Archive for March, 2021

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Guest Post: Over 100 Million Malware Infections Detected On Windows In 2020 Says Atlas VPN

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 9, 2021 by itnerd

Malware, a malicious software designed to disrupt, damage, or gain unauthorized access to a computer system, is one of the most common cyber threats computer users face today. While malware can affect any operating system, Windows users are among the most vulnerable.

According to the data analyzed by the Atlas VPN team, in 2020 alone, devices with Windows operating systems were affected by over 111 million malware infections. 

Out of all of the Windows malware threats detected last year, 83% or nearly 92.3 million were found on consumer devices, while 15% or 16.7 million were discovered on business devices. The remaining 2% of the malware cases were unspecified.

Despite the impressive number of Windows malware detections in 2020, such threats actually dropped by 12% compared to 2019. 

According to Rachel Welch, COO of Atlas VPN, “The decline in Windows malware infections might signify that cybercriminals have found other more effective methods to exploit victims online.”

HackTool is the fastest rising malware threat

In 2020, we saw a fall in malware infections affecting Windows operating systems. However, despite a general decline, certain types of malware thrived last year. 

HackTool, a type of malware used by hackers to gain unauthorized access to a user’s computer, saw the biggest increase in new cases detected on Windows last year when compared to 2019. Infections with HackTool spiked by 150%, from 7.4 million to 18.4 million in a single year. 

Other malware types that saw a surge last year include Rogue (117%) and Spyware (28%), which help criminals track and collect information on the victim.

However, the most common Windows malware threat last year was adware —  software that displays unwanted advertisements on people’s computers. It accounted for 32% or 35.5 million Windows malware cases in 2020, a 22% drop from 45.7 million in 2019.

To read the full article, head over to: https://atlasvpn.com/blog/over-100-million-malware-infections-detected-on-windows-in-2020

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Roku Launching New Live TV Channel Guide & 35+ Live TV Channels in Canada

Posted in Commentary on March 9, 2021 by itnerd

The  Roku Live TV Channel Guide, which is launching on Tuesday, March 9th, will allow users to browse an on-screen guide, select shows to watch and switch between more than 35+ live TV channels for FREE. Roku is adding more than 35 new live TV channels to its already robust lineup of movies and TV shows.

New channels include:

ABC News Live
America’s #1 streaming news channel brings you live events, breaking news, context and analysis from around the world.

Nashville
Welcome to Nashville, where the drama and the tunes are playing 24/7. Join all your favorite characters at the Bluebird Café and enjoy binge watching anytime!

Powernation
POWERNATION is a how-to channel for gearhead’s, covering thousands of automotive shows, ranging from crazy engine builds, late-model muscle, off-road, and more.

The Asylum
From the creators of Sharknado, The Asylum offers the very best in guilty pleasure Original Movies and TV, featuring the most outrageous in action-adventure, sci-fi, horror, late-night thrills and more.

Funny or Die
Funny Or Die features your favorite comedians and celebrities in premium comedy videos from across the entertainosphere.

Cheddar
Cheddar is your single source for news and trending stories covering topics you are passionate about – tech, innovation, business, culture and more in a fresh, fast-paced format!

MAVTV Select
MAVTV Select’s racing coverage includes NASCAR’s ARCA series, AMA Pro Motocross, Monster Trucks, and the prestigious Chili Bowl Nationals.

WheatherNation
Watch national, regional, local, and live severe weather coverage from coast to coast, 24/7/365.

This Old House
This Old House’s two Emmy-winning home-improvement series take the mystery out of remodeling and home-improvement chores.

Game Show Central
From the premiere network dedicated to game shows, a channel of fast, fun game show programming with something for everyone.  From trivia to word puzzles, physical games to outrageous competitions, we offer round-the-clock beat-the-clock entertainment.

Real Nosey
America’s offenders are confronted and the truth will be discovered with Steve Wilkos, Divorce Court, and Judge Jerry. 


Nosey
Thousands of hours of America’s most successful Daytime Television shows including Jerry Springer, Maury Povich, Trisha Goddard and the ALL NEW/ALL NOSEY Judge Mom and Judge Dad.

Crimetime
Serving up a criminal collection of shows to feed your need for intrigue. Watch questionable people do very bad things. True crime, all the time.

