OPSWAT, StarLink partner to boost cybersecurity defenses for MEA’s critical infrastructure

Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) cybersecurity solutions company OPSWAT announced last week that it has partnered with value-added distributor (VAD) StarLink, an Infinigate Group company. Covering the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, the deal with StarLink will enable critical infrastructure verticals across the region to respond to evolving cyber threats. 

The joint value proposition for customers comes at a time when many countries across the region are keeping up with digitalization, expanding their industrial sectors and modernizing their critical infrastructures. 

The IoT-fueled convergence between digital IT and the industrial operational technology (OT) has led to a burgeoning attack surface and a multiplication of challenges for OT-heavy organizations—skill shortages, inability to securely transfer files and devices into, across, and out of secure environments, and more. OPSWAT addresses these challenges using its end-to-end cybersecurity platform, built to protect both enterprise IT and industrial OT environments.

“The cyberthreat landscape is unrelenting and has impacts at both an individual and national level. Cybercriminals go where they can be profitable, and the expanding attack surface, driven by the convergence between OT and IT, is a lucrative target for them. OPSWAT is here to respond,” Sertan Selcuk, vice president of sales for Middle East, Turkey, Africa, and Pakistan at OPSWAT, said in a media statement. “As we fortify our unwavering commitment to safeguarding critical infrastructures in the region, we seek out partners with the skills and reputation to amplify our capabilities and bring those capabilities to customers.” 

He added that the partnership with StarLink is a significant stride in reinforcing the region’s cyber defenses and ensuring uncompromising protection for clients against the ever-evolving threats they face.

“We are looking forward to extending our fullest support in accelerating business growth for OPSWAT in the region. Together, we shall deliver great value to enterprises to secure their critical infrastructure,” according to Ahmed Diab, COO at StarLink. “Our integrated, solution-selling GTM strategy gives us an edge to drive more demand and generate bigger turnkey business opportunities. This collaboration has huge potential for us, as OPSWAT complements multiple technologies in our portfolio.”

OPSWAT’s partnership with StarLink presents an opportunity for the company to expand its product portfolio in the region and reach a broader customer base. It will leverage StarLink’s extensive network and market reach to further expand its growth. The company has the opportunity to tap into StarLink’s resources, expertise, and customer relationships, strengthening its regionwide cybersecurity position through an enhanced market presence and greater flexibility to address organizations’ needs.

Meanwhile, OPSWAT’s portfolio will complement that of StarLink, which already bridges multiple domains, from infrastructure security and data protection to OT security and compliance management. The collaboration will enrich the VAD’s ability to serve the security needs of a broader customer base that includes both IT and OT, which gives StarLink a significant differentiator in the regional cybersecurity solutions market.

StarLink will focus on developing business opportunities for OPSWAT’s comprehensive solutions and zero-trust technologies in all major verticals, leveraging the VAD’s tried-and-tested approach of offering solutions to business challenges rather than selling products or technologies in isolation. 

The distributor’s GTM strategy aligns with OPSWAT’s ongoing approach to work with its channel to assist customers by identifying specific cybersecurity challenges and deploying a holistic approach that results in a complete set of solutions. In conjunction with this strategy, OPSWAT is committed to training select channel technical teams, and such enablement sessions are currently ongoing for the sales, technical, and marketing teams of StarLink.

Industrial Cyber News Desk

Industrial Cyber News Desk