Category: Feature
Fortinet Secures the Path to 5G With Security Architecture and Solutions
Fortinet has recently announced extensive capabilities for securing the path to 5G with its expansive breadth and depth of solutions for mobile core networks and cloud infrastructures including its virtual SPU technology and advanced security and high-performance systems. With the promise for faster connection speeds, massive connectivity scale, and new revenue opportunities, 5G will have a profound impact on mobility and digital transformation. Fortinet is uniquely positioned to offer its customers advanced security and high-performance systems that deliver carrier class functionality, rapid scalability, deep visibility, and granular control to secure mobile core, edge clouds and IoT infrastructures. 5G brings both opportunity and risk The advent of 5G will extend a digital connection to almost every facet of lives. In many of the somewhat futuristic sounding new use cases such as autonomous vehicles, AR/ VR immersive experiences, smart cities, ultralow latency, bandwidth and speed, delivery has been the missing puzzle piece. For years now, the mobile interconnection of all these things seemed inevitable, yet the massive density of connections, all with adequate speed, latency and related services, had so far remained unachievable in all but limited proof-of-concept testing. “With 5G, mobile infrastructure’s end-to-end innovation will continue to transform into a platform and catalyst for value creation and service innovation. Throughout this transformation, Fortinet’s proven security architecture and solutions provide advanced security for multiple LTE, LTE-A, and 5G use cases to help secure mobile infrastructures from radio access network (RAN) to the telco cloud, and offers customers carrier-grade performance and capacity with cloud-grade scalability, visibility and control” – Rajesh Maurya Regional Vice President, India & SAARC, Fortinet With 5G and the impending orders-of-magnitude advances in bandwidth, connection and use case possibilities, there is opportunity for end-to-end innovation as the mobile infrastructure is transformed into a platform and a catalyst for value creation and service innovation. More than ever, mobile network providers will become secure business enablers. For example, service providers will have new revenue generating opportunities in IoT such as manufacturing automation, industrial telemetry, emergency response systems, robotic surgery, 4K UHD video streaming, and more. However, these innovations will also bring a corresponding increase in the potential havoc wrought by denial of service, advanced threats and other forms of cyberattack on the core network infrastructure itself. Security is an imperative to protect and operate evolving 4G and new 5G mobile networks. These new service use cases need capabilities beyond a stateful firewall, with capacity and reliability to meet service level agreement (SLA) goals for uptime and quality of experience. Fortinet 5G breadth and depth capabilities Fortinet offers strategic security solutions specifically designed to address the unique challenges facing operators as they migrate their core networks to deliver 4.5G and 5G mobile services. It offers the ability to build a security framework that helps optimize cost of launching and operating new services and revenue opportunities, mitigate advanced threats, and achieve service level goals. Service providers can realize this by utilizing Fortinet advanced security and high-performance systems that also give mobile carriers improved visibility through comprehensive and correlated analytics, the ability to thwart complex external and internal security threats impacting network infrastructure and services at massive scale. The Fortinet security platform offers 5G service providers: Advanced protection for mobile core network and telco cloud: Powered by Fortinet’s virtual SPU technology, FortiGate virtual network functions (VNFs) deliver significant increase in application security performance through innovative security processing optimizations and the latest packet processing acceleration technologies. The VNFs also have a small footprint, boot within seconds, and require less storage, enabling service providers to protect their virtual networks and cloud platform cost effectively. Further, the 5G-ready FortiGate 7000 next-generation firewall series with SPU acceleration provides carrier security features and functions with industry-leading SSL inspection and application security performance for total inline protection. Together, these Fortinet solutions deliver industry’s best scale and capacity to protect 5G infrastructures from sophisticated application layer attacks and massive volumes of DoS attacks originating from outside or inside the mobile core or telco network. Agility with security: Fortinet offers broad ecosystem integrations with leading NFV and SDN vendors for virtual infrastructure. To ensure end-to-end security with innovative 5G services such as network slicing and multi-access edge computing (MEC), VNFs must be delivered dynamically, instantiated quickly and available wherever needed on the network. For efficient and agile deployment and utilization of these security resources, Fortinet delivers integrations with NFV platform providers like Lenovo, NFV orchestration (MANO) systems from Amdocs, Ericsson, Ciena, UBiqube, NoviFlow, and SDN controllers like VMware NSX, Nokia Nuage, and Cisco ACI, and NoviFlow. Deep visibility and control for IoT services on edge clouds: Massive scale IoT devices are generally based on lightweight operating systems, which offer minimal security features, therefore they are vulnerable to hijacking and botnet attacks. To remove business risks, the data from these endpoints and the devices themselves require complete protection. Further, service providers offering IoT services via a cloud platform need to ensure multi-tenant isolation, VM and/ or container security and web application protection. Fortinet FortiGate NGFW VNF and FortiWeb WAF VNF protect the edge cloud platform. FortiSIEM provides complete visibility through correlated security analytics and complete visibility to track IoT devices while FortiGate has the ability to learn and profile all connected devices, and apply granular control on different classes of IoT.
