Category: Feature

Kunwar Vikram Singh, Chairman, Central Association of Private Security Industry (CAPSI) The pandemic resulted in an economic meltdown with various crime related issues. The Russian and Ukrainian saga is a global threat because it impacts globally on the energy security. Oil and natural gas are the foundation to all costs for living. Besides these, Ukraine exports grains to many countries which will add and impact the cost of food such as cooking oil, bread and beer. A second economic meltdown after the pandemic that initially lip-slapped the economy would be a massive blow to all financial sectors and industries. The private security industry is larger than any military force in the world. The private security has the skills to manage the behaviour of the population. Furthermore, the industry has the skills, technology and equipment to find the crime and stop it more effectively. Simply put, the security industry is providing more eyes on the ground therefore supporting the police in locating and catching criminals. The security industry must be acknowledged as a vital partner by the regulators. CAPSI (Central Association of Private Security Industry), ISIO (International Security Industry Organization) and SASA (South African Security Association – representing 9.15 million practitioners) call upon all security regulars world-wide to take certain steps to ensure a wider market for the legitimate traders. The regulators must protect the industry against illegitimate security companies and practitioners besides criminal elements that could attempt to penetrate the industry. Learning from History The economic meltdowns of the past have recorded long lines of unemployed and hungry people. The recent statistics related to the meltdown due to the pandemic affirm once again that many are jobless. Every country could be the same or their unique issues relating to the associated crime. One could deduce that whatever the stats were regardless of location, the levels of crime escalated – an example of recent demonstration and riots. These occurred in certain countries that experienced massive mobs against vaccinations. In specific locations there were mass groups looting under the guise of a politically induced narrative. There were small mob attacks directed towards migrant owned small business besides increased number of pro-nationalist demonstrations on businesses that employ migrants under the banner ‘give the jobs to the citizens.’ The practitioner should consult their own crime statistics in their location and may be surprised at the escalation overall but pay attention to specific crime. Possibilities of crime in this economic meltdown The biggest threat on the ground would be in the field of logistics. Gangs of people are hijacking and stealing tankers carrying petrol, food and for that matter anything. These are soft targets on wheels carrying high value goods already without effective security systems. Any interruption in the logistic chain could cause chaos. Each location and field of interest more than likely experience bribery and corruption of any kind for jobs. Consider expanding your crime research for such when considering the vulnerability landscape because this crime could lead to major reputational damage that obviously effects revenues. Tony Botes of SASA said, “When a country has major job losses then desperate people can do anything. It is vital to protect the entire logistic chain from warehouses stocking all goods, the vehicles as well as the route because empty burnt trucks could shut the road for days causing high anxiety for the population.” Profit protect clients and security companies clients should avoid reputational damage and lawsuits by using unlicensed security practitioners, as follows: When using an unlicensed security company then consider that there is no oversight and governance besides their staff being vetted. This could lead to organized or gang crime using the assets of the business for their needs or the staff adding to the loss of profits in some way or the other. Avoid reputational damage by using professional companies. When security companies cut rates to clients by cutting costs then they may not be training their staff properly or managing the site professionally. People carry phones that can record bad behaviour and social media could destroy reputations which could be costly. False Alarms: Attending to false alarms costs money. AI (artificial intelligence) saves the client money because the technology is able to read and distinguish between a false and positive alarm. Notify appropriate people to respond, thus not wasting money on irrelevant people that also cost money in transportation besides their time. Some perpetrators could be stopped before the crime is fully realized or caught, quickly saving money and anxiety. Reducing the percentage of budget for loss prevention. AI could identify an individual perpetrator or mob formation and could activate counter measures to reduce the collateral damage and related costs. Using AI provides the opportunity to increase the number of security investigators that are focused on looking for crime or handling aggressive and violent behaviour and stopping it. Avoid chaos: There are some sites that could experience specific issues because of the desperation of people. There are sites that could have a high probability of issues related that could demand for strategic security. Chaos can be expensive when the collateral damage is related to staff being hospitalized, assets destroyed or stolen besides the time needed to repair all besides the loss of revenue. The professional security company would ensure that the workforce at the entrance control is layered by specific skillsets to reduce the probability of aggressive and violent behaviour. The economic meltdown can deliver a larger number of criminals and a wide scope of criminal methods on the stage and into the spotlight. This calls for heightened security measures. Criminals may attempt to penetrate buildings for nefarious reasons such as home invasions, burglary, rape, murder or kidnapping. It is costly dearly to emotionally repair people or replace assets. AI can assist using applications such as allowing entry to only recognized approved people on their own or escorting others. Obviously. all entry and exit points need to be covered. Stop tailgating entry by opportunistic perpetrators Protect specific assets: The theft of company…

