What is a MSSP and Why Do I need One

In today’s rapidly evolving world, there are many cyber threats companies and individuals are faced with on a daily basis. Companies and individuals need to constantly be wary when accessing the internet due to the abundant and ever growing number of threats that lurk in its shadow. Ransomware, spyware, and eavesdroppers, just to name a few, constantly test your cyber defenses, looking for any small weakness that they can use to take advantage of. With the current cyber climate being quite dangerous, and predictions of cyber crimes’ future only forecasting massive growth, it’s imperative that companies meet these current threats head on and prepare themselves for future threats.

What is a MSSP 

A Managed Security Service Provider or MSSP for short,  is your company’s personal and tailor made cybersecurity team, which offers cybersecurity solutions that can bolster a company’s cyber defenses and keep a company in check with regulations. The goal of an MSSP is to provide your company with professional cybersecurity solutions, all at an affordable price when compared to an inhouse team.

Typical MSSP Services and Solutions

While there are a plethora of different MSSP services and solutions out there, some of the most popular solutions that MSSP provide are;

Email Phishing Testing and Training

A popular solution that many MSSP provide is a phishing email testing and training service which aims to improve the human firewall of a company’s cyber defenses. Emails are the most commonly exploited attack vector which allow hackers to initiate their attacks. Recent studies show that 91% of hacks are initiated via an email user clicking on a malicious link or attachment inside of an email. In order to help protect against this type of hack, many MSSPs offer a phishing email training and testing service. This service works by having the MSSP send out emails to all employees that mimic real phishing emails minus the malware. The MSSP will then track and report to the company on which if any employees clicked on the phishing email links and or attachments. The next step of this service is to provide the company with training videos created by cybersecurity professionals, which educate employees on how to spot phishing emails along with many other topics explaining how employees can help keep their company cyber safe.

Cybersecurity Consulting

There is currently a massive shortage of cybersecurity talent in the US market, due to this, many companies can not acquire cyber talent either due to not being able to find/retain cybersecurity professionals or not being able to afford a cybersecurity professional. This situation is why so many companies rely on cybersecurity consultants for advice on how to design and implement a robust security strategy. Cybersecurity consulting can cover everything from vulnerability assessment and penetration testing, with the goal of advancing threat detection and incident response planning. The services offered by cybersecurity consulting is quite broad, allowing companies in any situation to find a use for this service all at an affordable price compared to an inhouse cybersecurity team.

Backups

While backups are not strictly a security concern for companies, its benefits cant be understated when looking at the potential issues companies may face such as incidents of data loss/availability. Whether it’s due to a ransomware attack, accidental deletion, or any other cause, having a recent backup that follows industry best practice of a 3-2-1 backup method is a crucial step to keeping your company cybersafe and cyber resilient. MSSPs can help you implement and manage a comprehensive backup strategy, ensuring your data is safe, recoverable, and meets compliance requirements related to data retention.

Architecture Deployment and Configuration

Another common service that’s provided by MSSPs is assistance in adding security tools into your environment with the additional steps of deploying and configuring said tools on your companies behalf. MSSPs can ensure that your systems are properly configured and that they align with best practices and compliance requirements. This can range from setting up firewalls and intrusion detection systems to implementing secure network design principles and secure cloud configurations. Many MSSP have trained professionals who’s only job is to set up and properly configure security tools, making them a phenomenal option for companies with limited resources and trained personnel.

Governance, Risk Management, and Compliance

MSSPs also provide services related to governance, risk, and compliance. Keeping a company compliant with new cyber laws and regulations is one of the most difficult things small businesses have to deal with when dealing with cybersecurity. That’s why having a trained cyber professional who can navigate the legal landscape is such a critical service MSSPs provide. MSSP can assist in establishing policies and procedures aligned with industry standards and regulations while also making sure current policies are being followed or need updating. This includes conducting regular audits and risk assessments, ensuring that the organization is compliant with relevant standards such as GDPR, HIPAA, or PCI DSS, and managing the ongoing process of risk mitigation.

Web Development

Some MSSPs also offer secure web development services, ensuring that security is baked into your web applications from the ground up. This service can cover secure coding practices, regular security testing of applications, safe addons/plugins, web app storage systems, up to date and supported software, and maintaining the security of web servers and databases. These security checks along with many others will keep you and your company safe while navigating the web without the need to bog down your dev team or rely on a dev team for your companies security.

Benefits of a MSSP

Now that you have an understanding of what an MSSP is and what some MSSP services and Solutions are, you may be asking yourself, why do I need an MSSP. 

Cost

One of the most appealing aspects to using an MSSP is the cost savings you and your company will receive when compared to having an inhouse cybersecurity team do the same services. Companies can save up to 95% of what it would cost to have a dedicated cyber security team to do the same work.

Effectiveness

Another key benefit of allowing an MSSP to do the needed services is because generally speaking, a MSSP will have trained personnel who have had multiple experiences in setting up and conducting the same service. MSSP are known to have specific cybersecurity professionals for each service and solution, this means that they will have had plenty of experience in doing these services for multiple companies. As a result, this allows for the MSSP to do a far better job than someone who is doing this service for the first time.

Scalability

If your company is worried about whether or not you can afford a full time cybersecurity professional or have enough worth while work, then an MSSP is a perfect solution for you. This is because an MSSP allows you to have access to a cybersecurity professional when you need one and only when you need one. Depending on the service, MSSP services typically only take about a month to finish, and once they have finished it, the job is done and you no longer need to pay the cost of a cybersecurity professional. This means that depending on how much cybersecurity help your company needs, you can choose the appropriate amount of help whether it be adding more help or removing help. This flexibility allows companies to effectively budget for cybersecurity and make the most of what they have.

24/7 Service

Another massive advantage of a MSSP is the ability to have them work around the clock. This means that if you need specific services done off company hours, a MSSP can do this for you. This is manly due to MSSP having cybersecurity professionals from around the world who are not stuck to your companies specific time zone. Another key advantage to this is if an incident happens at night or during a popular vacation time, then you will still be able to get top notch service.

Expert Help

Many small to medium sized companies do not have the budget or worth while work load to hire an experienced cybersecurity professional full time. This limitation makes it much harder for companies to properly strategize their cybersecurity plan. However, with a MSSP, your company can hire a top notch cybersecurity professional and take full advantage of there expertise without the need of paying a high-end price.

Compliance Support

The regulatory landscape is growing more complex as new data protection regulations like GDPR and the CCPA join existing laws like HIPAA and PCI DSS. An MSSP can help with collecting data and generating reports for demonstrating compliance during audits or after a potential incident.

What to Look for From an MSSP

When choosing an MSSP and deciding on what services pay for, its important to understand what your companies most critical vulnerabilities are. How can you figure this out? The best way to do this is to seek the advice of your MSSP and see what recommendations they offer. A good MSSP will always grant you a free of charge meeting to discus these things and help you decide what service would make the most sense for your company. A good MSSP should also clearly and thoroughly walk you through the process of what their services are before doing any actual changes. This includes a comprehensive onboarding meeting where they will learn more about the details of your company while also sharing their strategy for how to solve the issues your company faces.