Ian Barker

Cloud security lock

Implementing runtime security for the cloud [Q&A]

Cloud-native platforms are built for speed with ephemeral workloads, rapid deployments, and plenty of third-party app dependencies.

This poses a real challenge to the deployment of runtime security tools. We talked to Bob Tinker, founder and CEO of BlueRock.io, to discuss how organizations can protect their cloud systems effectively.

By Ian Barker -
Future artificial intelligence robot and cyborg.

Organizations struggle to manage AI and SaaS use safely

A new report finds that while 73 percent of employees are encouraged to use AI 33 percent don’t always follow AI policies.

The study from 1Password, based on data from 5,200 desk-based knowledge workers across the US, Canada, the UK, Germany, France, and Singapore, also finds 52 percent of employees have downloaded apps without IT approval.

By Ian Barker -
Torch flashlight dark

Proton’s new Data Breach Observatory shines a light into the dark web

Date breaches affecting businesses and online services are ever more frequent and can affect anyone who is unfortunate enough to be a customer or supplier.

Finding out the facts about a breach can be tricky, however, as information is heavily reliant on self-disclosure. Proton is launching its Data Breach Observatory, which delivers a truer picture of the risks by monitoring and reporting cyberattacks and data breaches based on data sourced directly from the dark web.

By Ian Barker -
Email marketing and business concept Email or newsletter concept

New AI assistant verifies unknown email senders to protect your inbox

Employees receive large numbers of emails every day and it’s estimated that 25 to 35 percent of these will be from people they haven’t communicated with before. Knowing whether or not a message has come from a legitimate new sender is almost impossible.

Until now that is. Email security specialist StrongestLayer is launching AI Advisor, a security assistant designed specifically to verify first-time senders and unknown contacts in real-time.

By Ian Barker -
Connected home smart home

Connected home devices face a surge in cyberattacks

The average household now contains 22 connected home devices and is subjected to nearly 29 attacks each day, almost triple the rate recorded last year.

This the key finding of a new joint report from Bitdefender and NETGEAR which highlights how the expanding Internet of Things ecosystem, spanning everything from smart TVs and streaming boxes to routers and cameras, has dramatically increased consumer exposure to automated cyberattacks and large-scale exploitation.

By Ian Barker -
DevOps Agile development concept on virtual screen.

Life after DevOps -- the new initiatives challenging the status quo [Q&A]

The concept of DevOps has been around since the late 1980s and has been mainstream for the last 15 years or so. But there has recently been discussion around whether open-source platforms like System Initiative are challenging DevOps’ dominance.

We talked to Pablo Gerboles Parrilla, the founder and CEO of Alive DevOps, about what needs to change in how teams build and deploy software, and perhaps more importantly about what shouldn’t.

By Ian Barker -
DDOS attack, cyber protection. virus detect. Internet and technology concept.

Unprecedented DDoS surge sees ‘tsunami’ of attacks

A new report from digital trust provider DigiCert highlights an unprecedented surge in distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks that reached ‘internet tsunami’ scale, with two events peaking at 2.4 Tbps (terabits per second) and 3.7 Tbps respectively.

Attack traffic increasingly originates from regions where digital infrastructure is outpacing regulation, with Vietnam, Russia, Colombia, and China ranking among the top five sources.

By Ian Barker -
Alerts email security

Delay responding to email breaches likely to lead to ransomware attacks

A new report shows that organizations taking longer than nine hours to address an email security breach have a 79 percent chance of also being a victim of ransomware.

The study from Barracuda, based on a survey of 2,000 IT decision makers carried out by Vanson Bourne, also finds that most of the organizations surveyed (78 percent) experienced an email breach in the previous 12 months, with the average cost to recover reaching $217,068.

By Ian Barker -
Businesswoman in risk metering and management concept

70 percent of major breaches caused by overlapping risks

New research from business risk specialist Panaseer shows that major breaches are being caused by toxic combinations -- overlapping risks that compound and amplify each other, until they form a critical vulnerability.

The company analyzed 20 major breaches that have occurred over the past five years. In 14 of the 20 cases, it found clear evidence of compounding risks forming toxic combinations that magnified the overall impact.

By Ian Barker -
AI robot CEO

Job automation -- could AI replace your CEO? [Q&A]

Many people worry that AI and automation will lead to people losing their jobs and that this could be true even at senior levels.

We spoke to Alex Walsh, CEO and co-founder of agentic AI platform Oraion, who believes that, instead of destroying jobs, AI can actually enhance them.

By Ian Barker -
Recovery Backup Restoration Data Storage Security Concept

Confidence in ransomware recovery is high but actual success rates remain low

A new study from OpenText of nearly 1,800 global IT and security leaders shows a false sense of confidence in ransomware readiness.

The report shows that 95 percent of respondents say they’re confident in their ransomware recovery -- yet only 15 percent of those attacked have fully recovered their data.

By Ian Barker -
Enterprise technology

Generalist teams vs specialist tools -- the enterprise IT paradox [Q&A]

With hyperscalers better able to attract the best talent and headcount tight across the board, most enterprises are leaning heavily on generalist IT teams to manage their environments.

But in many cases the tools they’re expected to use were designed for specialists. Legacy tools like ConnectWise, Device42, or ServiceNow often require deep expertise, complex integrations, or expensive customization making them unsuitable for generalist teams.

By Ian Barker -
meeting shrug puzzled

How did it do that? Over half of IT leaders not confident explaining AI model decisions

A new report from Anaconda shows 51.4 percent of IT leaders say they’re not very confident in explaining AI model decisions to regulators, executives, or customers.

As a result they’re over-promising and under-delivering, and this trouble communicating creates unrealistic expectations for customers and stakeholders. 26 percent of respondents identify difficulty demonstrating ROI as a top concern. What’s more just 22 percent say they would describe their organization’s AI deployment as ‘strategic’.

By Ian Barker -
Cybersecurity investment money

Cyber incidents cost organizations millions

Security leaders estimate that, on average, cyber incidents cost their organization $3.7 million, with 46 percent suffering from an outage or disruption to their services as a consequence of attacks.

A new survey from Red Canary of 550 security leaders, from the US, UK, New Zealand, Australia, and the Nordic countries, finds that SOC teams continue to struggle with the challenges of securing cloud environments, identities, and AI technologies amid evolving threats.

By Ian Barker -
Human error head hands

Are we human or are we security risk?

Not quite how The Killers put it, but a new report shows Human workers remain the most consistent point of attack for cybercriminals, with shadow IT and AI-driven social engineering providing attackers with both new tools and new targets.

The 2025 Global Threat Intelligence Report from Mimecast reveals key trends, including the rise of smarter, AI-powered phishing and social engineering cyberattacks, and threat groups increasingly using trusted services to evade detection and reach targets. Mimecast’s analysis finds that phishing accounts for 77 percent of all attacks up from 60 percent in 2024 with attackers likely leveraging more AI tools.

By Ian Barker -
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