Anil Puri CMD, APS group A first generation serial entrepreneur, thought leader and an action catalyzer rolled into one – Anil Puri is a rare combination of a visionary, an innovator and a strategic thinker. He has used this combination to innovate and implement on-ground many new business ideas. His rich experience in various businesses has enabled him to nurture & mentor innovative ideas and scale them up. Introduction Occupational stress and burnout are emerging as possibly the biggest threats to the security industry. Long hours, coupled with ‘alert overload’ along with a perceived unfavorable opinion of business value are taking a toll on the industry. One of the reasons for this is that since security does not produce revenue it is considered a ‘Cost Center.’ Security operations may negatively affect profitability and throughout the years have been considered a ‘necessary expense’ of doing business. One of the ways good security was explained in the retail industry years ago was – what you don’t see on the monthly P&L (Profit & Loss Statement). Organizations tend to ‘forget’ about security until something ‘untoward’ happens and many times, ‘such untoward’ things happen because of security employee occupational stress and/ or security employee burnout. It doesn’t matter whether security is in-house or outsourced, occupational stress remains the same. Security is a profession that requires strict attention to detail & specifics and focused attention at all times. Many times, complacency tends to cause those working in the industry to miss important indicators or clues that there is a security issue. Accountability is a key factor. It doesn’t matter whether or not security personnel have limited security experience or are seasoned veterans, accountability in the security industry remains the same. Where is the Epicenter of Pain? Many times, security policies, protocols and procedures are unclear, not specific enough, or there is very limited training, so when security personnel complete a task or activity believing that they are operating within the scope of their job responsibilities, they later learn that they are being held accountable for a situation they were not trained to handle or a situation where they had no control over the outcome. This results in stress. Broadly the major component of the PSI which comes under intense stress is man guarding – the security guard whom we term as the ‘first responder’ is the one who faces the brunt. Others in chain and in fire lane are the entire echelon of the operations and training but they feel the heat much later. Private Security industry is facing immense pressure on account of the clients who are very demanding and is resulting in challenging environments. In day to day functioning, the occupational stress in PSI does not confine only to the security guard but impacts the entire team – security supervisor, field area officer, operations manager, branch manager, regional manager and senior level functionaries like VP and COO as well. Anatomy of the Stress in Private Security Domain Under the broad spectrum of surveillance activities, information protection, and risk management, the private security guards proactively prevent passage of drugs/ narcotics, violence, antisocial behaviors, thefts, and white color crimes at the workplace. Furthermore, the private security officers assist other crews during disasters and emergencies, and check doors, locks, windows, fences, and signs of fire hazards. As part of their responsibilities, private security officers screen and escort visitors, search employees and vehicles, manage car parks, provide first aid, and perform reception duties. The security personnel also offer access control, closed circuit TV monitoring services, and enforce rules and administer sanctions. Additionally, the security personnel also respond to offenses and deal with emotionally disturbed individuals, respond to calls for assistance, and attend to verify activated alarms. However private security personnel do lack adequate training. The majority of security personnel have insufficient knowledge of handling incidents appropriately. Insufficient training and failure to handle security matters properly accentuates pressure and stress on private security personnel. Types of Stress Acute Stress: The most common type of stress, resulting in a ‘fight or flight’ response where symptoms disappear as soon as the stressor is gone. Episodic Stress: When acute stress occurs regularly and a person does not have time to recover from the stressor, which can result in a lower overall tolerance of stress and increased sensitivity to stressors. Chronic Stress: Long-term stress from situations where a person feels he or she does not have control over the outcome, potentially causing serious effects to mental and physical health. Indicators of the Stress Some of the indicators of stress which are easily identifiable could be – sudden and frequent mood changes, the feeling of agitation without being able to pinpoint why, changes in the way you talk to people, dreading the same types of activities that you have been managing before, and a sudden dread feeling of not wanting to going for work. Causes of Stress Some of the factors that may place a role or location at a higher risk of stress include night working or shift working, working in adverse environmental conditions such as poor weather, noise or air condition, high work rate imposed demand, insufficient rest periods between work cycles, repetitive work related activities, conflict or violence in the workplace, lack of control over work duties, unmanageable workload and lack of employee engagement or consultation. Salary deduction or unduly delayed payment of salary also have accretive impact on occupational stress. Stressors Associated with Private Security Duties The security work environment is one of the primary sources resulting in the work-related stress security personnel suffer. Other stressors include working variable shifts, hazards associated with the job, public expectations, lack of clear guidelines, excessive workload, lack of adequate training, exposure to violence, and dealing with intruders and unlawful. Identified several categories of stress relate to security work. The stress categories are the nature of law enforcement work, dealing with the public, and the impact of stress on officers’ personal lives. Job content and employment context are two sources of stress…

