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What is IAAS – Infrastructure as a Service?

Whether your company is a conglomerate or start-up, chances are you are using cloud computing services in one form or another. From sending emails, editing documents, playing games online to watching TV and banking transactions, you are already using the cloud all the time. Cloud computing can take care of all your IT needs – such as servers, software, storage, databases, networking and analytics.

There are three main types of cloud services: Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).

Here is what each type does.

SAAS – A distribution model where a cloud service provider hosts all your applications and makes it available to you over the internet.

PAAS – The cloud service provider delivers the operating systems as well as other related services through the web, and you don’t have to bother about installation and downloads – or invest in IT infrastructure.

IAAS – The cloud service provider offers everything that you need for your IT infrastructure. From virtual machines, operating system, and networks to storage, support, and hardware, the provider will offer you everything, which can fulfil all your IT infrastructure needs –without investing money in buying hardware of your own.

All about IAAS

IaaS allows customers to use the IT infrastructure of the cloud service provider on a subscription basis. This model outsources all IT infrastructure needs to the provider, which typically has an on-premise data center that includes servers, networking hardware, virtual machines, operating systems and storage. The service provider also offers a host of other services that include monitoring, security, billing, load balancing, log access and clustering, as well as storage facilities – such as backup, data recovery and replication.

IaaS users can access these services and resources via a wide area network (WAN) like the internet, and then use the IaaS provider’s services to install the rest of the applications. For example: as a customer, you need to log in to the IaaS platform and create virtual machines, install an operating system (OS), make storage buckets and backups. You can then use the cloud provider’s services to perform many functions, such as cost tracking, network traffic balancing, performance monitoring, disaster recovery management – and even solve application issues.

All cloud computing models work on the participation of the provider, and in most cases act as a third-party organization that sells IaaS. Two of the better-known independent IaaS providers are Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google Cloud Platform (GCP). As a customer, you can also opt for a private cloud, where you provide your infrastructure services.

Advantages of IAAS

Businesses opt for IaaS because it is an easy, fast and cost-effective option for which they don’t have to invest, support, or manage the infrastructure. In this model, a business subscribes its IT infrastructure needs from a cloud service provider. IaaS is best suited for businesses/ assignments that are new, short-term, or that entail unexpected changes.

IaaS subscribers typically pay only on a per-user basis. At times, IaaS providers bill based on the amount of virtual machine space you use. This convenient payment method turns out to be a better option for businesses that don’t want to invest big money in setting up their own IT infrastructure.

Also, cloud computing works well for several other reasons. It is reliable because it keeps your data safe, offers uninterrupted service and high speed, which increases overall productivity.

However, says Ian McClarty, CEO and President of PhoenixNAP Global IT Services,

“Infrastructure requires careful planning as well. Determine if a prebuilt IaaS Solution is a good fit. This can save money and add expertise to your deployment without having to hire on your own.”

Prominent IAAS Venors & Providers

There are several IaaS providers in the market, but selecting one that best serves your needs is a crucial question. Though most of the IaaS providers offer its clients virtual machines, it all comes down to the kind of management and specialized services they are ready to deliver.

For this reason, it is important to evaluate service providers on not just the basis of cloud services they offer, but also on the following factors: management functions, identity management, service level agreements (SLAs), customer support and monitoring tools.

Amazon AWS offers a range of compute and storage services, such as Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2), Glacier, and Simple Storage Services (S3). AWS offers a full range of services and integrated monitoring tools with a competitive pricing structure.

Since Google Compute Engine (GCE) is integrated with other Google services, it is best suited for high-performance computing, data warehousing, big data and analytics applications. GCE also offers a range of compute and storage services.

Windows Azure also offers a range of compute and storage services. It is an easy-to-use administration tool, more so if you are used to working on Microsoft platforms. It is not a Windows-only IaaS.

Rackspace Open Cloud also has an easy-to-use control panel and offers strong customer service apart from offering core cloud compute services.

HP Enterprise Converged Infrastructure is a viable solution for businesses that want to integrate their current IT infrastructure with a public, hybrid or private cloud.

IBM SmartCloud Enterprise offers a range of compute and storage services with a combination of software, management and security features for enterprise cloud administrators.

Tom’s IT Pro offers an informative in-depth look at the above IaaS providers. Of course, this is not a comprehensive list. There are many vendors in the market, some small and others offering niche services.

Again, carefully analyze your needs before selecting a cloud service provider. McClarty advises the following: “If a customized product is a better fit, start by testing some solutions with a smaller deployment before jumping in. By testing a proof of concept, you can get a direct feel for what cloud adoption for your entire

organization may be like. Working with engineers to review detailed architecture ahead of time can reduce costly mistakes and make sure your move goes smoothly. Additionally, if there are compliance requirements, these will need to be identified and considered.”

No matter which IaaS provider you choose, keeping your company’s data secure is always the first priority. DocuServe is a cloud-based digital data protection company providing services that include cloud-based document management, content encryption and distribution, and digital media replication and encryption. Contact us today to learn about our full range of solutions.

Secure your Digital Content from Hackers

Video Encryption – How to Secure Your Digital Content

If you are uploading your music video on the internet, you want others to view it. But if your video pertains to corporate training, you don’t want unauthorized people to access your confidential company information. Video encryption can protect your content from unauthorized viewing.

