Monday Morning Impact – August 8

IBM: Data Breach Costs Hit All-Time High

The newly released Cost of a Data Breach Report by IBM Security shows costlier and higher-impact data breaches than ever before, with the global average cost at an all-time high of $4.35 million.

With breach costs increasing nearly 13% over the last two years, breaches are also contributing to rising costs of goods and services. Sixty percent of studied organizations raised their product or services prices due to the breach, when the cost of goods is already soaring worldwide amid inflation and supply chain issues.

The report also finds that 83% of studied organizations have experienced more than one data breach in their lifetime. Another factor rising over time is the after-effects of breaches on these organizations, which linger long after they occur, as nearly 50% of breach costs are incurred more than a year after the breach.

Among other findings in the report, ransomware victims in the study that opted to pay threat actors’ ransom demands saw only $610,000 less in average breach costs compared to those that chose not to pay – not including the cost of the ransom. Factoring in the high cost of ransom payments, the financial toll may rise even higher, suggesting that simply paying the ransom may not be an effective strategy, according to the report.

Participating organizations fully deploying security AI and automation incurred $3.05 million less on average in breach costs compared to studied organizations that have not deployed the technology – the biggest cost saver observed in the study.

“Businesses need to put their security defenses on the offense and beat attackers to the punch,” said Charles Henderson, Global Head of IBM Security X-Force. “The more businesses try to perfect their perimeter instead of investing in detection and response, the more breaches can fuel cost of living increases.”

The 2022 Cost of a Data Breach Report is based on in-depth analysis of real-world data breaches experienced by 550 organizations globally between March 2021 and March 2022. The research, which was sponsored and analyzed by IBM Security, was conducted by the Ponemon Institute.

Channel Impact^®
The report underscores the continuing growth an importance of the IT security opportunity.

Mindtree and Rubrik Partner to Launch Unified Cyber-Recovery Platform

Mindtree has partnered with Rubrik to launch a new unified cyber-recovery platform named “Mindtree Vault.” The solution is expected to help organizations work through the full scope of recovery, including assessment, discovery, migration with ongoing management services, and pilots for proof-of-concept projects.

The platform combines Mindtree’s program management, cloud, data, and cybersecurity capabilities, best practices, and accelerators, with Rubrik’s data resilience, data observability, and data recovery capabilities.

“Organizations are looking for speed and resiliency when dealing with cybersecurity risks in their digital transformation journeys,” said Sriram K, Executive Vice President and Service Lines Market Head for North America at Mindtree. “Greater connectivity and new innovations being used by attackers mean an ever more critical need for faster, more modern approaches to data recovery and protection. Our partnership with Rubrik will further strengthen our digital transformation offerings with enhanced data security and data protection, thus enabling customers to rapidly adopt new technology and realize their transformation goals.”

Channel Impact^®
The intent is to assist partners in helping organizations to quickly shift to data-driven models and enhance their ability to guard against cyberattacks as well as swiftly recover from them.

Cisco Rolls out New Managed Services Offering for Webex

Cisco has launched a new Webex Wholesale Route-to-Market (RTM) program for Service Provider partners working with SMBs. The new sales model includes a single commercial agreement with each partner and a self-service platform for Service Providers to deliver managed services for Webex, as well as the opportunity to create their own co-branded offers.

The program features consumption-based billing with fixed per-user/per-month package pricing and several invoicing options. The partner onboarding experience includes access to experts paired with online training and a set of migration and marketing toolkits.

Initial managed services packages for Webex that are available through the program include enterprise-grade calling and advanced collaboration with features for 1:1 and group messaging, file-sharing, and basic video conferencing; shared use calling; Webex Meetings and Webex Suite, which encompasses all the above with premium calling, messaging and meetings, plus advanced features.

This is the first offer available through the Cisco Wholesale Partner Program. More Cisco devices and other Cisco cloud services for the SMB market are expected to be launched this year.

“By tapping into the brand power of respected Service Providers and combining it with our inclusive Webex technology, rapid innovation, and complete collaboration portfolio, we are creating winning partnerships that address the communication needs of small and medium-sized businesses and help them thrive in a hybrid work world,” said Jeetu Patel, Cisco EVP and GM, Security & Collaboration.

Channel Impact^®
This new wholesale solution is designed to make it easy for Service Providers to leverage their brand with a co-branded offer, build on their market position, and innovate with their own services. A parallel go-to-market process is also included, featuring marketing content, sales enablement, adoption assets, support training and launch campaigns.