Managed Security Services

Managed Security Services Provider (MSSP) Market News: 20 September 2023

Each business day, MSSP Alert delivers a quick lineup of news, analysis and chatter from across the managed security services provider ecosystem.

  • The Content: Written for MSSPs and MSPs; threat hunters; security operations center as a service (SOCaaS); managed detection and response (MDR) and eXtended detection and response (XDR) providers; and those who partner with such companies.
  • Frequency and Format: Every business morning. Typically, one or two sentences for each item below.
  • Reaching Our Inbox: Send news, tips and rumors to Managing Editor Jim Masters: [email protected].

Today’s MSSP, MSP, MDR, XDR and Cybersecurity Market News

1. CISA Issues Ransomware Alert: The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have released joint Cybersecurity Advisory#StopRansomware: Snatch Ransomware, associated with the Snatch ransomware variant. Snatch threat actors operate a ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) model and change their tactics according to current cybercriminal trends and successes of other ransomware operations, the FBI and CISA said.

2. Product Launch: Cybersecurity company NordVPN has launched its first experimental project under the NordLabs platform. The AI-enabled browser extension Sonar aims to help internet users detect phishing emails and protect themselves from cybercrimes, NordVPN said.

3. Funding Round: Legit Security, a cybersecurity company offering an enterprise application security posture management platform, has closed a $40 million venture capital round investment led by CRV, with participation from existing investors Cyberstarts, Bessemer Venture Partners and TCV.

4. Microsoft 365 Product Guide Released: Hornetsecurity has published Microsoft 365: The Essential Companion Guide. The new guide is designed for IT administrators who manage a Microsoft 365 environment, as well as decision-makers looking to gain an overview of what to expect when migrating to the cloud. 

5. Cybersecurity Patents Awarded: SecureAuth, a specialist in authentication and access management, announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has granted the company three patents for identity verification using Bluetooth, personal attributes and environmental information. Capabilities derived from these patents are included in SecureAuth’s Arculix product portfolio.

6. Bridging the Cybersecurity Gender Gap: Evolution Equity Partners, a cybersecurity-focused venture capital firm, is partnering with Women Who Code, a global nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering diverse women to excel in technology careers. As a new partner, Evolution Equity Partners will provide essential support to Women Who Code's work bridging the gender gap in cybersecurity.

7. Funding Round: Israeli cybersecurity firm Cato Networks has raised $238 million in a private funding round that valued the company at $3 billion. The round, one of Israel's largest this year and Cato Network's biggest, was led by LightSpeed Venture Partners, with the participation of Adams Street Partners, Softbank Vision Fund 2, Sixty Degree Capital and Singtel Innov8, the company said. Cato Networks will use the new funds to broaden its audience and expand its engineering and product team. (Source: Reuters)

8. Clorox Reports Cyberattack: Clorox, a bleach and household cleaners manufacturer, said in a statement posted on its website Monday that it is "continuing to operate at a lower rate of processing" because of a recent cyberattack that damaged portions of the company's computer network. The company "took certain systems offline" as a security measure. (Source: CBS News)

Jim Masters

Jim Masters is Managing Editor of MSSP Alert, and holds a B.A. degree in Journalism from Northern Illinois University. His career has spanned governmental and investigative reporting for daily newspapers in the Northwest Indiana Region and 16 years in a global internal communications role for a Fortune 500 professional services company. Additionally, he is co-owner of the Lake County Corn Dogs minor league baseball franchise, located in Crown Point, Indiana. In his spare time, he enjoys writing and recording his own music, oil painting, biking, volleyball, golf and cheering on the Corn Dogs.