2019 Data Privacy Benchmark Study
Organizations worldwide that invested in maturing their data privacy practices are now realizing tangible business benefits from these investments, according to Cisco’s 2019 Data Privacy Benchmark Study. The Study validates the link between good privacy practice and business benefits as respondents report shorter sales delays as well as fewer and less costly data breaches. The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, which focused on increasing protection for EU residents’ privacy and personal data, became enforceable in May 2018. Organizations worldwide have been working steadily towards getting ready for GDPR. Within Cisco’s 2019 Data Privacy Benchmark Study, 59 percent of organizations reported meeting all or most requirements, 29 percent expect to do so within a year, and 9 percent will take more than a year. “This past year, privacy and data protection importance increased dramatically. Data is the new currency, and as the market shifts, we see organizations realizing real business benefits from their investments in protecting their data,” said Michelle Dennedy, Chief Privacy Officer, Cisco, “At Cisco, we absolutely believe in both protecting our customers and driving business success by maximizing the value of data and minimizing risk.” Customers are increasingly concerned that the products and services they deploy provide appropriate privacy protections. Those organizations that invested in data privacy to meet GDPR experienced shorter delays due to privacy concerns in selling to existing customers – 3.4 weeks vs. 5.4 weeks for the least GDPR ready organizations. Overall the average sales delay was 3.9 weeks in selling to existing customers, down from 7.8 weeks reported a year ago. GDPR-ready organizations cited a lower incidence of data breaches, fewer records impacted in security incidents, and shorter system downtimes. They also were much less likely to have a significant financial loss from a data breach. Beyond this, 75 percent of respondents cited that they are realizing multiple broader benefits from their privacy investments, which include greater agility and innovation resulting from having appropriate data controls, gaining competitive advantage, and improved operational efficiency from having data organized and catalogued. More than 3,200 global security and privacy professionals in 18 countries across major industries responded to the Cisco survey about their organizations’ privacy practices. Key findings include: 87 percent of companies are experiencing delays in their sales cycle due to customers’ or prospects’ privacy concerns, up from 66 percent last year. This is likely due to the increased privacy awareness brought on by GDPR and the frequent data breaches in the news. Sales delays by country varied from 2.2 to 5.5 weeks, with Italy, Turkey and Russia at the lower end of the range, and Spain, Brazil and Canada at the higher end. Longer sales delays can be attributed to areas where privacy requirements are high or in transition. Delayed sales can cause revenue shortfalls related to compensation, funding, and investor relations. Delayed sales also can become lost sales if a potential customer buys from a competitor or decides not to buy at all. Top reasons cited for sales delays included investigating customer requests for privacy needs, translating privacy information into customer languages, educating customers about an organization’s privacy practices, or redesigning products to meet customer privacy needs. By country, GDPR-readiness varied from 42 percent to 75 percent. Spain, Italy, UK and France were at the top of the range, while China, Japan and Australia were on the lower end. Only 37 percent of GDPR-ready companies experienced a data breach costing more than $500,000, compared with 64 percent of the least GDPR-ready companies.