Here’s a quick video overview:

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Alert Overload, False Positives Still Plague Cyber Industry: CRITICALSTART

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 9, 2021 by itnerd

CRITICALSTART released its third-annual Security Operations Center (SOC) survey today, revealing that alert-overload still plagues the cybersecurity industry. Forty-seven percent of respondents reported personally investigating 10 to 20 alerts each day, a 12-percent increase from 2019. Moreover, 25-percent of respondents said they investigate 21 to 40 alerts each day, up from 14-percent the year prior.

The Dallas-based security firm’s third-annual report – Alert Overload Still Plagues Cybersecurity Industry – surveyed 100 SOC professionals across enterprises, Managed Security Services Providers (MSSP) and Managed Detection & Response (MDR) providers to evaluate the state of incident response within SOCs from a variety of perspectives, including alert volume and management, business models, customer communications, and SOC analyst training and turnover.

Other key findings include:

  • Positively False: Nearly 70-percent of respondents (68%) said that 25 to 75-percent of the alerts they investigate on a daily basis are false positives.
  • Turning a Blind Eye: Almost half (49%) of all respondents said they turn off high volume alerting features when there are too many alerts for analysts to process, creating the potential for a legitimate and serious alert to be missed.
  • Back to School: 95-percent of respondents now report receiving more than 10 hours of training each year.

Additionally, CRITICALSTART used this year’s survey to examine the impact of COVID-19 on the cybersecurity industry during 2020. Key takeaways include:

  • 66-percent of survey takers reported seeing an increase in alerts since the known spread of COVID-19 began in mid-March of 2020.
  • 89-percent said they had been forced to work remotely as a result of COVID-19.
  • 80-percent reported taking steps to change the security posture of their organization because of COVID-19 induced remote work.

To view the full report, please click here.

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OVHcloud Expands ISO 27001 & ISO 27701 Certifications To All Its Cloud Offerings

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 9, 2021 by itnerd

OVHcloud announced today that it has achieved new certifications in information security and data privacy, marking a new phase in its broader certification policy and commitment to customers.  

With the newly obtained ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27701 for most of its cloud solutions, OVHcloud has further consolidated its arsenal in order to strengthen customer trust in the security of its infrastructure. The scope of certification covers the following products: 

  • Public Cloud: Compute, Storage (Block, Object, Archive, Snapshot, Instance Backup), Managed Kubernetes® Service, Cloud Databases, Data Processing, ML Serving et AI Training. 
  • Hosted Private Cloud Premier, Managed Bare Metal, Bare Metal Servers, NAS, Backup storage, Logs Data Platform and Trusted Exchange. 

For these products and all supporting information systems, OVHcloud has implemented an Information Security Management System (ISMS) and Personal Information Management Systems (PIMS) evaluated by a third-party auditor as part of an in-depth audit. This audit resulted in the obtaining of: 

  • Certification according to the ISO/IEC 27001 standard supplemented by the requirements of ISO/IEC 27017, specific to cloud services security and ISO/IEC 27018 relating to the requirements of personal data protection. This certification enables all organizations and their DevOps teams to deploy services in OVHcloud’s environment in accordance with the highest security standards. 
  • Certification according to the ISO/IEC 27701 standard, to explain how the personal data hosted by its customers on OVHcloud solutions are specifically protected. This recent certification (2019), which still involves few players, is based on a global standard that reflects most of the requirements of the General Regulation on Data Protection (GDPR) in a standardised manner. 

According to the IDC FutureScape study “Worldwide Cloud 2021 Predictions”, over 80% of enterprises evaluating cloud services for privacy-sensitive workloads will mandate the protection of data sovereignty and the ability to control the corresponding processes across the geographies concerned.  

OVHcloud has been committed for many years to constantly improving the security of its information systems. In 2013, the European cloud leader achieved ISO 27001 certification for its Hosted Private Cloud solution and then in 2019 for its Bare Metal Cloud servers.  

XMCO supported this approach as internal auditor of OVHcloud’s management system. The external certification audit was conducted by the Laboratoire National de Métrologie et d’Essais (LNE).

For more about OVHcloud’s compliance and certification policy: https://www.ovhcloud.com/en-ca/enterprise/certification-conformity/  

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Intuit Canada launches 2021 Tech Talent Report

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 9, 2021 by itnerd

Intuit Inc. today released the results of a tech talent report surveying more than 500 English and French speaking Canadians working within the technology industry.

As Canada focuses on strengthening the economy; the tech sector is continuing to grow in prominence and is emerging as an industry that can make a significant impact. Technology organizations will be critical to charting the country’s path to recovery – and it starts by keeping a pulse on the perceptions of tech workers.

