17 essential tools to protect your online identity, privacy

Make no mistake: Professional and state-sponsored cybercriminals are trying to compromise your identity -- either at home, to steal your money; or at work, to steal your employer’s money, sensitive data, or intellectual property.Most users know the basics of computer privacy and safety when using the internet, including running HTTPS and two-factor authentication whenever possible, and checking haveibeenpwned.com to verify whether their email addresses or user names and passwords have been compromised by a known attack.[ Watch out for 11 signs you've been hacked -- and learn how to fight back, in InfoWorld's PDF special report. | Discover how to secure your systems with InfoWorld's Security Report newsletter. ] But these days, computer users should go well beyond tightening their social media account settings. The security elite run a variety of programs, tools, and specialized hardware to ensure their privacy and security is as strong as it can be. Here, we take a look at this set of tools, beginning with those that provide the broadest security coverage down to each specific application for a particular purpose. Use any, or all, of these tools to protect your privacy and have the best computer security possible.To Continue reading

Is your IT staff ready for IoT?

The city of Kansas City, Mo., blazed a new technology trail in May when it launched its first streetcar line with public Wi-Fi that spreads across two square miles, covering more than 50 square blocks. It also marked the debut of the city's first-generation smart city corridor for new technologies, many of which will run wirelessly over one of the largest free public Wi-Fi zones in the country.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)

Why don’t developers have a ‘spellchecker’ for security’?

Despite all the news coverage about successful cyberattacks, developers are still writing code full of security vulnerabilities.Of course, nobody is perfect. We all make mistakes, and as software projects get more and more complex, it can be easy to mix potential problems.But that doesn't explain why so much software is full of the most basic errors.According to a report released this month by Veracode, 61 percent of all internally-developed applications failed a basic test of compliance with the OWASP Top 10 list on their first pass. And commercially developed software did even worse, with a 75 percent failure rate.These are basic, well-known problems, like SQL injections and cross-site scripting.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Why don’t developers have a ‘spellchecker’ for security’?

Despite all the news coverage about successful cyberattacks, developers are still writing code full of security vulnerabilities.Of course, nobody is perfect. We all make mistakes, and as software projects get more and more complex, it can be easy to mix potential problems.But that doesn't explain why so much software is full of the most basic errors.According to a report released this month by Veracode, 61 percent of all internally-developed applications failed a basic test of compliance with the OWASP Top 10 list on their first pass. And commercially developed software did even worse, with a 75 percent failure rate.These are basic, well-known problems, like SQL injections and cross-site scripting.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Why Blockchain’s growing pains will be worth it

HALF MOON BAY, Calif. – Experts at a recent technology conference agreed that blockchain has a bright future, but warned it may be a rocky ride until that future arrives. Blockchain is a distributed database that uses a secure digital ledger of transactions that users can share across a computer network. It’s also the technology behind virtual currency bitcoin.      “When you are at the leading edge there will be mistakes. People will get a lot wrong in the next five years. I think of it kind of like running with scissors,” says Constellation Research analyst Steve Wilson at the Oct. 26 Connected Enterprise conference hosted by his company. Constellation Research Connected Enterprise conference From left to right: Shawn Wiora, CEO of Maxxsure, Silicon Valley Product Exec Chirag Mehta, and Aron Dutta, Global Head of Blockchain at IBMTo read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

BrandPost: Metro Ethernet for business on the move

Can’t you ever get enough bandwidth? It may seem that way when you run up against current constraints, but despair of being able to afford additional capacity. Really, though, what you should be asking is can you get the bandwidth you need, when you need it.In the past, you really didn’t have much choice. You made calculations based on ongoing needs and figured out whether you could afford something extra for peak capacity.Software-drivenThe future, built on software-driven networks and virtualization, is one of bandwidth on demand, when you need it. AT&T Network on Demand revolutionizes enterprise network services by emulating with software the functions of complex hardware components and servers. Instead of waiting for truck rolls, ultimately you’ll be able to order new services in near real time through an online, self-service portal.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Why Blockchain’s growing pains will be worth it

HALF MOON BAY, Calif. – Experts at a recent technology conference agreed that blockchain has a bright future, but warned it may be a rocky ride until that future arrives. Blockchain is a distributed database that uses a secure digital ledger of transactions that users can share across a computer network. It’s also the technology behind virtual currency bitcoin.      “When you are at the leading edge there will be mistakes. People will get a lot wrong in the next five years. I think of it kind of like running with scissors,” says Constellation Research analyst Steve Wilson at the Oct. 26 Connected Enterprise conference hosted by his company. Constellation Research Connected Enterprise conference From left to right: Shawn Wiora, CEO of Maxxsure, Silicon Valley Product Exec Chirag Mehta, and Aron Dutta, Global Head of Blockchain at IBMTo read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

CenturyLink will acquire Level 3 Communications in $34B deal

CenturyLink plans to acquire internet backbone company Level 3 Communications in a US$34 billion cash and stock deal that aims to consolidate the networks and customers of the two companies.The combined company, operating in more than 60 countries, will be able to offer CenturyLink's larger enterprise customers the benefits of a larger global presence, and will also be positioned to further invest in the reach and speed of its broadband infrastructure for small businesses and consumers, the companies said.CenturyLink is currently focused on global communications, hosting, cloud, and IT services, offering both network and data systems management with more than 55 data centers in North America, Europe, and Asia. It provides broadband, voice, video, data, and managed services over a 250,000-mile U.S. fiber network and a 300,000-mile international transport network.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

