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Cyber Resilience Put to the Test Amid Rising Threats
The 2025 CyberSmart MSP Survey sheds light on a growing concern in the cybersecurity landscape — Managed Service Providers (MSPs), which are supposed to be the frontline defenders against cyber threats, are themselves under siege. While these organizations report high confidence levels in their cybersecurity measures, the data paints a more concerning picture. A staggering 69% of MSP leaders globally admitted to facing multiple security breaches in just the past year. Even more alarming is that 47% experienced three or more breaches during the same period.
This disconnect between perceived preparedness and actual cyber resilience is raising red flags across the industry. CyberSmart’s annual report, conducted in partnership with OnePoll, surveyed 900 MSP leaders across key global markets including the UK, France, Germany, Sweden, and Australia. Despite the unsettling breach statistics, a surprising 76% of MSP leaders expressed strong confidence in their cybersecurity frameworks — revealing a stark gap between belief and reality.
Breaches Mount While Confidence Remains High
Although most MSPs have experienced multiple cyber incidents in the past year, the overwhelming majority still rate their cyber capabilities as strong. In fact, 96% of those surveyed claimed to have average or above-average cyber confidence, in line with the previous year’s findings. But this confidence might not reflect actual preparedness. Only 20% considered their organization’s cybersecurity posture as complete, and the rest acknowledged that there’s still work to be done.
This contradiction becomes more pressing as MSPs not only manage their own cybersecurity but also serve as trusted advisors to their clients. CEO of CyberSmart, Jamie Akhtar, emphasized that while overconfidence can be a liability, MSPs typically possess higher-than-average cyber knowledge due to their frontline roles. The results suggest that many MSP leaders are open to ongoing learning and proactive improvement, aiming to enhance protection for both themselves and their clients.
MSPs Rate Their Clients’ Cyber Readiness Surprisingly High
Interestingly, confidence wasn’t limited to internal assessments. A solid 93% of MSPs also said they feel confident about their clients’ cybersecurity awareness. Nearly half (45%) rated their clients’ posture as above average, with 17% calling it complete. However, this mirrors last year’s overly optimistic evaluations and again calls into question whether this confidence is supported by verifiable readiness or if it’s part of a broader overestimation trend.
Falling Behind on Regulatory Preparedness
One of the most critical gaps in the 2025 survey lies in regulatory readiness. Only 39% of MSPs reported feeling prepared to guide their clients through evolving cybersecurity regulations such as NIS2, the EU AI Act, and DORA. This is an area of serious concern, as staying ahead of compliance trends is essential to long-term business continuity and legal protection.
The Path Forward: Practical Solutions to Boost Cyber Confidence
When asked about the most impactful actions to build cyber resilience, MSPs identified three priorities:
Continuous monitoring (51%)
Employee cybersecurity training (51%)
Proactive risk management (48%)
CyberSmart’s strategic mission revolves around promoting “Complete Cyber Confidence,” a state where organizations are equipped to prevent, detect, and recover from cyber threats with minimal disruption.
What Undercode Say:
Misaligned Perception and Ground Truth in MSP Cyber Readiness
The 2025 CyberSmart MSP Survey exposes a fundamental contradiction that could destabilize trust within the managed services industry. On one hand, MSPs claim to possess strong cyber expertise and confidence. On the other, many are repeatedly falling victim to breaches — with nearly half enduring three or more attacks in a single year. This raises serious concerns about the effectiveness of current defense frameworks and operational oversight.
Overconfidence May Be the Achilles Heel
One of the most notable takeaways is the prevalence of overconfidence. Although a healthy self-assessment can be motivating, the data suggests MSPs might be misjudging their cybersecurity maturity. Psychological studies in risk management have shown that overestimating capabilities often leads to reduced vigilance. This could be playing out in real-time among MSPs, who may be underinvesting in critical areas like incident response simulations and third-party audits.
Client Security Ratings: Real or Reputation Driven?
Another intriguing element is the high rating MSPs give their clients’ cybersecurity awareness. With 93% expressing confidence in customers’ readiness, the survey implies that MSPs see themselves and their clients as part of a robust security ecosystem. However, these ratings could be skewed by the service-provider dynamic — MSPs may hesitate to admit their clients are vulnerable, especially when they’re the ones providing the protection. The lack of transparent vulnerability assessment data makes this metric questionable at best.
Regulatory Apathy Could Prove Costly
The low level of preparedness for new cyber regulations is perhaps the biggest strategic oversight uncovered in the survey. Regulations like DORA and NIS2 are not optional — failure to comply could lead to fines, lawsuits, and reputational damage. Only 39% of MSPs reported readiness, indicating a massive gap that cybercriminals could easily exploit. MSPs need to integrate legal advisory services, or partner with compliance experts, to close this gap quickly.
Continuous Monitoring and Training as Core Pillars
On a positive note, MSPs are correctly identifying some of the most important elements of a resilient cyber posture: real-time monitoring, consistent training, and proactive risk management. These three practices form the backbone of modern cybersecurity strategy and reflect a practical, if delayed, response to a rapidly shifting threat landscape. The challenge now is to implement these with discipline and urgency.
Cyber Confidence: A Moving Target
“Complete Cyber Confidence” is more a process than a destination. MSPs must abandon static metrics and outdated playbooks in favor of adaptive learning environments. Threat actors innovate daily — only organizations that continuously evolve their defenses will thrive.
🔍 Fact Checker Results:
✅ 69% of MSPs faced multiple breaches in the past 12 months
✅ 93% of MSPs said their clients had above-average cybersecurity awareness
❌ Only 39% of MSPs are ready for upcoming regulatory frameworks
📊 Prediction:
With increasing complexity in the regulatory and threat landscape, MSPs that fail to pivot toward proactive strategies will see rising breach rates. By 2026, MSPs that invest in regulatory compliance and real-time threat intelligence are likely to gain a competitive advantage — while those resting on overconfidence risk customer churn and reputational loss. 🛡️📉
References:
Reported By: www.itsecurityguru.org
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