Intelligent Video: The Key to Transforming in-Store Shopping Experience
The retail sector has been felling the disruptive impact of e-commerce more than the most. The inevitable costs of staffing, rent, maintenance and daily operations has left traditional brick-and-mortar stores struggling to stay dynamic and compete effectively with their more agile online counterparts. Not only that, but the one competitive advantage of physical retail outlets – being able to provide a more personal customer experience – has also taken a hit in recent years, thanks to the lack of in-store and operational efficiency. Customers find it hard to locate the products they’re shopping for, are faced with longer queues for payment, and the most valuable ‘VIP’ customers are often overlooked. At a time when retailers should be striving to excel, this is a bad news, as a 2018 study from KPMG reinforces, “The customer experience is more important than ever as retailers are striving to differentiate themselves in a challenging and crowded market. Consequently, experience per square foot will be the new retail metric to measure success.” The question, therefore, is how can stores optimise operations and improve the customer experience at this critical time? Technology: At the heart of a better customer experience One challenge that retailers often face is not having a way to collect accurate data and visualise it intelligently in order to make smarter business decisions about the shop floor. For many, reorganising store layout and installing additional equipment is not a realistic option – either because there is no available space, or because of budgetary constraints. In these circumstances, an effective solution could be artificial intelligence (AI) and deep learning. Together, these cutting-edge technologies create a video surveillance offering that can give retailers valuable insight into real-time operating conditions to boost customer service and in-store competitive advantage. Intelligent video technologies can be applied to retail in a multitude of ways. People counting Understanding the flow of customers is the key to optimising a store’s sales performance; and by using an accurate people-counting camera, stores can understand daily/ weekly/ monthly peak times, so that store managers can arrange staffing accordingly. What’s more, by layering this data over days, weeks and months, retailers can start to see and understand customer flow trends. The data can be benchmarked against the store’s sales figures and its overheads to inform future operational strategy and help managers optimise store profitability. Furthermore, people counting can also help retail managers gain insights into the customer experience. One example would be to evaluate the conversion rate, which depends on the actual number of purchases divided by the number of people entering the store. Retailers can calculate this rate easily using people counting technology. Even better, people counting can also help stores determine the results of their marketing activities. Each marketing campaign can be quantified by people counting to measure return on investment. This is just one of several technologies that provide insight into consumer behaviour and optimal marketing practices. VIP recognition Loyal high-end or VIP customers are enormously valuable to retailers, but service staff cannot always identify them immediately. This means that business operators miss valuable opportunities to extend a special service. Intelligent facial recognition cameras, however, can provide unique opportunities that were previously unavailable. When customers opt to participate in VIP marketing promotions or other incentives, facial recognition technology will give retailers accurate tools to identify VIPs so staff can provide the right kind of service at the right time. There would be no more need for customers to show membership cards to receive special offers. The whole shopping experience becomes more convenient and efficient. Heat mapping Retailers usually want to know which products customers are most interested in, and which promotional products can attract customers to stop. With heat-mapping technology, retailers can see a colour-coded map of how much time shoppers spend in specific store areas. This can reveal hot spots and dead zones, as well as how many people actually shop for a specific product versus those who just decide to pick it up as they casually walk by. By layering this data over time, retailers can get insight into how to best place items in store, and how best to design the overall store layout. One of the most useful heat-mapping tools available to the retail market is the fisheye camera. A single compact camera can capture a panoramic high-definition image over an impressively wide area, while its heat-mapping function provides the colour-coded map. Because fewer cameras are needed with most heat-mapping solutions, installation is cost-effective, making this the ideal solution for a location such as an independent shopping mall. Queue detection Worse still, if there is always a long queue every time they visit the store, they may avoid that store completely in future. Queue detection solutions can help retailers manage their checkout lines, and the queue detection cameras are designed to monitor queues in real-time. The cameras count the number of people in each queue, and if there are too many people in each checkout line and customers still continue to flock to the checkout area it triggers an alarm to store management, who can open a new checkout. Point of Sale integration Transaction records and surveillance videos can provide valuable information to reduce disputes at checkout. In the past, these are two completely independent data systems. In order to find the right video footage, the surveillance video must be retrieved manually. Therefore, collecting evidence around a transaction normally can take several hours, which is costly for the business. Point of Sale (PoS) integration, also known as PoS Text Overlay, is the uploading of transaction data to the video management system through the PoS and encoding it with the video stream. This combination of retail transaction data with surveillance videos makes it easy to identify certain transactions to be reviewed for customer complaints, mainly used for post-retrieval when a transaction disputes occurs. Intelligent video: Transforming the in-store shopping experience The intelligent, self-learning video solutions outlined above are designed to empower retailers with much of the insight they…
