Why data stagnation is a threat to digital transformation
Companies are now readily investing in digital transformation to completely digitize their internal operations and get ahead of the competition. But most companies end up focusing too much on the number of applications they are integrating and too little on how those applications are actually helping their employees.
When departments use different applications that don’t integrate well, it can lead to data stagnation and isolation which will threaten your digital transformation initiatives.
Complex transformations need analytics and intelligence
In the public sector IT projects are often struggling. The Infrastructure and Projects Authority annual report (IPA), published in July 2018, assessed 133 large and risky programs the UK government has in flight. Overall, the IPA noted a general increase in the proportion of projects ranked red or amber-red -- which indicates projects are undeliverable or at high risk of failure -- from 38 to 46, and a decline in the proportion given amber-green or green, from 28 to 24. It happens in the commercial markets too, but of course, it doesn’t always make the headlines.
Clients -- commercial or public sector -- need to look for delivery organizations that make greater use of analytics and intelligence if they are to drive the successful completion of complex IT transformations.
The rise of first-party data: Why quality matters over quantity
For years, digital marketers have paid hand over fist in the digital gold rush for data. Instead of a tangible product, tech companies earn millions in revenue from the data they collect on previous, current and future digital consumers. But digital marketers seeking to gobble up as much data as they for their campaigns, while not stopping to consider the source of or methods used to collect it, are taking the wrong approach. The age-old mantra of "quality over quantity" has never been more relevant in online advertising, and marketers must quickly and fully embrace first-party data or risk their digital campaigns (and bottom lines) falling flat.
The primary reason to use first-party data over third party data from data marketplace platforms is simple: it’s better. Publishers, apps and ad platforms alike can gather first-party data directly from their audiences and customers, whether that data be purchases, app downloads, in-app actions, social media interactions, or subscriptions. This data comes directly from the source, making it as precise and accurate as possible. This is in stark contrast to third party data, which is aggregated from multiple platforms and combined into a larger data set where buyers generally do not know the exact sources of their data.
How, what, where, when, and why of experimentation
Every new feature starts as an idea. Not all ideas are good ideas. Therefore, not every new feature is a good idea. So how do you know which feature is a good idea and which one isn’t? You experiment.
The idea of experimenting on users or in production may sound scary and complicated, but it doesn’t have to be. The questions below shed some light on common questions surrounding experimentation and can help you determine if experimentation is right for you.
Is dark data valuable?
A tsunami of dark data is coming -- data that has never been analyzed, tagged, classified, organized, evaluated, used to predict future states, control other processes or has been put up for sale for others to use. So, what do we do with this data? First, we have to understand that exponentially more is coming. We see this in autonomous technology as vehicles generate four thousand gigabytes per day.
Also data is becoming more complex, as most of it is already in in video or other complicated forms. Seemingly free storage is encouraging people to store more and defer deletion.
Digital Transformation is the Industrial Revolution of our age
Around the globe, across all industries, every organization intent on surviving the next decade of economic disruption is shifting from analog to digital. Any company serious about advancing its brand, capturing its best customers and expanding its future is in the process of integrating digital technologies that will help them reimagine every aspect of their business.
And most of them are failing. According to a recent McKinsey global survey on Digital Transformation, more than 80 percent of organizations have undertaken such steps in the past five years, but only 16 percent of respondents say their efforts have successfully improved performance, while also equipping them to sustain long-term change. Reported success rates in more traditional industries -- like Automotive and Pharmaceuticals -- are even more dismal (4-11 percent).
An apology letter to IT
Dear IT, we owe you an apology.
To IT teams everywhere, we’re sorry. We’re sorry for the endless To Do list that never seems to go away. In fact, it seems to only get longer, and we know it feels even more impossible to get your head above water every single day. The overwhelming number of security threats. The never-ending Windows updates. Helpdesk requests and self-inflicted errors caused by rogue software that users install without permission. The ridiculous number of mobile devices we’ve introduced into the landscape, which we expect you to protect and maintain. You’re swimming faster and faster, but still drowning in tasks. And, we know that you’re getting tired.
Boosting the sagging morale of enterprise IT team
If you talk with people who work in enterprise IT departments, you are likely to sense the stress radiating from them. Demands placed on team members can be debilitating as they attempt to fortify systems against incessant threats while keeping increasingly complex networks running with speed and efficiency. And the pressure continues to mount. Something needs to change before the culture and integrity of IT departments becomes irreparably damaged.
