Faulkner Flash
Faulkner Flash is an enterprise IT news digest covering major events and product announcements from the past week.
Copyright 2016, Faulkner Information Services. All Rights Reserved.
Docid: 00024836
Publication Date: 12/02/2016
Publication Type: FLASH
Preview
Faulkner Flash is a weekly news summary covering computer systems
and software, networking, convergence, and communications. This Faulkner Flash covers
the period 11/21/2016 to 12/02/2016.
Report Contents:
- Top Stories of The Week
- Acquisitions & Divestitures
- Alliances & Joint Ventures
- Cloud Computing
- Data Breaches
- Desktops
- Development Software
- Enterprise Application Software
- Financial
- Healthcare Systems
- Legal
- Malware Watch
- Personnel and Organization
- Security Flaws & Fixes
- Security Products & Companies
- Smartphones
- Storage
- Supercomputers
- Tablets
Top Stories of the Week
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Records Show Secret Meetings Between Apple and FDA (11/28/2016)
An exclusive report from Web site MobiHealthNews says that Apple has been in regular secret contact with the Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding possible medical apps and devices the company is considering. The information, gathered from documents obtained by a Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA) request, shows ongoing phone,
e-mail, and in-person meetings between the two groups. Among the attendees to at least two of the meetings was the director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, Dr. Jeffrey
Shuren. A review of Dr. Shuren’s public appointments calendar
shows no record of meetings with Apple on the days the documents indicate they were held. Redacted material obtained by MobiHealthNews indicates that Apple discussed a diagnostic app for Parkinson’s disease as well as two “possible (and related) products
in the cardiac space.” This is speculated to be either an EKG attachment for the Apple Watch or a better heart-rate tracker for the wearable.
HP Inc Posts Steep Q4, Full-Year Earnings Dropoff (11/22/2016)
HP Inc reported sharp year-to-year declines in its earnings for the fiscal 2016 fourth quarter and full year ended October 31, 2016. Q4 profits were $500 million, or $0.30 per share, which was down 66% from a fiscal 2015 fourth quarter net income of $1.5
billion, or $0.83 per share. Revenues, meanwhile, were $12.5 billion, which was up 3% from fiscal 2015 fourth quarter sales of $12.3 billion. Personal Systems revenue increased 4% to $8 billion, while Printing revenue fell 8% to $4.6 billion. For the full
fiscal year, HP’s profits were $2.7 billion, or $1.53 per share. This was down 28% from fiscal 2015 earnings of $3.7 billion, or $2.02 per share. Full-year revenues were $48.2 billion, which was down 6% from fiscal 2015 sales of $51.5 billion.
Amazon Working on Touchscreen Echo Speaker (11/29/2016)
According to a report in Bloomberg, Amazon is working to develop a touchscreen version of the
Amazon Echo. Sources say the screen will measure about seven inches and will constitute “a major departure” from the voice-controlled Alexa digital assistant that has been the interface with the device. The Echo will still include Alexa and respond to
verbal commands and spoken questions. Additional upgrades include higher-end speakers for better sound and a fabric covering that allows users to pin items such as photos and to-do lists to the device. Bloomberg notes that the appliance is scheduled to be
announced as soon as the first quarter of 2017.
Acquisitions & Divestitures
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Accenture Fully Acquires Karmarama (11/29/2016)
Accenture acquired Karmarama, an independent agency that offers services that blend creativity, digital, and data to develop campaigns that help brands “better engage with consumers.” This transaction is expected to
strengthen Accenture Interactive’s capabilities for delivering transformation services, in addition to helping it to more easily create and deliver integrated services. Karmarama’s Executive Chairman
Jon Wilkins, CEO Ben Bilboul, Chief Strategy Officer Sid McGrath, and Chief Creative Officer Nik Studzinski, meanwhile, will continue to serve in their current roles, in addition to taking on additional Accenture Interactive leadership positions. The terms
of this transaction were not disclosed.
Booz Allen Reaches Deal to Acquire eGov Holdings / Aquilent (11/29/2016)
Booz Allen Hamilton entered into an agreement to acquire digital services firm eGov Holdings – which owns Aquilent and offers .gov solutions for the federal government. This $250 million acquisition is expected to bolster
Booz Allen’s growing technology and talent base, including for citizen-focused digital services. This transaction is expected to close by December 31, 2016, and is subject to “customary closing conditions.”