Vikas Bhonsle, CEO, Crayon Software Experts India Every company is already an IT company today. Corporates or SMEs, every workplace today is accessing digital tools and solutions most organically. We are adapting to futuristic technologies faster than ever, thanks to the disruptive year of 2020. And India is one of the fastest-growing IT markets in this race, after the US and China. The IT industry here has witnessed growth in the last two decades, and soon, it is expected to touch the $100 billion mark. The Government of India has also been pushing for rapid digitization, leading to increasing investments in the IT sector. In the recent Union Budget of 2022-23, the Government of India has made a few announcements which will lead to some major developments in India on the digitization front. Apart from direct digitization in banking, higher education, and health sector, the country will soon have its own Digital Currency issued by the Reserve Bank of India, the country’s apex bank. Also, the government has announced that datacentres will be given infrastructure status in the country allowing it to play a key role in enabling a digital economy. Here are some of the major technological trends that will continue to transform the Indian IT industry in the present year are – the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, blockchain technologies, cloud adoption, and data security & cyber protection. Internet of Things (IoT) The Internet of Things is a network of devices, vehicles, home appliances, and other items embedded with electronics, software, sensors and network connectivity that enable these objects to collect and exchange data. In 2022, the IoT will be firmly entrenched in people’s everyday lives. The number of devices connected to the IoT will triple by 2022, reaching 25 billion. Most cars and homes will be connected to the internet by 2022. Both individuals and companies will benefit from this connectivity. IoT makes the autonomous collection of big data possible, which helps businesses get insights into customer behaviours and product performance. IoT also facilitates the continuous optimization and automation of business processes and even helps to improve employee engagement and performance. Artificial Intelligence (AI) AI has been one of the most buzzing technologies in recent years. This has led to significant advances in many areas such as speech recognition, natural language processing, robotics, machine learning and computer vision. According to Gartner, AI and machine learning (ML) will be used in over 80% of IoT activities in enterprises by 2022. Hyper Automation is one of the major outcomes of AI, and this will be one of the driving forces behind digital transformation in 2022. Hyper-automation ensures streamlining of processes to increase efficiency, accuracy, and productivity. In 2022 we will see AI and ML increasingly active, infusing more automation and taking over most mundane tasks, freeing us to focus on activities that shall require more human touch and intervention. With AI and humans working together, the workforce is becoming an augmented one. AI will not replace humans but will be working along to add efficiency to our work. Blockchain Technologies Blockchain is a technology that enables digital information to be distributed but not copied. It is a vast and globally distributed database, which can be applied to anything from payments and banking to complex computer programs. A report by trade association IDC predicts that worldwide spending on blockchain technologies will reach $9.7 billion in 2022. Blockchain is a highly disruptive force for enterprise software. One of the most intriguing applications of blockchain technology is supply chain tracking, which gives the ability to track products from the time they are created to when they are stored in warehouses and finally sold to customers. Blockchain is also used to reduce fraud in digital contracts and create faster data retrieval for distributed ledgers. The technology is continuously developed, with some of its latest applications being Smart Contracts and crypto-currencies. In the future, blockchain technology will be used to manage personal health records, deliver payments, and even Smart buildings. Cloud Adoption Cloud computing has become an increasingly popular way to store and manage data, which means more sensitive information is on the cloud than ever before. Cloud computing is often looked at as a more secure alternative to on-premise solutions. It is also a better choice for most businesses, as it reduces hardware and maintenance costs by paying for resources only when needed. By moving some of the infrastructures to the cloud, companies can also significantly improve their security posture. Also, companies using single cloud resources earlier are now exploring multicloud options. With single cloud earlier, companies were often suffering in vendor-lock ins, and it was also risky and costly to store all data in a single server. Multicloud is a better option when it comes to disaster recovery. Instead of establishing a traditional on-premise disaster recovery capability, cloud resources can be used as and when required. As each provider will be coming up with their unique selling propositions, be it in AI, machine learning, or analytics, a multicloud strategy will give organisations the advantage of each platform’s competitive edge. Data Security and Cyber Protection Data security and data protection will remain areas of highest concern in 2022. Businesses in the last two years were riddled by constant ransomware attack threats, data breaches and major IT outages, which became even bigger nuisance than supply chain disruptions, or the COVID-19 pandemic, all of which have heavily impacted businesses in the past year. 2022 will still be a difficult year, as there is still a large talent pool to fill up for efficient cybersecurity management. Also, it is estimated that cyberattacks will be relentless in attacking small and medium scale businesses. End-to-end encryption is already becoming mainstream along with zero-trust policies when it comes to network security, and data access control. However, things will continue to look grim for the coming years as ransomware attacks are gearing up menacingly. As per research agency, Cybersecurity Ventures, the frequency of ransomware attacks on a consumer or…

