MSP technology news headlines for the week of Oct. 19, 2026
Pax8 is giving MSPs a new way to package and monetize managed AI with 8os and 8bot, while Microsoft’s latest threat research shows how quickly agentic AI is accelerating real-world attacks. Elsewhere, Dell and NVIDIA are pushing agentic AI deeper into enterprise infrastructure, N-able is expanding its SentinelOne security portfolio, and new research from Nerdio and Barracuda highlights both the opportunity and the operational challenges MSPs face as AI adoption grows.
If you’re ready for more of this week’s MSP news and partner program updates, scroll on down!
Pax8 launches 8os and 8bot for partner-delivered managed AI
Pax8 introduced 8os for centralized governance, deployment and billing of AI agents across SMB customers and 8bot as a managed AI coworker partners can resell.
Key quote from the press release:
“AI is becoming a worker, and that changes what small businesses need from their technology partners. The agentic workforce will be diverse. It will span different agents, models, tools, and providers, and all that intelligence has to be governed, managed, and turned into real business outcomes. That’s what we built 8os and 8bot to do. 8os gives our partners the operating system to manage that complexity across every customer, while 8bot gives them a managed AI coworker they can deploy, support, and monetize. Together, they make managed intelligence repeatable and scalable. This is the next chapter of the small business economy, and our partners are built to lead it.” — Scott Chasin, CEO, Pax8
Mailprotector adds reusable email-security configurations for MSPs
Mailprotector launched Shield Blueprints so MSPs can define reusable email-security configurations and apply them across multiple customer organizations and service tiers.
Key quote from the press release:
“Every customer environment has its own security requirements, but MSPs are often configuring the same policies and workflows over and over again. As their customer base grows, it becomes harder to maintain consistency, identify configuration gaps, and ensure every organization is operating under the right security standards. MSPs need a way to standardize security across customers without sacrificing the flexibility to address different requirements or adding more administrative work as they grow.” — Ben Hathaway, CTO, Mailprotector
Microsoft ties agentic AI campaign to ConnectWise supply chain compromise
Microsoft attributed the ConnectWise Cloud Backup supply chain compromise to China-aligned Storm-0940 and documented the group’s use of the ARTEX agentic AI framework to accelerate attacks against Microsoft 365 tenants.
Key findings from the research bulletin include:
- Storm-0940 attempted sign-ins to more than 2,250 tenants using compromised ConnectWise application identities
- Microsoft recorded more than 151,000 failed sign-ins in a related password-spray campaign, peaking above 2,900 attempts per minute
- multiple ARTEX-driven attacks achieved privileged cloud access in less than three hours.
Huntress details Microsoft 365 token-replay campaign across 79 organizations
Huntress documented a 10-week Microsoft 365 campaign that replayed stolen post-MFA tokens, registered rogue Entra devices and created hidden inbox rules across affected organizations.
Key findings from the the blog post report include:
- Huntress responded to incidents at 79 organizations and observed 497 successful sign-ins against more than 200,000 failed attempts
- attackers registered at least 48 rogue Entra devices
- in 19 organizations the attackers wiped existing MFA methods and registered a new method within three hours of first access.
Dell Technologies and NVIDIA advance enterprise agentic AI from the deskside to data center
New Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA offerings expand agentic AI across deskside systems, enterprise infrastructure and modular data centers, with new validated solutions, security architecture and purpose-built compute platforms.
Key quote from the press release:
“Enterprises used to think about AI infrastructure as an IT budget question, but that’s changed. AI infrastructure is no longer a cost center. It’s a value creation center. Companies are expanding and reallocating budgets because AI infrastructure drives growth, productivity and competitive advantage. Together with NVIDIA, we are giving enterprises the integrated platforms they need to move agentic AI from experimentation to results, on infrastructure they own and control.” — Michael Dell, chairman and CEO, Dell Technologies
Nerdio finds MSP AI adoption is outpacing measurable returns
Nerdio’s survey of 153 MSP decision-makers found broad AI adoption and planning but limited measurable productivity gains, AI-service revenue and consistent governance.
Key findings from the report include:
- 32% have adopted AI internally but 12% report measurable productivity gains
- 14% operate a revenue-generating AI service line
- 60% say Microsoft management complexity is growing faster than they can scale and 29% lost technicians to burnout-related attrition in the past year.
N-able expands SentinelOne portfolio across AI, cloud, identity and managed response
N-able broadened its SentinelOne portfolio beyond endpoint detection and response to include AI governance, cloud and identity protection, automated investigation, managed response and FedRAMP offerings.