Data breaches, unauthorized sharing and data theft are risks for everyone doing business these days. To survive in this fiercely competitive world, you need to rely on content security to keep your company information safe and secure.

Encrypting your videos is one way of protecting your corporate information. Once your video content is encrypted, you can safely share the information with your staff, customers, partners and prospects.

There are three options for securing your videos from prying eyes: encrypting the video, protecting the video or doing both of them together.

What is encryption?

While encryption pertains to masking or manipulating the data, protection means securing the file through codecs, passwords, container formats, etc., so that others cannot access the data inside.

But, to get heightened security, you can apply both encryption and protection, which is the best option to protect your content. When you use the word encryption in casual conversation, it might mean encryption, protection, encoding, or all of them in different proportions. Therefore, encryption in this context means protecting your data in every way possible – which, of course, includes both encryption and protection.

What is video encryption?

Video encryption is the process of keeping your video secure from prying eyes. Why do you need to encrypt your videos? There could be two reasons. The first is personal and the second is Digital Rights Management (DRM).

Personal encryption, as the name suggests, is used for personal privacy. For example, when you make a video and want to share it with your family, friends, customers, etc., but at the same time, you don’t want the content to be viewed by unauthorized people.

Digital Rights Management is along the same lines, but involves more complexities. The different levels of DRM are:

Qualitative and quantitative video streams for various price points
Region-centric video
Device or media-centric video
Software-centric video
Adaptive streaming

So, what is the main difference between personal encryption and Digital Rights Management? In case of personal encryption, except for the intended recipient, everyone else is blocked out. But, in case of DRM, it blocks people out either temporarily or permanently, without human help and on a given set of conditions.

Qualitative and quantitative video streams for different price points – If you are ready to spend more money, you can get 4K, but if you want to pay the lowest price, you will have to settle for SD. Since it directly impacts the resolution (physical data of the video stream), it affects the quality. The more you pay, the higher quality you get.

Region-centric video – Do you want to cater to a particular region? You don’t want other regions/ countries to see the video. The reasons for this form of DRM could be either you are barred by law to cater to other regions, or you want to control the market dynamics. In such scenarios, you need region-specific management.

Device or media-centric – This is done to restrict your media from playing on devices that don’t support it. You create a media that is exclusive to a particular device like iTunes, Kindle, Apple TV, etc., and those that don’t conform to the device are unable to play it.

Software-centric video – You need adequate software support and/or also pay a license fee to play some videos. When the operating system doesn’t support the codecs or if the license is not paid for, then certain NLEs don’t play some codecs. Hence, codec licensing is another way you can control the viewing of your video.
Adaptive streaming – During adaptive streaming, the video dynamically adapts to the resolution, bit rate, etc. of the internet speed and/or some other factors.

What you need to keep in mind before switching to a video encryption standard

Because people have different devices, you need to use multiple encryption methods to protect your video.

What has been encrypted by you today will be decrypted by someone else sooner rather than later. Hence, to get over the problem, you should use larger bit depths to encrypt your content. But this increases your overall costs and is also inconvenient to the end-users.
Technology keeps changing. What you encrypt today might get obsolete three years down the line. For this reason, you may need to eventually re-encode your content, or else it will become unreadable. It means that you need to keep one unencrypted copy of your video in a safe place.
You are bound by the licensing you buy. If someone hacks your encryption service, or if a better option comes up in the market, you will have to start the encryption process from scratch.

How online videos are protected

First, the video is encoded into standard encryption, which is stored in a secure server. Not everyone is allowed access to the video. You need to login to the server with a verified email account and password to view/access the video.
The video is transmitted through a secure pathway to the viewer’s computer, and can be viewed on a browser, which decrypts the video. The browser does not allow unauthorized access to other software to either view it or record it. The browser also does not allow the OS to store the content in the viewer’s computer. The secure connection is terminated soon after viewing is complete. For targeted marketing and statistical research, the data from the viewer is passed on to the content provider. With this data, you can also track down pilferages and leakages. And, if by chance the video is downloaded, then the encryption makes sure that it does not play on the available media player.

So, how does video encryption stop piracy?

The “pirate” needs to have adequate knowledge to decrypt the encryption. The pirates have to pay upfront to get a high-quality stream. And, when you pay, it is obvious that the server would have the necessary information on you.

The pirate has to encode the encrypted stream with the help of a software to get an accessible format. The process will either increase the size of the file or reduce the quality of the source. As the size of the file increases, the pirate needs to spend more to upload the data again. Cloud algorithms can use the uploaded source and match it up to the original stream to find out the correlations.

Video encryption options

There are two scenarios when it comes to video encryption: video at rest and video in motion (streaming).
Video at rest – Some options for videos that remain on hard drives or those that are downloaded to play at a later stage are:

Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) – 128, 192 or 256 bits
Google Widevine
Apple Fair Play for videos from iTunes
Marlin
Windows Protected Media Path or PMP

Video in motion or streaming video – Some option for video in motion or streaming video are:

RTMFP and RTMP(E)
Soon-to-arrive HTML5 DRM standard

The most secure of the encrypting systems is AES, which has been adopted by the United States government and is now used worldwide.

Obviously, video encryption is not a DIY project. DocuServe provides robust data encryption solutions for a wide variety of industries. Learn about all we offer, then contact us to keep your intellectual property secure.

Blockchain 101: What You Need to Know About Blockchain

Have you heard about blockchain?

