What’s the vibe at this year’s Infosec, and which vendor has the best booth?
As the show enters its final day, IT Channel Oxygen asked six leaders from across the channel to give us their verdict so far.
The absence of the likes of Fortinet, CrowdStrike, Palo Alto Networks, Trend Micro and Cisco has not killed the buzz this year, they told us, although a few felt there may be more channel attendees than budget-holding end users.
But which cyber technologies and trends reigned supreme at the Excel London this time around?
And which vendor really went to town on their stand?
Here’s what our spies on the ground said…
“It’s a super channel show, but it’s less good for those trying to scoop up a whole bunch of end users”
Alex Tatham, non-exec at QBS Software and Ci Group
What’s the major theme/vibe this year?
The impact of AI on cyber security – maybe I was looking for that a bit, but that’s certainly one of the key themes.
Interestingly there was no Palo Alto, no Fortinet and no Cisco. I’m sure they were there somewhere, but it felt like there were quite a lot of vendors that wouldn’t necessarily be right at the top of the cyber tree.
The whole event is very channel focused. Those vendors that didn’t have a strong channel programme – and there were a few that I bumped into – were quite lonely – people weren’t visiting them.
It was good to see that Bytes and Insight had big stands. But I think maybe if you were Insight or Bytes looking for end-user leads, you didn’t get many. I think Infosec has work to do to market itself appropriately, as it was very channel focused – if the disties weren’t there they were outside having parties. It’s a super channel show, but it’s less good for those trying to scoop up a whole bunch of end users.
Which vendor impressed you with their stand or investment?
Two stands stuck out to me, and it’s probably because they had the brightest colours. Everyone from Check Point was in bright pink, and Coro had the most extraordinary green carpet that’s still burning a hole in my retina. I particularly like those that were giving little demos or lectures on their stands, like NinjaOne and OpenText.
“The resounding feedback was that it was very channel heavy and that there were a lot fewer customers“
Jenny Latimer, Operations Director, Highgate IT Solutions
What’s the major theme/vibe this year?
The resounding feedback from those with stands was that it was very channel heavy and that there were a lot fewer customers, and that Wednesday was busier than Tuesday.
It felt busy; it had a buzz and felt bigger than previous years.
The recent cyber-attacks on very well-known brands (M&S and Coop to name a couple) have brought even more urgency to security conversations. MDR stands were popular and well-staffed by reps.
We fully take advantage of having all our cybersecurity partners in one place. It gives us the chance to further our existing partnerships, initiate new ones and reconnect with some partners too.
Which vendor impressed you with their stand or investment?
The prize for the most original stand goes to Menlo Security. It was designed to look like a typical English pub – it stood out from the rest.
There were many impressive vendor stands, but Rubrik sticks in my head as having striking colours, collaboration booths, a coffee machine (a few had this, always a good idea!), and it seemed to be getting a lot of engagement.
There was lots of networking space this year (or perhaps that means fewer companies taking stands?..)
“The vibe is decidedly forward-looking this year, with an air of RSA about it”
Lance Williams, Founder, Offerlogic
What’s the vibe at this year’s Infosec?
The vibe is decidedly forward-looking this year, with an air of RSA about it, complete with branded cabs and numerous side meetings spilling into surrounding hotels and restaurants – the Novotel, for instance, is hosting the 100Club.
While some mega brands like CrowdStrike and Cisco are notably absent (though Microsoft Security is certainly here, along with CloudFlare and SentinelOne), the 15% increase in cyberattacks over the last year is driving conversations, and there’s a heightened sense of inevitability that a breach will occur, shifting the focus to how we deal with it.
Key themes are front and centre: supply chain security, the quantum computing curveball, compliance adherence, and the ever-present dance of vulnerability management and mitigation. The threat of AI is also a big topic, especially with its role in next-gen human layer security.
Speaking of human layer security, here’s the kicker: I picked up a fascinating stat in a conversation with Keepnet Labs – only 5% of breaches are technical, with a staggering 95% starting at the human layer. Yet, companies are still pouring fortunes into technical pen and vulnerability testing, while neglecting the very people who are often the initial point of compromise. It’s a worrying lack of engagement, despite high-profile UK breaches (like Marks & Spencer) reportedly stemming from vishing – AI mimicking voices to trick staff. Okta are at the show, leading a great talk today on identity security and AI, directly addressing this critical gap.
Given the heightened sense of breach inevitability, there’s naturally a huge focus on incident response, threat detection, and recoverability. Rubrik, with their significant stand and presence, are a prime example, showcasing solutions to help organisations bounce back when the inevitable happens.
