rhipe’s Cybersecurity Week Wrap-up

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This week was rhipe’s Cybersecurity Week. The week of webinars were timed alongside National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM), which runs from October 1 to October 31. COVID-19 has permanently changed many aspects of our lives – especially for those running a business or working from home. It’s also opened the door to threats, with cybercrime increasing 600% due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this blog, we will discuss the importance of protecting your digital assets, and the solutions offered at Cybersecurity Week.

rhipe’s Cybersecurity Week provided an opportunity to explore the latest security threats & trends. and opportunity to find out how the security of a business and reduce your risk of cyberattacks. The week also gave access to exclusive vendor promotions, while displaying the extensive range of rhipe’s security vendors.

With eleven informative sessions across four days from industry experts, channel leaders and innovative vendors – Cybersecurity Week was an exciting success. With webinars from Airlock, bluedog, SmartEncrypt, usecure and more – Cybersecurity Week provided innovative solutions for our partners.

Airlock Digital

Airlock Digital presented their webinar on “Why allowlisting is the most overlooked endpoint protection”. Speaker Ricky Calder, the Security Solutions Architect at emt Distribution – a rhipe company, delved into the world of allowlisting.

Ricky’s discussion on allowlisting surrounded the ability to be proactive, rather than reactive. The configuration of each allowlisting is unique, removing the ability for attackers to execute malicious or unknown codes. Finally, Ricky discussed the ability for complete file visibility and control over those files. This provides significant insight for an organisation to understand, detect and respond to malicious activity.

bluedog

bluedog Security Monitoring presented their webinar on their Microsoft 365 Security Monitoring and VAPT (Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing). Global Relationship Manager Lawrence Perez spoke about the importance of Microsoft 365.  Despite great coverage, there are still loopholes cybercriminals can export doing immeasurable damage to organisations. Bluedog monitors all activities on Microsoft 365 and detects all types of attacks without compromising privacy.

bluedog’s CEO Paul Lomax then spoke about their VAPT solutions. There is one new critical vulnerability found every half an hour – so regular VAPT is important to ensure all exposures are covered. Their 24/7 Security Operation Centre reviews and oversees all VAPT, handling false positives and providing full details of each scan.

SmartEncrypt

Regan McKay, Founder of SmartEncrypt by rhipe then spoke about the impacts of a cyber breach on MSPs. Regan’s discussion revolved around the rising threats an organisation faces due to the everchanging landscape. It also gave valuable insights into how MSPs can protect their customers while expanding their security stacks. Ransomware gangs stealing data can value your company based off company size, competitors, industries, publications and more to value the data to hold your business to ransom. Regan’s presentation covered SmartEncrypt’s enterprise-grade File Encryption Software as a Solution (SaaS) for businesses of all sizes.

usecure

Bruno Pinto’s presentation on usecure’s cyber threat mitigation program consisting of four core elements. These elements include training employees in cybersecurity best practices, implementing information and data security policies, conducting regular phishing assessments, and monitoring the dark web for exposed user credentials. The usecure platform assembles these elements in an easy-to-use platform for your business.

Cybersecurity Week was an exciting success – with many of the sessions to be on-demand, and great incentives still on offer, stay tuned for more content.

Orchestra Group’s Harmony solutions manage protection, prevent malicious WiFi, Bluetooth and IoT threats, and continuously test cybersecurity controls!

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Adelaide, Australia – 12 April 2021: Cybersecurity specialist, emt Distribution, now part of rhipe, today announced that Israel-based Orchestra Group – which provides cybersecurity platforms for seamless cybersecurity management and operations – has expanded its reach to include Australia, New Zealand and APAC, with a new distribution agreement.

emt Distribution, a leading value-added distributor, offers cybersecurity solutions that address the Australian Signals Directorate’s top four mitigation strategies – dubbed Catch, Patch and Match – as well as the broader strategies in the Australian Government’s Information Security Manual (ISM).

emt now offers the full range of Orchestra Group’s Harmony solutions to channel partners, MSPs and MSSPs. They include the Harmony IoT solution, which accurately identifies and prevents, in real-time, malicious airborne threats through the attack surfaces of WiFi, Bluetooth and IoT devices. Harmony IoT provides enterprise-grade defence that quickly and easily identifies, monitors and protects all smart connected devices operating within and around the protected area as well as the ability to comply with related organisational policies and industry regulation.

Meanwhile, Harmony Purple serves as a combined, automated red team and blue team within the organisation’s networks. Harmony Purple provides next generation, enterprise-level security tools that continuously analyse and prioritise the threats, in order to create the most effective cyber risk mitigation strategies.