Key quote from the press release:
“Security teams don’t need more complexity, they need faster and more precise outcomes aided by AI-powered remediation with human-in-the-loop. Our expanded relationship with SentinelOne brings together AI-powered security and business resilience through a single, trusted partner, helping customers reduce risk, respond faster, and recover with confidence.” — Laura DuBois, general manager, N-able UEM
ThreatLocker launches zero-trust controls for AI agents
ThreatLocker launched Zero Trust AI Control to enforce external access, execution and connection boundaries as AI agents invoke applications, scripts and services.
Key quote from the press release:
“The security challenge has fundamentally changed because AI agents aren’t just providing information anymore. They’re being used to take actions across an organization’s environment. Organizations around the world need a way to adopt AI with the peace of mind that they aren’t handing over the keys to their environments.” — Danny Jenkins, CEO and co-founder, ThreatLocker
Cove Backup for Google Workspace enters public preview
N-able’s Cove 26.10 release adds Google Workspace backup in public preview, letting MSPs protect Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Drive and Google Contacts alongside servers, workstations and Microsoft 365 data.
Key facts from the 26.10 release update include:
- Cove Backup for Google Workspace is now available in public preview.
- The service can back up and restore Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Drive and Google Contacts.
- Google Workspace data is managed from the same Cove dashboard used for servers, workstations and Microsoft 365.
- Cove 26.10 also introduces limited tech previews for ConnectWise and Autotask PSA integrations that automatically create tickets when backup failures or errors are detected.
GTIA launches alliance to develop managed AI standards for the channel
GTIA formally launched a vendor-neutral alliance to create open specifications, capability standards, accreditation and research for IT providers delivering managed AI to SMBs.
Key quote from the press release:
“AI is creating an enormous opportunity for the channel, but trust must come first. The industry needs common standards and practical guidance that providers can use. The Managed Intelligence Alliance extends GTIA’s role in helping the channel navigate change, and will help ITSPs identify valuable use cases, establish trusted delivery practices and manage AI responsibly at scale.” — Dan Wensley, CEO, GTIA
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Veeam adds data sovereignty competency for service providers
Veeam introduced a Data Sovereignty Competency within its Cloud and Service Provider program to identify providers with qualifying local operating, jurisdictional, governance and resilience capabilities.
Key quote from the press release:
“Sovereignty is defined by each customer’s regional government, legal, regulatory and operational requirements. Meeting those requirements depends on both technology and the way a service is operated. The Veeam Sovereign Service Providers Program brings those two dimensions together. Veeam provides the technical foundation for resilient data protection, while trusted local partners contribute sovereign operating models, governance expertise, and established in-market capabilities. The VCSP Data Sovereignty Competency gives customers a clearer way to identify providers that have invested in both.” — Michelle Graff, senior vice president of global partnerships, Veeam
Barracuda finds AI and identity skills gaps across security teams
Barracuda’s survey of 2,000 IT and security decision-makers found widespread shortages in AI, identity and phishing expertise alongside pressure to scale security operations.
Key findings from the report include:
- 94% reported cybersecurity skills gaps
- 68% cited gaps related to AI risks and 67% cited advanced identity and phishing threats
- 67% said their security teams are struggling to scale and 32% said they operate primarily reactively.
CBTS and Fortinet launch subscription managed networking for midmarket organizations
CBTS launched a North American managed service that combines Fortinet firewalls, switching, wireless and SD-WAN with assessment, deployment, 24×7 operations and hardware refresh under one monthly subscription.
Key quote from the press release:
“For most mid-market organizations, hiring their way out of the problem is no longer realistic. CBTS gives them another option: bring networking and security together on a single platform, operated by certified CBTS engineers 24 hours a day.” — Chris DeBrunner, CISO, CBTS
Keeper adds on-device phishing detection to its browser extension
Keeper added opt-in, on-device AI phishing detection to its browser extension to flag look-alike domains, spoofed sites and credential-harvesting pages before users enter credentials.
Key quote from the press release:
“Phishing attacks are no longer simple email scams; they are highly automated, AI-driven operations designed to trick users into handing over sensitive credentials and information. When an adversary sets up a look-alike domain, form field or unofficial login portal, traditional security controls often fail to identify the threat until the damage is done. By embedding zero-knowledge AI into our browser extension, Keeper stops credential harvesting at the point of entry, giving individuals and organizations greater security and control.” — Darren Guccione, CEO and co-founder, Keeper Security
Matt Whitlock is ChannelPro’s tech editor, bringing more than 25 years of technology industry experience and a practical perspective on the tools and trends shaping the IT channel. A seasoned editor, podcast host and event moderator, he covers hardware, cybersecurity and emerging technologies with a focus on what they mean for IT service providers. Through product reviews, analysis and industry conversations, he helps MSPs and MSSPs separate useful innovation from marketing hype, with a little humor along the way.
Images: Pax8; Huntress; Cove; Barracuda
