Preparing for the next RansomWare Attack...

As the NotPetya and WannaCry viruses became household names this year, the fear of cyberattacks has escalated among businesses of all sizes. But, the news headlines have been focused on large, well-known enterprises such as WPP, Monsanto, Mondelez, and Maersk who fell victim to the most recent attacks. While these multinational corporations have dedicated IT security departments to defend against these threats, they were still compromised. An even bigger threat looms for millions of small-and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that don’t typically have the budget to hire a dedicated IT person. This critical void leaves SMBs highly exposed to evolving cyberattacks. A report from Cybersecurity Ventures found that nearly half of all cyberattacks are committed against small businesses. Plus, additional research recently conducted by Datto uncovered that 57 percent of SMBs have already experienced a ransomware attack in 2017.

As an alternative to hiring IT staff, SMBs should consider outsourcing their IT needs to Managed Service Providers (MSPs) who can help thwart cyberattacks and provide professional, highly personalized, and cost-effective IT support, allowing SMBs to focus on their core business. SMBs can benefit from the security and business continuity services offered through MSPs in a number of ways:

MONITORING THE THREAT LANDSCAPE - MSPs serve as guardians for any small business’ IT infrastructure by delivering ongoing monitoring and management of employee email, website security, and office applications. MSPs are constantly in-tune with the health of their clients’ IT environment and constantly assess cyberattack vulnerabilities. These professionals take a proactive approach to IT to avoid devastating impacts to their client’s revenue and reputation that can result from cyberattacks. As an example, an employee at bottling company, Continental Food and Beverage (CF&B), opened a malicious phishing email, which allowed ransomware to gain access to the company’s IT infrastructure. It encrypted the company’s shared resources and locked CF&B employees out of the critical applications that run their business. Fortunately, the company’s MSP, SWK Technologies, had already installed a data backup and recovery solution as part of CF&B’s IT ecosystem. SWK Technologies identified the threat, found a recent data restore point, and performed a data restore promptly. Needless to say, CF&B’s quick recovery saved the company hundreds of thousands of dollars in delivery delays and lost revenue.

EXPERTISE IN IT - The lack of cybersecurity training is the leading cause of ransomware infections. Employees don’t always receive the training or possess the necessary knowledge to avoid cyberattacks. This leads to employees visiting unsecure websites, opening malicious emails, and more. MSPs serve as a safety net for SMBs when they make these critical mistakes. The ongoing monitoring and software management these professionals provide is important because keeping software patched and up-to-date is essential to protect against security breaches.

REDUCING PAIN POINTS - Outsourcing IT tasks to an MSP allows a small business to focus on developing their core business rather than managing day-today IT needs. This is essential, since SMBs are often stretched thin with scarce resources and little buffer to survive extended business interruptions. For example, protecting company data through backup and restore has long been difficult for SMBs. By placing this task in the hands of experts, SMBs can rest knowing their data is protected against malicious or inadvertent actions while reducing business risk.

REDUCING COSTS - Shifting IT management over to MSPs can also render cost savings. Managed services are generally more cost-efficient than hiring a dedicated IT person, and the knowledge and expertise of an MSP is typically superior. According to the latest figures from Kaseya, 77 percent of businesses pay under $1,000 a month for managed services. MSPs understand the need to provide effective data protection and keep their customers current on the latest IT security services. They know their customers’ environments and ensure patches are deployed, and vulnerabilities are addressed proactively. Also, MSPs care about their customers because they know that any SMB that suffers two or more days of downtime is likely to go out of business within a year. That’s why MSPs are becoming the preferred IT outsourcing option for SMBs around the world. They deliver better service, support, and overall value relative to any other options available in the market, and even outperform many of the dedicated IT departments of multinational corporations. 

My two cents on the matter!#

Brooks