Managed Detection and Response: From Preventative to Proactive Security

Understanding managed detection and response

Most organizations don’t have the internal capacity for or experience to manage, monitor and respond to cyberthreats as proactively as a specialist company offering MDR. Hunting down and recognizing the tell-tale signs of potential attacks require specialized skills. While you could invest in an internal cybersecurity team, funding this department 24/7 quickly becomes financially ineffective and unmanageable.

MDR is the most proactive approach to cybersecurity. It utilizes data collection and predictive technologies based on this data to investigate and respond appropriately to any threat. It works across an organization's whole IT infrastructure, including on-premise hardware, cloud networks, endpoints and individual user identities. MDR combines a range of technologies and highly experienced security expertise to deliver the highest level of protection for organizations. The combination includes the latest and most advanced threat detection technology, skilled security professionals and machine learning. The aim of MDR is to identify and contain potential breaches before they become a problem.

Opting for MDR provides companies with access to high-level security expertise without the costs and requirements of recruitment. Partnering with MDR specialists gives you instant access to an experienced team of security professionals working to investigate, contain and respond to any indication of breach or compromise in real-time. As per IBM's figures, threats are found and contained within minutes, not days, weeks or even months. MDR recognizes the importance of the human factor in effectively managing cybersecurity, creating a perfect balance between people, processes and the latest technology which is crucial for meeting the ever-growing threat of cybersecurity.

Why MDR is a positive move for your organization

More organizations see the value of MDR. Businesses that want to improve their cybersecurity and embrace a proactive approach recognize the importance of MDR. MDR gives your organization an added layer of protection that most can’t afford to be without. Attacks are becoming much more commonplace and much quicker and more sophisticated. Research from Cybersecurity Venture found businesses fell victim to a ransomware attack every 40 seconds in 2016. This rose to every 11 seconds by 2021, so businesses can't afford not to act.

Minimizing Risks

Combining 24/7 security event monitoring and a team of highly trained security responders is the most effective way to reduce your business' security risk. MDR offers this, and the experienced security teams act instantly on the slightest sign of abnormalities or a possible breach. These experts contain threats before they impact business productivity or gain access to customer data. This proactive approach is more positive than trying to tidy up after a breach, and it helps to build client and employee trust, showing your commitment to minimizing cybersecurity threats.

Compliance

More regulatory requirements are becoming standard in cybersecurity. The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) is probably the most recognized of these, so working with a CMMC registered provider is critical. Businesses will also find that working with an MDR will help them better meet the control requirements for compliance.

Plugging the security knowledge gap

There is a significant shortage of qualified security professionals worldwide, and your workplace would need to provide facilities for round-the-clock monitoring and commit to retaining top talent in this very specialized area. Opening your own security operations center is rarely the most cost-effective or suitable solution for any organization. With MDR, you simply choose the right package for your business and benefit from instant access to a highly qualified security team, able to advise and make recommendations as required, as well as providing the full monitoring and management service necessary to keep security threats at bay.

Security budget management

As with all aspects of business, security budgets have to be justified. MDR alleviates the high cost of investing in on-site cybersecurity and 24/7 monitoring. It also makes budgeting for security more predictable as most organizations benefit from a set cost for their standard MDR services with additional costs clearly explained where necessary.

Companies opting for a less proactive security model suffer the huge costs of calling out security experts to clean up after a breach or provide emergency remediation as an attack is ongoing. Businesses without proactive security measures are also more likely to suffer downtime due to the breach and the additional financial loss.

Further reading

• Managed Detection & Response (MDR) for Dummies
• 5 Things To Consider When Choosing an MDR Provider
• Demystifying MDR for Security Conscious Buyers