Nearly three-quarters of organizations surveyed have admitted to experiencing a security breach within the last 12 months, in a Dell Software-commissioned survey of organizations with at least 500 employees or end users.
Twenty-one percent reported cloud applications or service usage are the root cause of their security breaches, and 63 percent ranked increased reliance upon Internet and browser-based applications as a top concern in the next five years.
As ITBusinessEdge reported, “the more restrictions people encounter, the more likely they are to rebel and find workarounds that allow them to do and or access what they want, circumventing an organization’s security policies and placing proprietary data at risk.
It’s no surprise then that the worldwide security technology and services market is expected to grow to more than $86 billion by 2016, according to Gartner, and Dell and our channel partners are ready to assist organizations of all sizes that need those services. Mega trends such as cloud, mobility and big data mean security can no longer be an add-on within the global technology environment. Security must be embedded in the technology fabric, breaking down silos between applications, systems and endpoints.
And as Scott Lang noted here on Direct2Dell a couple of days ago, it’s time to move beyond security as a practice of restriction and denial and start talking about security as an enabling function for business.
Dell has built one of the most comprehensive security portfolios in the industry to protect businesses internally within corporate walls and externally against outside threats. Our security solutions have been delivered through both in-house IP and multiple acquisitions in recent years. Unencumbered by legacy security solutions, we look at security with “fresh eyes.” By applying our core principles of velocity, usability and agility, we are delivering a solution that’s fundamentally better for partners and their customers: an integrated, end-to-end solution that closes the gaps created by legacy and point products.
Security is a vitally important component of the Dell PartnerDirect channel program, too. By deploying Dell’s security solutions, channel partners can support their customers by protecting the environment from breaches, complying with regulations, and enabling operations. Since we announced software-specific enhancements to our PartnerDirect program in September 2013, it has become easier for channel partners to sell end-to-end solutions through one simple program, and improve their ability to help customers.
Dell’s partners are eager to help customers address their security challenges. More than 3,000 individuals in the channel completed Dell Security competency courses last quarter. Dell experienced a 21 percent spike in worldwide security course completions over the prior quarter. In the Americas, that security training engagement was even stronger, demonstrating a 37 percent spike in training completion.
That means more of our partners are equipped to provide expert security solutions. They have the knowledge to advise customers on the newest security threats on the horizon, such as securing the Internet of Things.
Our partners are prepared to deal with their customers’ most sensitive information and serve as advisors rather than one-time, transactional product suppliers. With many organizations facing a shortage in cyber security skills, trained and skilled partners can make a tremendous difference for end user organizations. When partners become trusted advisors in the security space, they can differentiate their companies definitively from the competition and create a true partnership with their customers that will bring benefit to both parties for years to come.
To learn more, please check out Dell’s Connected Security Solutions and see the new video spotlighting how German IT service provider choin! is keeping their customers secure. Additionally, please look for forthcoming blogs by my colleagues spotlighting how channel partners are leveraging Dell’s network security and identity and access management solutions respectively.