Digital learning has emerged in a gigantic way in the past few years, and the pandemic situation has further propelled its growth. The education providers who had adopted online learning methods during lockdown are leveraging it in their future plans. In a recent EU report polling educators on this topic, it was identified that as many as more than 96% plan to continue with distance learning technology after the pandemic1 . The cost and flexibility benefits are evident – with teachers being able to take lectures for different classrooms in different parts of the world from a single location, and even students studying from the confines of their homes. This is probably why the topic of using technology to enhance learning, and more importantly, access to learning is being encouraged around Europe. Follow the teacher But what about engagement? There have been a number of studies finding that ‘educator’ presence is crucial in online lessons in order to engage students. They need to be seen, react to questions and, in general, evoke the feeling that they are actively a part of the learning process. Traditional methods of distance learning fall down a bit here. Most platforms tend to have a static view – even if you can see the teacher, they feel disconnected. There may be limitations in what teachers can do. The use of smart cameras can really make a difference here. A camera trained on the teacher as they move around the classroom can really help to make students, especially children, to feel part of the experience. For example, following them as they approach the whiteboard and seeing teacher explain something makes a student feel more like they are in the room too. This can be cleverly managed to be more dynamic, with close-ups of presentations, split screens and ‘live’ diagrams to provide interactive, and more interesting, viewing. Interactive screens can also play a part – with their ability to ‘stream’ whiteboard activity live, and store it for future use. In fact, a teacher can have a wide range of resources to build an engaging, memorable and effective lesson – from videos and images to traditional whiteboard explanations and diagrams. They can also respond to questions from students in real time – just as they would in a traditional classroom lesson. Include remote students Another important part of the engagement is accessibility. You could have the best, most engaging lesson on the planet, but if students cannot see it, it’s not going to help them! A smart distance learning solution using cameras can give educators flexibility. They can be teaching a class face-to-face, a remote classroom and students online – all at the same time. Students who cannot get to the main classroom, for example, because they are in a partner school in another city, or they are at home nursing a broken leg, do not need to miss out on education. In fact, they can be in exactly the same class. Some could even be accessing the lesson through a mobile, or tablet, further extending the reach of education. Today’s web cameras like the ones from Hikvision also improve learning experience with vivid and high quality images. Make materials available There are other benefits too of a centralized digital distance learning solution. The classes, including explanations and questions, can be saved to be accessible to students in the future, for recap or clarification. The resources used by the teachers – like videos, diagrams, and articles can also be stored for future reference. Enter Hikvision Hikvision’s Distance Learning Solution can provide all these benefits, tailored to the needs of the education provider. A Teacher PTZ camera follows the teacher (if they have given consent) as they move around the classroom. The teacher camera is 4K, for HD images and provides a close-up view of the teacher. In fact, this alone can really improve engagement, and has been a popular option for educators through the pandemic. Smart interactive screens can also be used to enhance the interactivity of the lesson, and provide the teacher with another way to explain and demonstrate. An Education Sharing Server brings all of these devices together, helping to manage lessons, and synchronizing the multimedia assets used. The server can also store the lessons and assets for students to access at a later date, through whichever sharing method they want. The solution is also fully-compatible with a wide range of 3rd Party software enhancements, further supporting the flexibility of the bespoke solution built to cater for the needs of the education provider. A specially-designed education version of Hikvision’s HikCentral software will also soon be available to help coordinate and disseminate lessons and assets. With so many aspects of our lives becoming digitized and more disparate, it is important to retain the engagement element in education. With the help of smart cameras, screens and management tools, engagement can advance hand-inhand with accessibility to create a new benchmark for learning. “Practically all those respondents already using distance online learning before the crisis plan to continue doing so after the crisis (96.2% in the sample ‘All countries’ and 100% in the sample ‘Without RO’).” EU Digital Education Action Plan 2021-2027.  

