Thales closes the acquisition of US company Guavus, a pioneer in real-time big data analytics. Headquartered in San Mateo, California, in the Silicon valley, Guavus employs 250 people, of which 140 are based in Gurgaon (India), 60 in California and 50 in Montreal (Canada). Guavus is perfectly suited to help Thales address the growing needs of an increasingly connected global ecosystem. The company has built a recognised industrial ‘big data’ platform particularly adapted to real-time analytics and designed to be easily implemented across any number of new markets. Its revenues are expected to exceed US$30 million for the current fiscal year. The impact of this acquisition on Thales’s 2017 EBIT should be non-material. This business will be assigned to the defence & security operating segment. Thanks to this acquisition, Thales strengthens its positioning in one of the key technologies at the heart of digital transformation of its customers. Patrice Caine, Thales’s Chairman and CEO, commented, “Thales is very excited that this acquisition has now closed and welcomes Guavus’s talents as part of its family. Combined with our established expertise in other key digital technologies, the acquisition of Guavus represents a tremendous accelerator of our digital strategy for the benefit of all our customers, whether in aeronautics, space, rail signaling, defense or security.”

Gemalto advanced ePassport technologies are now being used in over 30 different countries. Thanks to their outstanding security and the faster, more convenient border crossings they facilitate, the company’s solutions help authorities strengthen homeland protection and improve the traveller experience. Gemalto’s leading position has been built on the supply of complete travel documents and key components such as polycarbonate data pages, visible and hidden document security features, electronic passport covers, and ICAO-compliant embedded software. In addition, the company’s secure embedded software has consistently outperformed the competition in international tests on speed over the last decade. Gemalto is also making an active contribution to the definition of international ePassport standards. Introduced in 2005, the ePassport – which now represents 57% of passports in circulation – delivers enhanced fraud protection by incorporating a secure microprocessor that stores the holder’s personal data and digital photo. Electronic passports include a standardized electronic portrait of the holder for facial recognition, which opens the door to a comprehensive range of automated, self-service airport services for passengers. This extends from check-in through to immigration control and boarding, resulting in an enhanced experience on arrival and departure. The future ePassport A new generation of ePassport will digitally store travel information such as eVisas and entry/ exit stamps to support even more efficient immigration control. The key trends in travel documentation identified by Gemalto include: Swift migration to tamper-proof polycarbonate data pages, which dramatically reduce the risk of fraud. Rapid growth in secure digital identity credentials. Sensitive ePassport data is stored on the holder’s smartphone to create a secure companion to the physical passport, making life easier for travellers. Smart borders/ smart airports to emerge at a faster pace. Combined with the hundreds of millions of ePassports now in circulation and a strong push behind biometrics (particularly facial recognition), they offer travellers quick and secure cross-border movement.

Criminal hacker group brought to trial Criminals scammed millions from Swedish companies and authorities by hijacking computers. As recently reported in Swedish media, a criminal hacker league has been charged with one of the biggest IT-based frauds in Swedish history. What makes the fraud unique is the severity and extent of the attack; a group of eight criminal hackers from Sweden and Poland has stolen 40 million Swedish kronor from 60 companies, authorities and municipalities; among the victims are several Swedish financial institutions and a political party. The preliminary investigation has been limited to SEK 40 million due to the maximum sentence value, but the scam most likely vastly exceeds that sum. The attackers gained access to the organization’s user IDs and passwords, as well as an understanding of how the organization communicates by utilizing malicious files and remote administration tools. This information was then used in the social engineering part of the scam. The add-on of social engineering added to the success rate where users were tricked into clicking on links and/ or malicious files which enabled the attackers to gain full access and lateral movement within the victim’s networks. With the access gained by the criminal activity, attackers were able to redirect significant amounts of products such as IT equipment to alternative addresses. The scam pivoted over time to also include actual changes in financial systems to redirect payments to alternative accounts, hence leapfrogging the logistics side, transferring cash directly to specified accounts. JesperSvegby, CEO of Bitsec, part of the European cybersecurity company Nixu, comments that the fraud wasn’t very sophisticated technically but it was advanced in terms of the large scale and strategy. In addition, the attacks evolved over time to generate even better outcome for the criminals, so there was a long-term characteristic involved in the attack that lasted over a long period of time. According to JesperSvegby the attacks could have been successfully prevented and stopped, which was the case in many instances. Operations that had on-site control features to prevent malicious code and limited access to remote software had better chances to resist the criminal attack. Furthermore, businesses with a higher security awareness and incident readiness had better capabilities to identify the incidents, respond to them and mitigate them. Cybersecurity calls for new approach throughout the society The fraud is setting a new trend in terms of IT related crime, two worlds are converging which has created a significant impact. General company based fraud generating revenue through fake invoicing, tax fraud has in this case been merged with the IT-based crime scene by utilizing malware and weaknesses in systems and procedures to gain access to sensitive systems. The combination has enabled the perpetrators to manage the entire chain in the fraud in a very efficient and scalable manner. “This is a new trend that we have been able to follow closely when supporting some of the companies exposed to this fraud,” says Bitsec CEO JesperSvegby. “As society becomes increasingly digital, ensuring effective protection against this type of crime requires new approaches and structures from various parties in society. Organizations need to lift their information security to management and board level. In addition, society must realize its vulnerability and require more interaction within and between police, prosecutors and companies and organizations facing cyber-threats,” summarizes JesperSvegby. The trial is scheduled to run for approximately 55 days. The prosecutor is aiming for the maximum sentence of eight year’s imprisonment. The preliminary investigation is significant, involves as many as 13 prosecutors and has produced investigatory material exceeding 20,000 pages.

