitable and low-risk. Hackers can make considerable amounts of money — often from the relative safety of their home in a foreign nation.
- Large organizations and enterprises are increasing their cyber defense, but small businesses, municipalities, and even federal offices are falling behind. This leaves a very large section of wealthy, vulnerable targets.
- Cyber attacks are dynamic. Regardless of how strong our defenses, hackers can change their approach and use new techniques or tools to execute their attacks. This is why cybersecurity is an ongoing, responsive discipline.
Many organizations have increased the number of security tools and services in place, but they fail to manage and actively monitor their security infrastructure. At the end of the day, monitoring is the key to comprehensive cyber protection. Organizations without a 24/7 Security Operations Center (SOC) are finding themselves at a huge disadvantage.
Thankfully, there’s a solution that doesn’t require huge investments in technology and manpower to make this happen. Managed security services allow for the outsourcing of all or a portion of security functions to a managed security services provider (MSSP) such as NCC.
This provider assumes a number of essential tasks:
- Ongoing monitoring and management of firewalls
- Intrusion prevention systems & other security tools
- Vulnerability assessments
- Penetration testing
- Security event correlation
- System upgrades and changes
- Patch management
- Alerting, incident response, threat intelligence and other functions.
Outsourcing these tasks gives you access to enterprise-level security personnel and best practices, which reduces the risk of data loss and exposure, business disruption, reputational damage and other issues associated with data breaches.
When looking for an IT provider in Texas, choose one with security expertise. Does the provider have the knowledge to reduce risk by effectively monitoring and managing your security infrastructure? What tools do they use? Do they offer services that address your top security priorities? Are they able to handle your other IT needs so that you can simplify your technology management?
Who Needs to Outsource Their Cybersecurity?
If you have the resources to bring in the necessary expertise and run a 24/7 SOC, outsourcing is unnecessary. Having effective systems in place for monitoring and updating security tools, detecting and removing known and unknown threats, and responding to security incidents is also essential.
If you do not have the time, budget, or resources to execute such a comprehensive security plan, then outsourcing may be the best option for your business. The goal is to have complete confidence in your IT security so you can rest easy knowing that your business, your customers, and your finances aren’t at risk.
If you think your IT team could use some outside help, contact us to learn more about how managed security services can reduce the risk of data breaches and compliance violations across your organization.
