Batavia, United States – High Wire Networks, Inc., a global provider of managed cybersecurity and technology enablement, has secured a new contract from a channel partner to deliver High Wire’s Overwatch OT/IoT Security for a U.S. health system comprised of more than 25 hospitals and clinics and dozens of ancillary care facilities.
The engagement includes onboarding and delivering agentless, zero trust, managed cybersecurity security services for more than 2,000 IoT-type Internet-of-Things devices across multiple campuses.
According to High Wire COO, Stephen LaMarche “The increasing use of IoT devices to control and monitor other devices and systems brings with it the added complexities of securing their network connections, especially in medical spaces. FDA regulated devices cannot be properly protected by traditional security software, so healthcare organisations have few options for patching these devices and eliminating security vulnerabilities.
“We believe our Overwatch OT/IoT Security solution can control access to the plethora of divergent IoT devices in a way that others cannot, and with the efficiency and effectiveness of agentless configurations that can be monitored by our U.S.-based 24/7 Security Operations Centre.”
Overwatch SOAR is a proprietary security orchestration, automation and response technology. The AI embedded in SOAR automatically consolidates alerts from various threat prevention and detection-and-response platforms, providing enhanced visibility, improved correlation, and faster remediation.
Adds LaMarche: “For our professional security experts, SOAR acts as a powerful force multiplier, enabling us to provide the most secure and cost-effective cybersecurity solutions available on the market today.”
High Wire delivers its Overwatch managed security services through its global network of managed service providers (MSPs) and managed security service providers (MSSPs) that now total more than 625 worldwide.
“This major win represents a strong validation of our unique cybersecurity solution, especially after our channel partner and their customer evaluated multiple competitive alternatives before choosing Overwatch,” comments company CTO David Barton. “The evaluation process included months of extensive proof-of-concept testing, with our Overwatch OT/IoT Security coming out the clear winner.”
The company expects the total contract value to exceed $218,000 by end of the year. When the contract renews for a full year as anticipated at the beginning of 2024, it expects this value to more than double. The win also supports the company’s pursuit of a number of similar opportunities in its pipeline as its channel partners continue to look to High Wire to help address their overflowing security demands.
Security breaches and ransomware attacks on critical infrastructure is on the rise, costing organisations millions of dollars to remediate. According to a recent report from IBM, the average cost of a business data breach in the U.S. totals on average [$9.4 million (€8.51 million)]. However, businesses can save on average [$3.1 million (€2.81 million)] with fully deployed security automation.
“In the case of attacks on healthcare systems, lives are also at stake,” notes High Wire CEO, Mark Porter: “In its industry survey, IBM found that 79% of critical infrastructure organisations have yet to deploy a zero-trust architecture on their network. For addressing the growing threats and associated costs that can be avoided, we believe Overwatch provides our channel partners the best security solutions for their valued clients.”
Check Point Research reported an overall 57% increase in cyberattacks last year, with attacks on health care organisations increasing by 86%. A 2022 Ponemon Institute survey found that of 600 health care facilities that reported ransomware attacks, 23% experienced increased mortality rates as a result.
Other critical infrastructure, like in the oil and natural gas sector, are also under increasing ransomware attacks. In response, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration announced last July a revised security directive regarding oil and natural gas pipeline cybersecurity. The directive provides another important growth driver for the broader adoption of High Wire’s Overwatch OT/IoT cybersecurity solution.
Overwatch addresses a global cybersecurity market that is expected to grow at a 13.4% CAGR to reach [$376 billion (€340.46 billion)] by 2029.
To learn more about High Wire and its managed cybersecurity and IT enablement services, visit High Wire Networks or view the company’s free video series on YouTube.
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