A multi-layered approach to email protection is vital for building your security business.

Email remains the primary entry point for most cyberattacks, whether phishing, ransomware, social engineering scams, or business email compromise (BEC). According to data from Barracuda, 75 percent of organizations were the victim of a successful email attack in 2022, and 69 percent of ransomware attacks begin with an email. 

For security-focused MSPs interested in growing and scaling their business while protecting customers, a multi-layered approach to email security is a critical component of your product suite. 

Traditional email gateways leave companies vulnerable to more advanced threats. When it comes to selecting an email security solution, MSPs should look for one that reflects these five industry standards:

1. The solution should evolve with the changing threat landscape. Cyber threats continue to grow both in number and complexity. A solution built to respond to last year’s threats will be next to useless in a few months. MSPs need a system that combines traditional gateways with other technologies, such as Zero trust Access for Microsoft 365 or artificial intelligence (AI), to identify and stop more complex attacks. With AI, the security solution can spot phishing, spear-phishing, impersonation, conversation hijacking, and attacks that do not rely on malicious payloads. The AI algorithm scans emails for unusual patterns that other solutions would miss and removes them in real time.

2. It should be easy to deploy and manage while providing comprehensive protection. Cloud-based email solutions such as those offered by Barracuda can be up and running in minutes. In addition, centralized, cloud-based management capabilities can reduce the burden on the MSP and client IT staff. At the same time, these solutions are frequently updated (to keep up with new threats) and provide a multi-layered protection approach.

3. The email security solution should include incident response capabilities. Automated incident response is essential to ensure the solution can quickly isolate potential attacks before they spread. In addition, the solution should integrate with SIEM or SOAR platforms and provide access to Extended Detection and Response (XDR) capabilities, including a 24/7 security operations center (SOC) staffed by experienced professionals who can monitor and respond to threats that require human intervention. By leveraging this solution, MSPs can provide robust security without investing additional staffing to monitor client activity or staff a SOC.

4. It should enable compliance enforcement. Email security is increasingly a compliance issue across industries. Companies that operate within sensitive sectors like banking and healthcare need to keep accurate records regarding attacks and breaches and have to be able to demonstrate due diligence when it comes to securing communications. In some cases, companies may require this type of documentation to meet the requirements for cyber insurance.

5. The solution should provide cloud backup, sensitive data inspection, and audit-friendly documentation. Cloud-native backup for Microsoft 365 is another key service to ensure quick recovery and restore data to its original state in case of a malware/ransomware attack. The solution should offer detailed logs and reports for compliance auditing, post-incident analysis, and real-time visualization to help identify problem areas. MSPs can provide a value-added service by enabling compliance via their email security platform, which can generate add-on revenue and improve client stickiness.

Email Security Opens New Revenue Streams

Cyberattacks are more sophisticated than ever before, but most still rely on email to gain entry to vulnerable networks. Robust email protection can use pre-filtering to stop most threats before they reach the network perimeter while ensuring the availability of email and other systems. 

By providing flexible email security solutions that can be quickly deployed and enable rapid response and remediation (as well as enhance compliance), security-centric MSPs can open new revenue streams while significantly reducing the number of successful attacks against their clients.

Chris Crellin is Senior Director of Product Management for Barracuda MSP, a provider of security and data protection solutions for managed services providers, where he is responsible for leading product strategy and management.