A business's
network assets are critical to its success. Despite their overwhelming
importance, however, too many businesses leave those assets to chance. Amanaged security services provider can design a unique set of solutions toprotect network assets from the relentless threats and attacks that occur on adaily basis. Left unmanaged, these security risks, which can come from both
internal and external sources, can wreak havoc on a business's ability to
operate. They pose a very serious and real threat to corporate performance and
continuity. A recent ZdNet commentary titled "IT security and new
regulations needed to protect critical infrastructures" shed light on the
importance of having a managed security services partner. Pointing out that
2011 is the year that many have dubbed "the year of the hack," the
site's commentator suggested business owners may never again think the same way
"about the security of networks and systems."Although he recommended
"the deployment of typical preventative technologies (e.g., firewalls,
IPS, anti-virus, etc.)," he stressed that such technology in and of itself
is not enough. What is required is proper design, implementation and
maintenance of a process that allows a business to respond to any network
threat in a "timely and effective manner." Of course, most companies
don't have the resources to devote to that task, which is a 24/7 job. That's
where "a Managed Security Services Provider (MSSP) [can] help them fill organizational
capability gaps."A managed security services.
provider can offer the following solutions:
Risk
mitigation, so that any threat is stopped before it can turn into a full-blown
emergency Improved
network visibility with 24/7 monitoring for round-the-clock peace of mind Enhanced
network performance, uptime, and utilization so businesses can maximize their
effectiveness Flexibility
to extend IT resources to strategic projects Simplicityin network management so business owners can devote their attention to more
pressing matters Reduced
network maintenance expenses for better bottom line A proactive
approach to system issue resolutions With all
these benefits, it's hard to argue that a partnership with a managed security
services provider isn't worth the investment, but for those CEOs who are still
on the fence, "PC Magazine" echoes ZdNet's glowing recommendation of
such a partnership. Several years back in an article on the topic of Managed
Security Services, the publication said, "If your small business doesn't
have full-time IT support staff, and you'd feel safer asking a specialist to
handle security than tackling it on your own, consider outsourcing security to
a managed security service provider (MSSP). MSSPs can provide a variety of
services, such as firewall and VPN, content filtering, spam filtering, virus
protection, and intrusion detection/ prevention services."