“Effectively identifying threats against a dispersed wireless network with remote or on-the-move workers, multiple locations and a plethora of connected devices has been almost impossible in the past,” said Scott Hagenus, Senior Sales Manager for emt Distribution. “Orchestra Group’s Harmony IoT makes massive headway into solving this problem.

“Harmony IoT gives full visibility into what networks and devices pose a threat and are interacting with a business’s network of interest. It also provides a defensive capability. The ability to block wireless borne attacks for organisations of all sizes is a huge win,” said Hagenus.

“In addition, Harmony Purple’s ability to test the effectiveness of security controls and their weak points allows organisations to continuously adjust their defences for the best security posture achievable with their current infrastructure.”

The new partnership with emt Distribution further extends Orchestra’s distribution network which already covers the EMEA, North America and South America regions.

“Australia, New Zealand and Asia Pacific are focus markets in Orchestra Group’s growth plan,” said Yair Poplawski, GM of Orchestra’s APAC branch. “emt Distribution represents all the qualities we are looking for in a value-added distributor. It has a highly experienced team with a thorough understanding of the unique needs of users in the region as well as strong professional chain of resellers to support them. This new partnership is an important step in building our presence in the region.”

“emt Distribution is delighted to add Orchestra’s Harmony Platform and security solutions to our cybersecurity portfolio,” said Richard Rundle, CEO of emt Distribution. “Australian and New Zealand CISOs are facing an increasingly complex threat landscape as they try to protect their organisations. Offering these services to MSPs and MSSPs looking to further assist their clients improve their cyber security posture with tangible results will help strengthen their position as trusted security partners.”

Learn more about Orchestra Group’s Solutions Harmony IoT & Harmony Purple

Read this Story in ARN; Read this Story in CRN 

 

emt Distribution Signs bluedog Security Monitoring to Bring Affordable Cybersecurity Services to SMBs in ANZ and APAC

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bluedog disrupts security monitoring market, putting enterprise-level services within reach of all organisations, including small and medium businesses

Adelaide, Australia & Singapore – 13 October 2020: Cybersecurity specialist, emt Distribution, today announced that UK-based bluedog Security Monitoring – which aims to make monitoring services accessible to businesses of all sizes – has expanded its reach to include Australia, New Zealand and Asia Pacific with a new distribution agreement.

 

emt Distribution, a leading value-added distributor, offers cybersecurity solutions that address the Australian Signals Directorate’s top four mitigation strategies – dubbed Catch, Patch and Match – as well as the broader strategies in the Australian Government’s Information Security Manual (ISM).

 

bluedog, which is headquartered in London with a security operations centre in Manila, is disrupting the market for security monitoring. The company provides a level of network protection typically only afforded by large corporations, putting it within reach of all organisations. This includes offering high quality technology, support and service to small and medium businesses (SMBs), helping protect them from cyber threats.

 

emt’s Adelaide and Singapore offices now offer the full range of bluedog’s solutions to channel partners, MSPs and MSSPs. They include the popular bluedog Microsoft® Office 365™ Monitoring, a low cost work-from-home solution that allows organisations with remote workers to protect their data – the only one of its type backed by a live security team.

 

Meanwhile, the bluedog virtual Chief Information Security Officer (vCISO) service provides access to an experienced security professional to assess risk and ensure compliance with standards; while the managed detection and response (MDR) service allows even small organisations to have the reassurance of 24-hour monitoring.

 

“Fixing incidents after they have happened is notoriously difficult and expensive, and can be massively disruptive to organisations with limited cybersecurity resources,” said Shane Mahney, General Manager of emt Distribution. “Organisations need a collaborative range of systems and support services to fight cyber attackers effectively. bluedog provides a robust stack of preventive solutions to fill the gaps many organisations have.”

 

The new partnership with emt Distribution further extends bluedog’s distribution network which already covers Europe, the Middle East, India, Malaysia and the Philippines.

 

“Australia, New Zealand and Asia Pacific are key markets for bluedog,” said Paul Lomax, CEO of bluedog. “emt Distribution has a highly experienced team with a thorough understanding of the needs of users in the region. This new partnership is an important step in building our worldwide network.”

 

“emt Distribution is delighted to add bluedog’s advanced network security solutions to our cybersecurity portfolio,” said Richard Rundle, CEO of emt Distribution. “bluedog’s entry into the region gives our channel partners and their customers access to a new level of cybersecurity protection with enterprise-grade sophistication at an accessible price point.”

 

About bluedog Security Monitoring

Privately held and headquartered in London UK, bluedog Security Monitoring provides essential cybersecurity technology that helps businesses to monitor, protect and secure their business systems. Our people deliver insight and provide solutions to security issues across business networks, safeguarding the employees, customers and reputation of any business. For further information see www.bluedog-security.com.