Chances are you must have heard about it, but probably haven’t given blockchain the kind of weight it deserves. But make no mistake, blockchain is a technological marvel that will have far-reaching effects on not just the financial services market, but on other industries and businesses, as well.

If you find Bitcoin and cryptocurrency fascinating enough to delve into and explore, you also need to know something about blockchain.

A blockchain is a distributed and shared database where the database storage devices are not all linked to a common processor. It is a list of growing records, called as blocks, which are connected and secured by cryptography. Every block is connected to the previous block and has a transaction data and timestamp.

Cryptography ensures the safety and security of a blockchain. Users are only able to edit the blockchain parts they own, and that is if they have the private keys which are mandatory to write to the file. Cryptography also makes sure that your copy of the distributed blockchain remains in sync with others.

Blockchain is intrinsically resistant to data modification. It is a public, open, distributed and shared ledger that can record transactions between parties in a certifiable, efficient and permanent way. Blockchain is used as a distributed ledger and is managed by a P2P (peer-to-peer) network jointly sticking to a protocol for authenticating new blocks. And, once data is recorded in any block, it cannot be changed. To change the data, all the subsequent blocks have to be altered, which is not an easy task and can happen only with majority collusion.

Blockchains by design are secure and represent a distributed or shared computing system with high levels of Byzantine-like fault tolerance. As a result, blockchain technology allows data management in a decentralized and an autonomous way. Therefore, blockchain is best suited for medical record keeping, recording of events and other record management activities like transaction processing, identity management, food traceability, voting or documenting provenance.

The Invention of Blockchain

As mentioned earlier, blockchains are designed to be secure databases. The concept of blockchain came into existence in 2008 by a person or group under the pseudonym of Satoshi Nakamoto, and then introduced as the part of the digital Bitcoin currency for the first time in 2009. For all Bitcoin transactions, the blockchain acts as the public ledger. With the help of blockchain technology, Bitcoin became the first digital currency to solve the problem of double-spending, and that, too, without the use of a central server or an authoritative body.

What Are The Different Types of Blockchain?

Public blockchains – Public blockchains like Bitcoin are big distributed networks that work through a native token. Anyone can participate in this forum, and at any level. They have open source code, which is maintained by the community.

Permissioned blockchains – A permissioned blockchain like Ripple control roles that people can have in a network. They are big and distributed systems, and also use a native token. In permissioned blockchains, the core code may or may not be open source.

Private blockchains – These are smaller systems, and do not use a token. Membership in private blockchains is closely controlled. Consortiums prefer this type of blockchain where members are highly trustworthy, and confidential information can easily be traded without any problem.

All of these are blockchain types, and all of them use cryptography, which allows users on any given network to securely manage the ledger in a decentralized way.

The Importance of Blockchain

The internet is a decentralized forum, which we use to share most of our day-to-day information, but for financial transactions, we are forced to resort to a tried and tested system of a centralized financial institution, such as banks. Even the popular PayPal payment for online transactions only becomes effective once we integrate it with a credit card or a bank account.

With blockchain technology in place, people can transact and do business with each other directly without the involvement of a middleman. The blockchain technology helps remove the middleman as it performs these three vital roles:

Records all transactions
Establishes identities
Establishes contracts (typically a prerogative of the financial services sector)

Blockchain technology, if implemented, can have a far-reaching effect on the financial services sector, as it has huge market capitalization. Though it will cause an upheaval in the financial services market, the technology can considerably improve the efficiencies of the financial services business.

Not only will the financial services sector be able to benefit from blockchain technology – other industries also stand to gain tremendously. Other than Bitcoin, the technology can also be used to store all sorts of digital data, including computer code.

The piece of code can be programmed to perform a function when some parties key in their entries, which is nothing but getting into a contract. This code could also decipher external data feeds, anything that can be analyzed by the computer – such as news headlines, weather reports or stock prices – which could be used to create contracts that will automatically be filed as and when the conditions are met. These are referred to as smart contracts, and this can open an exciting number of opportunities.

One blockchain pioneer is Ternio. Based in Lewes, DE, Ternio provides blockchain for the programmatic digital advertising industry. Says Ternio co-founder Ian Kane:

“At Ternio, we use Blockchain to solve the many problems facing digital advertising such as domain fraud, bot traffic, lack of transparency and lengthy payment models. The issue is that incentives are not aligned, causing both advertisers and publishers to feel they are on the losing side of the deal. Blockchain is the solution to bring transparency to the supply chain because it inherently brings trust to a trustless environment.

“By reducing the number of bad players in the supply chain, it enables the good companies to thrive. Most important, publishers are able to collect a higher percentage of the total ad dollars entering the ecosystem and will do so at the time of impression delivery. Blockchain is still in its infancy, but the underlying technology is here to stay and all ad tech companies should be looking at how it can help to improve their business.”

How blockchain is different from Bitcoin

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are able to exist only because of blockchain technology. For example, Twitter is a social medium platform that is on the internet. The internet makes Twitter possible, but Twitter itself is not the internet.

How blockchain functions

Blockchain is comprised of blocks, each of which records some current transactions. These blocks permanently go into the blockchain, and new blocks are created as soon as old ones are completed. All these blocks are linked to one another in a sequential and linear manner, and each block has a hash of the previous block. The blockchain contains all the information, from the last block to the first-ever block.

