One of the biggest challenges MSPs face in delivering managed security services to clients is being able to respond to a threat on the fly. With cyberattacks an everyday occurrence, neither MSPs nor their clients can afford any remediation delays once an infection starts to spread through a network. 

Speed is essential, but having the ability to immediately spring into action requires the right tools–namely, a cloud-based security dashboard accessible from a mobile device. And that’s something too many MSPs still don’t have, according to a recent VIPRE Security study. The study, which polled 250 MSPs, revealed MSPs face some real challenges in responding to cyberthreats.  

For instance, roughly two thirds of MSPs (68%) said they can respond to an attack remotely, and only 56% have access to an online dashboard. There is definitely room for improvement. Anyone who is a customer of the 22% that cannot respond to an attack remotely would have to wait until the MSP can access the security dashboard. In the meantime, precious hours could be wasted as an infection spreads from machine to machine.

The WannaCry ransomware infection in spring 2017 highlighted the importance of being able to respond in seconds or minutes, not hours or days. It took only a few hours for WannaCry to infect at least 400,000 in 150 countries across six continents. 

Mobile Response

To be as effective as possible in a crisis, MSPs need cloud-based security tools they can access anytime/anywhere. And that means access to a managed security platform with a user interface that lets you start working on remediation immediately, regardless of your location.

But access alone isn’t enough. The UI has to be easy to navigate, lest the MSP have to scroll through multiple screens to identify a threat and start working to remove it.

Too many security platforms have mobile UIs adapted from a web-based user interface. This is how security vendors typically have tackled the need to provide anytime/anywhere access to the their tools. But this can be a source of frustration, as anyone knows after tying to use a smartphone to navigate websites that aren’t optimized for small touchscreens. Scrolling is awkward because the interfaces were designed to operate with a mouse, not a tap of the finger.

Since web interfaces aren’t optimized for smartphones or tablets, tasks are harder to complete. And when the task consists of managing cyberthreats, you don’t want to be fumbling with commands and trying to find the right screen to do it.

With that in mind, a security tool to fit the needs of a mobile MSP should have these three attributes: 

Remote Model

Mobile security tools are ideally suited to the MSP model, which revolves delivering remote services. In a fast-paced world where an infection can spread in minutes, MSPs need to take action as soon as a threat is detected or risk not being able to fully protect their clients. And if you can’t protect your clients fully, they’ll look for someone who can.

This guest blog is part of a Channel Futures sponsorship.