Archive for February 27, 2024

Fortra Brings Managed Extended Detection and Response to Market

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 27, 2024 by itnerd

Fortra today introduced an innovative next step in its managed services solutions – Fortra Extended Detection and Response (XDR). Delivered as a managed service, Fortra XDR provides comprehensive visibility and coverage across endpoints, network, and cloud environments, bringing to market a 24/7, scalable, sustainable, and comprehensive security solution. 

While other XDR solutions take a tools-centric approach, Fortra XDR provides customers with not only unrivalled technology, but also with security experts who will address midsize and enterprise organization’s desired security outcomes. 

Fortra XDR is backed by a global Security Operations Center (SOC) that performs 24/7 monitoring, threat hunting, security investigations, and incident triage with a 15-minute escalation SLA for high and critical incidents detected. Organizations building efficiencies and automation into their security strategy can use Fortra XDR for automated response actions such as host isolation. Response actions detected on the endpoint will result in SOC-deployed response actions for the customer. 

For more information about Fortra XDR, visit: https://www.alertlogic.com/extended-detection-and-response/. 

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Palo Alto Networks Launches Private 5G Security Solutions with Partner Ecosystem

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 27, 2024 by itnerd

Palo Alto Networks today announced end-to-end private 5G security solutions and services in collaboration with leading Private 5G partners. Bringing together Palo Alto Networks® enterprise-grade 5G Security and Private 5G partner integrations and services allows organizations to easily deploy, manage, and secure networks throughout their entire 5G journey. The launch addresses the need and desire for validated 5G integrations and furthers Palo Alto Networks strategic vision of an integrated, ecosystem approach to safeguard 5G deployments.

The speed, reliability, and flexibility of 5G networks are essential to national infrastructure and mission-critical environments; however, the massive amounts of data transmitted across 5G networks provide a target for threat actors seeking to exploit vulnerabilities. C-Level executives agree – in a recent Palo Alto Networks study, almost 70% of executives identified 5G-connected devices as a growing threat vector in operational technology (OT). With 5G also expected to contribute $1 trillion to the global economy in 2030, there is urgency to better protect today’s more complex networks, cloud-native solutions, and distributed environments to facilitate this growth.  

Fueled by a convergence of AI, Zero Trust, regulatory, and compliance mandates, Palo Alto Networks 5G Security helps organizations protect themselves against the latest threats, ensuring comprehensive security across evolving network landscapes. Combining industry-leading security solutions with disruptive Private 5G partner technologies and services enables customers to build security into their networks from the ground up, protecting the entire 5G infrastructure and mission-critical traffic it carries.

Palo Alto Networks Private 5G partners are vetted via lab testing and have proven success with customers with Private 5G networks. Initial Private 5G partners include Celona, Druid, Ataya, NETSCOUT, NVIDIA, and NTT DATA.

  • Celona, Druid, Ataya: Organizations building new private 5G networks with these partners can easily secure radio networks through integrations with Palo Alto Networks 5G Security.
  • NETSCOUT: Pervasive, packet-level network visibility will combine at scale with Palo Alto Networks 5G Security, helping security teams gain deep visibility to make intelligent policy decisions.
  • NVIDIA: Scalable 5G security ensures that AI-powered applications are optimized for speed, security, traffic accuracy, and data isolation to maintain data sovereignty and achieve multi-terabit, cost-effective security for mobile networks.
  • NTT DATA: An innovative and complete technology stack, network infrastructure capabilities, and trusted IT consulting and global system integration services help customers quickly and easily deploy, manage, and secure their private 5G networks.

See what Palo Alto Networks has in store for 5G at Mobile World Congress Barcelona, Hall 4 #4D55.

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PKI Solutions Debuts New Version of PKI Spotlight

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 27, 2024 by itnerd

PKI Solutions — a Public Key Infrastructure technology leader with practices covering PKI Design/Redesign and Implementation, PKI assessments, training, and support services — today introduced a new version of PKI Spotlight, a real-time monitoring and alerting system that provides live status, availability, configuration, and security of PKI environments (Microsoft PKI and others) and hardware security modules (HSMs). The latest release of PKI Spotlight has increased its award winning “Best Practices” alerting to more than 115. These Best Practice alerts are designed to aid organizations with operational resiliency, security posture management, threat detection, and refined PKI operational and configuration best practices.

Unfortunately for most organizations, their PKI was installed and then almost forgotten. In reality, a healthy PKI (like most security systems) needs constant review. PKI Spotlight maintains the security and integrity of PKIs with visibility into configurations that can impact identity and encryption systems in a manner that reduces an organization’s risk for business continuity and security threats.