Once a transaction takes place, the information remains in the blockchain permanently. It cannot be copied or deleted, it can only be distributed. The technology is completely secure, as blocks can only be added with complex cryptography.

Blockchain databases are autonomously managed for sharing information between two parties. Since it is a P2P network that has a shared or distributed timestamping server, there is no need for an administrator. The person using the blockchain is the administrator.

There is no third party involvement in blockchain because the users validate each time one person pays to another for anything. The details of the transactions are recorded in the blocks publicly, which are later verified by other users. All the participating computers – referred to as nodes – share the database of the blockchain. Every node gets a blockchain copy, which means that you get public records of all the transaction that ever happened on the network.

Blockchain technology has the potential to improve our existing financial services sector, including banks. As this disruptive new technology stands ready to change the world, the decision-makers in financial services and other industries now face the challenge of developing a strategic approach to adaptation.

Cryptocurrency For Dummies: What is Cryptocurrency & How Does it Work?

There is tremendous interest in the cryptocurrency space right now, and equal parts confusion, uncertainty, and doubt. Bitcoin, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, ICOs. What do these even mean? This guide will be a brief overview of what cryptocurrency is and how it works.

Cryptocurrency is a general name referring to all the encrypted decentralized digital currencies like Bitcoin. The underlying infrastructure that makes these cryptocurrencies what they are is called blockchain. At its simplest, a Blockchain is a shared database (ledger) that everyone can write to and access to verify transactions. It is extremely secure because the transactions are encrypted with 256-bit cryptographic keys. So instead of the record of every transaction that has occured on a server, all the information is kept in the decentralized ledger (the blockchain).

These ledgers are constantly checked against one another automatically to stay up to date with the master. The master is the longest most agreed-upon chain at any given time.

“Anyone (or any program) can check the ledger any time because the ledger is public. But, everything on the ledger is encrypted, so unless you have the key for the ledger slots you’re trying to look at, all you see is nonsense. This is how the system is able to be secure, but also public. Everything is encrypted using an algorithm that is, as of now, unhackable.” – Adam Kerpelman, founder and CEO of Juris – Human-Powered Dispute Resolution for Blockchain Smart Contracts,

When a new coin comes out it usually releases a “white paper” which is like a sales pitch. Initial Coin Offers (ICO’s) are new coins used for crowdfunding. Cryptocurrency is legal and taxable in the US, but it isn’t legal tender and is treated as an investment property. With that said, due to its infancy and history so far, cryptocurrencies should be invested in and used with their historical volatility in mind.

Is Cryptocurrency Safe?

Says Scott Amyx, of Amyx Ventures, “Cryptocurrencies are inherently very safe but the vulnerability of cryptocurrencies lies not with the underlying technology but rather with people and institutions — hackers trick the user into divulging access to the exchange, typically your email address and a password (via phishing) or to the private key in your wallet. Specific to exchanges, the most common way is to hack into your email account and then request a password reset to the exchange.”

To mitigate this risk, Amyx recommends enabling multi-factor authentication.

Where Do You Keep Cryptocurrency?

A third party exchange such as Upbit and OKEx
A first party wallet with a public key which allows others to give you cryptocurrency and a private key (to open the wallet for withdrawal)
In the case of an exchange, investors can buy and store digital currency using their service.
For a wallet, you are responsible for keeping the private key safe so that no one can hack into your wallet.

Cybersecurity Degree Programs, Cybersecurity Masters Degree, Degree in Cyber Security, Online Security, Internet Security

Interested in Internet Security? Get a Cybersecurity Masters Degree!

Tags : Cybersecurity Mobile Security Secure Digital Content

No one can forget the infamous Sony Pictures security breach of 2014, where confidential information was released courtesy of computer hackers who called themselves the “Guardians of Peace.”

Cybersecurity attacks are becoming more frequent, and the demand for jobs is reaching a fever pitch. A new report out from Cybersecurity Ventures estimates there will be 3.5 million unfilled cybersecurity jobs by 2021, up from 1 million openings last year.

Employment figures from the U.S. and India highlight the cybersecurity labor crisis.

In 2017, the U.S. employed nearly 780,000 people in cybersecurity positions, with approximately 350,000 current cybersecurity openings, according to CyberSeek, a project supported by the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE), a program of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Most IT security jobs require at least a bachelor’s degree in a computer related field however many colleges are expanding to have cybersecurity master’s degree programs, and here are some of them…

American Military University (Charles Town, W.Va.) – The Master of Science in Cybersecurity Studies program takes a broad, multidisciplinary approach to preventing and responding to large-scale cyber threats and cyber attacks. The first half of the online, two-year program provides a foundation in network security, information assurance, cyber crime and digital forensics. The second half focuses on the issues, policies, practices and perspectives of various sectors, critical infrastructures, agencies and disciplines, such as national security, intelligence, criminal justice and emergency management.

Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh)—In 16 or 20 months, the Master of Science in Information Security enhances a technical education in computer systems and security with research/development opportunities and the option to take additional courses in areas complementary to security. Graduates may pursue doctoral degrees or positions as security experts equipped to manage the growing complexities associated with securing data, networks and systems. This graduate degree program meets the criteria for the NSF-funded CyberCorps Scholarship for Service Program (SFS). U.S. citizens who are accepted may be eligible for a full scholarship and stipend from the federal government.

