Leaseweb Launches Highly Efficient VPS Infrastructure, Delivering Exceptional Price-Performance, Fast Local Storage and Easy Deployment

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 14, 2025 by itnerd

Leaseweb Global, a leading cloud services and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) provider, today announced thelaunch of a new highly efficient Virtual Private Server (VPS) solution. Designed for businesses that need a combination of exceptional price-performance, fast local storage and easy deployment, 

Leaseweb VPS packages start at just €3.99/month to deliver affordable solutions that don’t compromise on quality.Leaseweb’s new VPS solution provides customers with the flexibility to expand their infrastructure as their business needs grow. Delivered via a low-touch, self-service portal, it requires limited technical expertise for setup or management, enabling users to configure their server, monitor resources and manage snapshots with ease. This makes it ideal for businesses seeking a straightforward, scalable and efficient hosting service, as well as those looking for an entry-level solution to Leaseweb Public Cloud. 

With lightning-fast 10Gbps uplink speed, and powered by high performance processors and local NVMe storage, the Leaseweb VPS solution provides ample compute, RAM and generous traffic across all packages. In addition, built-in security and reliability features, including firewalls, DDoS protection and ISO-certified data centers, offer peace of mind and comprehensive protection for all customers. For those customers wanting to include backup, this is available as an add-on service. 

For further information about Leaseweb VPS, please visit https://www.leaseweb.com/en/products-services/cloud/virtual-private-server. 

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Foxit Unveils Game-Changing AI Platform,

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 14, 2025 by itnerd

Foxit, a leading provider of innovative PDF and eSignature products and services, helping knowledge workers to increase their productivity and do more with documents, today announced the launch of Foxit AI, a standalone web-based AI platform that delivers cutting-edge document-centric AI capabilities to users across industries. Available at ai.foxit.com, this innovative platform redefines how individuals and organizations manage and interact with their documents, offering unparalleled flexibility, accessibility, security, and efficiency.

The newly released Foxit AI is a powerful standalone web-based AI platform designed to revolutionize how individuals and organizations manage and interact with their documents. It offers a comprehensive suite of features, including AI-powered chat assistance, document and image analysis, advanced summarization, multilingual translation, text enhancement, and the ability to analyze multiple documents simultaneously. By combining intuitive design, cross-device accessibility, and seamless integration with Foxit’s broader ecosystem, Foxit AI empowers users across industries to streamline workflows, gain actionable insights, and maximize productivity. Whether simplifying complex legal documents, generating concise summaries, or translating content for global audiences, Foxit AI provides an efficient, secure, and user-friendly solution tailored to modern document management challenges.

Foxit AI Features and Benefits:

●     AI-Powered Chat Assistance – Provides instant, conversational support for document-related queries (e.g., quickly locate specific clauses in legal contracts or clarify essay structures).

●     Image-to-Text and Analysis – Upload images (JPEG, PNG, etc.) to extract text, insights, or contextual information from the image (e.g., upload PNG, JPEG, etc. and use “Extract Text” command – for instance, upload a receipt screenshot, and then easily retrieve dollar amounts or other key details.).

●     Text Enhancement Tools – Rewrite text with adjustable tone (e.g., professional, casual) and length (e.g., short, medium, long) (e.g., adapt content for different audiences, polish communications, or refine emails for clarity and tone).

●     Unparalleled Security – Ensures user privacy and data protection through robust security measures and compliance with industry standards (e.g., process sensitive documents with confidence, knowing they are safeguarded against unauthorized access).

●     Document Analysis – Upload documents for in-depth analysis to extract key insights and summarize content (e.g., analyze financial reports to identify critical data points without reading the entire document).

●     Advanced Summarization – Generate concise summaries of large documents or specific sections for easy review (e.g., summarize meeting notes to identify actionable insights).

●     Spelling and Grammar Checks – Ensure polished and error-free writing in seconds (e.g., proofread proposals and reports to improve quality).

●     Text Clarification – Simplify complex or technical language for better understanding (e.g., break down dense legal or technical terms for students or professionals),

●     Multilingual Translation – Translate text into multiple languages to bridge communication gaps (i.e., convert marketing materials for international audiences).

●     Multi-Document Analysis – Review and compare multiple documents simultaneously to save time (e.g., compare contracts or analyze multiple reports in one session).