 

About emt Distribution

emt Distribution is an Adelaide-based value added distributor and vendor representative with a presence in Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Philippines, UAE and South Africa. It also works closely with like-minded distributors in the UK, Netherlands and Germany. emt offers cyber security solutions that address the top four mitigation strategies to prevent cyber security incidents, the broader strategies in the Australian Government’s Information Security Manual (ISM) and solutions to address Cyber Threat Management.

 

emt Distribution assists channel partners, MSPs and MSSPs to deliver cyber security solutions their customers need. emt offers pre and post-sales support, channel development, engaged sales processes and marketing assistance for both vendors and channel partners. See: www.emtdist.com

 

Media Contact

Chris Bowes

Bowes Communications

+61 (0)2 9387 2332

[email protected]

AusCert 2019

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We are excited to be exhibiting at the AusCert Conference 2019 at the Surfers Paradise Marriott Resort & Spa, Swing by booth 37 to say hello to the team and booth vendors – Flashpoint, ThreatConnect and VMRay.

Exhibiting at the conference is also our other vendors – Thycotic and Airlock 

AusCert 2019 is a great opportunity to learn about new approaches to info security, discover the latest technology and interact with top security leaders and pioneers in ANZ community.

Hands-on sessions, keynotes and informal gatherings allow attendees to tap into a smart, forward-thinking  community that inspires and empowers the cyber security community in Australia and New Zealand. Learn more about AusCert2019 here

What do ASD Essential Eight changes mean for your organisation’s security

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TRIAL Vipre Endpoint Security

 

By Alex Duffy, Security Solutions Architect, emt Distribution 

The recent (25/2/19) and unexpected update to the Australian Signals Directorate’s Essential Eight Maturity Model serves to keep the ASD’s guidelines relevant going forward and address the latest weak points in IT security. What stays the same though is the ASD’s guidance on practical updates on how to stay ahead.

 

While these guidelines are specifically relevant to federal government organisations’ critical infrastructure they are now being pushed indirectly to contractors or businesses who work with the federal government. But even though these guidelines may not be mandatory for private businesses, they are best practice. If they are good enough to safeguard our political, defence and economic interests as a nation, they should be appropriate to safeguard our businesses from the majority of possible cyber security attacks and incidents.

 

This recent update sees fewer restrictions around patching but a higher level of control on Application Whitelisting which has now been extended to all workstations for levels 1 and 2 of the maturity models. Multi Factor Authentication no longer permits the use of SMS, emails or voicemails for level 1 maturity and specifically states a requirement for passwords to be longer than six characters at all levels.

 

But what does this actually mean for today’s IT professionals?

 

These changes reflect the changing priorities required to address today’s threat landscape. With the loosening of controls around patching, the ASD acknowledges the balancing act that security personnel must perform in certain environments. There is definite acknowledgement of the dilemma faced where patching may break functionality vs maintaining a secure environment and strict adherence. A reduction in the burden on already overworked IT admins meeting requirements while allowing better automation is removing overhead while not reducing security.

 

The higher importance placed on Application Whitelisting definitely reflects what we see in the marketplace. With Application Whitelisting now available as a mature solution it is reasonable to expect organisations to use it across their entire environment. Increased visibility alone of endpoint applications makes life easier for security, helpdesk and management alike stopping more endpoint threats before they reach any part of the network.

 

Combined focus on patch automation and increased scope of Application Whitelisting we also see as acknowledgement of a more distributed workforce need for security and higher difficulty in controlling remote endpoints.

 

The more specific wording for Multi Factor Authentication also recognises how threat actors are now working around basic MFA and endeavours to close those weak spots.

 

There are now only three maturity levels instead of the original five: Partly (level 1), Mostly (level 2) and Fully (level 3) aligned. Level 0 is no longer listed as it doesn’t meet even the most minimal criteria and level 4 is only required on an ad hoc basis depending on advice from the ASD. These changes assume that organisations will now at least begin to adhere to these standards to a degree and give a clear path to full alignment at level 3.

 

The biggest takeaway from this update appears to be that it is no longer reasonable for a business entity to not address the Essential Eight, especially with the removal of level 0. If a business has not yet met the criteria for level 1 then its current security measures are faulty and need immediate remediation.

We welcome this specific update because it reflects what our customers have been demanding already. emt’s focus on security solutions addresses the Essential Eight and beyond to ensure our customers’ networks are ahead of requirements using the latest technologies. We already have solutions that address the Top 4 – Airlock Digital, Flexera, Stealthbits, and Thycotic.

 

Read more about our solutions for Top 4 mitigations at https://www.emtdist.com/solutions/australian-signals-directorate-top-4-mitigations/