If you were at IT Nation Secure this week, you may have missed some other news happening around the IT channel. MSP Success was on the watch for you. Check out the latest leadership appointments and changes at Pax8, Cork, and Mailprotector. Plus, we cover some product news from Breach Secure Now and Josys, another MSP acquisition, and some stats on cyber insurance and cybersecurity you may want to put into your talking points with prospects.
People
Nick Heddy Promoted To Pax8 President
On the eve of its second annual Pax8 Beyond partner conference next week, the distributor and cloud commerce marketplace appointed Nick Heddy as president and chief commerce officer, effective immediately. Heddy, an 11-year veteran of Pax8, will continue to lead Pax8’s global sales, experience, marketing, and community teams, plus support CEO Scott Chasin. Pax8 promoted Chasin to CEO last month.
Cork Appoints Dave Nankervis As Chief Revenue Officer
Cork, a provider of smart warranty solutions for MSPs that emerged from stealth mode a year ago, has expanded its executive leadership team with the appointment of Dave Nankervis as chief revenue officer. As CRO, he will be responsible for go-to-market strategy and operations, partner success, and business development. He joins Cork from Mailprotector, where he most recently served as vice president of sales. Before that, he was director of account management at Liongard. Nankervis began his career in the MSP space at Axcient, where he held various account management and business development roles.
Jason Samples Joins Mailprotector as CRO
Email security provider Mailprotector has named Jason Samples as chief revenue officer. A seasoned channel professional, Samples was most recently CRO at MSPbots.ai. Before that served in sales leadership roles at like CyberFox, Addigy, and ConnectWise.
Products
Breach Secure Now Launches AI Training
Breach Secure Now (BSN), a provider of cybersecurity and productivity training, has added artificial intelligence training to its lineup.
The training for MSPs and their clients includes:
- AI Fundamentals: A 20-minute course on generative AI and chatbots like ChatGPT, covering definitions, applications, and ethical considerations.
- AI Cybersecurity Training: A 15-minute overview of AI’s role in cybersecurity, highlighting threats and best practices for identifying AI-generated scams.
- AI Nanos: Ultra-compact, sub-60-second videos providing quick tips and tricks for mastering AI.
- AI Fundamentals Guidebook: A downloadable resource with detailed insights into AI concepts, the CHAT method for prompt creation, and implementation of best practices.
- AI Acceptable Use Policy Template: Guidelines for ethical AI use, ensuring compliance with legal standards and company values.
Josys SaaS Management Introduces Multitenant Portal for MSPs
Josys, a SaaS management platform, rolled out a new multitenant portal for MSPs. The portal enables MSPs to identify and track every SaaS app in their clients’ environments from a single pane of glass, automate provisioning activities, and audit user access permissions.
Features include: a multitenant client directory for quickly scanning, searching, and sorting through key client details, such as client alerts, applications, and monthly SaaS expenses; a global SaaS dashboard to help MSPs prioritize their workflow and efficiently tackle recommended actions; real-time alerts; and admin controls.
Josys is offering 50 MSPs early access to the multitenant SaaS management platform. The company expects the portal to be available in Q3.
“We are thrilled to continue developing deep relationships across the MSP community,” said Zachary Bosin, head of the Josys global go-to-market function, in a press statement.
Acquisitions
Managed Service Provider ITCM Acquires Value Logic
ITCM, a San Diego, California-based MSP, has acquired Value Logic, Inc., its fourth MSP purchase. The 25-year-old Carlsbad, California-based Value Logic complements ITCM and the company’s core values, adding IQMS (integrated quality management system) implementation and maintenance expertise to its offerings, according to ITCM.
“Through our synergy with the Value Logic leadership and engineers, we gain manufacturing industry knowledge, key processes and procedures, and important distribution relationships that will enhance our level of service,” said Jorge Ruiz de Castilla, ITCM CEO. “The benefit to customers is a single point of contact, quicker turnaround time, streamlined standardization, increased breadth of services, broader cybersecurity expertise and, most of all, peace of mind.”
Hossein Rabiyan, Value Logic CEO, said, “We were drawn to ITCM’s deep understanding of IT, in addition to the company’s openness to new methods and ideas, respect for our team and knowledge base, and commitment to its customers. We look forward to rolling up our sleeves and working together to exceed client expectations.”
By the Numbers
New WatchGuard Threat Lab Report Finds Malware Targeting Endpoints Increased By 82%
Cybersecurity vendor WatchGuard Technologies announced the findings of its latest Internet Security Report. This quarterly analysis details the top malware, network and endpoint security threats observed by WatchGuard Threat Lab researchers.
While overall network detections of malware during the first quarter of this year fell by nearly half, detections of malware targeting endpoints increased by 82%. There was a 23% decrease in ransomware detections compared to Q4 2023, with zero-day malware detections falling by 36%. In addition, the data found that Chromium-based browsers were responsible for producing more than three-quarters (78%) of the total volume of malware originating from attacks against web browsers or plugins. This is a significant rise compared to the previous quarter (25%).
The report also shows that the Pandoraspear malware, which targets smart TVs running an open-source Android OS, jumped into the top 10 most widely detected malware list. This reveals the potential risk of vulnerabilities in IoT devices.
“The findings from the Q1 2024 Internet Security Report demonstrate the importance for organizations of all sizes to secure internet-connected devices regardless of whether they are used for business or entertainment purposes,” said Corey Nachreiner, chief security officer at WatchGuard, in a press statement.
The data analyzed in this quarterly report is based on anonymized, aggregated threat intelligence from active WatchGuard network and endpoint products whose owners have opted to share in direct support of WatchGuard’s research efforts.
Netwrix Research Shows Cyber Insurance Is Driving Security Investments
Almost half (48%) of organizations with a cyber insurance policy had to enhance their security posture to meet the insurer’s requirements, according to the 2024 Hybrid Security Trends Report from cybersecurity provider Netwrix. Among those organizations, 30% made changes simply to be eligible for the policy compared to 22% a year ago.
The most common security measure required by insurers in 2024 is multifactor authentication, according to 75% of respondents. This is an increase from 65% in 2023. Insurers are also requiring patch management (55%) and regular cybersecurity training for employees (49%) along with advanced security solutions like identity access management (45%, up from 38% last year) and privileged access management (42%, up from 36%).
Currently, 62% of respondents have a cyber insurance policy or plan to purchase one within a year. Notably, almost 1 in 5 (19%) insured organizations used their cyber insurance policy within the last 12 months.
Finally, 18% of respondents say they implemented additional security measures in order to reduce the cost of a policy, down from 28% in 2023.