Here are some key findings from Intuit’s 2021 Tech Talent Report:

Canadians are optimistic about Canada’s role as a global innovator

Canada’s tech sector is important to economic growth and it is enabling the country to shine on the global stage. At $94 billion, the information and communication technology (ICT) sector’s GDP accounts for 5% of the country’s overall GDP.i

The study found that a majority of Canadian tech workers (80%) believe that the Canadian tech industry is contributing to global tech innovation. Canadians are placing Canada in the top 4 of the 22 most technologically innovative countries.

Canadian tech workers are also placing a renewed emphasis on collaboration as a critical driver of global innovation. Nearly 73% believe that partnerships and knowledge transfer with other tech organizations will be key to fueling innovation across Canada and globally.

Innovation is driving the betterment of society, but there’s room for improvement

While 85% of tech workers believe that the Canadian tech industry is contributing to bettering society, they believe that there is still significant room for improvement and an opportunity for organizations to lead the charge. Tech workers believe that the key ways organizations can step up and contribute is through supporting Canadian start-ups (68%), small businesses (66%), and creating more jobs for Canadians in the tech industry (61%). These are especially important as we look to the future towards rebuilding the Canadian economy.

Working from home is working for tech

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a massive shift to remote work, a change that the tech industry is hoping is here to stay. In fact, once social distancing measures are lifted, 86% of Canadian tech workers prefer working from home at least once a week.

Innovation is still being fostered among employees from their home offices, with 74% feeling the tech industry is doing well at enabling innovation and creativity. To foster remote innovation long-term, 67% say that virtual training and education programs can better support innovation and creativity while working from home.

Diversity and inclusion continues to be a priority for Canadian tech workers

Diversity and inclusion is an area that the Canadian tech industry is making good progress towards with 83% of Canadian workers believing the tech industry supports diversity and inclusion efforts.

However, there is still work to be done, with 70% believing organizations should increase diversity in applicant hiring, screening and interview practices. Canadian workers are also expecting organizations to look beyond, with 57% expecting organizations to donate financially or mentor youth of different backgrounds to pursue careers in tech.

Intuit empowers its employees to bring their whole selves to work and do the best work of their lives, a commitment that has led to 15 years of recognition from Great Place to Work, and a spot on Glassdoor Canada’s Top 25 Best Places to Work in 2021. Enabling high performance cultures and highly engaged teams begins with listening – even more critical as we navigate a constantly changing environment, requiring us to work in new ways.

To further its commitment to supporting the tech workforce, Intuit recently launched the Prosperity Accelerator program in partnership with Highline Beta. The program focuses on a community approach to engaging tech talent across the startup ecosystem to build innovative solutions and solve specific financial prosperity challenges that Canadian consumers and small businesses will be facing in the wake of COVID-19.

To read more, download Intuit’s 2021 Tech Talent Report here.

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New LinkedIn Data Reveals The Gender Differences In Job Seeking

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 8, 2021 by itnerd

To mark International Women’s Day, this month’s edition of the Workforce Confidence Index breaks down the challenges and strategies that Canadians face in the job hunt, and how they differ between men and women. LinkedIn then looked at aggregate confidence scores by gender based on perceived job security, personal finances, and career outlook.

LinkedIn’s latest research looks at gender differences in job seeking:

  • LinkedIn found that women were far more likely to consider education as a job-seeking strategy than men. Some 40% of women said they would be willing to go back to school part-time or take online classes to gain knowledge and skills, compared with just 26% of men. Meanwhile, 13% of women said they would consider going back to school full-time, compared with 8% of men.
  • Women were also marginally more willing to pivot into working in a different industry (53% versus 50%) or work in a different job function (49% versus 46%).
  • While men and women were equally willing to start their own business, men were much more willing to consider working as freelancers or contractors than women.
  • Men were also a bit more open to taking a step back in their careers, with men slightly more likely to say they would accept a sizeable reduction in income (10% of men versus 7% of women) and more likely to accept a sizeable reduction in seniority or job title (19% versus 13%).
  • Overall, women in Canada have consistently reported lower Workforce Confidence Index scores than men since LinkedIn began collecting data early in the pandemic, although that gap has narrowed significantly since the summer.

For the full results, including additional insights on what’s keeping Canadians from finding new jobs, visit here.

