Outsourcing Security [Pros and Cons]

It’s a dilemma that many managed services providers (MSPs) face: outsourcing network security to an external partner or providing security in house. 

On the one hand, outsourcing security to a partner can unlock the MSP to give attention to its core competencies and deliver one of the best service to customers. Alternatively, outsourcing security to a 3rd party means giving up control and never necessarily knowing what is occurring. 

Does an MSP really need one other company providing something as necessary as client security?

When deciding whether to leverage a partner to offer security on your MSP customers, numerous key things needs to be considered. And while there are valid cases for each outsourcing security or keeping it in-house, the truth is that what is true for your corporation is more likely to differ from what is true for one more. 

Your client base, service offerings, and internal resources factor significantly into any decision about using a partner. That is not any different relating to considering a partner for providing security. Any decision about methods to provide security services to your clients needs to be considered with care.

To that end, listed here are the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing IT security for managed service providers. See if our fully managed dedicated servers are the answer for your corporation.

Perhaps essentially the most significant advantage of outsourcing security services as an MSP comes right down to freeing up your staff to give attention to their core competencies. 

Asking staff members who’re network engineers or support technicians also to help in security doesn’t lend to one of the best results for clients. Security is complicated, and there may be rarely a one size suits all solution. Because of this, having staff members give anything lower than their complete focus to security is more likely to result in suboptimal performance on all of their tasks. 

By outsourcing client IT security to a 3rd party or partner, your team can give attention to what they do best.

Hiring dedicated security personnel is dear. Based on Indeed, IT security specialists average greater than $55,000 salary and bonus a 12 months. In metro areas like Jacksonville, Houston, or Phoenix, the compensation greater than doubles to over $100,000 a 12 months.

A 3rd-party IT security provider will definitely have a pricing model that presents a greater ROI than hiring your personal full-time staff. In lots of cases, the IT partner will provide multiple security specialists, 24/7 coverage, or other additional resources for a lesser cost than hiring even a single worker on your personal.

A 3rd-party IT security firm focuses on security and security alone. That may carry a greater level of experience and understanding of IT security. 

Your partner will little question stay abreast of developments within the space and sustain with industry trends. Latest tools, applications, and threat vectors will all receive the visibility they deserve from a dedicated IT security company. 

The identical can’t be said for a managed service provider answerable for several things outside of just security.

Security-as-a-Service on your MSP customers means you should not answerable for finding, integrating, and managing security tools. Even with security expertise in-house, this work is complicated and cumbersome. 

Add in that the stakes are high relating to security, and a third-party partner can deliver peace of mind not only to your clients but to your personal organization as well.

The considerable advantages of outsourcing client IT security to a partner are hard to disclaim. That said, there are also drawbacks to outsourcing arrangements as well. So before you get too enthusiastic about handing off IT security to a 3rd party, it’s best to know how things can go fallacious.

The primary drawback to outsourcing IT security to a partner comes from having less control. 

By giving responsibility for security to a different party, they might be making decisions and performing actions without your input and sometimes without your awareness. From response times to IT security policies, most big decisions might be made and governed by your security partner. 

You have to be aware that using a partner for anything means giving up a substantial amount of control.

You should have less visibility into how decisions are being made and the way alerts or threats are addressed. In some cases, that is a very good thing, as long as issues are being addressed properly and quickly and security stays solid.

Within the event of a cyber attack or an actual data breach, not having visibility or insight into what is occurring might be difficult to field. Having to inform clients concerning the breach without exact details of what is occurring while a third-party security provider is solving a critical issue or problem can result in lost business.

Some outsourced IT security firms can provide service to multiple customers is to deliver the identical security service to all of them. As a business model, that actually scales. 

But what in case your clients need bespoke or custom solutions? Ensuring your IT security provider has the Security Add-Ons you would like before you outsource is vital.

Outsourcing IT security is a fantastic option for MSPs that need to give attention to their core competencies and never have the headache of providing it themselves or managing all features of an outsourced solution. As well as, outsourcing your network security will give you peace of mind, knowing that your customers are secure from outside threats. 

There are also drawbacks when outsourcing, giving up control over how things occur, less visibility into what is going on on, and potentially reduced customization options. The advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing security services must be weighed before making any decision.

When you are interested in outsourcing your MSP IT security offerings, our team at Liquid Web is here to reply your questions. MSPs utilize our Private Cloud, which is powered by VMware and NetApp and secured by Liquid Web’s 24/7/365 Support. Contact us today to learn more.