Ingram Micro Acquires Cloud Harmonics to Boost Cybersecurity

In terms of spending cybersecurity is undoubtedly one of the hottest categories in all of IT, so it should come as no surprise there has been a massive amount of merger and acquisition activity in this sector.  That activity is now being extended to distribution in the channel.  Ingram Micro this week announced it has acquired Cloud Harmonics, a specialty distributor focused on IT security.

Tim Ament, senior vice president of advanced solutions for Ingram Micro, says the most immediate benefit this acquisition provides is that it adds IT security technologies from Palo Alto Networks to the Ingram line card. In addition, Ingram Micro will add the cybersecurity expertise it gains via this acquisition to the professional services it makes available to channel partners, says Ament.

In general, Ament says every IT solution now needs to include some level of cybersecurity. Not every partner needs to have the same level of cybersecurity expertise, but they do need to be able to have a meaningful conversation about it.

“If the partner is not having a conversation about cybersecurity with the customer they can bet somebody else is,” says Ament.

Partners are faced with a chronic shortage of cybersecurity skills. Ament says Ingram Micro is trying to help partners address that issue by investing in cybersecurity skills that partners can employ when needed, as well as encouraging partners with different levels of cybersecurity skills to work together.

Ament notes that one of the primary benefits of working with Ingram Micro in a dynamic space is that, as a distributor, Ingram Micro has already vetted the cybersecurity products and services on its line card. There are a lot of cutting-edge cybersecurity technologies announced every day. Most partners don’t have the time and resources required to vet those products and solutions on their own, adds Ament.

Cybersecurity these days is not for the faint of heart. Every day the skills and resources of solution providers that deliver cybersecurity services are heavily taxed. At the same time, however, cybersecurity is not an issue that any solution provider that wants to be around for the long haul can afford to ignore.