Methodology

LinkedIn’s Workforce Confidence Index is based on a quantitative online survey that is distributed to members via email every two weeks. Roughly 1,000+ Canada-based members respond each wave. Members are randomly sampled and must be opted into research to participate. Students, stay-at-home partners & retirees are excluded from analysis so we’re able to get an accurate representation of those currently active in the workforce. We analyze data in aggregate and will always respect member privacy.

Data is weighted by engagement level, to ensure fair representation of various activity levels on the platform. The results represent the world as seen through the lens of LinkedIn’s membership; variances between LinkedIn’s membership & overall market population are not accounted for.

*Gender is based on self-reported data from survey respondents. Respondents could also identify outside Male or Female, or could select “prefer not to answer.”

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It’s International Women’s Day! Celebrate On TikTok With Shania Twain’s #LetsGoGirls

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 8, 2021 by itnerd

Pop-country icon Shania Twain is joining TikTok just in time for International Women’s Day and to ask the TikTok community to join her in the #LetsGoGirls challenge, soundtracked by her immortal hit “Man! I Feel Like A Woman.” Users can demonstrate what they think is the best thing about being a woman by creating a transition or stitch to showcase what happens when they hear Shania utter her famous phrase “Let’s Go Girls.” 

TikTok LIVE Telethon

TikTok will also be hosting a special six-hour LIVE telethon today from 1:00-7:00 p.m. PST, in celebration of International Women’s Day, to raise money for organizations that are committed to providing support and resources to help women continue flourishing in their lives. Starting today, #ThanksToHer will be a featured banner on the Discover page, connecting their community to a schedule of TikTok LIVE programming featuring women creators and artists, including @mayemuskofficial, @lillysingh, LGBTQ+ TikTok Trailblazers @team2moms, @kaliuchis, @christaallen, and more.

Community Support

TikTok is a platform that empowers women to own their voice and showcase their best selves but we know there is still work to be done. TikTok will be donating $250,000 to non-profit organizations across the US and Canada that commit to the advancement of women’s leadership and economic empowerment globally. In Canada, TikTok will be supporting YWCA Canada’s Young Women’s National Leadership Program, and the Native Women’s Association of Canada’s Art Expression Project.

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Canadian Women In Tech Feel Employers Have ‘Patched The Pandemic’ But Worry About Career Prospects: SAP

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 8, 2021 by itnerd

During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, more Canadian women working in technology agree that they have a good work-life balance and feel supported by their company, compared to Canadian women working outside of technology. However, they are more likely to report feeling like their career growth and goals have been stunted, and an astonishing 44 per cent of respondents agree that the pandemic notwithstanding, technology companies do not really want to hire women.   

The survey shows that technology companies have done a good job helping women manage the new way of work: Women in technology are more likely to agree they feel supported by their company (63 per cent vs. 51 per cent in non-technology roles), have a good work-life balance (57 per cent vs. 50 per cent in non-technology roles) and feel more productive (54 per cent vs. 33 per cent in non-technology roles).   

However, due to the pandemic, nearly half (48 per cent) of women in technology agree that their career growth or goals have been stunted, higher than those not in the technology sector (31 per cent). This is particularly true with younger women in the industry and those who are also caregivers. Over half (53 per cent) of younger generations are more likely to agree that their career growth or goals have been stunted than older generations (37 per cent). Nearly two-thirds (59 per cent) of women in technology who care for an adult and over half (52 per cent) of women with childcare responsibilities agree with the sentiment.   

The survey identifies other factors that technology companies need to address during and post-pandemic:  

As a result of the pandemic, women in technology are more likely to feel unmotivated in their careers (45 per cent vs. 39 per cent in non-technology roles), feel stifled in their career growth or goals (43 per cent vs. 33 per cent in non-technology roles), and overall have felt their careers have been impacted negatively (41 per cent vs. 29 per cent in non-technology roles). 

The majority of women in technology indicate it is important that their employer offers career growth workshops or programs (78 per cent vs. 68 per cent in non-technology roles) and increase informal meetings to foster employee engagement (74 per cent vs. 65 per cent in non-technology roles).While companies are still facing the challenges of the pandemic, the technology industry needs to focus on both recovery efforts and continuing to support women as future leaders.   

True Global Intelligence fielded an online survey on behalf of SAP Canada of 592 Canadian women who are professionals in technology and non-technology fields. The survey was fielded online from February 18 to March 2, 2021. Women in technology were identified as employed in a technology role or technology company.  

