ADT Cybersecurity Looks To Expand Its Channel Push Around Managed Detection And Response

A longtime leader in home security systems, ADT is bringing its security expertise and storied brand to the task of cyber threat detection and response through its ADT Cybersecurity business.

Importantly, channel director Zackery Morris said during a talk at XChange 2019, ADT Cybersecurity sees solution providers playing a pivotal role. "We really want to create as many partner-centric relationships as humanly possible," Morris told an audience of solution providers during the conference, held this week in Las Vegas and hosted by CRN parent The Channel Company.

[Related: 16 Hot New Orchestration, Incident Response, And Threat Intelligence Tools At RSA 2019]

Rather than offering cyber threat prevention solutions, ADT Cybersecurity is focusing on solutions for managed detection and response (MDR)—with the idea that, as research firm Gartner has put it, all companies should "assume they are in a state of continuous compromise."

"A bad actor can always exploit the weakest link in an organization," Morris said.

ADT Cybersecurity's offerings include ADT IQ, which offers automated threat detection and elimination for businesses that have anywhere up to 1,000 employees. ADT ShieldWatch, meanwhile, is a network-based appliance focused on protecting businesses with critical assets that have between 250 and 2,000 employees.

ADT Cybersecurity runs network operations centers in Delaware and North Carolina, as well as a security operations center in Arizona, which provides advanced security services.

Ultimately, ADT Cybersecurity is able to provide managed detection and response "across all scale of customers," not just enterprise-level customers that can afford high upfront and monthly costs, Morris said.

"We need the solution—every MSP here needs that solution, they need that safety net," said David Cox, director of operations at Bluffton, Indiana-based G6 Communications. "It sounds too good to be true, so that's why I want to see the breakdown of the pricing. Most of my clients are 15-35 seats, so it's a small environment. They're not enterprise environments with an endless IT budget. So while they know they need it, they need to be able to afford it. It seems like that's going to be possible here."

In addition, "the ADT name goes a long way," Cox said. "My clients trust me, and if I can come to them with a name like ADT, it makes the discussion easier."

Speaking to CRN, Morris said that ADT Cybersecurity is currently working with 80 solution providers. The company is looking to scale up to partnering with 150 to 200 solution providers this year, he said.