Rohit Dey, Architect – Drone Solutions, Mistral Solutions Pvt. Ltd. Drones, also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Miniature Pilotless Aircrafts, or Flying Mini Robots, are fast gaining popularity and have become the weapon of choice in modern warfare, used by both state and non-state organisations. Drones are becoming increasingly indispensable, considering their high level of efficacy, low cost, and low visibility. Drones are still in their infancy in terms of mainstream adoption and usage, but they have already broken-down traditional boundaries in industries that were previously thought impenetrable by similar technical advancements. Drones have become crucial to the functioning of numerous enterprises and governmental organisations over the last few years, piercing through sectors where specific industries such as industrial, defense, oil and gas, search and rescue etc., were either stagnant or lagging behind. Drones have been around for more than couple of decades, however, their origin can be traced back to World War I, when the United States and France collaborated to develop autonomous, unmanned warplanes. Drone technology has evolved and thrived in recent years, from technically staffing critical military regions to enticing enthusiasts all over the world. The last decade has been noteworthy in terms of drone acceptance, industry utilisation, development, and worldwide awareness. Types of Drones and Their Applications Typically, Drones are categorised into three major platforms – Fixed wing, Rotary wing, Hybrid VTOLs (Combination of fixed and rotary wing Vertical Take-off Landing). Further, they are also classified based on their Size (nano, micro, small, medium & large), weight, flying characteristics, type of energy source etc. Fixed wing UAV platforms, which are already operational in leading defense forces worldwide, are used for long range missions due to their characteristics like high speed, fuel consumption, flying altitude, and far greater payload capabilities. Fixed wing UAVs require moderate to larger space to take-off and land as they are launched either by hand, catapults or airstrips depending on the wingspan of the aircraft. Rotary wing UAVs, commonly known as Helicopter or Rotorcrafts, can be classified in to sub categories such as Single rotor (similar to conventional helicopters with main rotor and tail rotor), Multirotor (more than one rotor – bi, tri, quad, hexa, octa etc.) & hybrid platforms. Rotor UAVs, due to their unique ability to take off & land vertically from very limited and compact space, is finding increased applications in homeland security and military applications. The ability of these drones to hover for long duration make them ideal for search and rescue operations, small-cargo delivery, ISR, and border surveys, among others. VTOL is a very unique platform with massive capabilities and extensive operationality for Defense applications. This platform can take off and land like helicopters, hover and also fly around in Heli-mode, and can also be switched to fixed wing and fly like an airplane with speeds higher than helicopters. Drones have proved to be incredibly advantageous in locations where humans cannot access or function in a fast and effective manner, be it making rapid deliveries during rush hour or rushing supplies to an unreachable military post. Increased efficiency and productivity, reduced workload and production costs, enhanced accuracy and minimal security challenges are just a few of the many benefits drones provide organisations throughout the world. Drone technology adoption across sectors jumped from the fad stage to the standard operational stage very fast, as more and more firms realised their potential, scope, and applications. Drones, whether operated by a remote or a smartphone app, have the capacity to reach the most remote regions with the least amount of effort, time, and energy. This is one of the primary reasons that they are being accepted globally, particularly by sectors like: military, commercial, personal, cinema, agriculture, police, government, AI based applications. Some of the Drone applications include: Long distance ISR. Law enforcement and border surveillance. Self-destructing target systems. Short range armed drones for combat. Swarm operations for both military and entertainment applications. Network connectivity system. Emergency/ disaster management. Search and rescue operations. Rapid fire fighting aerial system. Express shipping and delivery. Perimeter surveillance and safety inspections. Geographic survey and mapping of inaccessible terrain and locations. Precision crop monitoring. Storm tracking and forecasting hurricanes and tornadoes. Drones in Defence Ecosystem Today, Drones have become an integral element of armed forces across the world, serving as target decoys, combat operations, research and development among others. Military spending, according to recent projections, will continue to be the primary growth driver for drones in the coming years. According to these projections, worldwide military spending on drones is expected to cross $70+ billion in 2022, and these drones will play a critical role in resolving future wars replacing human pilots. Military funds also tend to come in bigger amounts, with a single US Predator drone costing around $4 million, and overall programme spending estimated at nearly $2.4 billion. Defense forces have been using fixed wing UAVs for a few decades to conduct unmanned aerial surveillance and launch strikes in addition to using them as electronic decoys and Radar jammers. Fixed wing UAVs have their own advantages, however, rotary wing UAVs, due to the unique capabilities are considered the future of warfare. Lately, defense forces have been considering rugged special purpose tactical drones for military research, intelligence gathering at borders and to carry out combat missions beyond enemy lines. The Indian army, in the recent past, has taken various initiatives to strengthen the high-altitude border areas using drones of various capacities and capabilities. The Army is considering the induction of a wide range of Drones with varying capabilities for applications such as high-altitude heavy payload delivery, continuous border surveillance, combat and cross-border ISR among others. Heavy Payload Drones The northern and eastern borders of our country is extremely hostile and harsh with altitude ranging from 5000 to 20000 Ft, heavy snow fall during winter, presence of glaciers and treacherous mountain ranges. The most critical challenge which the Indian Army faces at these heights is the transportation of essential goods like fuel, food, medical kits &…

