Cyberattacks Are Increasing: Some Takeaways MSSPs Need to Know
New research from industry reports and surveys highlights key facts for MSSPs to keep in their back pockets.
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Only 31% of organizations responding to a recent MicroAge survey use a managed service provider for security — even as ransomware attacks have soared throughout the first half of 2021.
Less than half of the 235 people surveyed even know that MSPs offer security services, according to MicroAge, a longtime MSP based in Tempe, Arizona. That seems like a low number, given the rate at which cyberattacks are increasing.
Still, if the numbers are accurate, managed security service providers, especially, may need to do a better job marketing themselves. After all, the breaches are only going to keep getting worse. At some point, SMBs and enterprises will need outside help handling the intrusions and/or attempts. Their other option is to continue adding monitoring tools throughout their environments. This ends up creating clutter, though, and could even lead to missed alerts.
More than half of respondents in Asia-Pacific have endured a cyberattack from an unknown or unmanaged digital asset.
That’s according to MIT Technology Review’s Insights 2021 report, IT Security Starts with Knowing Your Assets. The publication polled 728 IT executives and decision-makers worldwide. MIT conducted the survey with Palo Alto Networks.
Fifty-one percent of folks from Asia Pacific (162, total) said they’ve been breached. A full quarter says they have not, while 16% say they expect to be hit. Seven percent didn’t know whether they’d been attacked.
In many instances, remote work is to blame for the higher number of cyberattacks. Take, for example, the anecdote MIT and Palo Alto recorded of one employee. He used a personal USB and accidentally downloaded malware onto a laptop that accessed corporate files. The company had to send a cybersecurity staffer on a motorbike to the employee’s house to retrieve the laptop.
“In the past, we could protect the network by simply cutting off the employee’s laptop access,” the CTO told MIT and Palo Alto. “But when an employee is working from home, we can’t take the chance of losing any data over the internet.”
MIT and Palo Alto found that many organizations in Asia Pacific struggle to remediate cyberattacks. These entities face unique challenges such as varied cybersecurity maturity and lack of preparedness for shifting to remote work during the pandemic, MIT and Palo Alto said.
Cybercrime doesn’t come cheap. FYEO, a password-management developer, estimates breaches and hacks put a $1.1 trillion burden, or 1.3% of worldwide GDP, on the global economy.
That figure is expected to rise to $2.7 trillion, or 2.8% of global GDP, by 2023.
For Global 2000 corporations, the cyberattack “value at risk” amounts to 3% of market capitalization — an average of $4.9 billion.
Overall, 80% of business intrusions come down to weak, reused or shared credentials, FYEO says.
Want some scary stats?
FYEO has a Top 100 list comprising 18 types of passwords. Of those, 92% can be cracked in an hour or less, the company found in its report, “Future-Proofing the Password.”
Even worse, perhaps, is that the 10 most common passwords used between 2012 and 2021 can be cracked in 57 seconds. That’s not good news as cyberattacks are increasing.
“Greater security requires alphanumeric passwords with eight or more characters,” report authors wrote.
FYEO recommends two-factor authentication and, not surprisingly, password managers as two solutions. Above all, however, the vendor calls for individuals to “adopt the requisite behaviors needed to achieve a more cybersecure world.”
MSSPs stand well-positioned to help their customers do that. Maybe passwordless is something to consider, too.
Want some scary stats?
FYEO has a Top 100 list comprising 18 types of passwords. Of those, 92% can be cracked in an hour or less, the company found in its report, “Future-Proofing the Password.”
Even worse, perhaps, is that the 10 most common passwords used between 2012 and 2021 can be cracked in 57 seconds. That’s not good news as cyberattacks are increasing.
“Greater security requires alphanumeric passwords with eight or more characters,” report authors wrote.
FYEO recommends two-factor authentication and, not surprisingly, password managers as two solutions. Above all, however, the vendor calls for individuals to “adopt the requisite behaviors needed to achieve a more cybersecure world.”
MSSPs stand well-positioned to help their customers do that. Maybe passwordless is something to consider, too.
Cyberattacks are increasing at unprecedented rates.
Managed security service providers should serve as the first – and strongest – line of defense. Apparently, though, more SMBs, enterprises, nonprofits and other organizations have yet to lean on these channel partners. We see that as an opportunity for MSSPs to get out the word about their services. Find out more from MicroAge’s recent survey.
After that, get the scoop on one of the world’s hot spots for cyberattacks. This won’t come as a huge shock, but remote work is largely responsible. MSSPs in that region have a lot of opportunity to step in and help.
Finally, find out just how much cybercrime is costing the world, and understand the depth of the password problem.
See our news about increasing cyberattacks and more in the slideshow above.
Want to contact the author directly about this story? Have ideas for a follow-up article? Email Kelly Teal or connect with her on LinkedIn. |
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