Comsec cashes in on data leaks

Government leaks help bolster the security consultancy's expansion

Robin Hollington: In the past, people bought tecchnology to address specific symptoms

IT security consultancy Comsec has claimed the government’s admission that human error is to blame for the recent rash of data breaches will bolster its UK expansion drive.

The Israel-based firm has recruited Robin Hollington from security reseller GSS to spearhead its UK expansion and make the country Comsec’s main revenue contributor within three years.

Last year, Comsec drew just 10 per cent of its ILS83.6m (£13.8m) sales from the UK. It currently has seven UK staff.
Earlier this month, prime minister Gordon Brown admitted it was impossible to guarantee the safety of personal data because data breaches are caused by personal errors.

Hollington, now UK commercial director at Comsec, said the shift in attitude plays into the hands of pure-play consultancies.

“This is the first time a mainstream politician has stood up and admitted that data breaches are inevitable,” he said.
“In the past, people bought technology to address specific symptoms. In the next two years, rather than addressing short-term symptoms they will address the underlying causes in a more strategic way.”

Hollington said it was “refreshing” to move from a reseller to a pure-play consultancy because clients were no longer concerned that his advice would be biased towards specific vendors.
David Hobson, managing director of GSS, hit back at his former colleague, saying that clients often want their suppliers to both find a problem and fix it.

“We have consulting as a stand-alone business and play with a straight bat ­ if clients want a web application firewall we can introduce them to our product resell team,” he said.
Hobson also questioned Comsec’s growth targets. “You can grow a business very quickly, but will it be profitable?”