MSPs overtaking customers as primary target for cyberattacks, report finds

Report commissioned by N-able found that almost 90 per cent of MSPs had suffered a cyber-attack in the last 18 months

Research commissioned by IT security solutions provider N-able has found that MSPs are "quickly overtaking their customers as a primary target for cyber criminals".

Almost 90 per cent of MSPs that were surveyed as part of a report, titled State of the Market: The New Threat Landscape, had suffered a cyberattack in the last 18 months.

But despite the increase in attacks targeting MSPs, the report also claims that the number of attacks MSPs are preventing has almost doubled over that period - from six to 11.

"MSPs have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic to ensure that the businesses they support can stay online and connected as circumstances changed," said Dave MacKinnon, chief security officer, N-able.

"But the cybercriminals they're protecting against are working equally as hard to make use of these shifts against their targets.

"MSPs need to understand how the threat landscape continues to evolve and make the changes needed to protect both their customers and themselves and make the most of the enormous opportunity that enhancing security provides."

500 participants across the US and Europe were surveyed by an independent research team about their security experiences before the COVID-19 pandemic and today to discover what had changed.

It also found that 82 per cent of MSPs had seen attacks on their customers rise.

Meanwhile, more than half of MSPs said that financial loss and business disruption resulted after a cyberattack, and many said they have lost business (46 per cent), suffered reputational effects (45 per cent), and had seen their customers suffer a loss of trust (28 per cent).