●     Cross-Device Accessibility – As it is web-based, accessible on desktop, mobile, and tablet browsers without needing a PDF Editor license (e.g., Work efficiently across devices with cloud-based functionality).

●     User-Friendly Design – Intuitive interface with product tours and real-time support (e.g., easily navigate features with minimal learning curve).

●     Enterprise Scalability – Includes admin-controlled licenses and compliance tools for organizational use (e.g., manage access and ensure security across a team or enterprise).

To learn more about Foxit AI, please visit: ai.foxit.com.

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Guest Post: 75% of Fortune 500 technology companies scored a D or lower for their cybersecurity efforts

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 14, 2025 by itnerd

The increasing sophistication of cyberattacks and the expanding attack surface due to cloud adoption, remote work, and complex supply chains have made robust cybersecurity risk assessment more critical than ever.

Unfortunately, with the threat of cyberattacks growing, most organizations haven’t raised their security standards accordingly. Cybernews Business Digital Index shows that 84% of analyzed Fortune 500 companies scored a D or worse for their cybersecurity efforts.

The Cybernews research team analyzed 466 companies on the Fortune 500 list. Thirty-four companies could not be analyzed to evaluate an organization’s cybersecurity posture. The report evaluates risk across seven key areas: software patching, web application security, email security, system reputation, SSL Configuration, system hosting, and data breach history. 

Below is detailed data collected from multiple sources, including IOT search engines, IP and Domain name reputation databases, and custom scanners, that show Fortune 500 companies’ digital security posture.

Technology and IT companies are some of the most vulnerable 

Although the biggest U.S. companies by revenue are responsible for sensitive customer data, the results show they have major shortcomings in corporate customer data security.

According to the index, which grades businesses based on their online security measures, 84% of Fortune 500 companies scored D or worse, with 43% falling into the F category. Only 6% of analyzed organizations earned an A rating for security measures. 

Research shows that 75% of analyzed Technology and IT category companies scored a D or worse in their cybersecurity efforts. Overall, this sector received an average security score of 71.

With 57 companies on the list, the Technology and IT category is the fourth biggest Fortune 500 category. 35% of the scored companies received a D rating, and 40% received an F rating. Just 7% of companies received C and 17.5% of companies A ratings.

Only 1% of finance and insurance companies scored an A 

The biggest Fortune 500 category is Finance and Insurance, with 102 companies on the list. 63% of the scored companies received a D rating, and almost 24% received an F rating. Overall, this sector received an average security score of 71.

Finance and Insurance category companies are the most vulnerable. Only 1% of them gained an A-level security score.

The second-biggest category, with 88 companies, is Manufacturing. This category’s average security score is 65. According to The Business Digital Index, 81% of companies analyzed received a security rating of D or worse, with 53% falling into the F category. Only 3% of companies earned an A rating for their security measures.

61% of analyzed Energy and Natural Resources category companies worldwide scored F, and 24% got a barely passing grade of D. Only 7% of these organizations were worthy of an A rating for their security measures.

The healthcare industry is also particularly vulnerable, with 55% of the scored companies receiving a D rating and 31% an F rating. Only 10% of the companies analyzed in the Healthcare and Pharmaceuticals category achieved an A grade. Overall, the healthcare sector received an average security score of 70.

Also, 50% of the scored Retail and Wholesale category companies received a D rating and 40%  an F rating. In contrast, Construction and Engineering category companies fared better, with 73% earning a D and F grade for their security.

33% of Transportation and Logistics category companies received D and F scores equally. Most (43%) of Consulting and Business services category companies were rated D, and 57% got an F. Meanwhile, Real estate and Development category companies received 30% for D and 60% for F ratings. 

Among all industries, the Transportation and Logistics category has the highest share of A-level companies (20%). 

Researchers found nearly 671 critical or high-risk vulnerabilities

The Business Digital Index shows that the most common security issue is related to Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) configurations, with over 490 issues found in 466 analyzed companies

Furthermore, researchers found nearly 671 critical or high-risk vulnerabilities that hackers can exploit to enter networks and steal information.

Researchers also found that analyzed Fortune 500 list companies have 254 email security issues and 480 total data breach incidents.

Research Methodology

You can review the report’s Methodology here. It provides detailed information on how researchers conducted this analysis.

