While
the internet serves a positive role by creating a gateway to the entire
world, it also can be an entryway to some very dark and dangerous
places.
With
technology constantly surrounding us in our everyday lives, kids are
beginning to surf the internet at a younger age, making them more
vulnerable to online threats.
But this growing risk applies to people of all ages--as well as
businesses. More companies than ever are taking their products and
services online, opening both their users and their internal systems up
to a barrage of cyberattacks and adversaries.
Holidays
such as Safer Internet Day serve as a reminder for everyone across the
globe to participate in creating a safer, more secure internet for
everyone. Leading technology
experts have provided their thoughts on the importance of creating a
safer digital world below:
Stephen Gailey, solutions architect,
Exabeam
"The
Internet started with two terminals, each in a university computer
science department, and has now become billions of connected devices
globally. We're now witnessing the birth of the
next device boom: the Internet of Things (IoT). There is, of course, a
security cost associated with this. Modern software development
techniques are a rich source of future security bugs. As people continue
to connect their household devices to the Internet,
you can expect to see some significant privacy breaches over the coming
years. We need to be thinking about this now, particularly as
organizations lacking the skills or experience to build such products
jump onto the IoT bandwagon."
Neil Barton, CTO,
WhereScape
"On
Safer Internet Day, it's important to remember how far we've come since
the first websites were launched. IDC forecasts that the number of
Internet of Things (IoT) devices will rise
to 82.5 million by 2020. With so many new connected devices and data
sources, it is a challenge for IT teams to incorporate data into
existing analytics environments, while also ensuring that businesses and
customers remain safe and protected.
With
data automation software significantly reducing the amount of manual
coding, IT staff are freed up to ensure that data infrastructure is
delivering results with security top of mind.
Moreover, data infrastructure automation aids in data privacy and
compliance, by enabling businesses to know where each piece of data sits
and who can access it, as well as tag it and track its lineage in order
to understand its usage."
Trevor Bidle, VP of information security and compliance officer,
US Signal
"The
last year has seen an increase in data breach and hacking activities,
along with the proliferation of ransomware attacks. On Safer Internet
Day, it's important to remember the vitality
of having a data protection plan in place. Data protection starts with
understanding your data assets and where they are housed. Ensuring
timely patching and vulnerability scanning is important, as is
developing a tiered recovery plan to protect the data.
A well-developed data protection strategy should address the
confidentiality, integrity and availability of data."
Joseph Feiman, chief strategy officer,
WhiteHat Security
"While
the internet has brought along monumental advances in technology, we
cannot celebrate it without also taking a moment to reflect on how it
has completely changed the way we approach
privacy. Fifty years ago, we believed that our privacy was a given
right and the phrase ‘data breach' was not even a concept. Today,
whether alone or in combination, no technology will enable our privacy
the way it was before the internet.
So
how do we continue to take advantage of all the internet has to offer
us and strengthen our security? Once government organizations and
enterprises realize they are unable to protect
all of the ever-growing volumes of data in the next five years, they
will begin releasing them into open (or semi-open) access, making it
available to most or all people. While this may seem outrageous now,
think about the amount of information we have started
to share with the world via Facebook and Twitter as well as postings on
websites, blogs and internet communities.
Just
a few years ago, this personal information never would have been posted
anywhere. Therefore, if an individual is already sharing it, does the
government have to protect it? The internet
has transformed us into an open society with a lack of privacy. Just as
we embraced the connected world around us, a change in our security
mindset as a culture will help us live happily."
Todd Kelly, CSO at
Cradlepoint
"In
2019, as the network security industry develops better detection and
defence solutions, traditional fixed perimeter-based approaches to
network security will evolve. Cybersecurity concerns
are real but by using expert cloud-based management platforms and
software-defined perimeter technologies, they can be effectively
addressed. There will always be devices that are compromised and
vulnerabilities that are exposed but just as we've built these
technologies, we've also built the safety constructs to protect them.
If we commit to tried and true security practices while adopting new
approaches that leverage wireless, software-defined and cloud
technologies we don't have to let our concerns unduly impact
our progress."
Steve Blow, Tech Evangelist at
Zerto
"Staying
safe online is a concept we all think we know about - but when it
really boils down to it, are we as safe as we think? The most important
thing online is your data. Think about
it, everything you do online leaves a digital footprint. It may seem
like nothing on its own, but all of this combined creates a picture of
you.
So,
in today's modern age of online consumerism, it's important businesses
have tools in place which, in the face of adversity, can recover data
and regain control, ensuring they are resilient
against the many threats the Internet faces. As ransomware attacks in
particular are likely to grow in 2019, companies need to start looking
outside of traditional backup capabilities to keep the business online
and safe; they need to choose a modern, resilience
approach that can utilise continuous data protection."
Jeff Bishop, Chief Product Officer at ConnectWise
"On
Safer Internet Day, it's important to remember that tech scams are on
the rise around the world. It benefits all technology solution providers
(TSPs) to make sure
they're taking the time to help their customers recognize the red flags
before it's too late.
If
you work in the technology industry, it's likely you've gotten a call
from an upset customer who's fallen prey to a tech scammer. They saw a
pop-up notification
offering a free security scan, or received a scary email informing them
that their computer was infected and all their files were at risk.
Disturbed by the notion that they might lose all their data, they
complied with the instructions and allowed the stranger
on the other side to remotely access their machine. It's possible that
they've received legitimate remote support in the past, so they knew
what to expect. After all, even the caller ID looked legitimate.
Unfortunately, you know all too well how the story
ends. The scammer gains access to the device, and then requests payment
for fixing a non-existent issue, and possibly installs malware or
spyware for easy access later. Your customer is left feeling violated
and confused. Now, they're knocking on your door
for help.
Proactive and continuous customer outreach and
education will go a long way in
showing that you care about their cyber safety. And if you pair those
efforts with remote support and access software that offers transparency
and security, you'll be well on your way to
establishing your business as a trusted technology advisor."
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