Spaceflight training jets, balloons create challenges for FAA

As the commercial space flight industry grows, the need for proper training and certification of support personnel and aircraft – which can include all manner of high-performance jets, balloons and hybrid jet/rocket systems – is going to be regulatory challenge for the Federal Aviation Administration.A recent report from the Government Accountability Office said companies they interviewed had received standard aircraft certification for their space support vehicle, but for others the standard certification process is lengthy and not designed for the type of vehicles they would like to use, such as unique, single-production aircraft or retired military jets.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Spaceflight training jets, balloons create challenges for FAA

As the commercial space flight industry grows, the need for proper training and certification of support personnel and aircraft – which can include all manner of high-performance jets, balloons and hybrid jet/rocket systems – is going to be regulatory challenge for the Federal Aviation Administration.A recent report from the Government Accountability Office said companies they interviewed had received standard aircraft certification for their space support vehicle, but for others the standard certification process is lengthy and not designed for the type of vehicles they would like to use, such as unique, single-production aircraft or retired military jets.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

BrandPost: The Future of Networking

Editor’s note: Nick Applegarth, VP of sales, EMEA for Silver Peak, recently answered a series of questions about digital transformation, networking and SD-WAN. Read his comments here on the future of networking. Q. What are the emerging hot (technology) topics for CIOs and why? A. The digital transformation is fully upon us and CIOs are increasingly embracing virtualisation and cloud services to enhance business responsiveness and agility. Connecting users to applications across geographically distributed organisations is introducing new challenges that traditional wide area networks (WANs) were never engineered to address. Unpredictable application performance impacts user productivity and, ultimately, holds companies back from fully embracing and maximising their return on digital technology investments. Indeed, while the rest of the infrastructure has become more fine-tuned for a cloud and virtual world, the WAN continues to be subject to the limitations associated with traditional private MPLS networks and branch office infrastructure.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

IDG Contributor Network: ‘Complexity’ will halt network upgrades in 2017

Tricky network upgrades are causing many enterprises to throw up their hands and simply not do any upgrading at all, according to Cato Networks.Nearly half of the organizations the company recently surveyed (40 percent) say they have “no plans to upgrade their network” at all in 2017. If that’s true, security will likely suffer.The Israel-based firm, which offers security solutions that function in the cloud rather than locally, says although enterprises know there are security threats out there, such as a rise in ransomware, many are simply not going to do anything about it next year—at all.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

IDG Contributor Network: ‘Complexity’ will halt network upgrades in 2017

Tricky network upgrades are causing many enterprises to throw up their hands and simply not do any upgrading at all, according to Cato Networks.Nearly half of the organizations the company recently surveyed (40 percent) say they have “no plans to upgrade their network” at all in 2017. If that’s true, security will likely suffer.The Israel-based firm, which offers security solutions that function in the cloud rather than locally, says although enterprises know there are security threats out there, such as a rise in ransomware, many are simply not going to do anything about it next year—at all.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Google security expert says antivirus apps don’t work

A senior security engineer at Google told a hacker conference that traditional antivirus apps that use intrusion detection are useless and companies should switch to meaningful methods such as whitelisting applications. At Kiwicon X, the New Zealand equivalent of the Black Hat conference held in the United States, Darren Bilby called many existing tools ineffective "magic" that engineers are forced to install for the sake of compliance but at the expense of real security. "Please no more magic," he said, according to The Register. "We need to stop investing in those things we have shown do not work." To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Google security expert says antivirus apps don’t work

A senior security engineer at Google told a hacker conference that traditional antivirus apps that use intrusion detection are useless and companies should switch to meaningful methods such as whitelisting applications. At Kiwicon X, the New Zealand equivalent of the Black Hat conference held in the United States, Darren Bilby called many existing tools ineffective "magic" that engineers are forced to install for the sake of compliance but at the expense of real security. "Please no more magic," he said, according to The Register. "We need to stop investing in those things we have shown do not work." To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

How industrial IoT is making steel production smarter

A new project between General Electric and Gerdau, a large steel manufacturer in Brazil, had a simple objective: Improve productivity by reducing equipment failure and related problems. Early indications suggest that goal was achieved with flying colors.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)

Feds provide legal loophole to hacking IoT devices

It was an especially happy Thanksgiving for security researchers, thanks to what they have called long-overdue exemptions to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).Those exemptions, which took effect Oct. 28, provide a two-year window allowing “good-faith” researchers to break into the software that controls most consumer and commercial Internet of Things (IoT) devices – those used in everything from “smart” homes to smartphones, cars, medical devices, voting machines and more – without violating copyright laws.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Feds provide legal loophole to hacking IoT devices

It was an especially happy Thanksgiving for security researchers, thanks to what they have called long-overdue exemptions to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).Those exemptions, which took effect Oct. 28, provide a two-year window allowing “good-faith” researchers to break into the software that controls most consumer and commercial Internet of Things (IoT) devices – those used in everything from “smart” homes to smartphones, cars, medical devices, voting machines and more – without violating copyright laws.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

How Trump will attack the FCC’s net neutrality rules

Repealing the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's less than 2-year-old net neutrality rules appears to be a top tech priority for President-elect Donald Trump, but it may not be an easy road.Trump blasted net neutrality rules in a November 2014 tweet, saying it was a "top-down power grab" that would apparently require broadband providers to give equal time to liberal and conservative media. There are no such requirements in the FCC's net neutrality rules, however; broadband users determine what media they see.Look for Republicans in Congress to re-introduce legislation to repeal the rules early next year, but with only a narrow majority in the Senate, they are likely to be blocked by Democrats, who can filibuster to stall a bill.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

How Trump will attack the FCC’s net neutrality rules

Repealing the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's less than 2-year-old net neutrality rules appears to be a top tech priority for President-elect Donald Trump, but it may not be an easy road.Trump blasted net neutrality rules in a November 2014 tweet, saying it was a "top-down power grab" that would apparently require broadband providers to give equal time to liberal and conservative media. There are no such requirements in the FCC's net neutrality rules, however; broadband users determine what media they see.Look for Republicans in Congress to re-introduce legislation to repeal the rules early next year, but with only a narrow majority in the Senate, they are likely to be blocked by Democrats, who can filibuster to stall a bill.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

25% off mophie Power Capsule Charging Case for Wearables, Wireless Earbuds and More – Deal Alert

This compact, easy-to-carry travel case from Mophie has a built-in 1,400mAh battery that keeps your wireless in-ear headphones, fitness trackers or other wearables charged and protected while safely packed away so they’re ready for whatever is next. A durable outer shell with soft-touch, rubberized finish provides protection against drops and falls while the soft, fabric interior keeps your device free from scratches and scuffs. Its list price on Amazon has been reduced 25%, from $40 down to $30. See it now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

37% off Cheetah Mounts Universal TV Wall Mount, Fits 20-75-Inch TVs – Deal Alert

The universal design of this mount fits most 20-75" TVs up to VESA 600 x 400 and 165lbs. The profile is only 1.5" for today's thin TVs, and it tilts to improve viewing and reduce glare. This bundle comes with a 10-foot HDMI cable and a 6-inch 3-axis bubble level. It averages 4.5 out of 5 stars from over 13,000 people on Amazon (read recent reviews), where its typical list price of $41 has been reduced to just $26. See the discounted mount now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here