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BforeAI Secures Series B Funding 

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 14, 2025 by itnerd

BforeAI, the world’s fastest and most accurate predictive attack intelligence and digital risk protection solution, announced today the company has closed an oversubscribed $10 million Series B round of funding led by Titanium Ventures. This investment round brings the company’s total funding to over $30 million and will accelerate market expansion in the utilities, pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors as the company continues to enhance its PreCrime™ platform, expand sales resources, and strengthen partnerships. 

BforeAI’s mission is to proactively safeguard data, IT/OT networks, digital assets, customers, employees, and brand reputation. Enabling organizations to effectively preempt risks in advance of an attack, the PreCrime platform is powered by behavioral predictive intelligence, monitors 98% of the Internet to stay ahead of cyber threats by 18 days on average, and has a false positive rate of a mere 0.05%. 

Over the past year, BforeAI grew substantially and achieved key milestones, including launching the PreCrime Guarantee and its breach protection pledge in partnership with the leading global cyber insurance provider. The PreCrime Guarantee reimburses customers up to ten times the value of their service contract if impacted by a cyberattack due to a failure by BforeAI’s predictive solution. Most recently, BforeAI was recognized by Gartner in its new report, “Cool Vendors for Artificial Intelligence in Banking and Investment Services.” The report serves as a guide to help chief information security officers (CISO), chief information officers (CIO), and chief data officers (CDO) in financial services and cyber fraud fusion centers identify solution partners for quick detection of risks and preemptive action before a fraud attempt even happens.

Existing investors SYN Ventures, Karista, and Addendum Capital, recognizing the company’s strong growth trajectory, participated in this round to maintain their ownership stakes.

Stamina Law in New York City, by Jade Ruscev, provided legal counsel to the company for the financing round.

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New “Codefinger” Ransomware Abuses Amazon AWS to Encrypt S3 Buckets

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 13, 2025 by itnerd

Researchers have identified a new ransomware threat actor dubbed “Codefinger” targeting Amazon S3 buckets leveraging AWS’s Server-Side Encryption with Customer Provided Keys (SSE-C) to encrypt data, demand ransom payments for the symmetric AES-256 keys required to decrypt it.  This attack doesn’t require the exploitation of any AWS vulnerability but instead relies on the threat actor first obtaining an AWS customer’s account credentials. With no known method to recover the data without paying the ransom, this tactic represents a significant evolution in ransomware capabilities 

You can read more at the link below:

https://www.halcyon.ai/blog/abusing-aws-native-services-ransomware-encrypting-s3-buckets-with-sse-c

Darren James, a Senior Product Manager at Specops Software, commented:

“This is a great example of where password reuse or sticking with easy to guess passwords, along with no two-factor authentication, will come back to bite admins.

Admins are human just like the rest of us, and we all hate passwords and have too many to remember, so they, just like us, fall into bad habits, such as using default passwords or an easily guessable password, or reusing the same password across multiple systems. We’ve seen this on a number of occasions when we run our Specops Password Auditor tool and in our own analysis of stolen credentials.

It’s vitally important for admins especially to make sure that they use different passwords for all systems they use and enable strong, phishing resistant 2FA wherever possible.

If they had used these simple steps, this latest ransomware attack could have been avoided.

On the upside, at least SSE-C is a strong encryption method, but it is not good to see it used against the good guys rather than for them.”

This illustrates that doing the simple stuff will help you to not get pwned by threat actors. Thus this should serve as wake up call to do just that ASAP.

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North American companies are at risk of losing employees to the Workplace Fulfillment Gap: Ricoh

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 13, 2025 by itnerd

The 2024 North American Workplace Fulfillment Gap Index released today by Ricoh USA, Inc., a leading provider of integrated digital workplace solutions and services, found that fulfillment is an often-overlooked factor employers should focus on in their talent retention strategies as companies implement return to office (RTO) policies. 

The report surveyed over 2,000 U.S. and Canadian adults between ages 18-64 who are employed full-time. The findings show that by nearly every measure, employers are falling short of their employees’ expectations to invest in organizational priorities that matter most to their fulfillment: work/life balance, purpose-driven work, a frictionless environment, and a growth-oriented culture. Workers ranked their overall fulfillment at a 6.89 out of 10, with pronounced fulfillment gaps between on-site (6.92) and remote workers (6.61).

