The role of communication in effective cybersecurity

A recent study of 5,000 cybersecurity professionals has found that ineffective communication between security specialists and company executives is one of the biggest barriers to reducing the number of cyber attacks made on company computer systems.

Of the 5,000 respondents to the survey, 31 percent said that they had never sat down with an organisation’s top brass to talk about cybersecurity, while 23 percent said they met execs to discuss cybersecurity just once a year.

This is a cause for concern for cybersecurity professionals who share a common gripe about the general lack of understanding about the link between loss of data, and loss of revenue. This is hardly surprising given just how infrequently the two parties communicate.

To combat this lack of understanding and the scarcity of skills which is particularly prevalent in the public sector, private ftp alternative providers such as Thru are being hired, via the G-Cloud, to increase awareness and improve the level of cybersecurity within government agencies.

The increase in agility

In an increasingly agile world where businesses want to be able to respond instantly to new opportunities or a change in customer demand, security can often come as an afterthought.

However, as attackers change their tactics, it is essential that cybersecurity professionals are in regular contact with company executives to increase their understanding of the new threats that arise as a result of new opportunities.

Executive teams should understand what threats the business faces, what the capabilities are within the company to defend against those threats, and whether a threat is industry specific or targeted at the business in particular. This approach makes it easier to identify weaknesses within the organisation and improve cybersecurity in the future.

Cybersecurity discontentment 

The research also revealed an underlying discontentment harboured by a good proportion of the survey’s respondents with the current security systems in place. In fact, some 29 percent of respondents said they’d like to overhaul their current security, while 13 percent said there would be no point changing anything about their current system as a determined attacker would be able to breakthrough whatever systems were in place.

These statistics are quite telling and reveal just how underprepared many cybersecurity professionals feel in the face of increasingly sophisticated attacks.

New advice on passwords

To change the subject slightly, Microsoft has managed to increase the discontentment of a few security experts with its latest advice on passwords.

The recommendation, which flies in the face of the advice many cybersecurity professionals have been dishing out for the past decade or so, advises users to identify the importance of a particular application, and assign a password which is comparative in strength. So, relatively weak passwords should be used to protect less important websites, while strong passwords should be used to access important applications, such as banking.

However, some experts have come to the defence of conventional wisdom, claiming this approach would be just as burdensome for consumers as choosing a strong password for every site.

In an article in TechNewsWorld, the senior director of a leading cybersecurity provider, said: “Regular users have trouble distinguishing what ‘important’ and ‘non-important’ services are. Most people understand that banking is important – but the distinction is not always clear on other services.

“Password re-use is a significant threat, both to individual users and organisations. As users choose the same passwords for online and organisational services, the organisation’s exposure to attack grows.”

Does your cybersecurity team regularly communicate with the top brass? If not, do you think this approach would help to improve your security? And what do you make of this latest advice on passwords? We’d love to hear from you, so please leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

AUTHOR BIO

James Davies is a tech blogger and internet start-up owner based in Southend-On-Sea. When he’s not blogging for some of the UK’s most authoritative websites, James can be found paddle boarding and windsurfing. He’s not very good at either, but that’s by-the-by.

Water: - Now a Cell Phone Charger

Cell phone: - The Power Issue: -

Cell phones have become indispensible in the last decade or so. Cheap prices along with a wide range of choices have resulted in almost everyone having a cellphone. But even though life has become a lot easier thanks to this device, people nowadays have to face a new challenge, the challenge of keeping their phones adequately charged.

Though charging is a fairly while at work or at home, it becomes difficult when people are outdoors, i.e. away from power outlets. Even though power banks have solved this dilemma to some extent, they still have certain flaws regarding their affordability/availability.

Thus it is clearly seen that there is a need of a device which can easily charge cellphones by harnessing something which is naturally available or something which is not directly related to a power source. Water covers more than 2/3rds of our planet’s surface & is present in abundance in our surroundings & it would be amazing if a device can be invented which could utilize this abundance & harness power from it to run our cellphones. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.) have helped mankind realize this dream.

Mechanism: - 

Researchers namely, Nenad Miljkovic and Evelyn Wang have come across the fact that when water drops jump spontaneously while coming in contact with super-hydrophobic (water repelling) surfaces, during condensation, they carry an electric charge.

They also stated that a device consisting of interleaved plates can be created to utilize this fact to power cellphones. As water droplets will jump, they will come in contact with one plate & another carrying their charge.