Prashanth G J, CEO of TechnoBind Revolutions in the technology field are often driven by the emergence of new technologies. The pandemic has not only challenged the modern world but also created a humongous opportunity to revolutionize. However, creating something valuable and profitable is the ultimate goal of any technical revolution. Cloud computing has been experiencing a period of anomalous growth, several factors have been responsible for this, including the rise of mobile computing, increased maturity of cloud offerings, improved network performance, etc. This constant innovation and growth lead to the invention of serverless cloud computing. Serverless cloud, the future Serverless computing is a cloud-based architecture where the cloud provider has total control over the underlying infrastructure that supports an organization’s activities. It is a platform that hides server utilization from developers and executes code on-demand automatically scaled and billed only if the code is running. Serverless cloud is a relatively new technology, and it is capable of turning your enterprise into a vibrant, flexible, service-oriented working model of the future. Serverless cloud enables your enterprise to expand into the cloud with serverless architecture all over the public and private cloud environments. One of the efficient ways to ensure that diverse resources are available at scale is done by migrating the IT environment to the cloud. Serverless cloud aims to put an end to tedious and time-consuming development and O&M work for servers and other infrastructures in the cloud-based application. When compared with traditional models, serverless models allow enterprises to build applications based on a large number of mature cloud service capabilities. This ensures fewer technical decision-making points and simpler implementations. Because of optimized cloud products, enhanced product integration capabilities, and improved software automation the serverless cloud will help enterprises improve their agility. Some key benefits of serverless cloud Expenses: The most tangible benefit is cost. Serverless cloud enables enterprises to only pay for whatever they need when they need it. Because there are almost no unnecessary resources, as blocks of servers are never sitting idle waiting for utilization. Configuration: The configuration will be significantly more straightforward and streamlined as the host firm handles the greater part. This facilitates scaling up the extra resources without customary downtime for your configuration. Speed: Because the enterprise does not need to manage the server, deploying the services and applications is much easier and faster. This will let the development team to focus on creating their service and then deploying it without worrying about the backend server. Automation which is a key trait of serverless cloud makes it particularly appealing for unpredictable workloads. Most importantly, serverless cloud enables developers to focus on what they should be doing making way for business agility and digital experimentation. Serverless Cloud is destined to transmute the future software model and process and is the future of cloud computing. With serverless cloud, enterprises can place their hands on improvised scalability, flexibility, and affordability. We are now witnessing an era where there is an ever-increasing demand to scale, leverage, and spin applications. These demands indicate that serverless clouds are the future. Cloud services are moving ahead to deliver real-time demand as they have ready deployment of services and applications. There is no doubt that the future-oriented technology for cloud services is serverless functions. Traditional cloud computing will undergo transition and will make way for serverless cloud. There have been several cases for many businesses and enterprises that prove that adoption of serverless cloud has resulted in operational boons such as cost-cutting and easy deployment.  

Nikhil Korgaonkar, Regional Director, Arcserve India & SAARC Most people today will consider reels of tape to be as dated as steam engine and analog cameras, having been replaced by newer, faster, and more efficient technologies. Unfortunately, one can still see many stories around reporting the death of tape storage, citing technology drawbacks as a significant reason. Such as, tapes can be labor-intensive, requiring a manual process to change them at the beginning or end of every day. Tapes are long and stringy, and can also be misplaced or outright lost. These factors and more have given tape storage a poor reputation in today’s marketplace, and they are helping to drive the steady migration to flash storage and cloud storage. But here’s the thing. Despite all the criticism and naysaying, tape has survived and is in fact more relevant today than ever as a means of data storage. With 5G adoptions and the dramatic expansion of the internet of things (IoT), the amount of data being generated is more than what can be stored easily. As of January 2021, there were 4.66 billion active internet users worldwide, accounting for 59.5 percent of the global population. By 2025, there will be 38.6 billion IoT-connected devices worldwide. One can only imagine what will be the size of data generated by 38+ billion objects! Storing such massive amounts of data on the cloud can be expensive, especially if all of it is not urgent or mission-critical. And nothing comes close to storing voluminous data on tapes. Besides, storage cost is very little per gigabyte. Tape is like the mainframe computer, which allegedly died more than 20 years ago but is still a tried-and-true technology in many large enterprises. Tape capacity shipments are on the upswing. A recent report from the Tape Storage Council found that a record 114,079 PB of linear tape-open (LTO) tape capacity shipped in 2019. That’s about 400% more than was shipped in 2009. Here are five reasons why tape storage offers significant advantages over other options. 1. Tape boasts better protection against ransomware Many of today’s data-storage technologies such as cloud storage, can’t fully protect the organization against the growing threat of ransomware attacks. On the other hand, tape backup is offline, so it can’t be easily infiltrated by malware or any other kind of cyberattack. The tapes themselves are often kept at offsite locations or in storage vaults. That means tape can serve as the last line of defense. Even if ransomware thieves penetrate all the other defenses, they still won’t be able to score if all the data is safely backed up on tape. So, it’s ironic that while we become more and more connected and digitized, we rely on good old tape to give us an extra layer of protection and better secure our data against ransomware. Tape offers other security capabilities as well, such as write-once-read-many (WORM), which means that data once written can never be overwritten or deleted, either unintentionally or by those who wish to do the harm. This capability is critical because it’s not just outside hackers who pose a threat. Sometimes insiders are the problem. If a disgruntled employee tries to delete all the data, having tape storage can completely negate that threat. 