Amidst growing security concerns, more and more UK companies are opting for Managed Security Services to thwart cyber attacks, a survey has found.
As there are not enough skilled security professionals, companies are depending on external provision in order to lower costs and access the required expertise.
Companies are roping in third party providers, either in the form of on-site consultants working in-house, or outsourcing of cyber security provision.
The survey, conducted by CGI, Fujitsu, cybX and Symantec, found that 34% of those surveyed use Managed Security Services, 40% buy in security expertise for specific projects, and 13% outsource all of their cyber security provision.
The survey found, however, that only 21% of companies didn’t use any external cyber security resources to manage security.
PAC research director and lead author of the study Duncan Brown said, "Firms are between a rock and a hard place when it comes to cyber security provision."
"The double whammy of insufficient funds and a scarcity of skills appears to be driving organisations towards external resources, including outsourcing, even though there is a clear reluctance to do this."
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Brown added that companies will use a selective outsourcing model, picking the tasks and services that can be handed off to third parties.
"This represents an entirely pragmatic approach. Organisations dislike losing visibility and control of processes, especially those that have a high risk profile such as cyber security," he said.
The survey sampled more than 230 people from both business and IT functions in companies with more than 1000 employees in the UK.
Among those who were sampled 70% said cyber threat is getting worse while 65% said that there is an increase in visibility of cyber security at board level indicating growing focus on breach prevention and detection.
More than half of the companies said that there is an increase in cyber security workloads, putting staff under intense pressure. Despite the growing pressure, less than half of firms are seeing a rise in cyber security budgets.
