Qualys opens managed risk operations centre program to partners

Qualys has launched an invitation-only partner program enabling managed security service providers to deliver risk operations centre (ROC) services.

The programme builds on Qualys's Enterprise Threat Risk Management (ETRM) platform, introduced in October 2024.

This provides a centralised hub for continuously monitoring and responding to changes in organisational risk posture.

Sam Salehi, Australia and New Zealand channel manager at Qualys, describes the platform as moving beyond traditional security operations centre models that focus on indicators of compromise to proactively identifying indicators of exposure.

"We wanted to shift the focus from indicators of compromise to indicators of exposure to bring proactiveness to our customer base," Salehi said.

The risk operations centre concept addresses need for unified risk management across hybrid IT environments, integrating on-premises, cloud, IT and Internet of Things assets under a single platform.

Qualys differentiates its approach by opening the platform to ingest risk telemetry from third-party security tools.

"For the first time we open up our platform to ingest telemetry of risk from other third party solutions. This is no longer about just Qualys," Salehi said.

The platform integrates with Microsoft, Palo Alto Networks, and CrowdStrike through connectors, normalising and aggregating risk scores from multiple vendors into unified assessments.

Partner organisations accepted into the programme can provide advisory services, onboarding and integration, risk monitoring, and remediation services across the ETRM platform.

"Partners can come in and help us and also help the customer to accelerate the adoption of Risk Operation centre," Salehi said.

The programme targets managed security service providers seeking to elevate conversations from traditional vulnerability management to strategic cyber risk orchestration.

Partners gain access to Qualys's customer install base whilst providing specialised consulting services for business context integration, a component requiring engagement with board members, business unit owners, and chief financial officers.

"In order to absorb that business context and provide it back to the tool, you need to spend lot of consulting hours with the customer," Salehi said.

The platform enables automation and orchestration workflows similar to security operations centre capabilities, allowing partners to patch devices, isolate machines, and build automated response systems.

Qualys provides free risk quantification workshops led by external experts, including sessions conducted by Richard Sorison, chief risk officer at Coles, focusing on business metrics rather than product demonstrations.

"These are like four hour conversations and it's not a Qualys product page. We're not encouraging people, whether they're customers or partners, to come and buy Qualys," Salehi said.

The programme addresses market demands driven by budget constraints requiring cybersecurity investments to demonstrate clear return on investment calculations.

"Maybe ten years ago, cyber security budget was like an open tap. You can go and buy whatever shiny tool you want. But those days are gone," Salehi said.

The platform aims to help organisations quantify risk reduction investments, enabling statements such as spending $50,000 on specific solutions reducing organisational risk by $1 million.

Financial services institutions, superannuation funds, and critical infrastructure organisations represent early adopters due to existing risk management maturity and regulatory compliance requirements.

Small and medium businesses benefit from platform automation and consolidated services, reducing the need for multiple best-of-breed security tools whilst leveraging managed services for implementation.

Qualys plans to expand third-party integrations throughout 2025, prioritising connector development based on customer feedback and market demand for additional security tool compatibility.

The company continues providing free training to partners and customers to support risk operations centre adoption across the Australian and New Zealand markets.