Rogers moves to protect online profiles
Rogers Communications Inc. hopes to capitalize on the cybersecurity craze with a new social media security service that monitors risks associated with a company’s online profiles.
The telecommunications giant is partnering with digital risk monitoring company Zerofox to bring its cloud-based security software to Canada for the first time, Rogers announced Wednesday.
It’s part of Rogers’ ongoing push to ramp up the products it offers business clients, many of whom increasingly rely on social media to engage with customers without addressing the risks associated with fake Twitter accounts, Facebook scams or profile impersonations, senior vice-president of products and solutions Charlie Wade said in an interview.
“The threat of those social media networks is becoming a significant one,” Wade said, citing a Cisco report that pegged Facebook scams as one of the top web attack methods in 2016.
The new service uses advanced machine learning to help identify malicious posts, profiles, content 24/7 and alert customers to any threats. Rogers will provide the account setup and first line of support, but Zerofox conducts the “deep forensic surveillance,” Wade said. The pair claims it can get malicious content removed in a matter of hours due to its established relationships with major social networks including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
In a statement, Twitter Canada’s managing director Rory Capern said the new service is “good to see” as it will allow businesses to engage securely on their social platforms.
Rogers started selling security services to business clients last year, but is expanding its offerings in the hope that customers will increase the number of services they purchase with Rogers overall, Wade said.
“They trust us for a lot of services we deliver to them already. We’re just adding to that as we expand,” he said.
The new service, which doesn’t require Rogers’ Internet, starts at $2,083 per month to monitor up to 30 accounts, and goes up depending on the number of social media accounts that need monitoring. Rogers has “modest” revenue targets for the product, Wade said. “I wouldn’t expect it to be in any way material to Rogers results,” he said, although he emphasized how important security is to customers.
“It’s a craze because it’s really important to customers,” he said. “If you talk to any chief information officer about what keeps them awake at night, it’s always security.”
Cybersecurity has taken centre stage in 2017, particularly given the influence of hacking on American politics. Canadian companies including BlackBerry Ltd. are vying to brand themselves as the go-to for security in an uncertain climate.