Palo Alto Networks expands NextWave partner network

Palo Alto Networks has announced the expansion of its NextWave partner program to help deliver more robust, Cortex XDR-powered incident response services.

The freshly bolstered initiative is aiming to provide MSSPs with improved tools, training, and resources to help customers better investigate and remediate cyber attacks.

Palo Alto Networks said businesses working with a partner that specialises in IR services will be well-placed to help accelerate response and remediation across the incident lifecycle.

"We are investing in our MSSP partner ecosystem more than ever before with the expansion of the NextWave Partner Program to encompass Threat Response,” said Tom Barsi, vice president of WW Cortex Ecosystems at Palo Alto Networks.

“Partners that achieve this designation are highly skilled and have met stringent requirements with demonstrated deep experience in delivering Threat Hunting and IR services leveraging Cortex XDR. They are able to support customers through Incident Response, during their greatest time of need."

Palo Alto Network’s Cortex XDR is designed to provide comprehensive visibility to help identify threats early and accelerate investigation and containment.

The offering promises enterprise-wide protection through data analysis and complete endpoint security that encompasses machine learning-driven threat detection, incident management, automated root-cause analysis, and deep forensics.

With the firm’s NextWave program, partners can now work with this incident response XDR technology, which has been built using proactive and reactive use cases to reduce time and resources spent on delivering services.

Partners can also take advantage of 24/7 expert technical and deployment support for swift online access to XDR tenants, Palo Alto added, as well as expanded routes to market that include more ways to offer proactive services to clients – including advanced threat analytics, proactive assessments, and attack surface management.

PwC UK, a Palo Alto Networks NextWave partner, said it continues to see enterprise clients outsourcing digital forensics and incident response (DFIR).

"We are proud to have achieved the Palo Alto Networks NextWave designation for Threat Response to help clients respond to, contain, and remediate cyber threats and vulnerabilities so they can focus on their business,” said Ross Foley, director, Managed Cyber Defense lead at PwC UK.

“Our solutions powered by Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR deliver trusted offerings to clients, combining the recognised cyber expertise of both organisations to reduce the probability of a breach as well as the impact should an incident occur."

Kevin Kilgo, vice president of managed services at Fulcrum, said earning the NextWave designation for Threat Response helps the business further its security team’s expertise in delivering a holistic security operations platform to customers.

"Combining Fulcrum's managed security services, our 24x7x365 security operations center, SIEM as a service, and SOAR capabilities with the best-in-class power of Cortex XDR has helped our SOC team significantly in addressing the ever-growing burden of our customer's detection and response operations," he said.