MSP Tools Platform Vendors Cozy Up To Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity is now table stakes for MSPs. Customers are demanding these services, and MSPs are following the money. That's why MSP tools platform companies have partnered with or acquired cybersecurity vendors over the last few years. Most recently, RMM and PSA platform SuperOps announced a partnership with Malwarebytes that integrates Malwarebytes' ThreatDown endpoint security products with SuperOps’ IT management platform.

The SuperOps/Malwarebytes deal is only the most recent of several that also include MSP platform vendor N-able acquiring XDR and MDR provider Adlumin. Kaseya recently acquired SaaS Alerts. ConnectWise previously acquired Perch Security. Kaseya previously acquired RocketCyber MDR.

Cybersecurity services offer the highest markup for MSPs, according to Colin Knox, CEO of Gradient MSP, which offers a platform for optimizing billing, sales, costs for MSPs. Knox told ChannelE2E that markup for cybersecurity services is 133% -- the difference between what MSPs pay for those services and what they charge customers for those services.

This cybersecurity trend in the MSP vendor ecosystem comes as MSPs are incorporating cybersecurity into their stacks by integrating EDR, MDR, XDR, and other security technologies for their customers. In many cases, MSPs lead their sales discussions with cybersecurity.

“Customers are asking their MSPs for more security features,” Juan Fernandez, the channel chief for SuperOps, told ChannelE2E. “However, it is not just about adding another tool to the stack. MSPs can also use cybersecurity to truly differentiate their offerings, and in so doing transform the future of managed services with cybersecurity.”

N-able CEO John Pagliuca told analysts and journalists during a conference call following the Adlumin announcement that advanced cybersecurity, such as XDR and MDR, are of strategic importance to MSPs.

“This acquisition completes the third leg of the stool, bringing IT management, data protection, and security together under one roof [and] empowering MSPs, MSSPs, and IT professionals to better safeguard the IT assets that power today’s digital world,” Pagliuca said.

SuperOps and Malwarebytes Deal: The Why

“We are consistently hearing from many MSPs who are looking to double down on cybersecurity,” Brian Kane, senior director of global channel and alliances at Malwarebytes, told ChannelE2E. “Most of the conversations with MSPs are about integrating or reselling our security tools and services into their own offerings, including managed security services like MDR.”

That is because MSPs tend to work with small and mid-sized businesses, which typically do not have the time or resources to handle internal security, said Kane. “It is also this lack of internal resources that makes these customers particularly vulnerable to cyberattacks. In many cases, these businesses are already working with an MSP for some portion of their IT infrastructure, making it a logical next step to use the same MSP vendor for security support.”

To make these added security tools work for SMBs, they must be advanced enough to stop cyberattacks, easy to implement, and affordable, said Kane.

Bringing in additional security tools such as real-time threat intelligence and streamlined automation is also important to MSPs, said Fernandez of SuperOps. “These areas can help reduce the noise and give MSPs the power to act faster and more effectively. At the end of the day, it is not just about managing and protecting systems – it is about enabling MSPs to focus on what they do best: Helping businesses thrive.”

Security Tools a Critical Part of a Successful MSP’s Role: Analyst

IT analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group said more MSPs offer security features not just because customers are asking for them but because they are a critical part of a successful MSP’s product suite. At the same time, SMBs are “looking to eliminate standalone security solutions that create conflicts with management services and applications, thus reducing complexity and overhead while potentially improving the effectiveness of both security and management tools and services.”

In the past, SMBs and IT departments were overwhelmed with tools that did not interoperate properly and negatively impacted each other's performance, said Enderle. “This will become increasingly important as more and more of these systems embrace AI and move to more aggressive autonomous actions because any application conflicts will become far more serious, making the combinations of these tools much more strategically critical to success.”