IDC: Bright future for IT security services

IDG News Service - The results of a new study from research firm IDC offer a strong thumbs-up to the fast-evolving information security services sector, predicting that the market for such services will increase to more than $23.5 billion in the next four years.
The study, "Worldwide and U.S. Information Security Forecast 2003 -- 2007," provides a five-year forecast for the information security services market, which includes a wide range of activities, from application testing to training and outsourced security strategy planning, IDC said in a statement.
Demand for stronger application security and security for wireless networks will drive the growth of the information security services market, as will the continuing trend toward outsourcing network-security functions such as application security testing, disaster recovery and management of network security devices, according to IDC.
Framingham, Mass.-based IDC predicted more than 20% annual growth in spending for information security services because companies are looking to security services providers to help them understand security risks and develop comprehensive plans to address those risks.
The competitive field for information security services has swelled in recent years, as traditional players such as Atlanta-based Internet Security Systems Inc. and McLean, Va.-based BearingPoint Inc. (formerly KPMG Consulting Inc.) have found themselves competing for security consulting and management business against traditionally product-oriented companies such as Cupertino, Calif.-based Symantec Corp.
Companies operating in the information security services space will have to put more effort into differentiating the value of their services from those of their competitors in order to win business, IDC said.