Managed Detection & Response · Canadian SMBs
Managed Detection and Response (MDR) Services for Canadian SMBs
Fusion Computing runs 24×7 threat detection, hunting, and hands-on response for Canadian businesses in the 10 to 150 employee range. Real analysts contain threats your antivirus and firewall miss, with a 15-minute response SLA and full PIPEDA, PHIPA, and Law 25 alignment.
ATOMIC ANSWER
MDR services give a Canadian SMB a 24×7 security operations capability without hiring an in-house SOC. Fusion combines endpoint detection (SentinelOne or Microsoft Defender), a managed detection and response platform (Huntress), and live human analysts who investigate, isolate, and remediate active threats. In Canada this typically runs CA$130 to CA$180 per user per month as a security bolt-on. For a plain-language explainer of the technology itself, see what managed detection and response (MDR) is.
What our MDR service includes
According to the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security (2025), ransomware remains the top cybercrime threat to Canadian organizations, and attackers increasingly strike outside business hours when in-house IT is offline. For a 10-to-150-employee Canadian business, Fusion Computing’s MDR supplies the 24×7 detection-and-response capability that an internal team of one or two generalists cannot sustain alone.
Buying MDR is buying outcomes, not a dashboard. Fusion’s managed detection and response service covers the full detection-to-recovery loop so a 40-person firm gets the same coverage a large enterprise SOC provides, billed per user:
- 24×7 monitoring and threat hunting. Endpoints, identity, and Microsoft 365 watched around the clock by analysts, not just an alerting tool.
- Active response, not just alerts. When something is malicious we isolate the host, kill the process, and remediate. Confirm any “MDR” quote includes 24×7 remediation, not 24×7 alerting only.
- Managed EDR. SentinelOne or Microsoft Defender for Endpoint deployed, tuned, and maintained as part of the service.
- Incident response and breach handling. A documented runbook, a named response path, and PIPEDA / provincial breach-notification support when an incident lands.
- Monthly reporting and a named account owner. Plain-English reporting your leadership and your cyber-insurer can both use.
MDR vs. EDR vs. antivirus: what you are actually buying
The three terms are sold interchangeably and they are not the same product. The difference is who does the work when an alert fires at 2 a.m.
In IBM’s Cost of a Data Breach Report (2025), organizations that identified and contained a breach faster paid materially less than slower responders, and teams using AI-assisted detection shortened that window the most. EDR raises the alert; MDR is the staffed function that investigates and contains it before dwell time turns an intrusion into a reportable breach.
| Layer | What it does | Who responds |
|---|---|---|
| Antivirus | Blocks known malware signatures | Nobody; it is automatic and silent |
| EDR | Detects suspicious behaviour and records it | Your team, if you have one watching |
| MDR | Detects, investigates, and contains threats 24×7 | A staffed SOC; analysts act for you |
EDR without anyone watching it is a smoke detector with no fire department on call. MDR is the fire department. If you want the deeper mechanics, our explainer covers how MDR works end to end.
What MDR costs for a Canadian SMB
Priced as a standalone security service, managed EDR plus 24×7 MDR plus identity hardening runs CA$130 to CA$180 per user per month in Canada in 2026. Three factors move a quote inside that band:
- Response depth. 24×7 staffed remediation costs more than business-hours alerting. It is also the only version worth buying.
- Compliance scope. Healthcare (PHIPA), legal (LSO), and financial-services firms need logging, retention, and breach-notification processes that add to the per-user fee.
- Environment size and complexity. Servers, multiple sites, and legacy systems expand the monitored surface.
MDR is frequently bundled into a fully managed IT contract rather than bought alone. For the full picture on bundled pricing, see how much managed IT services cost in Canada.
Why Canadian SMBs choose Fusion for MDR
“The hard part of MDR is not the tooling, it is who picks up at 2 a.m. when an alert fires. Most Canadian SMBs have bought an EDR agent and assume someone is watching it. Nobody is. We staff the response, contain the threat on the endpoint, and hand the client a written incident timeline they can put in front of an auditor or an insurer.”
Fusion Computing has been a Canadian-owned managed security and IT provider since 2012, with offices in Toronto, Hamilton, and Metro Vancouver. We run MDR for SMBs in the 10 to 150 employee range, the exact size band most national and US MDR vendors are not built to serve well.
- 93% first-contact resolution and a 15-minute response SLA on security events.
- Canadian data and compliance footing: PIPEDA, PHIPA, and Quebec Law 25 alignment built into the service.
- CISSP-led. Security direction set by Mike Pearlstein, CISSP, with the stack standardized on Huntress, SentinelOne, Fortinet, and Microsoft Entra ID.
- Local accountability: a named account owner who knows your environment, not a ticket queue in another time zone.
How onboarding works
Standing up MDR with Fusion follows a fixed path so you are protected fast:
- Scoping consultation. We map your endpoints, identity, and compliance obligations in a free consultation.
- Deployment. EDR and the MDR platform roll out across endpoints and Microsoft 365, tuned to your environment.
- Baseline and hardening. We close the obvious gaps: exposed identities, missing MFA, unmonitored admin accounts.
- 24×7 coverage live. Analysts begin monitoring, with a documented response runbook and your named escalation path.
MDR and Canadian compliance
Canadian cyber-insurance underwriters now treat 24×7 monitoring with retained logging as a condition of coverage rather than a discount, and privacy regulators under PIPEDA, PHIPA, and Quebec’s Law 25 expect a documented detect-and-respond capability. A staffed MDR service produces the incident timeline and audit evidence those reviews require.
For regulated Canadian SMBs, MDR is increasingly the control that satisfies the “detect and respond” requirement auditors and cyber-insurers ask about. A staffed MDR service with logging and a tested incident-response runbook directly supports PIPEDA breach-notification duties, PHIPA safeguards for health information, and the security expectations behind cyber-insurance renewals. If you do not yet have a documented plan, start with an incident response plan for Canadian small business.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between MDR and a SOC?
A SOC (security operations centre) is the team and facility that monitors and responds to threats. MDR is how a Canadian SMB rents that capability as a managed service instead of building it in-house. With Fusion, the MDR service is delivered by a staffed SOC using Huntress and SentinelOne, billed per user.
How much do MDR services cost in Canada?
Standalone managed EDR plus 24×7 MDR plus identity hardening runs CA$130 to CA$180 per user per month in Canada in 2026. Price moves with response depth, compliance scope, and environment complexity. MDR is often bundled into a fully managed IT contract rather than bought separately.
Do small businesses really need MDR?
Yes. CIRA’s 2025 survey found 44% of Canadian organizations experienced a cyber incident, and SMBs are targeted precisely because they lack 24×7 coverage. MDR gives a 10 to 150 person firm enterprise-grade detection and response without an enterprise headcount.
Does MDR replace our antivirus and firewall?
No. MDR sits on top of them. Antivirus and firewalls are prevention; MDR is the 24×7 detection-and-response layer that catches what gets through and acts on it. Fusion manages the full stack together.
Is Fusion’s MDR service available across Canada?
Yes. Fusion delivers MDR remotely across Canada, with on-site capability from our Toronto, Hamilton, and Metro Vancouver offices. Monitoring and response are 24×7 regardless of location.
See where your gaps are before an attacker does
Book a free MDR consultation with a CISSP-led Canadian team. We will map your detection-and-response gaps and recommend a right-sized plan.