The benefits of best practice alerts in PKI Spotlight’s latest release include:

  • Heightened Security Preparedness: Administrators gain enhanced ability to identify and rectify potential security weaknesses in real-time. These alerts cover areas from cryptographic algorithm compliance, trust chain validation, security configuration settings, and emerging threats. Addressing these alerts quickly helps organizations bolster their security preparedness and reduce the risk of threats.
  • Enhanced Compliance and Regulatory Adherence: Compliance with industry regulations and standards is critical for PKIs to enable organizations to strengthen their compliance posture. These alerts offer insights into compliance violations and highlight areas that require immediate attention and improvement. This helps organizations adhere to industry and company standards, safeguard sensitive data and meet regulatory compliance.
  • Streamlined PKI Management Efficiency: Streamlined PKI management helps administrators prioritize their efforts based on the criticality of each alert for better resource allocation and efficient operations, which reduces administration tasks.
  • Continuous Learning and Knowledge Enrichment: Continuous learning and knowledge enrichment among PKI administrators and security teams through regular alerts and implementing recommended practices fosters a culture of security awareness. Administrators gain valuable insights into emerging threats, industry best practices, and evolving compliance requirements. This empowers them to make informed decisions, proactively address vulnerabilities, and stay ahead of potential security risks.
  • Removing the Unintended Consequences Risk: All too often, people who manage a PKI will perform a simple change which can have a cascading effect throughout the PKI. PKI Spotlight will send an alert that this change is in violation of a Best Practice and allow the company to make the correction quickly.

For more details, go to https://www.pkisolutions.com.

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Your Voice is Power Returns to Engage Thousands of Canadian Students in Coding Education Through Music 

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 27, 2024 by itnerd

Amazon Future Engineer, Amazon Music and TakingITGlobal are proud to launch the 2024 edition of Your Voice is Power, an educational program and remix competition that teaches computer science and coding skills to middle and high school students using music from Indigenous artists. After reaching more than 15,000 students in 2023, Your Voice is Power has raised the target to more than 20,000 in 2024, as part of its mission to inspire and prepare young people for the careers of the future. 

Your Voice is Power is a flagship initiative of Amazon Future Engineer Canada, a computer science and STEM education program that seeks to afford all young people the opportunity to realize their potential.  A June 2023 report from The Dais, a public policy and leadership institute at Toronto Metropolitan University, shows that, according to Statistics Canada, Indigenous Peoples in Canada engage in tech-related employment and industry at only half the rate of people from non-Indigenous communities. By sparking an early interest in STEM education, programs like Your Voice is Power can help students from underrepresented communities build the digital literacy and skills that can lead to transformative technology careers. 

The Your Voice is Power curriculum is available at no cost to teachers and students in grades 7 through 12. The curriculum was built by TakingITGlobal with extensive year-long collaborations with the Cloud Innovation Centre at the University of British Columbia (UBC) that involved hundreds of hours of consultation and review. The UBC CIC, which is a private/public collaboration between Amazon Web Services (AWS) and UBC, facilitated connections to Indigenous experts, students and alumni as well as to UBC faculty.  

The Your Voice is Power lesson plan features eight modules that teach the basics of coding while engaging students in discussions on the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis experience in Canada, including topics like Residential Schools, the Sixties Scoop, and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action. Students can remix music from Indigenous artists such as Jayli Wolf, Dakota Bear, Samian, and Twin Flames using EarSketch, a free online code editor available in English, French, Ojibwe, and Inuktitut. All participants are encouraged to submit their remixes to a competition in which two winners – one Indigenous, one identifying as an ally – will receive $5,000 (CAD) scholarships.  

The deadline to submit entries to the 2024 student competition is May 31, 2024, and the winners will be selected in June. 

New for 2024, Juno Award-nominated artist Aysanabee will provide music for the Your Voice is Power curriculum, and will also join the student competition judging panel. Aysanabee is an Oji-Cree singer-songwriter who has received three 2024 Juno Award nominations for his album Here and Now, in the categories of Contemporary Indigenous Artist of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, and Alternative Album of the Year. 

Amazon Music ‘Your Voice is Power’ Playlist 

Amazon Music subscribers in Canada are able to stream an exclusive Your Voice is Power playlist featuring songs by artists including Twin Flames, Jayli Wolf, Dakota Bear, Samian, and many others featured in the program. This playlist features music celebrating themes of perseverance and determination, showcasing foundational moments in music spanning 30+ years of music making.  

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Radiant Logic Spring Release Unlocks Value of Data in Identity-First Security  

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 27, 2024 by itnerd

Radiant Logic, the leader in identity data management and analytics, today announces the spring release of the RadiantOne Identity Data Platform, featuring a completely redesigned user experience with analysis and visualization capabilities designed to make it easier to connect, manage and secure identity data. The RadiantOne Identity Data Platform unites decades of data expertise with cutting-edge analytics tools to provide a unified identity data layer for the enterprise—now even easier to use with the introduction of RadiantOne AI and its generative AI Data Assistant (AIDA). Enabled by a reinvented user experience, organizations can automate complex identity management processes and streamline business operations while minimizing the identity-related attack surface. 

