Sep 19, 2017 | SMB Technology, Technology News
The internet of Things (IoT) is much-talked-about technology. Driven by low-cost sensors, ubiquitous connectivity and updates to the Internet Protocol (IP), IoT is rapidly being adopted. Research firm Gartner expects over 8 billion devices connected in 2017. Cities use IoT to relieve parking congestion by collecting data on open parking spots; farmers can measure moisture in soil; and manufacturers use this technology to track inventory in their supply chain. Because these devices may use machine-to-machine connectivity without human intervention, this can increase the IoT Security Challenge. Here are some security considerations for IoT. IoT Network Security IoT Network Security goes beyond traditional network security requirements for connecting PCs, Laptops, Tablets and servers together. Networks supporting IoT will need to support a wider range of devices using a wider range of protocols for connectivity. Not surprisingly, Markets and Markets forecast IoT network security as the largest segment of a market expected to grow to over $29 billion by 2022. IoT Encryption One of the primary business benefits of IoT is the data that can be collected and analyzed from these devices. Using IoT encryption technologies to protect this information at rest or in transit is an IoT Security Challenge for businesses adopting IoT technologies. Standard encryption technology is stretched to its limits by IoT encryption requirements. Specialized IoT encryption technologies are needed due to the wide range of devices used for IoT deployments. IoT Security Reporting and Analytics IoT applications are not immune to hackers and security breach attempts. Due to the volume of devices, monitoring and analyzing IoT security will become increasingly challenging. Artificial intelligence and big-data analytics are...
Sep 12, 2017 | SMB Technology, Technology News
Recent Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, along with major earthquakes in Mexico, remind us how vulnerable we can be to disasters, and underscore the importance of data protection. As businesses depend on access to a range of systems–including call center, communications and collaboration application, customer management, and more–having a solid data protection plan can help you in a disaster recovery scenario. Now more than ever, a range of options exist to help maintain business continuity. Here are a few options to consider. Review Your Data Protection Plan Key to your data protection plan is identification of mission-critical systems. The most important systems should be redundant, with the ability for failover in the event of a disaster. Your data centers and failover options should be geographically dispersed and on different network backbones. This can minimize downtime and get you back up and running sooner. Having your data backup available in Cloud Storage can help you recover other important files and application data if you lose access to your on-premise systems. SD-WAN for Business Continuity Software-defined wide area networks (SD-WAN) can also provide you a highly reliable and redundant network. Having the ability to switch Wide Area Networks using SD-WAN as an alternative to more costly MPLS solutions can ensure connectivity during a natural disaster. What’s more, Software-Defined Wide Area Networking can save you money in the long run by giving you the flexibility of a multi-carrier solution. Software as a Service for Disaster Recovery More businesses are turning to the Cloud for a range of applications–hosted email, Voice over IP (VoIP), Call Center, and others–to keep communications flowing during a...