Fordham University’s School of Professional and Continuing Studies (Bronx, N.Y.)—Fordham’s Master of Science in Cybersecurity program is a combination of weekend, online and hybrid courses is designed for completion in 12 months over three semesters. Students learn how to identify solutions to global cyber threats while mastering legal, ethical and policy issues using methods in computing and informational science, engineering and social science. Program highlights include small classes taught by academia and industry experts, intensive lab experience in a dedicated cybersecurity research lab, and networking opportunities and career support.

George Washington University (Washington, D.C.)—The Master of Science in Cybersecurity in Computer Science program was created to respond to the large and fast-growing need for technical cybersecurity experts nationally and internationally. Students acquire up-to-date knowledge and skills in cybersecurity and get a firm grounding in requisite core knowledge in computer science, as well as the ability to take courses in related disciplines. GWU also offers the Master of Engineering in Cybersecurity Policy and Compliance (online).

Indiana University (Bloomington, Ind.)—The Master of Science in Secure Computing offers an interdisciplinary focus that combines coursework in mathematics, protocol analysis, and system and network security, with business and economics, social engineering, human-computer interaction, and other disciplines. The Master of Science in Cybersecurity Risk Management program will bring together cybersecurity courses from law, business and computer science. The degree offers integrated coursework from the School of Informatics and Computing, the IU Maurer School of Law, and the IU Kelley School of Business.

Northeastern University (Boston)—The Master of Science in Information Assurance and Cybersecurity program enables students to gain the broad knowledge needed to make strategic decisions to combat information security threats, including identity theft, computer malware, electronic fraud and cyber attacks. The program explores key issues in information security and how technology can help resolve them. It combines an understanding of IT with relevant knowledge from law, the social sciences, criminology and management.

The University of Southern California (Los Angeles)—USC Viterbi’s Master of Science in Cyber Security Engineering program focuses on the fundamentals of developing, engineering and operating secure information systems. Curriculum fosters understanding in developing a security policy and how policy drives technology decisions. Students solve challenges and problems of secure operating systems, secure applications, secure networking, use of cryptography and key management. This program is also available online to professional engineers through the Distance Education Network.

The University of South Florida (Tampa, Fla.)—The Master of Science in Cybersecurity interdisciplinary program has four concentrations. The Cyber Intelligence concentration prepares graduates for entry-level or advanced positions as cyber intelligence or threat intelligence analysts. The Digital Forensics concentration helps students gain the skills needed to investigate computer, cyber and electronic crimes; analyze networks that have been attacked or used for illicit purposes; and properly identify, collect, secure and present digital evidence. The Information Assurance concentration provides a core foundation of knowledge and applied expertise in information security controls, the regulatory environment, and information risk management and incident response. The Computer Security Fundamentals concentration provides a core foundation of technical knowledge necessary to design and build secure computing systems, detect unauthorized use, and protect systems, resources and data that they store or access. All courses are fully online.

The University of Washington (Bothell, Wash.)—The Master of Science in Cyber Security Engineering prepares students to protect cyber systems with the necessary technical and leadership skills. Students gain expertise and confidence in making difficult security trade-offs and carrying out essential changes to keep and maintain secure systems. They gain hands-on experience in a myriad of research areas, such as penetration testing, emerging technologies, vulnerability analysis, network security, human-computer interaction, wireless security and cryptography. The degree is designed to meet the needs of working professionals. Enrollment is either part-time or full-time, with courses meeting in the evening two or three times a week. Most students complete the program in just over two years.

Digital Content Security, Mobile Security, Encryption Algorithms, Encryption Apps, Secure Mobile Applications

Security Applications & Tips to Keep Your Mobile Device Secure

Tags : Cybersecurity Mobile Security

Mobile security threats are on the rise, and criminals are using top level domains (TLDs) for phishing sites. It started with a trend towards the generic use of (i.e., non-geographic) TLDs such as .support and .cloud to create URLs that appear to be authentic. For example: review-helpteam.support, contact-us.site, summary-account.review

Now, instead of using these gTLDs so simulate authenticity, threat actors have identified a new way to create believable URLs, and it’s focused exclusively on the mobile market. Instead of trying to create legitimate looking URLs, threat actors have started including real, legitimate domains within a larger URL, and padding it with hyphens to obscure the real destination.

While the best defense is to become familiar with these threats and the cyber criminals tactics, there are a few apps such as Mobile Security & Antivirus, Avast Mobile Security, and Trend Micro that help detect malware for mobile users.
-Intro by Lindsey Havens, Senior Marketing Manager at PhishLabs

Digital Content Security Apps

We spoke with Tonia Baldwin of A1 Connect and got two of her favorite apps for online security. The first is Dashlane, a secure password keeper, followed by Folder Lock, an app that locks specific folders and files.

Password Manager App: Dashlane

A strong password is often the difference between your documents staying safe and a catastrophic data breach. Password vault apps like Dashlane are essential if you have lots of accounts on various sites and apps and want to use a different strong password for each one. It also calculates your overall security score and gives you suggestions on how to improve it. Dashlane even generates unique strong passwords for you, so you don’t even need to think of them yourself.

Using the same password for every site is a way to beckon disaster should one account be hacked into. With password managers, the only password you need to remember is the one to get into the app, so make sure it’s a strong one.