Data quality and data integration remain a critical challenge for large and complex enterprises. A recent study from ISMG found that more than half of organizations have suboptimal visibility into their identity data and that legacy identity systems remain the greatest challenge for integration. Gartner corroborates this finding in a recent report, noting that“Identity and access data directly impacts IAM capability effectiveness, but most organizations struggle with data availability and quality.” To address these two pervasive challenges to an organization’s identity security posture, the RadiantOne Identity Data Platform connects and correlates data from any source, providing insight and visibility across diverse identity stores and the entire IT estate, including legacy systems.

The spring release is built on Radiant Logic’s big data heritage and is available in a variety of deployment options, including our SOC2 certified SaaS offering or a self-managed deployment. This release introduces RadiantOne AI, a data lake-powered artificial intelligence engine that uses the power of large language models augmented with advanced data visualization capabilities to deliver AI-driven analytics and decision making assisted by our GenAI chatbot, AIDA. RadiantOne AI enhances the usability of the organization’s identity data, boosting access decision speed and accuracy and unlocking the power of data for identity-first security and improved governance. 

The RadiantOne spring release introduces the following innovations:

  • AI-Driven Insights: RadiantOne AI, our data lake-powered artificial intelligence engine, is designed to leverage identity data to understand and mitigate risk. AIDA is the Generative AI chatbot that brings RadiantOne AI to life within the platform.AIDA’s first use case will be guiding the user access review process. With RadiantOne’s complete data and relationship model, AIDA can see into every layer of the access chain to find and alert reviewers to any misallocated rights, which can then be automatically remediated under reviewer control.
  • A Modern User Experience: A simplified UX allows users to take a drag-and-drop approach to identity data pipelines, getting teams to work faster by reducing the training required for implementation and using the platform. The API-first, low code/no code interface simplifies configuration tasks and gets customers up and running quickly, so there’s an even shorter time-to-value for RadiantOne.  
  • Enhanced Visibility: Radiant Logic’s new identity data lake isa centralized repository that ingests and stores large volumes of structured and unstructured identity data. The data is then processed and used to provide data consistency across RadiantOne through a Master User Record, which can then power the modern directory, analytics, machine learning, and other forms of intelligent action. This supports RadiantOne in illuminating the access chain for improved audit, compliance and data quality initiatives.
  • Identity Analytics on SaaS: The entire RadiantOne Identity Data Platform, including Identity Analytics, is now fully cloud-native, so it can be deployed as SaaS, in a private cloud, or on-premises, with feature parity across all deployment models.

Radiant Logic will showcase their solutions at the Gartner IAM Summit in London on March 4-5, 2024. Meet their identity experts there to ask questions or get a demo of their new AI solutions.

You can also sign up here to be added to the exclusive wait list for RadiantOne AI.

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Energy and Infrastructure Industry Sees Steady Growth in Business and Vendor Email Cyberattacks

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 27, 2024 by itnerd

Abnormal Security has published new research about the growth of BEC/VEC attacks in the energy and infrastructure industry. 

The energy and infrastructure industry is a top target for VEC attacks, with 65% of Abnormal customers experiencing a VEC attempt between February 2023 and January 2024. 

BEC attacks increased by 18% in the following six months, reaching a weekly average of 0.63 attacks per 1,000 mailboxes.

Despite flatlining over the Christmas holiday, the number of weekly attacks experienced by energy and infrastructure organizations jumped in the new year, peaking at 1.41 per 1,000 mailboxes in the second week of January.

You can read the research here.

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Economic Pressures has Fraud and Auto Theft on the Minds of Canadians: Equifax Canada

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 27, 2024 by itnerd

A new survey* by Equifax Canada sheds light on a public increasingly worried about the potential rise in fraudulent activity across industries. In addition, Equifax Canada data shows mortgage fraud and identity fraud continuing to escalate across the country as economic pressure continue.

Key Overall Findings: 

  • Economy Fuels Fears: Over 76 per cent of Canadians surveyed believe financial hardships may increase the likelihood of people committing fraud and theft, suggesting economic anxieties may contribute to growing auto theft and identity fraud concerns.
  • Auto Industry Alarm: Over 74 per cent of Canadians surveyed believe insurance fraud impacts their auto insurance payments, highlighting the financial burden of this growing crime. Over 56 per cent believe that keyless entry and ignition systems have increased the risk of auto theft, with 48 per cent knowing someone who has had their vehicle stolen.