It feels like we’re truly seeing the future of infosec right here in London. While there’s still an overabundance of focus on the technical layer in IT and OT cyber, resilience has clearly moved from what once felt like a marketing ploy to rejuvenate the backup and recovery market (thanks to NIST2 adding the “recovery” stage a few years ago) to front-and-centre consideration. It’s also clear the future could, and arguably should, place more emphasis on the human layer, as that’s the main incursion point for incidents. However, this shift won’t happen without wider-scale engagement and acceptance from the technology and service providers who address that crucial space.
Whose stand impressed you the most?
Sublime Security. Their bold, green stand is hard to miss, and they’re promising the first proper shift for email security, a notoriously stagnant area. Led by the very able Ben Bailey and Ian McDonald, Sublime is an AI-powered, cloud email security platform offering unprecedented visibility and control. They’re making email security programmable, allowing security teams to craft custom detections and adapt rapidly to evolving threats, rather than waiting on black-box solutions. It’s a fresh take on a persistent problem.
My day two showstopper is Canadian outfit Field Effect, who are made of intelligence folks from five international intelligence agencies who have built a kick-ass MDR (managed detection and response) offering that places the “R” in as a standard piece of the service. It’s top of the pops in the MDR rankings for customer satisfaction, price pointed to address SMB and all the way up to several thousand seats. What I love is that this team of former public servants have built a wicked platform for the orgs that everyone forgets and they’re placing equal emphasis on response as they do on prevention and detection. The sh*t will hit the fan at some point for SMBs, it’ll be via the human layer, and Field Effect are on hand to help when that happens.
We’re seeing a strong channel presence, including Infinigate with two stands, Distology with their usual captivating, bold, pink presence, Bytes, e92plus (outside the ExCel today), Exclusive at the Fox, and Ignition taking over the Fox at the airport end last night. However, I’m hearing a mild disappointment about the number of direct end-user conversations so far.
“The problem at the moment is there isn’t really an AI security message; it’s more ‘we use AI within security'”
Nick Kellaway, Sales and Marketing Director, Blue Cube Security
What’s the vibe at this year’s Infosec?
The larger vendors of this world – the Fortinets and the Trends – don’t seem to do it – they keep away. There are lot more nicher vendors here. The ones I’ve been looking at are the likes of SenseOn, ZeroFox, Concentric AI and CultureAI.
There’s obviously a lot of AI and DORA conversations going on. But I had some feedback from a customer who was saying there’s a lot of similar messaging across the board, so it’s difficult for people to stand out.
The problem at the moment is there isn’t really an AI security message; it’s more ‘we use AI within security’. A lot of people are talking about AI, but who’s actually going to be the first to properly protect it?
We’re 25 years as a business this year, and we’ve got our core vendors. But what we’re looking for [at Infosec] is newer vendors who can fit into the midmarket. The human risk solutions from CultureAI and SenseOn fits right into our wheelhouse – they’ve goth got stands here and we’ve had some initial conversations.
Whose stand impressed you the most?
Qualys have gone big – they’ve got a lot of people and the whole new business team.
“Recent well-publicised cyber incidents have largely been attributed to human error, which wasn’t an angle many stands focused on”
Will Day, Cyber Security Alliances Lead, Softcat
What’s the vibe at this year’s Infosec?
It felt busier and buzzier than last year, with vendors commenting on having plenty of high quality conversations.
There were lots of the well-established vendors missing but it was great to see Check Point back after a six-year hiatus, and continued presence from maturing vendors in the UK market like Abnormal and Netskope meant it didn’t just feel like an emerging vendors event.
A lot of the messaging on the stands was ‘buzzword bingo’ and whilst it’s clear there are plenty attempting to build and position as a platform play, this is complicating their go-to-market messaging. Of course, partners are key for helping cut through the noise and providing real clarity here.
Recent well-publicised cyber incidents have largely been attributed to human error, which wasn’t an angle many stands focused on (bar the human risk management players), yet I’d expect it to have been front of mind for many customers there.
Overall a positive year for the event and the industry, long may that continue.
“It was bustling with decision makers looking to enhance their resilience over students gathering stress balls”
Robert Pooley and Amir Nooriala, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Saepio Solutions
What’s the major theme/vibe this year?
Pooley:
Although there’s some notable industry giants not exhibiting, InfoSec was bustling and buzzing moreso with decision makers looking to enhance their resilience over students gathering stress balls. A couple of themes outside of many big logos not being present was autonomous SOC and agentic AI (automating manual processes to improve efficiency) and securing data & systems ready for the AI era. There was also a lot of Lego.
Nooriala:
Though cyber buyers increasingly don’t like going to an event like InfoSec due to how much they get sold too, current threat climates made the event more essential than previous years, as they wanted to ensure they weren’t missing out on knowing about any new tech.
