Islam Soliman

Cybersecurity firm Darktrace has named COO Jill Popelka as its new CEO, replacing co-founder Poppy Gustafsson. Popelka (pictured), who joined the company as a non-executive director in January 2024 and became COO in June, brings over 20 years of experience, including leadership roles at Accenture, Snap Inc., and SAP SuccessFactors. Gordon Hurst, Chairman of Darktrace, said: "Jill is a proven and highly regarded leader in global technology businesses who has contributed immensely to the Board and more recently in her role as COO.

Global end-user cybersecurity spending is projected to increase by over 15% in 2025, reaching $212bn, according to new predictions from Gartner. This growth is largely driven by the adoption of AI, especially generative AI (GenAI), which is pushing investments in security across various areas. Since the launch of GenAI tools, threat actors have increasingly used LLMs in social engineering, with Gartner predicting 17% of cyberattacks will involve GenAI by 2027.

Set for introduction in 2026, the EU AI Act is poised to reshape artificial intelligence (AI) management across Europe, positioning the channel at the forefront of this transition.

The 14th annual IT Europa Managed Services Summit in London is set to be a vital event for MSPs seeking to enhance their profit margins. This year’s summit – backed by Headline Sponsor GFI Software – will feature a lineup of presentations, each focused on providing actionable strategies to drive profitability in an increasingly competitive market.

In a strategic joint venture, Leeds-based MSP Assured Data Protection (ADP) is expanding into Latin America, establishing Rubrik’s presence across the region. As Rubrik’s largest MSP, ADP will provide 24/7 managed services to ensure businesses of all sizes can access Rubrik’s rapid recovery capabilities. To support this, ADP is launching a center of excellence in Costa Rica, combining expert engineers with automation for proactive threat response.

The 14th annual IT Europa Managed Services Summit in London is poised to be a pivotal event for MSPs looking to scale their businesses and enhance profitability. Backed by Headline Sponsor GFI Software, this year’s summit, scheduled for September 11, will focus on actionable strategies and industry insights to drive growth in the MSP sector. Accelerating Growth One of the standout presentations, "MSP Scale Secrets," will be delivered by Ian Luckett from MSP Growth Hub. Luckett, a seasoned expert in business scaling, will share key strategies that MSPs can adopt to accelerate their growth.

The 14th annual IT Europa Managed Services Summit in London is poised to be a pivotal event for MSPs looking to scale their businesses and enhance profitability. Backed by Headline Sponsor GFI Software, this year’s summit, scheduled for September 11, will focus on actionable strategies and industry insights to drive growth in the MSP sector. Accelerating Growth One of the standout presentations, "MSP Scale Secrets," will be delivered by Ian Luckett from MSP Growth Hub. Luckett, a seasoned expert in business scaling, will share key strategies that MSPs can adopt to accelerate their growth.

IT services provider Redsquid has acquired MSP OptivITy to enhance its network and security services and expand its team by 12 members. This move also allows Redsquid to enter the film industry, with OptivITy supporting major UK film productions. The acquisition, partly funded by Triple Point and cash reserves, marks Redsquid's largest deal to date, following three recent acquisitions. Sohin Raithatha, CEO of Redsquid, said: “This acquisition is a pivotal moment for the Redsquid Group, propelling us into our next phase of growth.

Cloud-based secure messaging and data management vendor Mimecast has acquired Code42 to enhance its human risk management platform. Mimecast will integrate Code42's solutions to improve threat detection and response while continuing to support existing Code42 customers.

MSP Node4 is upgrading its core network to boost bandwidth tenfold through a new partnership with Virgin Media Business Wholesale. This enhancement will improve Node4’s managed network and infrastructure services by replacing the fibre infrastructure between its data centres and points of presence.

Investments in AI and cybersecurity are increasing among IT service providers, according to Kaseya’s Future of IT Survey. AI is expected to be the main budget focus for 40% of respondents in 2024, with 75% recognising its business benefits. Investments in IT automation and machine learning are also rising, with 37% planning to allocate funds, up from 20% last year. Cybersecurity remains a top concern, with 43% identifying it as their primary challenge and 45% planning to enhance cybersecurity so…

Sustainability is a top priority for Chief Information Officers (CIOs) with the majority investing in environmental initiatives and technologies, new research from Logicalis shows. The firm’s 10th annual CIO report reveals that 90% of executives consider it crucial to evaluate new suppliers’ sustainability credentials. Despite economic uncertainties, dedication to sustainability remains strong. The survey indicates 96% of tech leaders are involved in sustainability planning, and 93% believe IT i…

Systal has strengthened its six-year relationship with Coca Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) by securing a direct, multi-year partnership. The Scotland-based managed network services company will now support over 6,500 devices across 300 locations in 11 European countries. The company has supported CCEP for over six years through a multi-partner agreement. This new direct deal aims to help CCEP, which serves 600 million consumers, achieve its goal of becoming ‘the world’s most digitised bottler’…

TD Synnex has been appointed as a distributor for Samsung Electronics’ laptops, tablets, and smartphones in the enterprise and B2B markets. This partnership allows business partners to leverage TD Synnex’s logistics, digital tools, and value-added services to boost Samsung sales.

Cloud storage vendor Wasabi Technologies has partnered with B2B technology infrastructure provider Retelit to expand its hot cloud storage services in Italy. Retelit will include Wasabi hot cloud storage in its offerings, and Wasabi will open its first Italian storage region in Milan, its fifth in Europe and 14th worldwide. The new region will be operational in Q3 2024, located in Avalon 3, Retelit’s newest green and hyper-connected data centre.

Enterprises are missing cost-effective sustainable IT opportunities, according to new research from analyst firm Gartner. The survey of 200 senior leaders from North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific found many companies overlook cheaper initiatives despite pursuing sustainable projects. Less than 30% of organisations adopt the most cost-effective IT practices, the survey found. Gartner's VP analyst, Kristin Moyer, noted progress but emphasised the need for better strategies.

A candid Q&A with Michael Lloyd, CEO of Nuvola on how to make the worlds fastest growing UCaaS platform your ally rather than a rival.

Global Fortune 500 solutions integrator Insight has expanded its digital transformation capabilities with the acquisition of UK-based tech consulting firm New World Tech (NWT). NWT delivers complex projects for large financial services, automotive, TMT, and public sector organisations, specialising in advisory, assurance, and technical services, with a focus on sourcing strategy, ServiceNow solutions, business transformation, and program assurance. Adrian Gregory (pictured), Insight EMEA Preside…

Microsoft is moving forward with plans to build a ‘hyperscale’ datacenter near Leeds after purchasing a 48-acre site from Harworth Group for £106m. The site, formerly home to Skelton Grange power station, is part of Harworth’s development of an 800,000 sq. ft industrial and logistics hub southeast of Leeds city centre. The completed project will feature 250,000 sq. ft of Grade A industrial space, including the data centre, a battery BESS facility, an energy-from-waste (EfW) facility, and 28 acre…

Delinea CEO discusses the advantage of its recent acquisitions of Fastpath and Authomize, enhancing security and centralised policy enforcement across cloud environments as organisations face increasing challenges in managing identities.