CA Establishes Agreement to Acquire Automation Software Developer Automic Holding (12/01/2016)
CA Technologies signed an agreement to acquire business automation software developer Automic Holding. This EUR600 million (US$638 million) transaction is expected to allow CA to add new cloud-enabled automation and
orchestration capabilities to its portfolio, in addition to allowing it to offer a global solution that complements CA’s existing technology investment. In particular, CA will add Automic’s automation and orchestration capabilities to its portfolio to
allow it to offer options for addressing IT operations and DevOps either on-premise or in a cloud-based or hybrid cloud environment. The acquisition has been unanimously approved by both companies’ Boards, and is expected to close during the fourth quarter
of CA’s fiscal 2017 year ended March 31, 2017.
FLIR Buys Prox Dynamics in $134 Million Deal (12/01/2016)
FLIR has acquired Prox Dynamics AS, a developer and manufacturer of nano-class unmanned aerial systems for military and para-military intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications, for approximately $134 million USD in cash. Prox Dynamics
develops, manufactures, and distributes aerial sensors that are considered small, light, and covert surveillance systems.
IBM Closes Acquisition of Promontory (11/22/2016)
IBM completed the acquisition of Promontory Financial Group, a risk-management and regulatory compliance consulting firm. Promontory will be combined with IBM’s deep industry expertise and Watson cognitive capabilities to
help IBM accelerate the development of cognitive solutions for risk and compliance. Promontory will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of IBM. The acquisition’s terms were not released.
Oracle Reveals Plans to Acquire Dyn (11/21/2016)
Oracle signed an agreement to acquire Dyn, a cloud-based Internet Performance and DNS services provider that monitors, controls, and optimizes Internet applications and cloud-based services. Oracle plans to add Dyn’s DNS technology
to extend the Oracle cloud computing platform to provide a “one-stop shop” for IaaS (Infrastructure-as-a-Service) and PaaS (Platform-as-a-Service) offerings. The terms of this transaction were not announced.
Symantec to Purchase LifeLock for $2.3 Billion (11/21/2016)
Symantec has agreed to acquire LifeLock for $24 USD per share or $2.3 billion in enterprise value. The deal, which was approved by the boards of directors of both companies, is expected to close in the first calendar quarter of 2017, subject to customary
closing conditions including LifeLock stockholder approval. Symantec CEO Greg Clark said in a statement, “With the combination of Norton and LifeLock, we will be able to deliver comprehensive cyber defense for consumers. This acquisition marks the
transformation of the consumer security industry from malware protection to the broader category of digital safety for consumers.”
Alliances & Joint Ventures
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DPLA and Library of Congress Join in Digitized Content Partnership (11/29/2016)
The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) and the Library of Congress (LOC) have agreed to
partner on sharing digitized content from the country’s premier library. Beginning with some 5,000 items from three major map collections covering the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and panoramic maps, the deal will ultimately see a significant
portion of the LOC’s holdings added to the DPLA’s database of digital content records. According to Amy Ryan, president of DPLA’s Board of Directors, “The Library of Congress’s extraordinary resources will be exponentially more available to everyone in the
United States through DPLA. This partnership will benefit everyone, from curious thinkers to scholars.” Since launching in April 2013, the DPLA now counts more than 14 million digitized items from more than 2,000 institutions among its collections.
Fujitsu Conducting Joint Field Trials for “Cold” Data Storage Technology (11/21/2016)
Fujitsu, Scality, and Osaka University jointly executed a “cold” data storage-focused field trial of “intercontinental data center coordination.” This field trial is based on a collaboration consortium that was established
in April; trials will be conducted through December 2017 and carried out between data centers in Osaka University’s Cybermedia Center and Paris’ AntemetA. This trial will see the partners build and test the
effectiveness of a storage platform – coordinated across remote locations – in offering improvements in throughput and disaster resilience.
HPE, Nokia Extend Partnership to Collaborate on IoT (11/30/2016)
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and Nokia announced that they extended an existing collaboration agreement to focus on developing IoT (Internet of Things) technology for enterprises. Together, the companies plan to market and
sell technology for two IoT vertical enterprise segments – industrial / manufacturing and smart city applications – and will provide industrial and manufacturing customers with technology for asset management, smart manufacturing, remote site automation,
predictive maintenance, and enhanced networking for smart city connectivity. HPE also agreed to join Nokia’s IoT Community, an ecosystem for collaborating on end-to-end prototypes, business models, and market trials to “unleash the full potential of IoT,”
while Nokia will join HPE’s IoT initiative within the HPE Partner Ready program. Joint offerings will be made available starting in “early 2017.”