2.Tape can survive disasters Even after all these years, backing up data on tape and sending it offsite is still a highly reliable disaster recovery method. If the office burns down or there’s a once-in-a-century flood or any other kind of natural disaster, the safest way of protecting the data is to put it on tape in a secure remote location. That’s why savvy organizations will never stop doing tape storage. 3.Tape is cost-effective The cost of tape storage continues to decrease while its storage capacity increases. Tape remains one of the least expensive options for longterm data archiving. According to Fujifilm, tape is three to four times cheaper to use than disk for long-term storage. The leading tape backup format is LTO, and with the introduction of LTO-8 several years ago, enterprises can store up to 30TB of data compressed on a single tape. But that’s just the beginning. In the not-too-distant future, LTO-generation-12 will store up to 480TB compressed on one tape. That means tape can easily accommodate the massive data growth that almost every organization faces. 4.Tape makes insurers happy Cyber liability insurance is a type of insurance designed to cover losses and penalties associated with a data breach or other cyberattack. But large insurance providers are getting very selective when underwriting new cyber policies. Many will only insure customers that have ironclad data-protection strategies. That means businesses must increase their investments in security tools and processes to prove that they are a worthwhile risk to insurance providers. Having an A-to-Z strategy that includes disk storage, cloud storage, and tape storage gives a better risk profile in the eyes of cyber insurance providers. Need more benefits? Ask the insurance company if they will reduce the premiums since the data is backed up to tape. Better still, companies with an end-to-end security strategy that includes backup & recovery and storage may not even need cyber insurance. If companies have three different storage media at their disposal, they can protect themselves in pretty much any potential data-loss scenario. 5.Tape lasts much longer Data storage professionals have a saying. There are two types of hard disks: those that have failed and those that will fail. Yes, modern-day technologies like magnetic storage, flash storage, and cloud storage offer a lot in performance and flexibility. But they fall far short of tape storage when it comes to shelf life. They don’t even come close. Tape storage has an average lifespan of 30 years. Disk storage, by contrast, typically starts to fail after about five years. Right now, tape storage is the only medium that will preserve data well into the future. Tape may be one of the oldest methods for data storage, but it remains highly relevant for backup…

“The age of IoT and AI means that physical and IT security are no longer separate domains. Instead, everything is connected, and you need to converge your security leadership, teams, capabilities, and technologies to navigate the evolving risk landscape ~ Fred Streefland, Director of Cybersecurity and Privacy at Hikvision EMEA” Until recently, physical and cybersecurity domains were separate from one another. Security teams, access control systems, and CCTV systems were used to physically secure buildings – from data centers to factories and warehouses. And IT teams looked after IT and network security with firewalls, anti-virus software, and data encryption technologies. But as organizations have forged ahead on their digital transformation journeys, innovative technologies such as IoT and AI have blurred the lines between physical security and cybersecurity: a trend that’s set to continue long term. Why IoT is increasing your physical and IT ‘attack surface’ When thinking about your overall security strategy, consider that your security cameras and other security infrastructure are now ‘IoT devices’ that are connected to the network. This gives criminals and hackers a much larger ‘attack surface’ for their activities, with multiple ways into your organization. For example, hacking or otherwise accessing a network-connected camera or other device can allow criminals to override physical security controls and enter restricted areas or buildings. Equally, hackers who can breach IoT devices on the network may be able to disrupt critical systems, steal data, install ransomware, or otherwise compromise your company’s operations. Physical break-ins also pose major cybersecurity risks Equally, criminals who manage to circumvent your physical security infrastructure can also gain access to IT equipment and systems housed in restricted buildings. This means they can extend the impact of their localized attack across the length and breadth of your network, causing untold damage and disruption in the process. This is especially the case where server rooms are left open or unlocked within a building. The mission-criticality of the network, and the sensitive data stored in connected systems, means that much stronger security is needed for these kinds of facilities to ensure they are never accessed, even if intruders breach your building defenses. Here are some examples of how physical threat vectors can compromise digital security: An infected USB drive is planted in a parking lot, lobby, etc., which an employee picks up and loads onto the corporate network. An attacker breaks into a server room and installs a rogue device that captures confidential data. An attacker pretends to be an employee and counts on a real employee’s courtesy to hold the door for him as they enter together. An inside actor looks over the shoulder of a system engineer as they type administrative credentials into a system. The most well-known example of an attack on physical systems followed by an attack of IT systems is the hack on the retail giant Target in 2013. The attackers used an HVAC vendor’s credentials to compromise the network and ultimately the point of sale (PoS) systems of this company. The attackers ‘entered’ the company via the Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems and managed to compromise several millions of credit cards of Target customers, which caused the resignation of the CIO and CEO of Target. Why ignoring the issue isn’t an option The consequences of security breaches – whether they take place in the physical or IT domain – are potentially devastating for many organizations, and especially those in mission-critical industries. Security breaches at electricity sub-stations, for example, could leave entire towns or cities without power. And similar breaches in data centers could result in internet ‘blackouts,’ major data breaches, regulatory fines, and a raft of other negative impacts. To minimize the risks of security breaches in the age of IoT, forward-thinking organizations are looking to extend their security strategies seamlessly across the physical and IT domains. This holistic and integrated approach requires both organizational and technology changes that reflect the rapidly changing physical and IT security risk landscape. 