Women’s Safety Freedom not Feardom
“Crime rates in Delhi are coming down” – this headline on the front page in a leading national daily screamed at me as I saw it while somebody was reading the paper in the Delhi Metro on the other day. The article cited statistics to corroborate the statement. This data about a city that was considered as the most unsafe among 19 major cities just a couple of years ago, and called the ‘Crime Capital’ accounting for nearly 40% of rapes, 33% of crimes against women, and the highest crime rate, as per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data, was certainly heartening. But does this reflect the changed ground reality as regards the safety of women in India? Everytime a young woman – a part of the expanding women workforce – steps out of the house, her mother asks, “Call me when you reach.” (Her eyes, however, say – so I may know you have reached safely). This constant fear in the eyes of our near and dear ones tells its own tale. Why are we constantly on alert as we step out into public spaces? Why do I live in a constant fear of invasion of my personal space, of leery eyes, lecherous glances and lewd comments? Why is my ‘mental space’ occupied with fear each day for my safety? I want freedom in my ‘mind’ from constant worry for my safety – as much as I want the freedom to walk into an empty train compartment without fear, or on a dark lonely street without worrying for my security. As more women continue to join the workforce, ensuring safety of women remains a critical aspect of ‘duty of care.’ Notwithstanding the headline above, and in spite of the many regulations laid down by the government, in the key economic centres of our country like Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bengaluru etc., safety and security of women continues to be an area of concern. Getting into overdrive – The 8th March syndrome As the Head of Training at a leading risk consultancy firm, which has conducted women’s safety training workshops for nearly a hundred thousand women professionals across corporate India, I have noticed a peculiar trend – companies go frenzy about International Women’s Day (8th March) – almost all of them want to conduct women’s safety awareness and self-defence training on that day or during that week. That leaves me with another nail-biting question leading to disappointment, “Is women’s safety worth an issue to be trotted out as just a discussion point on International Women’s Day only, or is it an on-going concern?” What happens during the rest of the year? Is the issue something so trivial that we can put it on the backburner to be brought alive on a particular day or when horrific incidents like Nirbhaya or the Kathua rape evoke strong reactions in national, global or social media? The extremely unfortunate Nirbhaya incident in 2012 had galvanised the nation into demanding justice, and ultimately culminated into important changes to the regulatory framework including amendments to the Juvenile Justice Act (No longer will a juvenile responsible for heinous deeds like rape and murder walk free, or have his past record wiped clean on account of being a juvenile – he will be treated like an adult and punished accordingly). Need for a holistic, integrated, & consistent approach Sporadic linear responses or solutions to violent crimes against women can never be effective. It requires the creation of an integrated eco-system that involves multiple stakeholder engagement that puts a premium on women’s safety and security. It involves getting into and eliminating the root causes, and using technology imaginatively and effectively to deter, detect, respond and defeat, training and awareness among stakeholders, gender sensitization, and an implementable regulatory framework which provides exemplary punishment to the offenders. By – Hima Bisht – Head of Training, MitKat Advisory
Matrix Comsec is All Set for IT EXPO’19
Matrix Comsec, the leading manufacturer and provider of security and telecom solutions, is participating in IT EXPO 2019 at Fort Lauderdale, Florida during 30 Jan to 1 Feb 2019 to showcase their comprehensive range of people mobility management, IP video surveillance and unified communication solutions. For SMB market, the company will showcase SPARSH VP710 that sets a new benchmark by offering enhanced video and voice capabilities, SMB IP-PBX SPARK100, an all-in-one communication solution with enterprise grade unified communication and collaboration, and next generation door controller COSEC ARGO that is equipped with features like 3.5” IPS touchscreen LCD with Gorilla glass, powerful processor for ultra-fast user identification, intuitive user experience, and vandal resistant (IK08). Further, Matrix will demonstrate seamless integration between Matrix IP video surveillance, access control and unified communications solutions along with Matrix video management and device management software suite. Matrix will also exhibit its range of gateways which allow easy integration with most of IP-PBX, TDM PBX, softswitch and hosted solutions. Award winning series of Matrix Gateways are perfect for enterprise and carrier-class solutions for multi-site connectivity and remote survivability while offering superior voice quality and state of the art routing features. Matrix is known for its customer centric, innovative range of solutions for unified communications, IP video surveillance, access control and time-attendance applications catering to diverse and complex deployments especially for the SMB, SME and large enterprises.
