5 Ways XDR Can Improve Operational Efficiency for MSPs

With today’s ever-changing threat landscape, it’s not enough for MSPs to protect their customers’ users and infrastructure with advanced security. Complex attacks require a prioritized view of threats across multiple organizations. On top of that, MSPs need a detection and response strategy that can provide increased effectiveness of threat investigation and a reduction in the time it takes to detect threats. The purpose behind XDR is to provide cross-layered threat detection and response. XDR collects and automatically correlates data across multiple security layers–email, endpoint, server and network– which means threats are detected faster.

These are five ways MSPs can improve operational efficiency by using an XDR solution:  

1. XDR reduces alert overload and fatigue.

The number of alerts triggered on any given day can be in the millions. Even the most skilled engineers struggle to quickly and effectively parse through the noise to identify critical security events.

XDR automatically analyzes and correlates activities across security layers, resulting in fewer, higher confidence alerts and faster, earlier detection. With it, MSPs can combat threat overload and keep their customers protected.

XDR uses powerful AI and expert security analytics to correlate data, as well as deliver fewer yet higher-fidelity alerts for early threat detection. This provides a broader perspective and shows a more focused and optimized set of alerts. Service delivery teams gain better context for identifying threats faster, as well as understanding and remediating the impact more effectively.

2. Integrated incident response provides the necessary context from various security components to resolve alerts quickly.

One view, or a “single pane of glass,” for investigation helps MSPs connect the dots by achieving an attack-centric assessment of an entire chain of events across security layers and customers with the ability to take response actions from a single place.

Keep in mind that true XDR solutions offer fully unified detection and response capabilities. (Loose integration and info sharing with third parties is not true XDR.)

3. Response options go beyond infrastructure controls points (that is, network and endpoints).

XDR connects events across email, endpoints, servers and networks that seem benign on their own but represent a meaningful indicator of compromise. Impact can thus be quickly be contained, minimizing the severity and scope.

Designed for MSPs with limited resources or time, XDR automates investigation and provides step-by-step recommended actions, allowing for the efficient mitigation of issues.

4. Automation capabilities reduce repetitive tasks.

XDR provides automatic data correlation from sensors that collect detection and activity data across endpoint and email, which is still the No. 1 threat vector. It also automates investigations, which is where a lot of time can be sunk into chasing disconnected alerts and quickly hitting dead ends.

Automating security management allows MSPs to focus on key priorities, like increasing value to their customers and growing their business. As a result, MSPs can become more profitable by lowering their costs as well as increasing their productivity and recurring revenue stream.

5. Usable and high-quality detection analytics across security layers helps MSPs correlate threat data to quickly determine the source, stop the spread of attacks and see the full picture across their customer base.

Native integration between endpoint and email result in a deep understanding of data sources and more effective analytics compared to piecing together data from different standalone products that aren’t integrated together.

As ransomware, phishing and fileless threats become more sophisticated and advanced—and with attacks frequently measured in seconds, not hours or days, XDR delivers key prevention and fast detection techniques that first-generation EDR solutions can’t match. Solutions that promote comprehensive prevention as a proactive measure, alongside high-quality unified detection and response, are essential.

If the detection content is loosely integrated with third parties, it simply expands the scope. It doesn’t necessarily help correlate events and prioritize the detection of threats that need to be mitigated right away.

At a time when resources are being stretched to the limit, Trend Micro Worry-Free XDR offers MSPs an invaluable opportunity to minimize risk exposure across their customer base while maximizing their productivity and operational efficiency.

This guest blog is part of a Channel Futures sponsorship.