Password Manager App: Folder Lock

If someone manages to steal your mobile, then there’s not much stopping them from hooking the phone up to their laptop and accessing all of the files they want to. Folder Lock is basically an encryption app that will let you password protect specific folders and files. It’s the melding of physical and virtual security that makes this app a winner.

It also offers other features like cloud-based backup storage and the ability to lock down your apps to keep any personal information in them secure.

7 Tips To Stay Secure on Mobile Devices

Now that you have mobile apps for logging in and keeping your files secure, we wanted to provide tips on how to keep your business and personal networks secure. For that we got in touch with Robert Siciliano, Cyber Security expert with Hotspot Shield, and came up with 7 tips that will keep you and your boss happy!

1- Don’t Buy Apps from Third-Party Sources

Apps are quite popular, and there are many that can help to boost productivity in a business setting. However, Apple devices that are “jailbroken” or Android devices that are “rooted” are outside of the walled garden of their respective stores and susceptible to malicious viruses. Make sure your employees know that they should never buy an app from a third-party source. Only use the official Apple App Store or the Google Play Store.

2- Always Protect Devices

It’s also important that you advise your employees to keep their devices protected with a password. These devices are easy to steal since they are so small. If there is no password, there is nothing stopping a bad guy from getting into them and accessing all of the accounts that are currently logged into the device.

3- Install a Wipe Function on Company Mobile Devices

You should also require all employees to have a “wipe” function on their phones. Even if they are only doing something simple, like checking their work email on their personal mobile device, it could get into the wrong hands. With the “wipe” function, the entire phone can be cleared remotely. You should also require employees to use the setting that erases the phone after a set number of password attempts.

4- Require Company Mobile Devices to Use Anti-Virus Software

It’s also important, especially in the case of Android devices, that all mobile devices on the network have some type of anti-virus software.

5- Do No Jailbroken Devices on Your Company Network

Jailbroken devices are much more vulnerable to viruses and other malware. So, never allow an employee with a jailbroken phone to connect to your network.

6- All Employees Should Activate Update Alerts

One of the easiest ways to keep mobile devices safe is to keep them updated. So, make sure that all employees have update alerts enabled, and make sure that they are updating their devices when prompted or automatically.

7- Teach Employees About the Dangers of Public Wi-Fi

Finally, make sure your staff knows the dangers of using public Wi-Fi. Public Wi-Fi connections are not secure, so when connected, your devices are pretty open. That means, if you are doing things that are sensitive, such as logging into a company website or accessing franchise accounting records, a hacker can easily follow. Instead, urge employees to use a VPN

What is SAAS? How Can SAAS Improve Your Business? Is SAAS Safe?

Tags : Encrypted Digital Media SAAS Secure Digital Content

What is SAAS?

SASS stands for Software as a Service. It is a category of cloud computing. Like all cloud computing categories, with SAAS your information is not stored on a traditional digital hard drive, but digitally over offsite servers. SAAS is unique from other forms of cloud computing because it is a system where you are essentially renting software monthly.

“Instead of buying a license for the software and spending the money lump sum you pay on an ongoing basis and the software is updated for you automagically and in most cases support for software is included as well,” said Nadeem Azhar, the owner of PC.Solutions.Net.

How does SAAS benefit businesses?

For some companies the initial cost of software is a barrier to entry. As are the demands of additional staff and infrastructure needed to run a traditional server. SAAS allows such companies to obtain software easily, without costly onsite infrastructure, and with a time saving easy install.

“SaaS benefits companies in several ways, said Steven Benson, the founder of Badger Maps. “First, SaaS software tends to be a lot cheaper than it was in the past. You’re usually paying for it on a monthly basis, so you pay exactly for what you need. It also tends to be very easy to deploy compared to old-school software because you don’t need to spin up servers. When I worked at IBM, the customer would need to run servers and integrate the software with a bunch of other devices just to use it. This was a far more complicated process. But with SaaS, the service
is delivered through the browser and is much easier to try out for the
customer to see if it’s a good fit. Free trials were very complicated to do
in the past, but now you can just set up someone’s account in a few
minutes, and help them make a better buying decision.”

Is SAAS Secure?

Yes, SAAS is considered by technology experts to be more secure than traditional data methods.

Many of today’s SAAS companies run on the most trusted and secured
infrastructure in the world. There are procedures in place to make sure SAAS systems remain secure and safe.

“Standard practices need to be followed when designing a SAAS infrastructure,” said Azhar. “Any and every connection should be encrypted, information while at rest should be encrypted and of course the platform should be hosted at a data center that already has security certifications specific to the industry the software serves.”

What are the SAAS trends for the future?

SAAS continues to be a growing field. As people use more and devices, the need for cloud based systems has grown. So has the interest SAAS systems from investors.

“…Private equity money has become more and more interested in the SaaS space and that is a trend I believe will continue,” said Benson. “I think over the next 5 to 10 years more private equity will flow into the space to helpcapitalize it better, and provide cash resources for growth.”

Learn more about SAAS and other secure cloud services with DocoServe

DocuServe is a cloud based digital protection service that can keep your business’s documents safe and secure. We also offer training for corporations through our service EServe, so your corporation can be update in the latest cooperate technology trends and services.