CenturyLink will acquire Level 3 Communications in $34B deal

CenturyLink plans to acquire internet backbone company Level 3 Communications in a US$34 billion cash and stock deal that aims to consolidate the networks and customers of the two companies.The combined company, operating in more than 60 countries, will be able to offer CenturyLink's larger enterprise customers the benefits of a larger global presence, and will also be positioned to further invest in the reach and speed of its broadband infrastructure for small businesses and consumers, the companies said.CenturyLink is currently focused on global communications, hosting, cloud, and IT services, offering both network and data systems management with more than 55 data centers in North America, Europe, and Asia. It provides broadband, voice, video, data, and managed services over a 250,000-mile U.S. fiber network and a 300,000-mile international transport network.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Joomla websites attacked en masse using recently patched exploits

Attackers are aggressively attacking Joomla-based websites by exploiting two critical vulnerabilities patched last week.The flaws allow the creation of accounts with elevated privileges on websites built with the popular Joomla content management system, even if account registration is disabled. They were patched in Joomla 3.6.4, released Tuesday.Hackers didn't waste any time reverse engineering the patches to understand how the two vulnerabilities can be exploited to compromise websites, according to researchers from Web security firm Sucuri.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Joomla websites attacked en masse using recently patched exploits

Attackers are aggressively attacking Joomla-based websites by exploiting two critical vulnerabilities patched last week.The flaws allow the creation of accounts with elevated privileges on websites built with the popular Joomla content management system, even if account registration is disabled. They were patched in Joomla 3.6.4, released Tuesday.Hackers didn't waste any time reverse engineering the patches to understand how the two vulnerabilities can be exploited to compromise websites, according to researchers from Web security firm Sucuri.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

How DNS Works: A Primer

If Linux never was: Imagining an alternate reality without Linux

Ever read a story so depressing, so utterly devoid of happiness, that you wonder why on Earth any fool would take the time to write it down? Just solid sadness beginning to end.This, right here, is one of those stories.This dismal little tale also makes use of what is quite possibly the most over-used (and over-rated) plot device in the history of mankind: the butterfly effect. You know: the notion that a simple little thing can have extreme consequences. A butterfly flaps its wings in Sheboygan, and two days later, a hurricane hits Walla Walla. Because—the butterfly effect. Just a dreadful crutch used by hack writers to move forward a story when they can’t come up with any original ideas.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Broadcom Strikes 100G Ethernet Harder With Tomahawk-II

Because space costs so much money and having multiple machines adds complexity and even more costs on top of that, there is always pressure to increase the density of the devices that provide compute, storage, and networking capacity in the datacenter. Moore’s Law, in essence, doesn’t just drive chips, but also the devices that are comprised of chips.

Often, it is the second or third iteration of a technology that takes off because the economics and density of the initial products can’t match the space and power constraints of a system rack. Such was the case with the initial 100 …

Broadcom Strikes 100G Ethernet Harder With Tomahawk-II was written by Timothy Prickett Morgan at The Next Platform.

What Haunts IT Pros?

The paranoid user’s guide to Windows 10 privacy

Since its release, a major point of controversy with Windows 10 has been the many ways that it can track your personal activity and gather other data about you. Many people don’t mind sharing personal information in exchange for enabling or enhancing a helpful app or service.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)

IDG Contributor Network: IT departments becoming ‘obsolete’

Online services and workers choosing the tools they want to work with, rather than employees being dictated to by in-house IT experts, means the IT department’s functions are now primarily redundant, says Japan-based Brother.The printer maker refers to IT departments’ control over technology as “dark days” in its web-based advertorial feature in the British national newspaper the Telegraph in September.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

IDG Contributor Network: IT departments becoming ‘obsolete’

Online services and workers choosing the tools they want to work with, rather than employees being dictated to by in-house IT experts, means the IT department’s functions are now primarily redundant, says Japan-based Brother.The printer maker refers to IT departments’ control over technology as “dark days” in its web-based advertorial feature in the British national newspaper the Telegraph in September.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Beat the bad guys at their own game with SafeBreach’s simulated cyberattacks

The best way to get experience with most jobs or tasks is to do them. It’s difficult to learn how to drive a car without getting behind the wheel. Soldiers need to face the enemy in order to gain combat experience. And IT administrators have to experience and mitigate attacks to learn how to best defend their networks. The problem with these scenarios is that they involve a degree of risk. It’s not all that helpful to learn how to counter a cyberattack if the first one you experience puts your company out of business. That’s where the SafeBreach continuous security validation platform comes in. Deployed as a service, through the cloud or internally, it can show cybersecurity teams exactly where the network vulnerabilities are and how to plug those holes. It can even run wargames so that IT teams can learn the best ways to respond to attacks on their actual networks.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)

Beat the bad guys at their own game with SafeBreach’s simulated cyberattacks

The best way to get experience with most jobs or tasks is to do them. It’s difficult to learn how to drive a car without getting behind the wheel. Soldiers need to face the enemy in order to gain combat experience. And IT administrators have to experience and mitigate attacks to learn how to best defend their networks.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)