Equifax Data: Tracking Identity Fraud Across All Sectors
While overall fraud rates have seen a slight decline compared to the peak levels of 2022, the prevalence of identity fraud has increased. In the fourth quarter of 2023, identity fraud accounted for a staggering 75.21 per cent of all fraudulent applications across all sectors, marking a significant increase from 64.7 per cent in the previous year. This rise in identity fraud poses a substantial risk to consumers and financial institutions alike, as fraudsters employ increasingly sophisticated tactics to exploit the system. The biggest proportion of identity fraud was seen in the banking sector, where 73.5 per cent of all fraudulent credit card applications and 89.3 per cent of all deposit frauds in Q4 2023 were found to be because of identity fraud.

Auto Industry 
The Equifax application fraud data also suggests nearly 80 per cent of auto fraud cases involve first-party fraud, where individuals falsify income or financial statements when applying for a car loan. New data indicates that the proportion of identity fraud in auto fraud applications has doubled since 2019. Secured lending institutions are especially vulnerable to these attacks, as fraudsters manipulate identity information to secure loans and acquire vehicles through deceptive means.

In response to these fraud trends, Equifax Canada emphasizes the importance of proactive fraud prevention measures and heightened consumer awareness. Equifax Canada suggests businesses consider adopting a fraud prevention platform like FraudIQ Manager to protect their business.

Mortgage Woes
Equifax Canada quarterly data** also shows fraud rates in mortgage applications continue to rise, up by 9.9 per cent in Q4 compared to Q4 2022, with Ontario having the highest mortgage fraud rate among all the provinces. Mortgage fraud is most commonly seen in the form of first-party fraud, where an individual provides false information to qualify for a mortgage.

Equifax Canada encourages consumers to explore ID theft protection products that can help detect fraud sooner by alerting them to key changes on their credit reports and scores, as well as reviewing tips to protect their information, including:

  • Using strong and unique passwords
  • Being cautious of suspicious calls and emails
  • Carefully disposing of sensitive documents like bank statements and credit card bills
  • Being careful about sharing personal information and only sharing personal information and photo identification with trusted institutions

* Equifax surveyed 1,614 Canadians ages 18-65, Feb. 2-4. A probability sample of the same size would yield a margin of error of +/- 2.5 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

* *Equifax data pulled from Q4 2019 to Q4 2023

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DoE Initiative Releases Cybersecurity Baseline For Electric Distribution Systems And DER Companies

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 27, 2024 by itnerd

On Thursday, as part of a Department of Energy funded initiative, The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) released voluntary cybersecurity baselines for electric distribution systems and distributed energy resources (DER) companies.

According to the press release, the electric distribution systems and DER industries are fast-growing, and given that regulatory authorities are at the state level instead of through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which enforces mandatory cybersecurity compliance for the U.S. grid, cybersecurity regulation among states can vary widely and the guidance is necessary to provide uniform requirements.

This initiative is divided into two phases:

  1. Cybersecurity Baselines define the cybersecurity controls that should be implemented, without specifying which procedures or technologies to use, as a framework for regulatory bodies and distribution utilities to develop their own cybersecurity requirements in conjunction with Phase 2 implementation strategies.
  2. Implementation Strategies and Adoption Guidelines to support electric distribution system stakeholders as they continue to develop and refine their cybersecurity requirements, including recommendations for assessing cybersecurity risks, prioritizing the assets to which the cybersecurity baselines might apply, and prioritizing the order in which the baselines might be implemented based on cyber risk assessments.

The guidance is also a part of the national cybersecurity strategy which directs DOE to promote cybersecurity resilience into the grid transition. DOE has other efforts aimed at securing the transition, such as the Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator and the Energy Cyber Sense vulnerability testing program for grid equipment.

Mark B. Cooper, President & Founder, PKI Solutions had this to say:

   “The evolving threats facing critical infrastructure, especially electric distribution systems, continue to increase while there’s a lack of proper tools that increase resilience. Regardless of the implementation of effective technologies, the mindset needs to shift to a more proactive strategy that includes real-time monitoring to identify misconfigurations so that remediations can be performed before they become security threats.

   “A resilient energy grid relies on foundational cryptography systems like PKI, but historically these systems have had challenges. It’s good to see the DOE’s initiative offering a framework for these stakeholders to defend against cyber threats and promote cyber-resilience with a uniform approach, but success of the program will be dependent on implementation of enhanced identity management and encryption standards and tools in order to defend against unauthorized access and threats in the energy sector.”

Emily Phelps, VP, Cyware follows with this:

   “This effort to create cybersecurity clarity and consistency is a positive step towards defending our critical infrastructure. We aim for resilience of critical energy infrastructure, and these baselines provide organizations within the energy sector a good framework to enhance their cybersecurity measures, align with industry standards, and collaboratively address the challenges posed by the evolving cyber threat landscape.”

This is a good move as this brings organizations into line. Which means they are more likely to be prepared for a cyberattack. And better yet, better able to defend against it.

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