4 key strategies for integrating your physical and IT security Forward-thinking organizations are beginning to integrate their physical and IT security provision based on 4 key strategies: Creating an integrated security culture and transformation plan: Any successful integration of physical and IT security begins with a strategy based on digital transformation. This strategy needs to be communicated across the entire security organization from the top down, preparing teams for the transition to integrated physical and cybersecurity, including key milestones and potential disruptions and change management issues. Appointing a CISO or data officer who is responsible for both physical and IT security: The siloed nature of physical and IT security responsibilities increases the risk that attacks in a particular domain will go undetected, or that responses will be too slow to prevent negative impacts from occurring. By appointing a CISO or other c-level executive for joint responsibility, and visibility, of physical and IT security, these potential gaps can be closed, and faster, more effective responses can be mounted in the event of a breach in either domain. Converging physical and IT security monitoring within a single dashboard interface: In terms of technology, integrating IT and physical security monitoring into a single dashboard helps to dramatically decrease the risk of a breach, and to mitigate the impacts if a breach should occur. For example, by mapping cyber and physical threats together, a unified dashboard can spot anomalies more quickly, and pinpoint where the threat originated based on an unidentified device in the network, unauthorized access to a device or physical space, or other threat indicators. Deploying innovative technologies that enable truly unified security responses: By implementing data analytics platforms, smart video solutions, AI-powered security algorithms and other innovative technologies of this type, organizations can detect security threats across physical and IT domains in near-real time. Additionally, false positives can be minimized, further saving time and resources and speeding up security responses. How Hikvision can help At Hikvision, we provide smart video technologies and AI-powered security algorithms that help to improve security in…

Nikhil Kothary, Founder & CEO of VAMS Global We are in the midst of the third wave and the numbers are shooting up. In the last 24 hours, 2.64 lakh new cases were reported in India and the first fortnight of 2022 has seen close to 17 crore new cases globally. Omicron cases are expected to rise in the next few days given the variant’s higher transmission rates. But there is good news Vaccinations have allayed fears in the country over the last six months and will continue to fulfill their purpose. As of January 14, 157 crore vaccines were reported to have been administered in India and an average of 84 lakhs were being administered per day over the last 2 weeks of the third wave. Third wave agenda: Aarogya Setu & CoWIN checks To practice caution, many workplaces are at half capacity, with employees coming in only on certain days of the week. Workforces are either alternating between work-fromhome and work-from-office or completely transitioning to remote work for a temporary period. Employers naturally will have to stay aware of the people coming to and from their workplaces. Health status is such an important piece of information going forward. Cross-checking governmental databases for RT-PCR test results and vaccination statuses can always help. Employers might want to request their employees/ visitors for this information and perhaps enforce rules to ensure that the people passing through their doors are, at the very least, double-dosed. To this purpose, vaccination status apps and web portals like Aarogya Setu and CoWIN can assist employers in their bid to create a safe environment. How can they do this? Human resources departments can organize one process by which this information can be seamlessly offered by employees and visitors. This best practice would be to have a Co-WIN and Aarogya Setu integrated workflow management system. Letting the right people in, not keeping the wrong people out A workflow management system simplifies the entry process for all visitors/ employees in the workplace and it also simplifies the administrative functions of workplace managers and human resources. It can be a lot of things at one time. It can be a data collection process that ethically stores names, in-times, out-times, and purposes of the visitors. It can be a security-related process that integrates with access control technology like biometrics, turnstiles, facial recognition scanners, and more. It can be a workplace experience management process that helps visitors make appointments. And it can be a health check process that can integrate with Aarogya Setu and CoWIN apps to ensure the favorable health status of visitors and employees coming in. An integrated workflow management system does not discriminate against the ‘wrong people.’ It is a software that helps the right people come in, the people who are healthy – your industrious employees, managers, clients, maintenance staff, and contractors. It gives you the opportunity, as human resources heads and workplace managers, to objectively assess and manage the flow of people in the workplace. It allows no health-related discrepancies and betters the workplace experience for everyone who is involved in contributing to the company. Every door is an opportunity for you to show your employees and visitors that you care about more than just what they can give you, as they come into the workplace. With an workflow management system integrated with CoWIN and Aarogya Setu like VAMS, you show that you care about the optimal conditions for their health.