AI Adoption, Rising Cyber Threats Putting New Pressures On MSPs: Execs

The urgency to move quickly on AI is creating a different set of challenges for MSPs when it comes to securing their customers, cybersecurity vendor executives tell CRN.

The urgency to move quickly on AI adoption and intensifying cyber threats are creating a new set of challenges for MSPs when it comes to securing their customers, limiting some of their areas of opportunity while creating new ones, cybersecurity vendor executives told CRN.

For instance, the window to expand into becoming a full-fledged MSSP with its own Security Operations Center (SOC) may have already closed for many MSPs, executives said.

“The people that are out there as the MSP still having a conversation about trying to build their 24x7 SOC … they need to stop,” said Adam Winston, field CTO at WatchGuard Technologies, speaking with CRN. “Those days are over, unfortunately.”

Indeed, the idea of an MSP looking to offer its own in-house SOC services “is not going to work for them long term,” said Bob Skelley, vice president for global channel strategy at Arctic Wolf. “They can’t create the efficiencies. They don’t have the AI infrastructure underneath it all. They don’t have a platform. So it’s going to be really difficult for them to stay up with the threat actors.”

Ultimately, “it’s going to be increasingly difficult for them to remain relevant” in that space, Skelley told CRN.

At the same time, many new opportunities are arising for MSPs to help ensure that new AI tools are used securely, executives said.

But given that security often requires taking a more measured approach to technology adoption, prioritizing security may not always be what businesses want to hear, given the urgency around shifting to AI, according to cybersecurity executives.

While MSPs on the one hand do need to help customers understand how to leverage AI to grow their business, “there needs to be guardrails around this,” said Scott Barlow, chief evangelist and global head of community at Sophos, speaking with CRN. “AI [adoption] just needs to be very, very cautious. But the partner [also] needs to be able to translate what AI could do for the end customer in their business.”

Without a doubt, security continues to be an afterthought for many businesses with new technology adoption—and that is likely even more the case when it comes to moving to AI, according to Mike Jackson, president of Pendello Solutions, a Prairie Village, Kan.-based MSP.

“There’s a number of businesses out there that don’t think about security first. And they don’t think about security second or third, either,” Jackson said.

In terms of AI, the massive pressure to improve productivity with the new tools—including with emerging agentic applications—presents a new type of battle for many MSPs, he said.

The message to many customers will need to be, “You might not be able to move as quickly as you want,’” Jackson said, which will not be well-received by many businesses.

Still, it’s the job of the MSP to do what’s right for customers in terms of security and help them to get their priorities straight, he noted.

In a way, the situation is similar to what security-focused MSPs have dealt with for years when it comes to competitors that ignore security while undercutting on pricing, Jackson said.

“They’ll be far cheaper than we are because they’re not providing the security,” he said. “It’ll look [to customers] like the price is a lot less. But what’s going to happen a year from now? Massive compromises. Trust me, it’s not a lot less.”