Matrix Comsec Announces Participation in Convergence 2019, to be Held in the Pragati Maidan, New Delhi from 29th – 31st Jan’19
Matrix Comsec has confirmed its participation in the 27th Convergence 2018, to be held in the Pragati Maidan, New Delhi from 29th – 31st January 2019. Matrix will be showcasing its complete range of Enterprise IP-PBXs, Unified Communication Server for Modern Enterprises, IP-PBX for SMB & SME, VoIP & GSM Gateways and new portfolio of IP Communication endpoints. Matrix is well-known for its indigenous and innovative range of solutions for Unified Communications, IP Video Surveillance, Access Control, and Time-Attendance. Each of our solutions is specifically designed for large, multi-location enterprises, SME and SMB organizations. Matrix Comsec continuously works towards keeping abreast with the constantly upgrading technology by designing and manufacturing solutions that are equipped with the latest technology. Matrix will be presenting some of its indigenously engineered Telecom solutions at the 27th Convergence 2019 Meet. Event Highlight Matrix Comsec will be showcasing its recently launched video conferencing solution – PARISAT VC as the highlight of the event. This Enterprise Meeting solution sets a new benchmark by offering enhanced video and voice capabilities. PARISAT meets the communication needs of modern enterprises to brainstorm ideas and devise effective strategies. Matrix PARISAT VC empowers organizations to make quick decisions and enhance customer experience. Products and Solutions Network Management solution – Matrix will be exhibiting its all-in-one solution for centralized control of every connected Matrix communication server and Gateway within a single network. Range of Gateways – Based on SIP (Session Initiation Protocol), Matrix range of Gateways allows easy integration with most of IP-PBX, TDM PBX, Softswitch and Hosted solutions. These award winning series of Matrix Gateways are perfect for enterprise and carrier-class solutions. Starting from a single port VoIP adaptor to high density VoIP-GSM-PRI-FXO/FXS Gateways, Matrix Telecom Solutions align with all requirements of Small to Large Business. Preloaded with superior voice quality and state-of-the-art routing features, Matrix Gateways are ideal for multi-site connectivity, remote survivability and SIP trunking. “Convergence India is a major technology event bringing ICT professionals on a common platform. Matrix is all set to showcase its latest Telecom solutions at Convergence this year. We look forward to meeting key decision makers and service providers and give them a first-hand experience of our Telecom solutions that are redefining business communications and providing a competitive advantage to our customers worldwide.” said Ganesh Jivani, Managing Director, Matrix Comsec. For further information, please contact: 394-GIDC, Makarpura, Vadodara-390010, India Toll Free (+91) 1800-258-7747 E-Mail: Inquiry@MatrixComSec.com Website: http://www.MatrixComSec.com
Matrix Comsec to Host its Event Matrix Insight on 24th Jan 19 in Philippines
Vadodara 27th December 2018, Matrix Comsec has confirmed it will be hosting its maiden event Insight in Philippines on 24th January 2019. Solution experts will be exhibiting innovative Unified Communication, Video Surveillance, Access Control and Time-Attendance solutions at the event. They will also be highlighting the benefits of partnering with Matrix for the attendees. Matrix is well-known for its indigenous and innovative range of solutions for IP Video Surveillance, Access Control, Time-Attendance and Unified Communications. All our solutions are specifically designed to meet the imminent needs of large, multi-location enterprises, SME and SMB organizations. Matrix Comsec continuously works towards keeping abreast with the constantly upgrading technology by designing and manufacturing solutions that are equipped with the latest technology. Matrix solution experts will be explaining in detail our enterprise grade Unified Communication and Security solutions at the Matrix Insight. Products and Solutions Matrix Unified Communication, Video Surveillance, Access Control and Time-Attendance solutions will be key highlights at the Matrix Insight Philippines. The solution experts will provide insights on key solution benefits, typical deployment scenarios, success stories and technology framework of our solutions. Matrix Team will also explain how Matrix partners benefit in terms of growth, differentiated products, profit margins and OEM support. IP Video Surveillance NVRX – The recently launched extreme series of Network Video Recorders will be exhibited at the event. These recorders come with 4K Decoding Capacity, allowing viewing high resolution live feed. IP Cameras – Matrix IP cameras are equipped with the H.265 Compression Technique which saves up to 50% on storage space. Video Management System – The video management system of Matrix assists in centralized command and control of the entire surveillance system. People Mobility Management Time-Attendance – Matrix Time-Attendance solutions allows organizations to collect and manage accurate attendance data of employees. Access Control – Matrix Access Control solutions enhances security of organizations and meets their requirements irrespective of its size, layout, locations and timings. Cafeteria Management – The solution offers automated cafeteria process right from placing an order to payment. Unified Communication Unified Communication – This enterprise grade communication solution offers Collaboration, Communication, Messaging and Mobility. Network Management solution – Matrix will be exhibiting its all-in-one solution for centralized control of every connected Matrix communication server and Gateway within a single network. Video