Workplace fulfillment needs to factor into companies’ renewed RTO policies

Most employees (51%) reported feeling less fulfilled compared to five years ago, with hybrid workers feeling more fulfilled than their remote and on-site counterparts. And yet, most employees (84%) say their fulfillment is an important deciding factor in whether to stay at a company. This is particularly key for employers to balance with their enhanced enforcement of renewed RTO policies. 

Generations (and countries) are divided in how they view the role of work in their lives, and the sense of fulfillment that comes with it

Approximately four in five (82%) North American workers say their sense of fulfillment at work helps them feel happier at home, but less than a quarter (21%) of employees feel completely fulfilled through their work. This disparity signals that most workers could be happier in their personal lives if the gap in workplace fulfillment closed. The findings also show a stark difference between the United States and Canada, with Americans (29%) more likely to be fulfilled at work compared to Canadians (14%).  

Across generations, more Gen Z (63%) employees associate their personal identity with their profession than any other generation, with Boomers being the least likely to say this (52%). Gen Z employees are also the most likely (85%) to say that feeling fulfilled at work helps them feel fulfilled at home, yet they’re the least likely (79%) to say that they feel like they’ve contributed something positive to the world after a day’s work.

Most North American employees are optimistic that the advent of AI and other technology innovations will free up more of their time to do what they love

Contrary to popular belief, most employees view AI as a tool to enhance their productivity and support their current job roles as a collaborator instead of a replacement.  Approximately two-thirds of respondents agree that AI will allow them to work more efficiently, with hybrid employees (73%) more likely to say this than remote and on-site workers. Additionally, three in five (60%) employees agree that AI tools could allow them to have more time for passions outside of work.

People are the fulfillment glue

North American employees rank their comradery with colleagues in their organization higher than any other measure of what’s keeping them engaged in their current role. Moreover, respondent data shows a correlation between feeling more disconnected from coworkers (47%) to feeling less fulfilled at work (51%). Nine in ten (91%) employees say the culture among those they work with is important to feeling fulfilled in their job, with hybrid workers more likely to say this than onsite workers.

For more details and insights regarding the survey results and optimizing the workplace experience, visit: https://www.ricoh-usa.com/en/solutions/workplace-experience

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CISA sees a 201% increase in enrolment for its Cyber Hygiene (CyHy) service

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 13, 2025 by itnerd

In a report released Friday, CISA said it saw a 201% increase in its Cyber Hygiene (CyHy) service enrollment from critical infrastructure organizations between Aug. 1, 2022, through Aug. 31, 2024.

Of the 7,791 critical infrastructure organizations that enrolled in the agency’s vulnerability scanning service during that period. The following industries lead the surge:

  • Communications – 300% 
  • Emergency services – 268%
  • Critical manufacturing – 243%
  • Water and wastewater systems 242%

CISA cited a steady decrease in the number of monitored exploitable services from 12 services per CyHy enrollee in August 2022 to roughly 8 apiece. The number of KEV tickets also declined, with critical-severity KEVs falling 50% and high-severity KEVs dropping by 25%. 

Remediation times for SSL vulnerabilities fell as well, with tickets resolved in less than 50 days, down from about 200 days as of August 2022.

CISA’s report also highlighted the high exposure rate of operational technology protocols to the public internet: 

  • 63% – Government services and facilities
  • 10% – IT
  • 10% – Energy
  • 5% – Healthcare

Lawrence Pingree, VP, Dispersive.io had this to say:

  “I think it’s admirable that CISA offers a free scanning service. It’s no surprise that enterprises leverage the free service to check for vulnerabilities, given you get a report regularly from the government for free (no cost). Seeking to find any vulnerabilities in your external attack surface is certainly one of the first priorities that enterprises should have. Keep in mind, it doesn’t necessarily represent the only way that attackers can breach an environment, and there’s no guarantee that a zero day isn’t used instead. Attackers just rotate to whatever they need to in order to accomplish their goals. So, if the external surface is too much of a challenge, they rotate to third parties, or malware+phishing, or even social engineering. The importance of my past research work in preemptive cyber defense (PCD) and automated moving target defense (AMTD) at Gartner was to point to the need to move to preemptive models instead of the whack-a-mole we play with vulnerabilities and patching.”

I am pretty impressed by this as it shows that organizations may actually be taking cybersecurity seriously. That is a good thing as we’ve seen what happens when cyber criminals are allowed to run wild.

