Security | Threat Detection | Cyberattacks | DevSecOps | Compliance

By Randy Blasik, Founder, ComplianceAide The good news for managed service providers (MSPs) supporting defense contractors is that demand for Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) and NIST 800-171 readiness services is surging. The downside, unfortunately, is that many MSPs have discovered that delivering compliance engagements at scale can be difficult and complex.

You might feel sure that your organization can recover quickly from a cyberattack. But can you prove it? To remain compliant with major regulatory requirements, you have to be able to demonstrate recoverability. Compliance frameworks worldwide, including HIPAA, GDPR, SOC 2 and NIS 2, are increasingly requiring that organizations prove they can recover from system disruption, cyberattacks and data loss quickly and reliably. In other words, recovery time must be auditable.

Beyond hardware failures and cyberattacks, global events and regional instability can halt critical operations without warning. Modern businesses are exposed to forces outside their control, and a single disruption can ripple across systems, teams and customers. You can't predict downtime or what damage it will cause.

Cyber protection, management and automation of IT deployments is fundamentally an exercise in responsibility and trust. That is especially true in the age of AI, where innovation moves fast and the consequences of failure can be severe. Organizations today need confidence that their IT providers are not only technically capable, but also reliable, transparent and accountable. Entrusting a partner with your infrastructure is the ultimate trust exercise.

Email Security Email Security Stop modern email-borne attacks with real-time AI defense. Please wait, this may take a few seconds... Email threat prevention is a comprehensive security technique that identifies, blocks and neutralizes email threats such as phishing, malware, and business email compromise (BEC) before they reach a user’s inbox. It combines multiple layers of defense, including AI-driven analysis, URL scanning, attachment sandboxing and authentication protocols like DMARC.

The shift to distributed work has permanently changed how managed service providers (MSPs) operate. Endpoints now span offices, homes, airports and everything in between, and each one requires consistent protection, visibility and management. Attackers have also accelerated their use of automation and AI, increasing pressure on technicians already managing growing workloads. Traditional, manual service models can no longer keep up.

Pharmaceutical regulation relies on three core pillars: Maximum system availability, trustworthy data and rapid recoverability. With the right strategy, manufacturers can uphold them all. Operational technology (OT) systems such as SCADA, manufacturing execution systems, cleanroom controls, environmental monitors and laboratory automation are essential for maintaining validated, compliant and uninterrupted production. When those systems fail, downtime can result in enormous financial costs.

If managed service providers (MSPs) are going to grow as 2026 rolls on, they’re going to have to overcome both new and familiar obstacles in a tough environment. But there is good news for MSPs that are ready to adapt their business models to new market realities. A recent report from Omdia, MSP Trends and Predictions 2026, lays out clearly why MSPs are more likely to struggle to grow in 2026 than they have in past years.

This Lunar New Year marks the Year of the Horse, a symbol of speed, endurance and clear direction. These traits carry relevance in today’s cybersecurity landscape. For MSPs, these characteristics aren’t just symbolic, but they’re essential to navigating rapidly changing cyberthreats. As we celebrate Lunar New Year, it’s also a moment to reflect on our own origins.

For MSPs, vulnerability assessment and patch management are challenging primarily because of scale. Every new customer adds another tenant to configure, monitor and maintain, which multiplies operational overhead and increases the risk of inconsistency. The newly released cross-tenant, partner-level vulnerability assessment and patch management in Acronis RMM is designed to break this pattern.