CNL Software showcased its latest IPSecurityCenter™ PSIM solution at ASIS 2017 in Dallas. CNL Software’s pure focus on PSIM technology facilitates efficiency and cost savings through integration and automation, and by maximizing the longevity of existing subsystems, promoting subsystem and openness. Today, organizations across the globe are battling with increasing security risks with tightening security budgets, often leaving people, infrastructure, and commerce at risk. Fortunately, technology is helping to bridge this gap for security professionals, creating force multiplier scenarios to help leverage visual and data based intelligence, and optimize resourcing. For almost a decade, IPSecurityCenter has been helping secure major cities, government buildings and military installations; protect public and private critical infrastructure; help public and private corporations manage risk and protect assets; and keep transportation facilities and networks operational and the people that rely on them safe in North America. IPSecurityCenter is enabling a new era of security, providing unprecedented intelligence and information correlation capabilities, enabling organizations to best leverage big data, social media, and the Internet of Things. “We look forward to a great show and to meeting our customers and industry peers in Dallas. This year we will be showcasing some of our latest IPSecurityCenter developments, including an enhanced Windows client with interactive dashboards; and automated IPSecurityCenter client update, which improves sustainability and allows for the efficient upgrading of IPSecurityCenter clients across the network. We also have completely new web and mobile clients, as well as many new supported integrations and enhancements to our federated system architecture.” says Mike Mostow, General Manager – Americas at CNL Software, “These IPSecurityCenter features have been designed to meet the specific operational challenges for our public safety, security, and emergency management customers to help them better visualize risks and resources, facilitate collaboration, and provide seamless and immediate access to all critical data, when and where it is needed.”

As the part of Hangzhou International Day activity, the distinguished delegation of 11 Consulate Generals in Shanghai visited Dahua Technology Headquarters. Michael Chen, Dahua Vice President and General Manager of Overseas Business hosted the reception. The annual Hangzhou International Day is a window for the international friends to gain in depth understanding of Hangzhou, and experience the culture exchange and integration. Participation of Consulate Generals’ on the Hangzhou International Day is a traditional practice. This year, Dahua, as an outstanding company was honored to be one of the four representative companies that were visited by this distinguished group of people. The delegation comprised around 40 people representing 17 countries including Argentina, Austria, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, Pakistan, Poland, Turkey, The United Arab Emirates, Ukraine, Brazil, Chile, Hungary, South Korea, Lao and Philippines. Michael Chen warmly welcomed the Delegation, and briefly presented Dahua’s core competency in video. Later the delegation was taken to a thorough visit to Dahua showroom. The ambassadors were very pleased to learn Dahua’s expanse, and advanced technology and solutions.

