OpenText Buys Liaison Technologies, Inc.

Posted in Commentary with tags on December 17, 2018 by itnerd

OpenText a global leader in Enterprise Information Management (EIM), today announced it has completed the closing of its previously announced acquisition of Liaison Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of cloud-based information integration and data management solutions.

Liaison’s ALLOY® Platform brings innovative and differentiated technologies to modernize, streamline and accelerate complex information integration for global intelligent and connected enterprises. This technology dramatically accelerates onboarding and migration, enabling OpenText customers to become more agile and responsive to changing market and customer demands.

Liaison will be integrated into OpenText Business Network, a suite of solutions that facilitate efficient, secure, and compliant information flows between people, systems, and things. OpenText Business Network is the global leader in enabling digital business, processing trillions in commerce every year and connecting over 1 million businesses globally.

Terms of the Agreement and Preliminary Outlook
The purchase price is approximately $310 million in an all-cash transaction. Liaison is expected to contribute insignificant revenue to OpenText’s results for the second quarter ending December 31, 2018, given that the transaction has closed during the holidays.

Liaison is expected to be on the OpenText target operating model within the first twelve months after closing. Financial details regarding the acquisition will be provided with OpenText’s second quarter fiscal year 2019 earnings materials and conference call.

Further information for investors, including an overview presentation regarding Liaison, can be found at: investors.opentext.com/mergers-and-acquisitions

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Frost Bank Chooses Martello for Better Control of IT Environment

Posted in Commentary with tags on December 17, 2018 by itnerd

Martello Technologies Group Inc. has announced today that Frost Bank, a Texas-based chartered bank that is among the largest banks in the United States, has chosen to renew its contract for the Savision IT operations management software products for the next three years. This follows an eight year relationship in which Frost Bank has continually expanded its Savision product coverage, bringing all of the bank’s IT and performance monitoring capabilities into a single dashboard. Savision is a wholly owned subsidiary of Martello.

A chartered bank in Texas with more than 140 locations, Frost Bank resolves problems on their IT network faster with the help of Martello’s Savision software. Rather than managing their network using multiple tools, each with their own logins and alerts, they have a single pane of glass in which data and alerts from these tools is consolidated. This reduces alert noise and allows Frost Bank to deploy the correct resources quickly to resolve problems faster. Frost Bank initially integrated its SCOM (System Center Operations Manager) monitoring system with Savision, and has since integrated SolarWinds NPM, CA Application Performance Management and Derdack Enterprise Alert into a single dashboard using Savision IQ.

In 2018, Martello has executed on acquisitions, organic growth, a public listing and received numerous awards. On November 2, the company announced the completion of its acquisition of Savision, after having acquired SD-WAN player Elfiq Networks in December 2017. The Company’s solutions have also been recognized by the industry. In October, Martello received the Outstanding Information & Communications Technology Company (ICT) Recognition Award from IEEE.  In September, Martello was recognized with a Frost & Sullivan Leadership Award for NPM (Network Performance Management) and ranked as Ottawa’s Fastest Growing Company on the Growth 500 list of Canada’s Fastest Growing Companies at No. 28. The Company’s listing on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) followed the closure of an oversubscribed $7.5 million private placement in June 2018. View the complete list of Martello Awards.

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Infographic: McAfee Labs 2019 Threats Predictions

Posted in Commentary with tags on December 17, 2018 by itnerd

McAfee_Threat Predictions Infographic 2019-1

These predictions and other recent security stats are available on McAfee’s website on the Canadian security landscape. The site is updated regularly and it’s a one-stop shop for the latest statistics and studies.

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The IT Nerd Award For The Best Accessory Of 2018 Goes To: Apple Watch Series 4 With LTE

Posted in Products with tags on December 17, 2018 by itnerd

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The Apple Watch has been out since 2015 and has just been regarded as an accessory to those on Team iPhone for the most part. But with the Apple Watch Series 4, things have changed. Apple now has a device that legitimately can save lives and help to make your life better. That sounds a bit over the top, but it’s not. Let me list why that is:

  • The Apple Watch now detects fast and slow heart rates. Both of with are highly dangerous and if you got an alert like this, you should seek medical attention.
  • The ECG feature that is only available on Series 4 Apple Watches in the USA (for now) can detect conditions like Afib which is highly dangerous and requires rapid medical attention.
  • Another feature that is unique to the Series 4 Apple Watch is fall detection. It’s turned on by default for those who are 65 or over. But you might consider turning it on regardless as it will alert emergency services along with the contacts that you define if you’ve fallen and cannot respond because you’re unconscious or the like.
  • It’s fitness game has been seriously improved as it is way better at tracking your activities and you have more activities to choose from.

