Channel Brief: Darktrace Extends CDR to Azure, AttackIQ Expands Partnership With EY

It's officially Cybersecurity Awareness Month, and that brings extra focus on the challenges cybersecurity pros face daily. ISACA’s 2024 State of Cybersecurity survey, released October 1, reports that 66% of cybersecurity professionals find their roles more stressful than five years ago, driven by factors such as low budgets, insufficient staffing, and an increase in cyberattacks, the report found.

As cyberattacks become more frequent and sophisticated, organizations struggle to keep pace. Some other findings from the research include:

Nearly 38% of organizations reported increased attacks this year.
Ransomware attacks reached a record-breaking 4,582 globally from July 2023 to June 2024.
Alarmingly, 47% of cybersecurity professionals expect their organizations to be hit by a cyberattack within the next year, while only 40% have confidence in their ability to respond effectively.
At the same time, burnout continues to plague cybersecurity teams, with 62% of leaders reporting at least one incident of burnout last year.

As always, drop me a line at [email protected] if you have news to share or want to say hi!

Grab your coffee. Here's what you need to know today.

Today’s Tech, Channel and MSP News

1. Darktrace extends CDR to support Microsoft Azure environments: Darktrace announced the expansion of its AI-driven cloud detection and response (CDR) system, Darktrace/CLOUD, to support Microsoft Azure environments. Darktrace/CLOUD is one of the first security systems to integrate with Microsoft Azure’s virtual network flow logs for agentless deployment into the cloud, according to a statement from Darktrace. By leveraging virtual network flow logs, Darktrace/CLOUD automatically captures network data and integrates into Azure cloud environments with minimal manual effort beyond initial configuration.

2. EasyDMARC launches MSP-focused events for Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Email security firm EasyDMARC announced a series of events designed specifically for MSPs to provide them with the tools and insights needed to safeguard their clients’ emails, according to the company. These include expert panel sessions, live cybersecurity AMAs and a live phishing hack demo and security workshop. EasyDMARC’s upcoming events will feature leading industry partners including Matt Lee (Pax8), Matt Topper (ConnectWise), Erick Simpson (Channel Mastered), Wes Spencer (Empath), Eric Anthony (All Things MSP) and James Abercrombie (Acronis). If you're interested, sign up here!

3. AttackIQ expands partnership with EY: AttackIQ this week announced an expanded global relationship with Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) to provide access to AttackIQ Flex and AttackIQ Ready! to EY US customers. EY US teams will leverage the AttackIQ platform as a foundation to build their unique security service packages, catering to specific client industry requirements and threat landscapes. By integrating Flex and Ready! into its offerings, EY US will provide clients with a more comprehensive and adaptable solution that prioritizes continual validation, ultimately leading to a more robust security posture.

4. Vivun introduces Ava, a B2B AI sales engineer: Oakland-based technical sales platform Vivun this week introduced Ava, an AI sales engineer that the company said will "reinvent B2B selling." The AI agent, which combines generative AI with Vivun’s domain-specific expertise, provides on-demand technical expertise to allow sales engineers to focus on more strategic tasks and enables sales reps to operate independently. Ava automates core sales engineers (SE) functions like discovery and demos to reduce dependency on sales engineers, scale technical expertise without proportionally increasing sales engineering headcount, provide access to technical knowledge throughout the sales cycle, map customer pain points to product differentiators and generate demo scripts and presentation materials tailored to customer needs.

5. ControlUp names Mark Schwartz COO: Digital employee experience firm ControlUp this week announced the appointment of Mark Schwartz as Chief Operating Officer (COO). With nearly 30 years of technology leadership experience, Schwartz will oversee the company’s global operations, leveraging his background in scaling organizations and driving strategic growth. With Schwartz’s addition, Yoni Avital, co-founder of ControlUp, will transition to the role of chief evangelist. Congratulations!