CrowdStrike Launches Managed XDR Service
CrowdStrike this week launched a managed extended detection and response (MXDR) service that will secure entire IT environments in addition to endpoints.
Tom Etheridge, chief global services officer at CrowdStrike, said the CrowdStrike Falcon Complete XDR service builds on the existing managed detection and response (MDR) service that CrowdStrike already makes available for endpoints.
The MXDR service will enable organizations to augment existing IT and cybersecurity staff as organizations continue to be chronically understaffed, he noted.
It doesn’t appear that cybersecurity teams are completely exempt from the global wave of cutbacks organizations have made around the globe. Most organizations are experiencing a dilemma; while cyberattacks are increasing in volume and sophistication, the resources available during uncertain economic times are often more constrained.
A managed service can enable organizations to strike a balance between efficiency and cost without having to hire additional headcount, noted Etheridge.
Historically, most MSPs were focused on providing a monitoring service that provided alerts. However, most of those alerts lacked the context that would make them actionable. Now, MSPs are delivering managed extended and detection (XDR) services that, in addition to securing the entire attack surface, provide threat-hunting and remediation capabilities.
That approach also enables organizations to consolidate a range of cybersecurity functions that previously were provided using a range of point products that an internal security operations team was required to integrate and maintain.
In the longer term, the need to employ artificial intelligence to combat cybersecurity threats may also be pushing organizations to rely more on cloud services. Training an AI model to accurately surface cybersecurity recommendations requires the ability to collect massive amounts of data. Most organizations are not going to be able to collect that amount of data on their own. A services provider, conversely, has a customer base that is broad enough to capture that amount of data.
A recent Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG) survey noted that nearly half of organizations (47%) already don’t believe they have adequate skills for security operations. As the number of regulations that hold organizations accountable and liable for how data is secured continues to steadily increase, many of those organizations will rely on external expertise to close that gap, noted Etheridge.
It’s hard to say how much cybersecurity will be consumed as a service in the future. But as organizations become more sensitive to cybersecurity costs, most will be weighing their options. The issue they may soon encounter, however, is that much of the best cybersecurity talent may migrate toward working for services providers that can afford to pay them a higher wage.
One way or another, the cybersecurity landscape is changing. Cybercriminals are more organized than ever, an advantage they use to launch more targeted attacks that are proving more lethal to organizations. Whether it’s investing in higher levels of automation and AI or relying on external expertise, organizations must find some way to level a playing field that is stacked against them.