This chare can be harnessed as power by constructing an external circuit across the said plates. The device can be made of any conducting material, even something as cheap & abundant as aluminium, thus potentially reducing its cost. Another perk of this system is that it can also produce clean water.

In humid environments, this device can simply harness power from the surrounding atmosphere provided that a temperature difference exists between the surroundings & the device for condensation to take place.

Even though the process will be time consuming, it is a boon for people who have to operate in remote areas where conventional power sources are difficult to come across. It can also be use to power remote, automated environment sensors.

Implications: - 

Once a producible version of this device is available, a huge part of energy crisis will be solved also as people will no longer have to depend on fossil-fuel generated electricity. The energy harnessed will be clean, cheap & virtually infinite in terms of amount & availability.

Pollution issues will be solved to some extent as well. Clean water, another compelling requirement in today’s world can be generated as well thanks to this device.

People will be tension free when it comes to keeping their cell phones powered 24*7. Thus, once again technology comes to the rescue to rid mankind of misery & improve the quality of life.

SmartPhones Sensor: Helps Generating Crowdsourced Pollution Maps

Science is progressing daily. Every second of every day someone in some part of the world is creating something new and innovating. But Science and technology have its backlogs too. One of the major side effects of developing technology is pollution.

The irony is to compact these side effects we need the help of science. In the Kalsruhe Institute of Technology, a technology is being developed that will enable the smart phones to measure and determine the level of particulate matter present in the atmosphere. But the accurate calculation of the particulate level in the atmosphere for a crowded city or a large region will need conservable amount of manpower.

THE IDEA: 

The idea is to attach a sensor to the smart phones that will calculate the particulate matter level in the atmosphere and in turn generate effective pollution maps for that particular area. The idea is still under consideration and the research is going on this particular topic. But what is yet to be determined is exactly how many persons will be required for this project to generate a reliable and accurate pollution map for a certain area.

THE PROGRESS: 

Kalsruhe Institute of Technology is not the first intuition to work in this field. Other institutions have worked on a similar idea before Kalsruhe. At the University of California, a project was undertaken by a group of researchers who explore the same idea. Back in the year 2010, smart phones were used to read the levels of particulate matter and researchers were under the impression that by installing an app in the smart phones, light could be emitted via the LED’s flash from the built in camera and photos pertinent to the topic were analysed.

The researchers at KIT went further ahead and attached a light trap to the concerned phone to receive more accurate and reliable results. A low cost dust sensor was also adapted.

In another year or two , researchers hope to develop a production version of this product with a newer version of the sensor that will calculate fine dust along with course dust. Photos could also be stored and preserved in the future version increasing the effectively of the product. This form with be supported by a magnet which will suit the needs of the application in the smart phones.

THE PROBLEM: 

In spite of all this, a slight problem still remains. This application will be used by the general public and researchers are doubtful about how this application will be used by the public.

No matter what the negative consequences of the application might be, this is certainly a ground-breaking idea in the field of science. This will help to solve a number of health issues especially in over populated and busy cities. With the help of accurate pollution maps, necessary measures could be taken for a particular region to protect and preserve their environment. The health department could concentrate on a particular area with this app.

Windows 8.1 Lets you Stay Healthier with Fitbit App

Windows Phones in the Market

Windows Phone is one of the most revolutionary merchandise that dominates the whole mobile phone market. While Android has been leading the market for quite a long time, the whole range of Windows Phones seem to take a good lead in this competition as well.

Importance of Apps

Applications or rather Apps have always had a special place in today's smartphones. Likewise, Microsoft too understanding this fact is keeping up to date with the most recent and most important Apps. The much-awaited release of Window 8.1 also is loaded with a whole lot of Apps.

One such App, which is confirmed to be given along with the Windows 8.1 version, is the Fitbit App. Especially for all those who are really health conscious and love to stay fit no matter what may come, this App is quite beneficial. In its essence, it is basically a health management service. This App actually monitors the regular activities of any person. As for example, it tracks the sleeps of one and also about that person's respective weight.

Windows phones users can now easily maintain a healthy body. For using this App, the user must have a Fitbit account and if one does not have that he or she needs to sign up which has been kept free by the Fitbit Company. Having an account will not only let the user use the App as per his or her needs and requirements, but will also enable him or her to use the other Fitbit devices as well.

Features Users can Avail

This useful healthy App includes such important tools and information that will be able to synchronize the life of any one. It provides daily historical graphs, that lets the user to understand of his or her steps, calorie burn as well as floor climbing patterns.