IBM Watson Health, Pfizer Enter Into Partnership (12/01/2016)
IBM Watson Health announced a collaboration agreement for Pfizer to use the Watson for Drug Discovery service to help accelerate its research into immuno-oncology to fight cancer. IBM’s
Watson for Drug Discovery service uses machine learning, natural language processing, and other cognitive reasoning technologies to help discover drug targets by looking across disparate data sets. The release can then work to surface relationships and
reveal hidden patterns through dynamic visualization.
IBM, Mahindra Group Develop Joint Blockchain Product (11/30/2016)
IBM and India’s Mahindra Group developed a blockchain product for enhancing security, transparency, and operational processes. This cloud-based application is designed to transform supplier-to-manufacturer trade finance
transactions through a permissioned distributed ledger that allows all parties involved in the transaction to act on the same shared ledger.
PwC, SAP Announce Strategic Alliance (11/21/2016)
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) announced a strategic alliance whereby its Strategy&’s Performance Analyzer will be built on the SAP HANA platform. This offering provides trade promotion management and post-event analysis that covers trade spending.
Cloud Computing
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Athena Serverless Query Service Coming from AWS (11/30/2016)
Amazon Web Services (AWS) has rolled out its new Athena serverless query service. Athena is designed to analyze large amounts of data stored in Amazon Simple Storage
Service (Amazon S3) with the use of standard SQL. Athena removes the need to build, manage, or tune a cluster or any other infrastructure. The interactive query editor gets the customer up and running and helps them get their results in seconds. Athena is
currently available only in the US East (N. Virginia) and US West (Oregon) Regions but will expand to additional Regions in the coming months.
AWS Debuts New Features to Partner Network (11/29/2016)
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is expanding its AWS Partner Network (APN) to include new programs to support and differentiate APN partners who provide solutions and
expertise for specific services, workloads, and industry verticals. The AWS Service Delivery Program identifies partners that have passed technical reviews and have a validated track record of customer success with any of 15 specific AWS services,
including Amazon Redshift, Amazon Alexa, AWS Database Migration Service, or AWS GovCloud (US) workloads. The AWS Public Sector Partner Program is designed for APN Partners to help deliver solutions and experience to government, education, and nonprofit
customers around the world leveraging the AWS Cloud. The third program is VMware Cloud on AWS, which will be delivered, sold, and supported by VMware as an on-demand, elastically scalable service. Launching in 2017, the VMware Cloud on AWS Partner Program
will focus on supporting customers as they deploy and operate VMware Cloud on AWS. In addition, AWS unveiled the AWS Partner Solutions Finder, which helps customers search AWS-vetted partner profiles through criteria such as location, industry, use case,
and products. The Partner Solutions Finder will also identify authorized AWS Resellers or validated AWS Managed Service Providers and find APN Partners who hold specific AWS Competencies and AWS Service Delivery Program distinctions.
HPE Demonstrates Memory-Drive Computing Technology (11/28/2016)
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) demonstrated new Memory-Drive Computing concept that is designed to “put memory, not processing, at the center of the computing platform.” This proof-of-concept prototype includes compute nodes
accessing a shared pool of fabric-attached memory; a Linux-based OS running on a customized SoC (system-on-chip); photonics/optical communication links; and new software programming tools for taking advantage of abundant persistent memory. Further
details are available via the HPE Web site.
HPE Introduces Technology for Deploying, Managing IoT Devices (11/30/2016)
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) announced new technology for helping organizations deploy IoT (Internet of Things) devices in wide area, enterprise, and industrial deployments. New offerings include the Mobile Virtual Network
Enabler (MVNE), for managing IoT devices requiring cellular connectivity and services; a Universal IoT Platform update for managing MVNE devices and providing IoT monitoring, reporting, and analytics services; the Aruba ClearPass Universal Profiler, for
helping identify and inventory IoT devices as they connect to the network; and Aruba 2540 Series Switches.
HPE Unveils Hybrid Cloud-Based Software, Extensions (11/29/2016)
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) introduced a new hybrid cloud-based offering and technology extensions for HPE hyper-converged systems. This software, which is designed to help more quickly deliver software-defined
infrastructure, includes Synergy with HPE Helion CloudSystem 10, which offers composability features across compute, storage, and fabric; as well as a Hyper Converged Operating Environment update that delivers new workspace controls. The offerings will be
available in the first quarter of 2017.
