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Arctic Wolf has expanded its channel partner program to offer its partners target-based incentives to help meet the growing demands for cyber security and compliance.
The channel rebate program for eligible partners includes additional growth incentives.
Also included in the program is a managed security awareness plus partner benefit expansion for eligible partners, featuring content compliance access and email threat level reporting.
In an interview with ARN, Arctic Wolf senior vice president of global channels Will Briggs said that once a channel partner reaches its target, there’s a percentage payout that varies by partner and on their tier in the program.
The global program kicked off during Arctic Wolf’s new financial year in May and is available to its gold partners worldwide.
For managed service providers (MSP) like Novo3 these programs comes at a time when the demands for cyber security services from small to medium enterprises have grown.
Novo3’s senior technical manager, Stuart Wilson, told ARN there has been a growing shift towards more compliance requirements, particularly with the government’s push for the Essential Eight, which focuses on improving maturity levels.
Shehan Shuri, Novo3’s CEO, said the Australian government has introduced various initiatives, like the Cyber and Infrastructure Security Centre.
“They’re pushing directors and boards to be prepared for and report cyber incidents. This has led many businesses to seek more information. We often get questions like, ‘Are we compliant?’ or ‘What do we need to do to stay compliant?” he said.
Briggs said that Australia now mirrors the US a few years ago when it comes to cyber security concerns.
“There’s a growing need for companies to improve their security hygiene, posture and expertise,” he said. “Many organisations here realise they can’t handle it all internally – they lack the resources for 24/7 security, so they turn to partners like Novo3.”
He sees compliance as a significant part of Arctic Wolf’s practice, which drives business for partners.
The pressure to stay current with compliance and security has a big impact on small businesses that need to achieve enterprise-level security.
According to Wilson, there was a time when small businesses believed they were too small to be targeted or felt secure with the limited protection they had in place.
“Now, they’re realising that they’re just as vulnerable as larger corporations,” he said. “They’re increasingly coming to us for help because they understand the growing risk and need for stronger security measures.”
Wilson said that security operations centre services were traditionally only accessible to enterprise organisations that could afford them.
“Now, we see that if a small business is hit by ransomware, data exfiltration or any cyber breach, the costs can be catastrophic and unsustainable,” he said. “These businesses could even face closure.”
Most small to medium enterprises rely on basic tools like endpoint detection and response or antivirus, thinking that was enough.
“With the rise in data breaches, especially those making headlines, businesses are now investing more in security to protect not only their data but also their employees’ information and their ‘crown jewels’”, Briggs said.
Wilson said they would only know what was leaving their systems or if the shoulder breached with detection and around-the-clock monitoring.
“This is why many are now turning to us and why we’re reaching out to existing customers to offer security training, monitoring, detection and response services to ensure their data and IT assets are secure,” he noted.
This is why MSPs like Novo3 are important for Arctic Wolf.
“Novo3 plays a crucial role beyond the security operations we provide,” said Briggs. “While we deliver 24/7 security monitoring through our platform, there’s still plenty of work outside that scope, such as compliance initiatives, assessments and break-fix services.”
Wilson believes having a concierge security team helps smaller organisations without in-house security experts manage and improve their security posture over time.
“It’s not just about fixing issues but continuously enhancing their overall environment,” he added.