For more information, visit the SAP News Center or follow SAP on Twitter at @SAPNews.  

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Review: Victorinox Cyber Tool M

Posted in Products with tags on March 8, 2021 by itnerd

I will say this up front. I’ve had this tool for years. As in over 15 years. It’s survived everything that I could possibly throw at it and it has not failed me once. That tool is the Victorinox Cyber Tool M:

Like I said, I bought this 15 years ago or so and while it does have some light scratches on it, it still looks great. That’s a testament to the quality that Victorinox builds into I use it to do everything from open up computers and to open up Amazon boxes. It fits into my pocket without an issue though it is on the heavy side. The CyberTool is a geek and computer tech’s dream tool because of the amount of tools it provides:

To save you the trouble of figuring out what all of this stuff is, here’s a list:

  1. large blade
  2. small blade
  3. corkscrew
  4. reamer, punch and sewing awl
  5. can opener
  6. screwdriver 3 mm
  7. bottle opener
  8. screwdriver 6 mm
  9. wire stripper
  10. key ring
  11. toothpick
  12. tweezers
  13. mini screwdriver
  14. pressurized ballpoint pen
  15. pin, stainless steel
  16. pliers
  17. wire cutter
  18. wire crimping tool
  19. scissors
  20. multipurpose hook
  21. bit slotted 4
  22. bit Phillips 2
  23. bit Phillips 0 (Pozidrive)
  24. bit Phillips 1 (Pozidrive)
  25. bit Torx 10
  26. bit Torx 15
  27. bit case
  28. bit wrench
  29. female Hex drive 5 mm for D-SUB connectors
  30. female Hex drive 4 mm for bits
  31. bit Hex 4
  32. bit Torx 8

There’s a few things that I would like to highlight here:

Items 29 and 30 are actually located here. I love the fact that they put both of these in the same slot that the bits go into as that saves space.

The pin which is item 15 is hidden here so that it doesn’t slip out and stab you while you have this tool in your pocket. You also are getting a look at the scratches that I have on the tool after 15 years of use.

I found that this covers all my needs with the exception of tools to open an Apple product which tends to use their “unique” screws. I’ll admit that I don’t use all the tools that the CyberTool offers. Like the crochet hook, corkscrew and can/bottle openers and tweezers. But the blades and screw drivers see very frequent use from me. I’m always needing to do things like open the back of a computer, cut open a box, or tighten the screws on my wife’s eyeglasses. Having dropped it in server rooms and kicked it across the room accidentally, I can say it’s a very durable product that will last you years. It also has a very high quality feel as the blades and the like snap into place and that feels the same as they did on day one.

The only thing that you might not like is the price. I found it ranging between $160 to $180 CDN on Amazon. It’s not cheap. But I’ve had mine for 15 years and it’s survived everything that I have thrown at it. Which means it will survive your daily activities with ease.

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Review: Lever Gear CableKit

Posted in Products with tags on March 5, 2021 by itnerd

Lately I have been trying to find products that are small and easy to carry every day so that when the World stops ending, I am covered for a lot of things that I do every day. That was one of the reasons why I was really drawn to the Lever Gear CableKit.

This is a Lightning to USB-A cable that fits on your keychain that is packaged in a durable plastic case.

You can see the case on the top, and the USB-A cable to Lightning on the bottom. If you look at the case, you will see one of the cool things that this setup comes with. It’s a Lightning to USB-C adapter. That way you can also use this cable with a USB-C device. That’s very handy. If USB-C isn’t for you, there’s a Micro USB adapter available as well. I tested this cable and I was able to sync and charge my iPhone 12 Pro without an issue. It is a short cable, but you’re giving up length to get the ability to have this on your person at all times.

There’s also one other handy feature:

There’s a space for 2 micro or nano SIM cards, or micro SD cards. That’s really handy as when traveling was possible, I carried a separate case to put my Canadian SIM card into as I always use a local SIM card to save money. Now the SIM card has a place to go that is always on my person. Cool. This also ties into this feature.

It comes with a sim ejector tool which makes it easy to swap SIM cards and you again always have it on your person. That’s really cool. You’ll also note that besides being able to put it on your keychain, there’s a pocket clip to give you the option of having it securely in your pocket.

I picked this up on Amazon for $20 CDN which is a great price for something that is very handy. If you need a Lightning cable on your person at all times, I’d recommend picking this one up.

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