Emily Phelps, Director, Cyware follows with this:

  “CISA’s Cyber Hygiene service growth reflects the critical sectors’ increasing focus on cybersecurity, but the report also highlights persisting risks, like high exposure of operational technology protocols. Improved remediation times are encouraging, but organizations must go beyond addressing vulnerabilities to build resilience against evolving threats. Protecting critical infrastructure demands real-time threat detection, intel and defensive strategy sharing, coordinated responses, and robust strategies to secure essential services.”

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Ericsson enhances enterprise 5G portfolio with Generative AI Virtual Expert to simplify network operations

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 13, 2025 by itnerd

Ericsson today announced the launch of its generative AI-based NetCloud Assistant (ANA). This next generation of ANA is a virtual expert designed to further simplify enterprise 5G network administration. Unlike traditional chatbots, which leverage search to provide links to existing resources, ANA stands out with the ability to read, understand, and generate new text and graphical content. ANA provides personalized responses by correlating information from multiple technical documents and unique insights from the customer’s network, transforming hours or even days of work into seconds. 

ANA is the first generative AI virtual expert designed for enterprise Wireless WAN (WWAN) networks, utilizing large language models, with all its AI components hosted entirely within Ericsson’s environment. This design ensures user and data privacy by avoiding API calls to third-party consumer generative AI applications. 

Key functionalities of ANA:  

  • Knowledge Summarization: Correlates information from Ericsson’s library of technical documentations into concise summaries personalized to the customer’s network.
  • Configuration Assistance: Accelerates Day 1 deployments with step-by-step guidance for WAN edge device configuration based on best practices.  
  • Enhanced Troubleshooting: Automates common diagnostic tasks and provides step-by-step instructions to troubleshoot and resolve connectivity issues, speeding up mean time to repair. 
  • Policy Recommendation: Future releases will translate business requirements into recommended SD-WAN and WAN bonding policies to enhance WAN performance and application availability.  
  • Custom Graph Generation: Future releases will allow administrators to ask ANA to create detailed graphs that visualize more complex information not typically available in standard NetCloud dashboards or pre-canned reports. 

ANA complements Ericsson’s NetCloud AIOps dashboard which serves as a vital component in transforming network management. Through an intelligent fault management system, it detects performance-driven anomalies, such as latency and jitter, specific to each customer’s specific environment. By providing real-time insights into network performance, AIOps empowers IT teams to proactively address issues, leveraging ANA as needed, to ensure optimal network operations and enhance the overall digital experience. 

New ANA features and the NetCloud AIOps dashboard are available for demonstration at Ericsson’s NRF 2025 booth #3948. Both features will evolve to support Ericsson Private 5G solutions.  

For more details:  

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TikTok Is Basically Done In The US…. Maybe

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 12, 2025 by itnerd

Here’s the explanation of the title of this story. Oral arguments were held in the US Supreme Court on Friday, and it didn’t go well for TikTok:

A majority of the Supreme Court appeared likely to uphold a controversial ban on TikTok over concerns about its ties to China, with justices lobbing pointed questions at lawyers for the social media app and a group of its content creators.

During more than two hours of oral arguments, many of the justices appeared to view the sell-or-ban law approved by Congress in April not as one that primarily implicates the First Amendment but rather as an effort to regulate the potential foreign control of an app used by 170 million Americans.

Here’s where the “maybe” part comes in:

But even if the court upholds the ban, there remains considerable uncertainty around the app’s accessibility in the Trump administration. Trump has said he wants to save TikTok and the law gives him wide latitude on enforcement.

Keep in mind that in the past, Trump has wanted to do the very thing that this law does. Which is force TikTok to be sold to American interests or be shut down. Now he’s flip flopped. You have to wonder if he owes favours or money to the Chinese or something because that’s as big of a 180 as I have ever seen.

Stay tuned to this story was we’re clearly in the endgame and we’re about to see how this plays out…. Finally.

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Venezuela’s Internet Censorship Sparks Surge in VPN Demand 

Posted in Commentary with tags on January 11, 2025 by itnerd

VPN Mentor has just published a report about a series of events in the Venezuelan digital landscape that have raised concerns about internet freedom, censorship, and political unrest causing a substantial 328% surge in the VPN usage during the first week of the year. 

You’ll find all the details to their findings here: https://www.vpnmentor.com/news/vpn-surge-venezuela/ 

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