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Opswat signals file security opportunity
Security player is keen to recruit partners that can plug the gap leaving customers exposed to significant risk
The gap that can open up between storage and security teams around data files should spell a channel opportunity for those able to deliver protection in that area.
With the storage community prioritising backup and restore, and the security teams looking to prevent issues from getting into the network, malware sitting in files can often slip through the net.
Risks increase when the files become part of the backup regime, and can live on through M&A data consolidation processes.
Dan Roberts, international director of channel sales at Opswat, said the company was working with partners to encourage them to engage with customers on the question of file security.
“I like to talk about being a zero trust for files,” he said. “When files hit the perimeter, we are scanning our advanced malware threat protection with our multi-layered platform, and our emphasis is very much around [the fact that] any file can be infected.
“As and when files are passed between companies, between individuals within the companies, there becomes that proliferation of the files, and typically they are trusted,” added Roberts.
“Large organisations are trusting these files, but they haven’t been sanitised, they haven’t been cleaned, and this is where we play.”
Mergers and acquisitions
Roberts said it had also seen the problem crop up when customers went through M&A and pulled their stored files together.
“These acquired archives contain dormant malware, and as soon as those files hit … it’s a real threat, and it can bring down an organisation,” he said. “If you consider the backup element, that is very much where risk is preserved.
“There’s a preservation of that threat, which again is a real fear for us,” added Roberts. “That’s where the risk accumulates, so files from all sources, they accumulate across NAS, cloud, and it’s unverified at rest as well, so for us at Opswat, that’s how we see the market, and that’s backed up with growth.
“The client isn’t necessarily considering it, they assume that files are safe because they’re in the organisation, and that for me is where our partners can have a significant play in really consulting and being the trusted advisor in the storage world.”
He added that customers had started to understand the threat that was posed, and there had been growth in the market, which should tempt more partners into working in this area. At the same time, the firm was looking to work with a wider channel base, covering both OT and IT environments, and the security and storage worlds.
“We have worked primarily with cyber teams, and the growth for us is how we work with the cyber teams, collaborating with the storage teams,” said Roberts.
The firm is currently recruiting a head of channels as it continues to increase its commitment to partners and widen its routes to market. “The emphasis will be driving our technology partners,” he said. “So, how can we collaborate faster? How can we ensure that you know we come to market with that strong relationship, and that is something that we’re really growing.”