IT departments make up the central nervous system of an organization. How healthy a company’s infrastructure is reveals a lot about it overall. If systems don’t run accordingly -- from all-out crashes to slow performance to endpoint compliance issues -- companies can’t meet their potential. In today’s fast-paced, ultra-competitive environment, this could prove fatal.
5 ways for healthcare providers to build a fortress against cyber threats
The healthcare industry has yet to find a cure for cyberattacks. Housing personal health data, all kinds of providers are vulnerable targets of hackers and patient care can be put at great risk.
News of breaches in healthcare computer systems is a regular occurrence. Over 100,000 medical records were recently leaked as a result of a data breach at a Montana hospital. And research this year showed an upsurge in malware attacks on healthcare providers. Phishing messages, a means of malware delivery via email, have been found to come in the form of alerts from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Are employment matchmaking services the future of finding jobs?
As of August 2019, the national unemployment rate for the United States was 3.7 percent according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Compare that figure to the jobless rate in 2009 -- about 9.9 percent, in the midst of the Great Recession -- and it’s clear that the economy and job market are both at a strong point. The state of the economy has created a job seeker’s market in which skilled professionals can find a wealth of opportunities and employers must compete for top talent.
The priority for job seekers is finding jobs that suit their talents, offer the kind of working life that they want to have, and pay well. The priority for employers is attracting qualified, talented candidates who will mesh perfectly with their company culture -- something that has felt like a needle in haystack search in certain industries. A growing trend stands to serve both these priorities at the same time: employment matchmaking.
Advanced SystemCare 13 launches with enhanced email protection
There’s an argument against whether your modern PC requires additional optimization. Windows 10 offers basic but essential tools to keep your system running smoothly and it’s less likely you’ll run out of drive space or require a system purge to make room for a new install.
With the above in mind, system maintenance developers are coming up with new ways of making their tools essential in the modern world. Security remains a constant threat, so adding modules to keep your system safe seems to be the recent priority.
Mozilla's new Lockwise app will free your passwords from your web browser
Like many users, we prefer to use Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox over either Edge or Safari. Problem is, if you use a third-party browser to store your logins and passwords, move to your iOS device and they aren’t stored in your keychain.
Recent iOS changes have enabled third-party password managers to be granted access to any login on your device, so for this reason Mozilla has launched Lockwise which will separate your stored Firefox passwords from your browser.
The challenges of data analytics in healthcare
The healthcare industry had long embraced traditional data collection methods such as public medical records, inpatient monitoring, or administrative filing systems as the only mechanism for advancing patient-care. But an overpowering trend of collecting data from seemingly disparate and unconnected sources has been recently on the rise. Whether we approve or not, the smartwatches we wear, social media platforms we use, smartphones we carry, and genetic data we bear are slowly but surely painting the future of the healthcare we receive.
But how successful is this trend in delivering on its hopeful promises? And what obstacles are encumbering its progress?
Enterprises look to replicate the consumer mobile experience -- but circumvent the breaches
Folks involved in enterprise mobility and security have witnessed a long and growing list of breaches of consumer mobile devices. One in three organizations admitted to suffering a compromise due to a mobile device, according to a study by Verizon.
Today, it’s past the time for enterprises to become concerned, and nearing the time to become alarmed, as they’re forced to consider the possibility of similar breaches of the apps and devices they provision for their employees. "The popularity of mobile apps in conjunction with the emergence of their security flaws means that mobile is prime to be the next attack vector that threatens corporate data and user privacy," said Adam Ely, founder and COO of Bluebox. In these circumstances, enterprises have to confront their attitudes, and maybe their complacency, and determine if it’s time for a major overhaul of their mobile initiatives.
Motive doesn't matter: The three types of insider threats
In information security, outside threats can get the lion's share of attention. Insider threats to data security, though, can be more dangerous and harder to detect because they are strengthened by enhanced knowledge and/or access.
Not only is it vital, therefore, to distinguish and prepare for insider threats, but it is just as vital to distinguish between different types of insider threats. A lot has been written about the different profiles for insider threats and inside attackers, but most pundits in this area focus on insider motive. Motive, however, doesn't matter. A threat is a threat, a breach is a breach. A vulnerability that can be exploited by one party for profit can be exploited by another for pleasure, by another for country, and so on. Instead of analyzing motives and reasons, it is far more useful to compare insider threats by action and intent.
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