Also it provides a BMI trend graphing. Basically it tracks the daily activities that any normal person faces in real life. Knowing all about the daily processes, any person is liable to know what is right or wrong for health, following which the proper activities can be taken into account.

Moreover, since they are coming with a Windows 8.1 combination, things become simply smoother and faster. One can track the daily activities on the go, no matter which place is it or what time is it. Also with the help of this App, users can measure themselves against the present Fitbit friends.

A Wise Decision

The introduction of the Fitbit App is really useful as well as important in order to stay ahead in the competition. Like in Android and IOS phones, Microsoft in order to hold an important and competitive rank in the smartphones market, needed to take this step.

In each aspect, this step taken by Microsoft is indeed a wise one. It breaks free from the conventional Apps that are generally presented by the Windows, like Xbox games and social networking applications. Microsoft like always thus is successful again to present a literally “healthy” competition.

The dependable guide to the best toner cartridges

May it be a small business or a big one, stationery has been a part of offices since inception. Moreover, amongst all the equipments, the printers have made our lives simpler. It helps you in proper documentation, presentation and what not. One click operation and you get the best documents with custom fonts, colours, figures and images. However, when it comes to printers, maintenance is something that is usually a concern. Maintenance mostly comprises of cleaning and changing of the toner cartridges or refilling it. Tough task it may seem, but with the dependable guide to the best toner cartridges, you will be able to learn about the best toner cartridges, prices, offers, their maintenance and much more. Keep reading to understand your printing needs even better.

Types of toner cartridge:
 

A few top companies that manufacture printers are HP, Epson, Canon, Lexmark, Brother, and Samsung. The not only manufacture printers, they also manufacture toner cartridges. Also, there are a number of companies selling toner cartridges apart from the original manufacturers. However, the best option is to choose the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) cartridge as it is not only compatible with your printer, but also saves you the uncertainty of your cartridge running out or getting non-functional during the hour of need. The only hindrance in choosing an OEM toner cartridge is that they are comparatively expensive. There are other options as well, like remanufactured toner cartridges, where-in toner cartridges are made up of recycled or refurbished parts of an old toner cartridge.

They are reasonably priced as compared to an OEM toner cartridge. However, one cannot vouch on its performance. Apart from these two, there are generic toner cartridges as well, but they are very uncertain in their performance and if it so happens that they are not compatible with the printer. It might hamper the performance of the printer as well. So, usually people don’t prefer generic toner cartridges for their printers. One more option is the refill toner kit, but the same being very expensive and complicated in exercising; it is best advised to stay away from this option.

Pricing and sustainability:
 
Toner cartridges are usually priced as per the page yield or the brand of the OEM cartridge. Page yield is the number of pages that can be printed before the printer runs out of the toner. As mentioned earlier OEM cartridges are mostly expensive. However, one can choose a more economic option by choosing a remanufactured toner cartridge, if someone has a budget issue. Remanufactured toner cartridges are usually available for half of the price of an OEM cartridge. Many stationery stores offer wholesale discounts or quantity discounts on toner cartridges.

So, bulk purchase can also help in cost saving. The only care to be taken is to store toner cartridge in the right position and under the right temperature, as sunlight and heat can cause serious damage to the toner particles. Another good way to buy a toner cartridge is to order it online. Online stores offer a wide range of OEM, remanufactured, generic toner cartridges and refill toner kits. They make it super simple as they offer a wide range of products to select from but also enable a person to choose the exact specific toner for their printer. Additionally, online stores offer good discounts on the products. It is easy and convenient and you get your toner cartridge at your door step.

Maintenance of toner cartridge:
 
Now, mere choosing the right cartridge isn’t enough, one needs to maintain the toner cartridge properly. So, below are a few check points that can help in maintenance of your toner cartridge and your printer.

1. If your printer is showing low toner levels, don’t rush in to installing a new cartridge. Always check for clogged nozzles, clean the cartridge with a damp cloth and also change the font settings. Reinstall the cartridge and try running it once again.

2. Before installing a new cartridge, shake it gently or rock it side by side. This ensures that all the powder is evenly distributed before the cartridge is installed.

3. One has to keep a check on the printer settings, make sure ‘toner saver’ mode is on. The font is ideal font without much bold and large font text. Also, the printing should ordinarily be done in the draft mode.

4. Nevertheless, the use of paper should be optimum and printing should be done wisely. As it is best to save paper than to waste it.