Halloween is when the creatures of the night come out to play. It’s also spooky season for cybercriminals and scammers. Below are a few quick tips to avoid getting haunted this Halloween (and good ideas to keep in mind all year round).

Cybersecurity is an issue that’s becoming more and more difficult for SMBs to manage on their own. As a result, MSPs are on the rise. Data from Canalys indicates that the cybersecurity managed services business grew by 18% in 2021, driven by the combination of the increasing sophistication of cyber threats and the shortage of dedicated cybersecurity personnel, which makes the situation unscalable for SMBs and midsize companies who often hire an external MSP to help solve these issues.

Unpatched software vulnerabilities continue to be the most widely used attack vector. There are several factors behind this: SMBs are implementing new software applications in their infrastructure more than ever to simplify business operations and be more efficient. But this reality is changing their organizational landscape, adding more complexity to their security posture.

Cybercriminals are increasingly agile and organized – exploiting new technologies and tailoring attacks. The increasing complexity of cyber threats has driven the trend toward outsourcing one or more of an organization’s security operations.

The theme of this year’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month theme – “See Yourself in Cyber” – focuses on how both individuals and organizations can better protect themselves from cybercrime. One of the most important steps we can all take is learning to recognize and report phishing attempts.

MSPs are being targeted by cybercriminals, as a single successful attack opens the door to multiple victims. This puts additional pressure on cybersecurity partners to step up the security services they offer their customers. The figures are worrying, as 9 out of 10 managed service providers state they have suffered a successful cyberattack since the start of the pandemic. This means MSPs are overtaking end users as the main target of malware, ransomware, phishing and other threats.

Data and money are two of the key assets that any industry needs to protect, and this is particularly important for financial institutions. Defending financial services against cyberattacks can be managed internally by relying on the organization's own systems; however, relying on an external cybersecurity provider offers a number of advantages that make a difference in the event of an attack.

We are proud to announce the WatchGuard Firebox M690 has been named “Next Generation Firewall Solution of the Year” in the sixth annual CyberSecurity Breakthrough Awards This prestigious awards program recognizes the world’s best information security companies, products and people.

A focus of this year’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month theme – “See Yourself in Cyber” – are the simple actions that individuals and organizations can take to better protect themselves against cybercrime. Two of those steps are using strong passwords and enabling multi-factor authentication (MFA). It’s easy to see why.

Although cyberattacks on higher education institutions date back years, there has been a spike in university cyberattacks over the last two years. Cybercriminals had taken advantage of the rapid transition to hybrid learning that higher education institutions have been forced to implement before they had time to strengthen their cybersecurity, which has left most of them exposed. This is yet another example of accelerated adoption of new technologies before security measures are in place.

We’re thrilled to share that, for the third year in a row, WatchGuard has been recognized in the 2022 TrustRadius Tech Cares Awards! This exclusive awards program honors companies that demonstrate compassion in every aspect of their organization and celebrates the best parts of the tech market and those working in the industry.

For the third year in a row, CRN has recognized a WatchGuard channel leader in its annual 100 People You Don’t Know But Should list. Mark Villinski, Field Marketing Manager of National Accounts, was included in this exclusive list that honors the IT channel’s unsung heroes who work tirelessly to support channel partners, while rarely stepping into the spotlight. CRN CEO Blaine Raddon has this to say.

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month, which is a good time for everyone to re-evaluate their security procedures and technologies, and the role that they want in their personal and corporate cybersecurity practices. This year’s theme is “See Yourself in Cyber.” At WatchGuard, we take that to mean that all of us, regardless of our role or responsibility, can make a positive contribution to a safer and more secure online world.