Conferencing Solution – PARISAT VC – the Enterprise Meeting solution sets a new benchmark by offering enhanced video and voice capabilities. “Philippines is a growing market and a potential foothold for Matrix Comsec to spread its footprints. Our products meet the standard market requirements of the Philippines market. Moreover, Matrix Insight has served as a great platform for understanding the local market, study current and upcoming trends and design our solutions accordingly. We aim to expand our network and get a foot into the Philippines market”, commented Ganesh Jivani, MD Matrix Comsec. About Matrix Established in 1991, Matrix is a leader in Security and Telecom solutions for modern businesses and enterprises. As an innovative, technology driven and customer focused organization, the company is committed to keep pace with the revolutions in the Security and Telecom industries. With around 40% of its human resources dedicated to the development of new products, Matrix has launched cutting-edge products like Video Surveillance Systems – Video Management Software, Network Video Recorder and IP Camera, Access Control and Time-Attendance Systems as well as Telecom Solutions such as Unified Communications, IP-PBX, Universal Gateways, VoIP and GSM Gateways and Communication Endpoints. These solutions are feature-rich, reliable and conform to the international standards. Having global footprints in Asia, Europe, North America, South America and Africa through an extensive network of more than 2,500 channel partners, Matrix ensures that the products serve the needs of its customers faster and longer. Matrix has gained trust and admiration customers representing the entire spectrum of industries. Matrix has won many international awards for its innovative products. For further information, please contact: 394-GIDC, Makarpura, Vadodara-390010, India Toll Free (+91) 1800-258-7747 E-Mail: Inquiry@MatrixComSec.com Website: http://www.MatrixComSec.com
Sophos 2019 Threat Report
Sophos has recently launched its 2019 Threat Report providing insights into emerging and evolving cybersecurity trends. The report, produced by SophosLabs researchers, explores changes in the threat landscape over the past 12 months, uncovering trends and how they are expected to impact cybersecurity in 2019. The SophosLabs 2019 Threat Report focuses on these key cybercriminal behaviours and attacks: Capitalist cybercriminals are turning to targeted ransomware attacks that are premeditated and reaping millions of dollars in ransom. 2018 saw the advancement of hand-delivered, targeted ransomware attacks that are earning cybercriminals millions of dollars. These attacks are different from ‘spray and pray’ style attacks that are automatically distributed through millions of emails. Targeted ransomware is more damaging than if delivered from a bot, as human attackers can find and stake out victims, think laterally, troubleshoot to overcome roadblocks, and wipe out back-ups so the ransom must be paid. This ‘interactive attack style,’ where adversaries manually maneuver through a network step-by-step, is now increasing in popularity. Sophos experts believe the financial success of SamSam, BitPaymer and Dharma to inspire copycat attacks and expect more happen in 2019. Cybercriminals are using readily available Windows systems administration tools. This year’s report uncovers a shift in threat execution, as more mainstream attackers now employ advanced persistent threat (APT) techniques to use readily available IT tools as their route to advance through a system and complete their mission – whether it’s to steal sensitive information off the server or drop ransomware: Turning admin tools into cyberattack tools: In an ironic twist, or Cyber Catch-22, cybercriminals are utilising essential or built-in Windows IT admin tools, including Powershell files and Windows scripting executables, to deploy malware attacks on users. Cybercriminals are playing digital dominos: By chaining together a sequence of different script types that execute an attack at the end of the event series, hackers can instigate a chain reaction before IT managers detect a threat is operational on the network, and once they break in it’s difficult to stop the payload from executing. Cybercriminals have adopted newer Office exploits to lure in victims: Office exploits have long been an attack vector, but recently cybercriminals have cut loose old Office document exploits in favour of newer ones. EternalBlue becomes a key tool for cryptojacking attacks: Patching updates appeared for this Windows threat more than a year ago, yet the EternalBlue exploit is still a favourite of cybercriminals. The coupling of EternalBlue to cryptomining software turned the activity from a nuisance hobby into a potentially lucrative criminal career. Lateral distribution on the corporate networks allowed the cryptojacker to quickly infect multiple machines, increasing payouts to the hacker and heavy costs to the user. Malware’s impact extends beyond the organization’s infrastructure as the threats from mobile malware grow a pace. With illegal Android apps on the increase, 2018 has seen an increased focus in malware being pushed to phones, tablets and other IoT devices. As homes and businesses adopt more internet-connected devices, criminals have been devising new ways to hijack those devices to use as nodes in huge botnet attacks. In 2018, VPNFilter demonstrated the destructive power of weaponized malware that affects embedded systems and networked devices that have no obvious user interface. Elsewhere, MiraiAidra, Wifatch, and Gafgyt delivered a range of automated attacks that hijacked networked devices to use as nodes in botnets to engage in distributed denial-of-service attacks, mine cryptocurrency and infiltrate networks.
