McAfee’s announcement that it was exiting the enterprise security space to focus exclusively on the consumer market was not entirely unexpected. Many large businesses had become disenchanted with the firm’s ‘security supermarket’ approach to cyber-risk management, and the resulting costs and complexities of having to manage and upgrade multiple incompatible toolkits. McAfee had also stumbled in its efforts to update its legacy AV technologies and meet customer demands for effective endpoint detection and response solutions.
Industry reactions have been mixed. According to Richard Stiennon, chief research analyst at IT-Harvest, "This is more shuffling of the chairs on the deck of the Titanic. McAfee keeps getting passed around even while its valuation diminishes."
Existing McAfee customers are justifiably concerned about the long-term viability of the enterprise business, and the possibility that some of McAfee’s most desirable assets, such as the MVISION Cloud platform, might be spun off or sold. In the short-term, however, they would be wise to avoid over-reacting to the news by placing undue urgency on ripping out and replacing McAfee® products.
The more prudent course is to focus on high-priority security upgrades that more immediately reduce risks, costs, and management complexity. BlackBerry stands at the ready with a portfolio of AI-powered cybersecurity solutions and services. Working together, BlackBerry® Cyber Suite and BlackBerry® Security Services enable organizations of all sizes to transition effectively from a reactive to a prevention-first security posture.
Get a demo and explore how BlackBerry solutions can benefit your organization.