How MSPs Win in 2026: AI Expertise and Cyber Resilience by Barracuda

Organizations are redefining what they expect from managed service providers: not just a 24/7 SOC, but AI risk guidance, resilience, and clear business communication.

Mid-sized and enterprise buyers increasingly judge MSPs on their ability to explain cyber risk to the board, respond to AI-enabled threats, and restore operations within hours. A new Barracuda Networks report, What MSP Customers Need Next, quantifies this shift and outlines where the growth opportunities for providers lie over the next 12 to 18 months. Softprom is the official distributor of Barracuda Networks.

What was announced

On November 4, 2026, Barracuda Networks released the report What MSP Customers Need Next, based on an international survey of 2,000 IT and security decision-makers in organizations with 100 to 2,000 employees.

• 66% of organizations already outsource security to an MSP; another 29% are evaluating providers.
• 59% of MSP prospects are concerned about AI-related threats, including AI-generated phishing, AI-powered social engineering, shadow AI, and AI-enabled insider threats.
• 40% of existing MSP customers cite plain-language explanations of risks and incidents as a key selection factor.
• Only 29% of MSP prospects say they can secure compromised accounts and restore operations within hours of an incident.

Organizations today are looking for more than outsourced security operations. As cyber threats become more sophisticated and AI reshapes both attack techniques and business operations, customers increasingly want trusted partners who can help them understand risk, strengthen resilience, recover quickly from incidents, and make informed decisions

Why this matters

For CIOs, CISOs and procurement leaders, the data signals a maturing MSP market. Technical excellence is table stakes; differentiation comes from advisory capability and measurable resilience outcomes. Nearly half of MSP prospects say that key resilience capabilities — security leadership, security culture, asset visibility, and third-party risk management — are only partially established, which translates into direct exposure during an incident.

The research also underlines that demand for MSP services is driven less by attack volume and more by a lack of confidence in internal detection, investigation and response. Providers that pair SOC operations with AI risk management and boardroom-ready reporting will capture the most growth.

Technical details

• Scope: 2,000 mid- to senior-level IT and security decision-makers.
• Organization size: 100 to 2,000 employees.
• Geography: US, UK, France, DACH, Benelux, Nordics, Australia, India, Japan.
• Research partner: Arlington Research, independent agency.
• Focus areas: AI-related threats, resilience gaps, SOC expectations, risk communication.
• Platform context: BarracudaONE cyber resilience platform covering email, identities, AI, data, applications, networks and managed XDR.

FAQ

What percentage of organizations already work with an MSP?

66% already outsource security to an MSP, and a further 29% are evaluating providers, according to the Barracuda Networks survey of 2,000 IT and security leaders.

Which AI-related threats concern MSP prospects most?

59% of prospects cite AI-generated phishing, AI-powered social engineering, shadow AI, and AI-enabled insider threats as top concerns requiring external expertise.

How quickly can most organizations recover from an incident today?

Only 29% of MSP prospects say they can secure compromised accounts and restore operations within hours, highlighting a clear resilience gap for providers to address.

Softprom and Barracuda Networks

Softprom is the official distributor of Barracuda Networks. We help MSPs and enterprise customers adopt the BarracudaONE platform, build managed XDR practices, and operationalize AI-era cyber resilience.

Prepared by the Softprom editorial team based on vendor materials (Softprom DistriFlow). Source: original article.