In today’s digital world, security is of the utmost importance. With the ever-increasing rise in cybercrime, businesses need to take proactive steps to protect their critical data and systems.
Two popular solutions for ensuring cyber security are managed security services and managed services. Although these two services are closely related, there are distinct differences between them.
This article will provide an in-depth comparison of managed security services and managed services, helping you make an informed decision about which option is best for your organisation.
What are managed security services?
Managed security service providers (MSSP) specialise in delivering advanced cyber security services and solutions to businesses who need more than the general security basics. They generally take over a business’s entire security posture, providing 24/7 security monitoring, incident response, and more intelligent, proactive solutions than general managed services.
Features of managed security services
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM): These solutions proactively hunt for threats in your systems and network. They collect data, detect previously unnoticed threats, investigate threats rapidly, and respond to incidents.
Intrusion detection: Used to monitor traffic for unauthorised access, data theft, and other threats. By identifying and monitoring these threats, intrusion detection can help protect your network from damage and loss.
Vulnerability scanning: The process of identifying and analysing security vulnerabilities of a network. This allows you to identify and detect any weaknesses and fix them before they are exploited, or become major problems.
Compliance management: Ensures that your business’s regulatory requirements are met. This is particularly crucial for companies in highly regulated industries, such as healthcare or law.
What are managed services?
Managed service providers (MSP) are third-party companies that businesses can outsource their IT needs to. Most MSPs will handle a wide variety of IT needs, including infrastructure installation, maintenance, and upgrades. They are particularly beneficial to businesses with no in-house IT team, so the business can ensure their IT systems are running securely.
Features of managed services
Remote monitoring and management: This allows your MSP to monitor and maintain your IT systems remotely. It ensures the infrastructure is running smoothly, and can detect any suspicious activity.
Helpdesk support: Clients can contact the help desk with issues like login problems. They will be assigned to a customer service representative who will the issue and fix the problem remotely.
Cyber security: Most MSPs provide basic cyber security services to their clients, such as antivirus and ransomware detection and prevention, device security, and incident response.
Microsoft 365: Managed Microsoft 365 providers will offer support, licensing management, security configuration, and more services for your Microsoft 365 environment.
How to decide which your business needs
First and foremost, you should assess the size of your business and the complexity of your IT infrastructure. If your business is small and your IT infrastructure is relatively simple, then you may only need managed services.
Managed security services are designed to protect a business’s data by monitoring and responding to potential threats. These services often involve the use of security software and hardware. Managed security services can also include proactive monitoring, incident response, and patch management. If your business operates in a specialised field, handles a lot of sensitive data, or has a complex IT infrastructure, you should consider speaking to an MSSP about your needs.
The IT specialists at Itopia can audit your business, advise you on the support and services you need, and deliver those solutions to ensure maximum protection, and optimal performance of your IT systems.