Avigilon Blue is a powerful cloud service platform for security and surveillance that is purpose-built for Avigilon partners and their customers (subscribers). It offers a new recurring monthly revenue model based on site subscriptions. Avigilon Blue enables subscribers to add new services as the platform expands, bringing additional value to their business. It also allows partners to remotely support and service sites with fewer resources, enabling them to scale their business faster while providing even greater value to their customers. For subscribers, Avigilon Blue provides advanced cloud technology for easy and secure system access, smart notifications, system upgrades, and new services pushed directly from the cloud. “We are introducing Avigilon Blue, our subscription-based cloud service platform for security and surveillance, to help revolutionize our industry and create a new recurring revenue business model for Avigilon and our partners,” said James Henderson, Avigilon’s Chief Operating Officer, “Collaborating with Microsoft allows us to use their trusted Microsoft Azure cloud platform to build a cutting-edge solution that provides inherent value to our customers.”  A new level of managed services With Avigilon Blue, partners will be able to deliver a new level of managed services with a platform that is straightforward and intuitive, whether they are an IT novice or an expert. It will provide site analytics and automatic system health notifications, and enable remote monitoring as well as identification of system performance trends. Partners will be able to adjust camera settings and perform system upgrades from the cloud without having to deploy a technician. Users will be automatically notified of the latest updates, ensuring systems remain secure and current. Advanced video analytics-based notifications Harnessing patented Avigilon self-learning video analytics, Avigilon Blue utilizes real-time alarm notifications to bring attention to the events that matter most. The system integrates an on-premise Avigilon Blue Connect device that supports local storage as well as Avigilon and ONVIF compliant cameras, and sends critical events to the cloud for users to view and verify from their web-connected device. Trusted and secure cloud technology Powered by Azure, Avigilon Blue will leverage cloud services that are built, deployed, and managed through a global network of trusted datacenters, providing customers with enterprise-grade security and global scale. Rapid innovation deployed through the cloud The launch of the Avigilon Blue platform will be a foundational step that will enable partners and their subscribers to take advantage of Avigilon’s rapid innovation through an expanding selection of subscription service offerings, starting with video surveillance and advanced video analytics.

The Hikvision head office at Hangzhou, China has recently received the delegates from the BRICS Communications Ministers Conference. Cynthia Ho, VP, Hikvision and Keen Yao, VP at Hikvision International Business Centre, jointly hosted the reception and welcomed them. They also introduced the delegates to Hikvision’s latest technology innovations. The company’s advances and products made by using AI, Internet of Things technology, big data, and cloud technologies were highly acclaimed by the delegates. They were also impressed by Hikvision’s expanded overseas business development including its global business network establishment, the implementation of its localization strategy, and the value continually being added to its worldwide customers. The delegates observed a collection of intelligent functions driven by AI technology including facial recognition, human body feature detection and multiple target tracking, in their smart security experience centre, and witnessed how improvements in data-driven algorithm performance have accelerated video intelligence in various ‘Smart’ applications – Smart cities, buildings, transportation, manufacturing, and logistics, to name a few. They expressed interest in strengthening mutual communication and collaboration, and in enabling more technological innovations to serve the BRICS countries – the economically defined group that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Hikvision has opened local branch offices in each of these countries, each with 80-90% local employees. Expansive localisation provides customers instant support and high-quality service. South Africa, as an example, incorporates a service network with offices in Johannesburg, Cape Town, and the country of Nigeria, covering marketing and technical support services for 45 countries in Africa.

FICO TONBELLER® Siron® suite of anti-money laundering (AML) and know your customer (KYC) solutions have achieved Amazon Web Services (AWS) Financial Services Competency status. This designation recognizes FICO for delivering robust solutions on AWS to help organizations manage critical issues pertaining to the industry such as risk management, data management, navigating compliance requirements and establishing governance models. Achieving the AWS Financial Services Competency differentiates FICO as an AWS partner network (APN) member that has demonstrated relevant technical proficiency and proven customer success delivering secure solutions seamlessly on AWS globally. To earn the designation, APN partners must demonstrate significant industry expertise, have readily implemented solutions that align with AWS best practices with customers in production, and have staff with AWS certifications. “We operate in 17 countries that have different regulations, so we needed a flexible compliance platform,” said SandaLaicêna, Head of Group Legal at European consumer online lender 4Finance Group, “We also need a cloud-based approach that integrates with our systems, many of which we built ourselves. After an exhaustive review of the compliance solutions market, we found that FICO could meet all our needs for flexibility, reliability and performance. The FICO solution will safeguard 4Finance Group while ensuring we can provide the best customer service.” “FICO has aggressively moved its solutions to the cloud, and we are now proud to build on our APN Partners Status for Financial Services with the FICO® TONBELLER® Siron® Anti-Financial Crime Solutions,” said Stuart Wells, Chief Technology Officer at FICO, “The TONBELLER solutions form a vital part of our fraud and financial crime portfolio, helping financial services institutions worldwide adopt an advanced risk-based approach to stopping money laundering and the crimes it funds, including terrorism.” AWS is enabling scalable, flexible, and cost-effective solutions for banking and payments, capital markets, and insurance organizations of all sizes, from startups to global enterprises. To support a seamless deployment of these solutions, AWS established the Financial Services Partner Competency Program to help customers identify consulting and technology APN partners in the APN with deep industry experience, domain expertise and proven ability to deploy solutions reliable on the cloud.

