Gartner: Spending On Cybersecurity Services Is Outpacing Expectations In 2023

Cybersecurity services spending is also expected to accelerate in 2024, according to the research firm’s projections.

Spending on security services is on track to easily surpass previous expectations for 2023 amid intensifying cyberthreats, which have helped to make cybersecurity a bigger priority for more organizations, according to Gartner.

The research firm last week released its updated projections for overall security and risk management spending in 2023 as well as its forecast for the category in 2024, showing both stronger-than-expected growth this year and a slight acceleration in the growth rate for next year.

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The new forecast also breaks down spending across a number of segments within security and risk management — the largest of which, by far, is security services at $80.8 billion.

Among the drivers for better-than-expected growth in security services spending in 2023 is the realization by more customers that “attacks happen 24/7 — usually during holidays, nights and weekends,” said Mark Wah, vice president and analyst at Gartner, in an interview with CRN.

Growing interest in getting the necessary 24/7 coverage through managed security services is among the key drivers of the strong growth in the security services category, Wah said.

Spending on security services is now projected to grow 10.1 percent in 2023, year-over-year, according to Gartner. The research firm’s prior forecast for this year had suggested security services spending would increase by 6.7 percent compared to 2022.

At BASE Solutions, a Vienna, Va.-based MSP, the willingness of customers to pay for additional security services continues to grow — as does the company’s own spending to acquire new cybersecurity tools for its managed service offering, said Atul Bhagat, president and CEO of BASE Solutions.

“The money that we’re pouring into security, versus the rest of our regular stack, has completely changed,” Bhagat said. “We’re constantly adding more tools, and spending more and more, because we need more sophisticated [technology].”

For example, BASE Solutions had already acquired a help desk security tool from vendor CyberQP, but some customers had initially questioned whether it was necessary for them, he said. Then, details emerged that the crippling cyberattack against casino operator MGM had involved a help desk scam, in which the hacker impersonated an employee and was granted account access.

Bhagat said he’s now going to be making a strong case for customers to implement to CyberQP tool by referring to the MGM incident. “Now I get to say, ‘This is what happened. You need to put this [tool] in. Because we don’t want to be in this situation,’” he said.

Looking ahead, the growth rate for spending on security services is likely to accelerate in 2024 faster than the originally forecast 10.3-percent growth pace, according to Gartner. The uptick in the forecasted growth rate for next year is particularly notable given the massive size of the segment — as well as the fact that the faster growth is expected on a much larger spending base.

Gartner now predicts that spending on security services will climb 11.3 percent in 2024, year-over-year, to $90 billion.