Enterprises seeking lower costs and more agile business models are increasingly adopting linked devices and IoT technologies. While these models facilitate remote labor, they have also boosted the market for cybersecurity providers by allowing organizations to quickly modify their business operations. When you consider that fraudsters are growing more sophisticated every day, and new cyber dangers emerge every day, it’s easy to understand why cybersecurity is a $156.24 billion business today. As firms scurry to safeguard their endpoint devices, networks, databases, clouds, and computer systems, this industry is predicted to rise at a huge 14.5 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR).

Hundreds of cybersecurity companies have popped up to serve this massive industry. Some of the most well-known brands, like McAfee, Norton, Avast, Cisco, and CyberArk, have become household names throughout the world. After all, cybersecurity isn’t a laughingstock. However, this raises the issue of what these cybersecurity firms do. How do they function?

What Do Cybersecurity Firms Do?

Businesses rely on cybersecurity firms to safeguard them from a variety of cyber dangers. They assist in the development of new technologies and the creation of solutions that protect a company’s digital assets. They also collaborate with enterprises to provide their experience, software tools, penetration testing, vulnerability analysis, and systems auditing services in order to counter any possible attacks that might interrupt operations.

Let’s take a look at some of the most significant services that cyber security companies provide.

Outsourced IT and Managed Services

One of the most common services supplied by cybersecurity firms is outsourced IT and managed services. Managed services allow businesses who lack technological skills to outsource their cybersecurity duties to a third-party provider. Cybersecurity firms are compensated for managing the upkeep and support of all systems within an organization’s network. The cybersecurity firm is in charge of all tasks, from system monitoring and security patching to retrieving lost data and restoring broken systems. The main advantage of this working approach is that it allows SMBs to avoid the significant upfront expenditures of employing and training in-house cybersecurity expertise.

Penetration Testing

Penetration testing is used to detect which networks and devices are vulnerable to attacks and need to be upgraded in terms of security. Depending on the extent of the test, this process might take anything from a few days to many months to complete.

The customer defines the scope of the test, which includes a list of the systems and processes that will be examined. Penetration testing organizations are not allowed to go beyond the scope specified by the customer. This procedure is in place to safeguard the company’s data.

The tester must attempt to infiltrate the client’s network or web application in order to establish whether assets are vulnerable to attack. The organization can take necessary corrective measures to strengthen up its defenses by identifying the at-threat systems and the extent of the risk involved.

Systems Auditing

Many cybersecurity firms also provide a security audit as a technique of determining whether or not a client’s systems are appropriately safeguarded. Although the purpose of this service and penetration testing are similar, the method employed is not. Penetration testing aims to find flaws in a network or device by attempting to break into it. Systems auditing, on the other hand, looks to see if the client’s cybersecurity policies, protocols, and technologies are up to par with regulatory requirements and industry standards.

Due to the extensive, highly technical, and ever-changing laws imposed by various agencies and governments, these audits can only be performed by an expert. Many cybersecurity firms specialize in a single compliance standard, such as HIPAA, FERPA, or PCI DSS.

Most health insurance businesses, for example, undergo a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) audit to ensure that technological, physical, and administrative protections, staff training, and compliance with established standards are in place.

Tool and software development

Many cybersecurity firms are only engaged in research and development. They create security tools and software, which they subsequently license to other cybersecurity organizations or to their clients. Analysis tools, firewalls, and endpoint security software, as well as email analysis software and systems monitoring software, are examples of these items.

They keep their tools up to date with specialized research teams who keep an eye on emerging cyber dangers and strategies to combat them.

Conclusion

Cybersecurity organizations are in charge of keeping their clients’ networks, systems, linked devices, clouds, and databases safe and secure. Data breaches, spyware, and ransomware attacks cost businesses billions of dollars every year. The average time it takes to uncover these assaults is 228 days, which implies that the majority of victims are severely handicapped and impoverished. Furthermore, organizations who fail to protect their data lose their clients’ trust, which can be fatal to their business. As a result, most businesses prefer to invest heavily in security software and services provided by cybersecurity firms.