The midmarket security gap • The Register
The midmarket security gap • The Register
https://www.theregister.com/2026/03/17/too_big_ignore_too/
Publish Date: 2026-03-17 05:00:00
Source Domain: www.theregister.com
Partner Content The midmarket matters. JP Morgan estimates approximately 300,000 organizations generating $13T in annual revenue. Yet they occupy an awkward position in the security landscape. They’re large enough to be attractive targets with complex digital estates, significant revenue, and valuable data, but not large enough to have the headcount, budget maturity, or tooling sophistication of an enterprise security team.
Their risk profile warrants enterprise-grade defenses, yet those platforms weren’t designed with them in mind, but they’ve also outgrown tools for small businesses. They are, as Intruder’s new report puts it, “the security middle child”.
Intruder surveyed more than 500 senior security decision-makers at companies with 400-6,000 employees across the US and UK. Confidence is high across the board, but the operational data tells a different story. Teams are under strain despite growing headcount, while a fragmented tech stack adds noise rather than clarity. Conversations about cyber risk aren’t making it to the boardroom.
Here are three findings from the report. Want the full picture? Download the Security in the Middle report for free.
Confidence is unevenly distributed
Ninety-four percent of respondents say they’re confident in their ability to identify and remediate critical risks before attackers can exploit them. But when asked how long it would take to assess exposure to a critical zero-day, 51 percent said approximately a week. In a threat environment where exploitation routinely follows disclosure within 24 to 48 hours, that’s not a comfortable margin.
Dig deeper and the confidence is unevenly distributed. Among C-level respondents, 65 percent say they’re very confident. That figure drops to 55 percent among directors, 46 percent among senior managers, and just 36 percent among middle managers. The closer you are to the actual work, the less certain you are that it’s working.
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