ConnectWise’s most exciting play in cybersecurity right now is its hyper focus on centralization, says Raffael Marty, executive vice president and GM for cybersecurity. Over the next couple of years, much of the existing patchwork of services will be integrated into the Asio IT management platform. The result will be a “single pane of glass” through which MSPs can manage security in the ConnectWise ecosystem and beyond.
Marty elaborated on the roadmap and vision outlined during the opening keynote address at the 4th annual IT Nation Secure in Orlando, Fla. The keynote opened with a simulated hack by an AI-generated avatar, to which CEO Jason Magee “responded” with the company’s AI responsible use statement.
It’s a statement MSPs might want to review as AI becomes more important to the integrations Marty says will allow for faster, cohesive threat detection and response.
“We started seeing how quickly we were able to develop the vulnerability management solution … and how seamless that whole workflow is where you find vulnerability,” Marty says. “Click, and it uses another Asio patching component and [automatically] rolls out a patch. This is a flywheel that starts turning really fast.”
Asio centralization includes pulling in components from ConnectWise Unified Monitoring and Management, as well as Business Management Solutions, Marty notes. That information, plus data about alerts and the subsequent responses, can be used to train large language models, or AI, to recommend response protocols in the future.
“Over time you get so confident that’s always the action someone takes that you automate it all the way,” Marty says.
Embracing SaaS
MSPs are managing a proliferation of work and productivity applications, and Asio is positioned to simplify that workload, according to Marty. The platform will help ensure SMB employees use only sanctioned applications, monitoring those apps for suspicious activity, and encrypting and controlling the data they store. The current version monitors Office 365 and Google Workspace. Marty says the coming quarter will bring suggested workflows for alert response, and several more integrations, such as Dropbox, added through Q4.
ConnectWise is inviting outside developers to add their tools to Asio. Marty likens the ultimate goal to Salesforce Platform, a platform-as-a-service product that simplifies the development and deployment of cloud-based applications and websites.
“We want to have people building capabilities and integrations on top of the platform,” Marty told a breakout session audience. He says ConnectWise would maintain an open API to support products from vendors with whom the company might not yet have a formal relationship, citing CrowdStrike as an example.
At least some components of external apps would be visible on a single ConnectWise dashboard. At the same time, Asio offers real-time alert capabilities and frameworks for dealing with alerts coming in from SaaS applications. Opening up to outside SaaS, notes Marty, also creates an integration avenue for the many vendors who seek to partner with ConnectWise, without requiring the heavy lift of a formal strategic partnership.
Image courtesy of ConnectWise
