A managed security service is an organized approach that a third party employs to manage the cybersecurity needs of a business. This includes managing firewalls, monitoring, and managing intrusion detection and patch management, and upgrading, as well as performing vulnerability and penetration tests in emergency situations and preparing reports. Managed security services providers are typically a cost-effective option for companies that are unable to afford to hire and support their own cybersecurity staff, or have in-house capabilities that are not sufficient.
A security-focused MSP is a company that focuses on cybersecurity while IT service providers concentrate on IT operations. MSSPs provide round-the-clock security monitoring and management that helps organizations detect, triage and respond to cyberattacks. They typically rely on the security operation center with high availability and provide services such as managed firewalls as well as intrusion detection, virtual private network (VPN) management as well as endpoint threat detection response and vulnerability scanning.
An MSSP must be able to offer a custom service based upon a deep knowledge of the organization’s environment and security goals. Premium MSSPs provide monitoring 24/7, threat intelligence and analysis of data. This lets them proactively identify threats and fix weaknesses.
A MSP that focuses on security should also be able to provide advanced endpoint detection (EDR) solutions and XDR solutions. XDR is a monitoring tool that monitors many sources of data, such as firewalls, intrusion detectors antivirus, next-generation firewalls and other devices for enterprises. It also provides central management and automation. The platform can identify unknown attackers using multi-layered detection methodologies and provides access to the entire attack landscape to identify and address vulnerabilities.