All of that is now done in a package that looks stylish, and with the larger screens is now easier to read. Plus it is faster and has apps that cover a large number of use cases. Quite simply it’s the best wearable device out there. Sure it’s still only for those on Team iPhone, but it’s so good that those on Team Android may be tempted to switch to Team iPhone to use what I consider to be the best wearable device out there at the moment. The Apple Watch Series 4 is a well deserved winner of the IT Nerd Award for best accessory.

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Hub6 Compares Home Security Self Monitoring With Home Security Service

Posted in Commentary with tags on December 16, 2018 by itnerd

Recently one of North America’s biggest police forces, the Toronto Police Service, announced that they will no longer respond to home security alarms unless evidence of criminal activity is provided. The new requirement – called “Verified Alarm Response” – is the result of an internal police review that found 97 percent of home security system activations in 2016 were false alarms. The policy change aims to cut down on the number of false calls and make emergency responses “more efficient”, said the police.

Here is Safe by Hub6’s response:

  • Why pay for monitoring that requires validation? Your monthly fees aren’t going towards “active monitoring” – you’re paying for a stranger in a call-centre miles away to go through a lengthy process of validation.
  • Safe by HUB6 is like Neighbourhood Watch 2.0. All alarm alerts are redirected from your existing system to your phone, so that you and your neighbours can keep an eye on each other’s homes and alert the police or fire department if there’s an issue. In the case of an emergency, calling 9-1-1 directly does not require the same regulations that home security companies must follow. Emergency services can arrive on the scene faster, keeping you and your community protected – without the expensive middleman.

Switching to Safe by HUB6 helps homeowners save in two major ways:

  1. No more false alarm charges
  • When an alarm is triggered, you’ll clearly see the zones and devices that have been set off and be able to investigate further. Not home? You can easily add a trusted neighbour to receive the same alerts and they can clear false alarms on your behalf.
  1. No more contracts or monthly fees
  • Safe by HUB6 cuts unnecessary, expensive monthly fees from security providers that over-promise and under deliver. Homeowners save $600 each year on average and get faster, more efficient responses in the case of emergency.

Not from Toronto? Police services across North America are adopting Verified Alarm Response regulations in a concentrated effort to reduce false alarms. The new requirements are prompting homeowners to make the switch to modern and effective monitoring options like Safe by HUB6.

Police will now only respond to an alarm if it is verified through:

  • An audio device
  • A video device
  • Multiple zone activations
  • An eyewitness on the scene

Home security providers are currently reaching out to customers in regards to how Verified Alarm Response requirements will affect monitoring moving forward. ADT, Rogers Home Monitoring, Vivint, and more are attempting to communicate that their services are still valuable. But are they given these recent changes put in place to verify alarm responses?

 

 

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New Report From Darktrace Explores AI-Driven Cyber-Attacks

Posted in Commentary with tags on December 16, 2018 by itnerd

With attacks becoming more sophisticated, 2019 is sure to usher in a new trend in cyber-attacks where criminals increasingly leverage AI and machine learning. To explore this, Darktrace has launched a new report authored by Max Heinemeyer, Director of Threat Hunting.

The report is proprietary research into the most sophisticated threats that Darktrace sees ‘in the wild’ across its 7,000 deployments of cyber AI. Max explains how these real attacks are characteristic of what we expect see in AI-driven cyber-attacks of the near future.

To develop an understanding of the enhanced abilities of AI-driven cyber-attacks, the report presents three real case studies of advanced threats:

  1. Malware which moves laterally through the network at machine speed
  2. Attacker communications which mimic trusted parts of a system to blend into the target environment
  3. Data exfiltration which is carefully configured to evade detection through stealth and subtlety

The report is available here and is very much worth reading.

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Facebook Bug Exposes The Unshared Photos Of 6.8 Million Users…. It’s Again Time To #DeleteFacebook

Posted in Commentary with tags on December 14, 2018 by itnerd

Facebook’s sheer inability to keep user data safe is on display again today as news is coming out that a bug that affects up to 6.8 million users shared photos that were not meant to be shared. CNBC has the details:

Facebook said that photos that had yet to be shared could have been accessed by apps that users gave permission to access their Facebook photos. Facebook said that photos that hadn’t yet been shared on its platform could be accessed because the platform stores a copy of photos that users do not finish sharing on their profile after attempting to upload.

Facebook said the bug in its photo API affected a 12 day window between Sept. 13 and Sept. 25 and gave access to up to 1,500 apps built by 876 developers. Facebook said the bug did not affect photos that were shared in Messenger conversations and that Facebook became aware of the bug and fixed it on Sept. 25.

Facebook said it will alert users who may have been affected by the breach through a notice on the site that will show them how to see if apps they use were affected. The company also advises users log into apps they believe they granted access to Facebook photos to see which photos they have accessed.

Now Facebook has as usual apologized for this latest screw up. But frankly, their apologies are meaningless at this point. Facebook is either incapable of keeping user data safe, or they simply don’t care. Which means that rather than take their apology at face value, Facebook users should simply #DeleteFacebook as this farce has gone on long enough.

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