HID Global Upgrading Security at University of Hull
The University of Hull has brought their access control technology into the mobile age. To better serve its students while also increasing security throughout the campus, the university partnered with HID Global, a worldwide leader in trusted identity solutions. The partnership has provided the university more efficient access control to campus buildings and has improved the experience for students and staff. Challenges The University of Hull manages abogcfut 25,000 students and 2,500 staff identities with an expected increase in students year over year. Students and staff were accessing housing accommodations, lecture halls, libraries, research buildings, and other secure locations with old access card technology. To improve their security, the University of Hull updated their magnetic stripe (magstripe) cards to contactless technology several years ago, but still found the solution lacking. Issuing thousands of access cards and maintaining credentials was logistically demanding and inefficient. “As you can imagine, over 520 people arriving at student residences for the weekend, with all of their parents, grandparents, dogs and others, is quite chaotic,” said Gary Moore of the University’s ICT Department. Beyond the laborious upkeep of physical cards, the University of Hull – like many other universities – found that students often lost or misplaced their student IDs/ access cards. The University of Hull sought to reduce the need for staffing and late night disturbances caused by students who lost their cards. The university wanted a new solution that could be integrated into their current secure access software, while also being able to efficiently issue and manage student IDs. The new solution also needed to be easy for students to adopt. While security was imperative for the university, they didn’t want it to create a hassle for students and staff using the new solution. Solution The University of Hull partnered with HID Global to increase security while improving their identity management process and the student experience at the same time. The university deployed iCLASS SE® readers and HID Mobile Access®, which make it possible for students to carry their IDs (that also contain their access credentials) on their smartphones. Now, students and staff simply use their mobile phones, smartwatch, and other mobile devices to quickly and conveniently access buildings across the campus. HID Mobile Access integrates with the University of Hull’s security software, provided by Genetec, and eliminates redundancy in the workflow required to manage identities. “The university considers secure access control to be very important for the safety of the students and staff. It’s not only good for a student, it’s also good for their parents to know that there is solid security around the student residences,” said Gary Moore, “HID and Genetec have seamlessly integrated the mobile access offering so that now all I have to do is add a credential into the Genetec system, which auto-populates the HID Mobile Access Portal. This simplifies my process. Now, I just enter information once to provision a credential–unlike the previous two-step process.” “The benefits and advantages for having mobile access will definitely come to the fore next year when we register mobile credentials prior to student arrival,” added Moore, “We can have students’ mobile IDs pre-deployed before arrivals. From the students’ perspective, they just arrive and start using their smartphone to access their room. It’s far easier.” To enter a secured door, students and staff present their mobile device to an iCLASS SE reader for access. Benefits With HID Mobile Access, the University of Hull stepped up their security and reduced the need for physical access cards that are cumbersome to manage and often misplaced by students. Moving to a mobile infrastructure for access control had many benefits including: Seamless integration with third-party software and devices. Higher user satisfaction. Scalable. Increased efficiency. Ease of use. When surveyed, students reported positive feedback from using HID Mobile Access. “It makes the university a lot more attractive for students,” said Mark Mullaney, Assistant Director of Commercial Services at the University of Hull, “For the student, it provides a more secure way to access buildings and provides a better experience for them overall, and for the university itself, it is a recruitment tool that we can offer to incoming students.”