March Networks®, a global provider of intelligent IP video solutions, and Patriot One Technologies Inc., developer of a revolutionary weapons detection system, have announced an integration that offers video-enabled covert weapon detection notifications to aid visual verification of potential threats and reconstruct incidents by providing clear video and data evidence to support investigations. By combining real-time covert weapon detection alerts with high-definition (HD) video, the integrated March Networks and Patriot One solution allows security professionals in corporate buildings, schools, airports, stadiums, transit hubs and other commercial and government facilities to respond more knowledgably, and quickly, to potential threats. It also enables security organizations to cost-effectively track how often concealed weapons are present in the facilities they oversee, so they can determine whether further security measures are required. Using unique cognitive microwave radar technology embedded in a wall or stand-alone unit at a controlled access point, Patriot One’s PATSCAN™ CMR weapon detection radar and software system detects concealed handguns, and other types of weapons, and sends real-time alerts to an organization or its security partner. The system is ‘trained’ to the location during installation and continues to learn after full deployment, getting better and smarter at detecting hidden weapons with each screening. With the integrated solution, organizations can receive the alerts via the PATSCAN CMR Software as a Service (SaaS) user interface along with clear video images captured by a March Networks video recording solution, so they can immediately see who the suspect is and where they are located. Security staff can then access real-time video from multiple surveillance cameras simultaneously using the March Networks system to track a suspect’s movements through a building or space, as required. In addition, the integrated solution also captures all the PATSCAN CMR alerts and associated video in powerful March Networks Searchlight™ software, allowing organizations to conduct searches post-event and gather critical video and data evidence for further review or to share with law enforcement. March Networks Searchlight is a business intelligence software application that integrates HD video with transaction, radio frequency identification (RFID), analytics and other system data to deliver valuable operational insights and awareness to customers. It is currently used by leading organizations to proactively identify theft and fraud, improve customer service, optimize workforce management, audit operations and track inventory more effectively.

70 Percent of global education customers see value in deploying video cameras in the classroom. As the Internet of Things continues to influence the creation of new technology advancements in the classroom, it’s essential that students and faculty have a solution that enables a safe and connected learning environment. A survey released by Extreme Networks, Inc. found that 70 percent of educators and IT managers believe video cameras should be in the classroom to create secure and productive learning spaces. Since its debut in October 2016 as the industry’s first Wave 2 integrated camera access point (AP), Extreme’s Camera AP 3916i solution has helped a growing number of education customers, including Aldine Independent School District, Smackover-Norphlet School District, and Catawba College improve visibility into classroom activity while enhancing overall connectivity. By consolidating two hardware units into one, schools and universities are able to deploy and manage more educational technology at an affordable cost with Extreme’s Camera AP. The AP allows customers to enhance connectivity and network bandwidth, while its high-definition surveillance camera provides a more secure environment for the entire campus. The Camera AP also improves classroom productivity for activities like lecture capture to help teachers improve their pedagogy, and virtual attendance for students unable to attend class in person. Customer highlights Aldine Independent School District: The Camera AP has allowed the district to provide reliable connectivity and added safety measures for a variety of scenarios across 95 of its buildings, setting the foundation for the rest of the schools in the district. Additionally, as a Texas school district, Aldine must comply with the new SB 507 law, by installing cameras in special education classrooms upon the request of parents or faculty. Smackover-Norphlet School District: By deploying Camera APs in every classroom within four of the district’s schools, Smackover-Norphlet is able to deter thieves from stealing Chromebooks and other assets, which had previously plagued the district. In addition to security, Smackover-Norphlet has futureproofed its network to support its 1,300+ students’ dependency on wireless connectivity in the classroom for years to come. Catawba College: With 34 Camera APs being configured in central locations, Catawba will be able to monitor the entrances and exits of its buildings and computer labs. From an IT perspective, the staff will reduce the number of ports and cabling, which improves overall maintenance costs.