One such company, Providian Financial, was so distressed thatit sent several IT staffers to man Pilot´s operationscenter. That probably frightened Pilot´s other bankingcustomers, none of whom were expecting a competitivefinancial institution to have access to their networksecurity.

While it´s perhaps the most dire example of failure in theslowing economy, Pilot´s breakdown is not anaberration. Other managed security companies are hurtingtoo. The Salinas Group had already folded. Exodus endured anatrocious first quarter in which CEO Ellen Hancock saideverything was on track "except revenue." Recently, Exodusand another managed security company, Counterpane, announcedthat they are joining forces for efficiencies ofscale. MyCIO.com, once independently operated, was foldedback into its parent company, McAfee. Two other managedservice boutiques, Vigilante and Networks Vigilance, havemerged. "Spending has tapered," says Bruce Murphy, CEO ofVigilinx, another managed security company. "A billiondollars in equity just dried up."

In a matter of days, the managed security services optionturned into a frightening one for CIOs. Until now,outsourcing security management to a boutique company likePilot seemed the best way to go for two reasons: One, that´swhere the most cutting-edge security expertise had migrated,and two, doing security in-house was considered too expensiveand difficult for most companies. But in the wake of thePilot disaster, many CIOs are reevaluating two alternatives:outsourcing their security needs to a large, general servicescompany such as IBMIBM Global Services, or taking care of themin-house. Alles zu IBM auf CIO.de

The problem is that none of the three available options isthe clear winner. Each carries significant risk, and formerPilot customers are trying them all. But all of them agree onone point. OutsourcingOutsourcing security is more work than justwriting a check every month. It´s a full-time job thatrequires in-house resources. Treating it as any less---andmany do---is playing Russian roulette with the entireenterprise. Alles zu Outsourcing auf CIO.de

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