Why security will always be a people problem
We've heard the phrase, "users are the weakest link," more than we can count. Building a more resilient cyber security strategy means flipping the model on its head and making people part of the solution. Instead of starting with a technology-based strategy, Absolute discusses how and why organizations can take a people-first security strategy.
Paul Proctor, chief of research for risk and security at Gartner was quoted as saying: "we are facing a cultural disconnect [...] executives believe that IT risk and security is a technical problem." Of course, that’s wrong. Deep down, we know it’s wrong. Security, is, and always will be, a people problem. At least until the robots fully take over. Until then, though, we have to come to grips with the simple fact that with the way security is typically deployed in enterprises today, users will continue to click on things they shouldn’t, visit sites they shouldn’t, or make other uninformed or careless choices leading to breaches, incidents, or loss in availability of systems and data.
New security offering to guard against account take overs
Data breaches caused by account take overs (ATOs) are a growing problem, partly due to people reusing passwords so that when a high profile breach -- such as the recent one at Yahoo -- occurs other accounts are put at risk.
User behavior specialist Sift Science is taking on this threat and expanding into the cyber security market with a new tool to detect ATOs.
Digital transformation must be a priority in a cloud-first world
As the UK enters an uncertain economic future, the issue of falling productivity is once again center stage. Since the 2008 financial crisis, studies measuring how much output is produced per hour or worker have been constant disappointments when compared to the country’s global counterparts. According to the latest reports from the Office of National Statistics, UK productivity rose by 0.4 percent between July and September 2016. However, this figure is still far below the 2.1 percent average being achieved before 2008.
In response, UK Prime Minister Theresa May has announced plans to launch a national industrial strategy aimed at creating a prosperous post-Brexit Britain through the development of STEM skills investments in science and innovation, and infrastructure upgrades across every sector and in every corner of the country. With this plan the UK government has sent a clear signal: organizations of every size and within every industry must prioritize digital transformation if they are to succeed in a cloud-first world.
Informatica uses behavioral analytics to spot and protect high risk data
With increasing amounts of sensitive data stored in the cloud and accessed on mobile devices, protecting that information presents a major challenge.
Data management specialist Informatica is adding to its Secure@Source platform with behavioral analytics to detect high risk data and ensure it's properly protected.
Windows 10 Creators Update Build 15042 ISO images available now
If you’re thinking of joining the Windows 10 Insider program, or you just want to do a clean install with an up to date version of Windows 10, the good news is Microsoft has released a new ISO image.
The image, for Build 15042, is available to all, and you can download it now. This build rolled out to Insiders on the Fast ring last Friday. It's not the very latest release -- that would be Build 15046, which Microsoft released yesterday -- but it includes a lot of important bug fixes, and some welcome additions to Edge and Cortana.
Database-as-a-service platform introduces encryption-at-rest
While storing data in the cloud is undoubtedly convenient it also introduces risks and encryption is increasingly seen as a way of helping combat them.
Database-as-a-service company mLab is introducing encryption-at-rest as an opt-in data security measure for customers of its most popular plans, at no additional cost.
Desktop Dimmer takes Electron-based RAM-hogging to a whole new level
We’ve always been fans of ultra-lightweight programs, anything which measures its RAM requirements in kilobytes rather than megabytes. Other people see that as old school, and in some ways they have a point. If your PC has 16GB of RAM, do you really care whether a program uses 500KB or 5MB?
That view is partly why Electron apps are now so popular. They’re great for cross-platform development, building native applications with JavaScript, HTML, and CSS, so it doesn’t really matter that you’re running a copy of Chromium in the background… Right?
Facebook ramps up its suicide prevention tools and Messenger chat support
Facebook is updating the tools it offers to help try to prevent suicide. Aimed both at those thinking of suicide, and friends and family who are concerned about loved ones, the revamped support tools make use of artificial intelligence and real people to offer help when it is needed most.
This is not the first we have heard about suicide prevention tools from Facebook, and the latest announcement sees the social network taking its "unique position" even more seriously, seeing it as a way to offer help and a means of intervention. It comes after a number of suicides have been streamed via Facebook Live.
Bad news for Microsoft as Windows 10 loses market share -- again
According to NetMarketShare, in January, Windows 10 hit a big milestone. The new OS managed to grow by nearly one percentage point, to give it over 25 percent of the market. That’s pretty good going.
However, in February, Windows 10 went back into reverse gear, losing share, and not for the first time.
Google integrates Keep into Docs and welcomes it to the G Suite fold
Google Keep may not be something that is used by a huge number of people, but that could be about to change. Google is finally doing something that should have happened from the start -- bringing Keep to G Suite to allow for integration with Docs.
The company has taken the decision to boost its notetaking app to a key member of its cloud app lineup. Google says that as well as being a G Suite core service when used within a domain, Keep notes can also be accessed from within Google Docs.
Why the cloud needs a new approach to security
With more and more organizations moving their operations to the cloud, old approaches to security are put under strain and struggle to cope with the new way of working.
Network security specialist Observable Networks has put together an infographic looking at the current state of cybersecurity and how old approaches don’t adapt to the cloud.
Enterprises with heavy mobile use are more profitable
There’s a new research report that says companies whose employees use mobile devices for multiple things are more productive than those with limited usage. It was commissioned by Synchronoss and conducted by Sapio Research.
The report says that 38 percent of enterprises use mobility solutions for basic tools like email and calendar. Such enterprises are 15 percent less productive and almost a third (29 percent) less profitable than those with more advanced mobile capabilities.
Google has no plans for a new Pixel laptop at the moment... maybe
At a meeting with journalists at MWC 2017 in Barcelona, Google's hardware chief, Rick Osterloh, said there are no plans to release any more premium Pixel laptops. We may have seen the last of Google's top-of-the-range Chromebook.
The Pixel name is these days reserved solely for Google range of smartphones. These have proved so popular that the company has struggled to meet demand -- something that also blighted the Nexus phone launched in the past.
Google Play now ranks games according to engagement, not just downloads, and sale prices are go!
Google has announced a few changes to the Play Store, one of which means that listings for games will be promoted not based solely on the number of downloads. The company is tweaking its algorithms to take into account how much time is spent playing games -- so a game which achieves large numbers of downloads but isn’t played much will drop down the rankings.
Another change that has been a long time coming is the option for developers to list sale prices for their apps and games. While it was previously possible to manually change the price of a title, now devs can list the full and sale price at the same time, so buyers can easily see what savings they are making. New editorial pages are also due to be added to Google Play.
Samsung Galaxy S8 revealed a month early
In addition to launching some new tablets, Samsung also used MWC 2017 to tease us about its forthcoming Galaxy S8 smartphone. The tech giant even released a little video announcing that the eagerly awaited flagship will be unveiled on March 29.
If you’re wondering what the new device will look like, and what changes it will deliver, the good news is you don’t have to wait until the end of the month to see the new phone in all its glory.
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