Ransomware will be businesses’ biggest security concern this year, according to a new channel survey.
WatchGuard’s new global partner survey on cyber security reveals 83 percent of resellers say ransomware top their customers’ agendas in 2017. In addition, 16 percent believe the majority of their customers would pay a cyber ransom, and 65 percent believe at least some of their customers would pay.
“The proliferation of ransomware reached epidemic proportions in 2016, so it makes sense that resellers are forecasting it as the top threat next year,” said Corey Nachreiner, chief technology officer at WatchGuard. “On top of cyber extortion, security customers are hearing about tons of other new attacks and threat vectors each day, and they’re wondering how best to protect themselves.”
About 45 percent of reseller respondents believe that less than half their customers have the proper resources in place to manage incoming security alerts. Only five percent of resellers believe all their customers have these resources in place, while seven percent believe none of them do at all.
In addition, 63 percent do not think the majority of their customers understand the difference between Unified Threat Management (UTM) appliances and Next Generation Firewalls (NGFW). Moreover, nearly 80 percent don’t think their customers care about the difference between the two – they only want to know that they’re protected by the latest threat prevention technology.
This suggests that security customers are trusting channel firms and managed security service providers (MSPs) to make informed recommendations about security appliances and strategies, says Watchguard. Over the course of the last two years, nearly 75 percent of reseller respondents’ organisations have seen the most growth in UTM appliance sales, while only around a quarter have seen the most sales growth in NGFW appliances.
“This survey further validates the importance of the reseller and service provider community for SMBs dealing with cyber security. Organisations rely heavily on the expertise of our channel partners to provide guidance that keeps employees and customers safe from the evolving threat landscape,” said Jonathan Whitley, sales director for Northern Europe at WatchGuard. “For customers, it seems that the realistic impact or outcome is of more importance than the classification of threats or security solutions.”
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