Are Passwords Enough? The Argument for Multi-Factor Authentication

Tags : Information Security Password Breech

Recent Hacks on Global Companies Suggest a Need for New Security Measures

It may seem like a pain. You are only trying to login to pay a bill, order a new toaster, or make an appointment, and they ask for more than a password. Rolling your eyes you have a code texted to you, or emailed, or even called. What a waste of time…right? When given the choice between having to spend an extra two minutes to login or having to cancel your credit card due to identity theft, which would you choose? Are passwords enough?

These days, it does not seem so.

I know what you’re thinking. At least I’m not one of those guys that make their password: password123, my information is not that vulnerable. Think again. Even the most nonsensical combination of upper and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols are capable of becoming compromised.

In many cases of compromised information, it is not even a case of a good guess when it comes to your password, but rather in phishing scams or other techniques that can deceive even the savviest of internet users. A recent Facebook Messenger scam made light of this, by compromising an account and sharing a video link to a person’s contacts, as that person. So, be careful before clicking that video that your best friend sent you. It may not be a cute cat video, but rather a way to obtain your personal information.

The need for more than just a password is a crucial enough issue for the individual, but failing to do so can be catastrophic for businesses that keep and protect sensitive information.

So what can you do?

There are a few solutions available to help secure your company’s sensitive information.

Password Managers

Password managers make it easier to keep dozens of unique passwords. That way, you do not need to repeat the same password over and over again. This is a common solution for workplaces that do not want to slow down their workers by making them wait on the codes or other keys for two-factor authentication. Instead of keeping an individual list of passwords, the password manager keeps it in memory, accessible only to those invited into the system by an administrator.

Simplifying Authentication

While having to get through two gateways can be a time-consuming burden on employees, simplifying two-factor authentication may be beneficial. In more recent instances, instead of waiting for a code or phone call, a mobile security app requires a single tap to allow access. In order for two-factor authentication to be both secure and functional, it needs to be fast, easy to manage and built to defend against threats.

Encryption

You may not always be able to protect against external threats, but you may be able to still protect what’s inside. By encrypting your important data, your sensitive information will be harder to obtain in the event of a breach.

Limit the Passwords that Employees Have Access to

Instead of giving everyone unlimited access to everything from the company Twitter to the main database, give access only to what is essential to get the job done. You’d much rather change 3-5 passwords than upward of 500 when an employee parts ways with the company.

Utilize Wiping Technology

If your company is one that allows employees to use their own devices, things can get complicated once an employee leaves. With the right technology, you can wipe all company data off of an external device, without disrupting the employee’s personal information. That way, they can quickly resume use of their device, and your company data remains safe from potential exposure.

Content security can make or break the integrity of your organization. It is important to keep a company’s proprietary information safe, not just for the company itself, but for the clients it serves and the workers it employs. DocuServe provides a document management solution for businesses, which increase your confidence in your company’s security protocol. When wondering “Are passwords enough?”, DocuServe can keep your information safe.

just in time manufacturing, just in time inventory, just in time process, just in time for business

Do You Use the “Just in Time” System for Your Business?

Tags : JIT JIT Manufacturing JIT System Just in Time Inventory Just in Time Manufacturing justin time method

Do You Use the “Just in Time” System for Your Business?

I want you to take a minute and think about the number of Toyota cars or trucks you see on the road in a given day. 10? 20? 50?

Chances are if you drive for more than 20 miles, you’ll pass by closer to 100. According to Statista, over 44 Million Americans own a Toyota vehicle right now.

That’s 7% of the entire U.S. population AND about 17% of U.S. adults.

Can you imagine how streamlined Toyota’s operations have to be in order to build cars and trucks for 17% of our driving population?

But they do it, and they do it well. They also do it “just in time” using a manufacturing model developed by the British Motor Corporation in the mid-1950’s. This Just in Time inventory manufacturing method was then perfected by Japan and brought thousands of Toyotas to the U.S. in the 1970’s. In fact, a lot of people know it now as the Toyota Production System (TPS).

The rest, as they say, is history.

However, the Just in Time (JIT) method is far from being a thing of the past. Manufacturing companies from U.K. to South Korea use this methodology to reduce flow times within production, along with response times from suppliers to customers. The whole purpose of Just in Time for manufacturing is to meet demand not stockpile products or parts that exist only to rust on the shelves.

How Does Just in Time manufacturing work in 2017?

Before JIT, inventory was held in supply rooms just in case it was needed for production. Therefore, this method is now called the “Just-in-Case” method of inventory management. The Just-in-Time method, on the other hand, cuts waste by supplying parts only as they are needed. As soon as the part supply levels reach a certain point, more parts are ordered. This eliminates the need to hold any parts in permanent storage.

However, it also requires tighter inventory control, in addition to: flexible resources, steady production, reliable machines and lots of discipline on the part of managers and shop floor staff.

Why? If you produce only what you need and store only the parts you need at that time, there is much less room for error.

Companies like Hewlett-Packard were the first to make this kind of “stockless production” more wide stream in the U.S. And assembly line icon Henry Ford praised the concept behind JIT in his 1923 book, My Life and Work.

“If transportation were perfect and an even flow of materials could be assured, it would not be necessary to carry any stock whatsoever. The carloads of raw materials would arrive on schedule and in the planned order and amounts. That would save a great deal of money, for it would give a very rapid turnover and thus decrease the amount of money tied up in materials.”

Despite the common sense approach of JIT, a lot of manufacturing companies still struggle to implement the philosophy on their shop floors.

Why?

It’s easier to patch a hole than to build a new ship. The beauty of JIT manufacturing is that it increases ROI and removes the burden of high inventory. However, when you remove the security blanket of excess stock, you’re often left with a tangled mess of procedural issues to clean up.

And a lot of organizations simply would prefer not to lift that blanket in the first place.

JIT manufacturing requires both a mindset and a company culture shift. It requires that the production process be simplified and spelled out in a way that anyone’s “idiot nephew” (to quote the brilliant Warren Buffett) can run the operations when the managers are away.

It also depends on building a strong relationship with suppliers, to ensure deliveries are made on time and up to par. The key is to find suppliers who are also on board with the JIT philosophy. After all, if they produce parts in smaller batches, they can detect holes or errors in their own processes as well.

Here’s a great video that demonstrates how deep the JIT method is ingrained in Toyota employees.

When every part and every move matters, every employee’s mindset and buy-in matters too. While it takes time and work to achieve, it delivers more return than any other manufacturing model.

After all, Toyota is #6 on the list of the 10 richest companies in the world.

Is it time you got on the JIT manufacturing bandwagon?

At DocuServe, we have been dedicated to the Just in Time manufacturing philosophy for over 20 years. In fact, we developed a content delivery platform called eServe just to address the need for more e-learning solutions that switching to JIT demands.

Since 1994, we have developed strong and supportive partnerships with our clients worldwide-helping them streamline their operations, their training and (in turn) their profits. Contact us if you want to know how we can do the same for you.

Hiddren Threats to your Corporate Training Program

3 Hidden Threats to Corporate Training Programs

Tags : Corporate Training Corporate Training Programs

Let me ask you a question. Are you conducting your corporate training through an e-learning channel, like Blackboard or Moodle? It’s funny. Companies know they need to train their employees on security protocol, but often they communicate that protocol in some rather un-secure ways.

According to a recent survey from Trustwave, a majority of companies have either no system in place or a partial system in place for monitoring and tracking their sensitive data.

Moreover, what we have found at eServe is that many companies are unaware of what kind of data they even need to protect! Is that you?

Think about it. Any training session you conduct for a new hire or seasoned employee would (and should) include data about your company’s processes, products, customers, strategies, goals and more. They are not just casual blogs or press releases – training materials contain proprietary data. That is data your competitors would love to have and that you should do everything in your power to keep from getting out!

You don’t have to be in a government agency or big tech firm to worry about this either. Whether your data is intentionally hacked or just mishandled, you would be surprised at who might be interested in using it to their advantage – or where it might end up. Corporate training leaders in every field – from medicine to the culinary arts- has company secrets to protect.

And it is often only after those secrets have become vulnerable that they realize what that information means in the wrong hands.

Here are 5 hidden threats to putting your training information online.

1. The Threat of Hacking to Corporate Training

Remember Julian Assange of Wikileaks? His goal was simple – expose the hypocrisy of the U.S. and other governments. As an expert computer programmer, he was able to achieve this goal. But you don’t have to be a political organization or nation to be threatened by a motivated hacker. You just need one company wanting to mirror your company and with the know-how to go after your information. Don’t let sticky fingers threaten your bottom line.

2. The Threat of Careless Employees to Corporate Training

I bet if you were to survey your staff members you would find that at least 50% (if not more) write their password down on a sticky note and attach it to their monitor. Or, maybe they forget it altogether and use the password of their cubicle mate or neighbor. But who’s to say their neighbor is privy to the same information they are?

Also, who’s to say that sticky note doesn’t end up in the wrong hands? Or, what if the slides you presented during a WebEx conference aren’t saved on a staff member’s laptop that was accidentally lost or left behind?
An employee does not have to be disgruntled to leave your proprietary information in the wrong hands.

They just have to be human. If you’re sharing any secure information with your staff, always keep that in mind.

3. The Threat of Upheaval to Corporate Training

Another e-learning threat has nothing to do with the exposure of data – in fact it is quite the opposite. For some industries, such as medicine or finance, the rapid dissemination of information is crucial to the success of their operations. Many times, it can literally mean life or death.

Think about it like this. What if a medical organization in Florida scheduled a seminar titled “Zika Virus: Our response to the Threat & Treating Pregnant Women.” In 2016, the Zika crisis was a real and urgent threat for South Florida families. Getting the right information in the hands of professionals who needed it most was an urgent concern. Similar situations would be training for security institutions that contract out to the TSA or other government bodies.

Updates and training sessions are often ad hoc and almost always must go on without a hitch. Any threat to the system these sessions are conducted on could mean putting people and possibly whole areas at risk.

No matter where you fall on this spectrum or which threat concerns you the most, there is a solutions! Always secure your training sessions. Avoid putting your valuable knowledge in the wrong hands by setting up the right security infrastructure and protocol from the get-go:

• Only allow registered invitees to join meetings
• Create specific passwords for each meeting rather than the same password for all your meetings
• Coach your trainers to choose wisely who they let in the training rooms
• Create rank-based permission levels (i.e., Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 access levels)
• Track and analyze who accesses your data (when, where and how long)

Want to gain greater peace of mind with your corporate training content? eServe is a content delivery platform that helps you empower your staff with the freedom to train and learn on their schedule, while also providing you with the power to protect that information.

In the digital age, both security and flexibility are key to mastering corporate e-learning and digital document management.

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Category: BLOG