IBM Adds New Bluemix Data Services, Features (11/21/2016)
IBM announced cloud-based Bluemix data services and features for helping organizations more easily migrate data to the cloud and generate business insight. These announcements include a Decision Optimization beta, for helping ingest large amounts of
data, including predictions, master and transactional data, business goals, and business rules to prioritize and rank business decisions; a Bluemix Lift data migration tool for helping migrate databases from existing on-premise data centers to Bluemix and
the Watson Data Platform; and dashDB for Transactions, a managed SQL database service on Bluemix that is optimized for transactional and Web-based workloads to help developers fuel cloud-based applications.
IBM Announces Cloud-Based Data Services (11/21/2016)
IBM announced new cloud-based data services on Bluemix that are designed to help accelerate the migration of data to the cloud. These releases include Decision Optimization, a beta release for ingesting data such as predictions, master and transactional
information, business goals, and rules to prioritize and rank business decisions; the Bluemix Lift data migration tool for migrating databases from on-premise data centers to Bluemix and the Watson Data Platform; and dashDB for Transactions, a fully
managed SQL database service for transactional and Web-based workloads.
IBM Establishes Watson IoT Consulting Solutions (11/21/2016)
IBM established Watson IoT Consulting Solutions, a new practice that will integrate Watson IoT Platform APIs and technology, development, implementation consulting, and ongoing support services. This practice will focus on offering services that help
“drive digital transformation with the Internet of Things (IoT).” It will also offer services via the Watson IoT Platform, including IoT for Manufacturing, for Asset Health Insight, for Automotive, for Electronics, and for Insurance.
Italy Projected as Upcoming Site for AWS Data Centers (11/30/2016)
Reuters reports that Amazon Web Services (AWS) is negotiating to open new data centers in northern Italy. According to sources, the cloud
services provider is in talks with state-controlled Enel utility company to convert three to five older power stations that are being decommissioned. Reports say that AWS will spend more than one billion dollars to convert the plants. The operations are
part of 23 thermal power stations that Enel announced it was shuttering due to “falling power demand and changing business patterns as green energy replaces fossil fuel generation.” Amazon currently employs more than 1,700 people in Italy and during the
summer unveiled plans for a major new storage and logistics center to be located outside Rome.
Microsoft Adds New Access Panel for Azure Active Directory (11/29/2016)
Microsoft released a new Access Panel for the Azure Active Directory. This “mobile-friendly” feature includes a streamlined layout with improved notifications and user controls, as well as updated support for group management. The Access Panel, which was
previously available as a public preview, allows the user to more easily launch connected applications, change group memberships, and access security settings.
Microsoft Incorporates New Preview Version for Visual Studio (11/21/2016)
Microsoft added a new preview version of Visual Studio software with features for continuously integrating and deploying multi-container Linux applications for Azure Container Service. These tools provide “dev-to-test-to-prod” deployment for
container-based workloads, and use development and Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment solutions.
Microsoft Releases R Server, Kafka for Azure HDInsight (11/21/2016)
Microsoft released R Server for Azure HDInsight and Kafka for Azure HDInsight. Microsoft’s R software, in particular, leverages Hadoop and Spark and provides machine-learning algorithms and statistical functions in the cloud. The public preview release
of Kafka, meanwhile, offers an enterprise-grade, open-source, streaming ingestion service for streamlining the provisioning, management, and use process. It is designed to support real-time scenarios such as fraud detection, click-stream analysis,
financial alerts, telemetry from connected sensors and devices, social analytics, “always on” ETL (Extract, Transform and Load) pipelines, and network monitoring.
Microsoft Reveals Public Preview Version of Azure Media Redactor (11/21/2016)
Microsoft released a public preview version of the Azure Media Redactor. The Azure Media Redactor offers component software for Azure Media Analytics; it provides scalable redaction in the cloud, and provides a Media Processor that blurs the faces of
select individuals for use in public-safety and news-media scenarios. This software is now available in all Azure regions, as well as US government and China datacenters.
Microsoft Rolls Out Azure Advisor (11/21/2016)
Microsoft released its new Azure Advisor personalized recommendation engine. This engine is designed to provide proactive “best practices” guidance for configuring Azure resources. The Azure Advisor analyzes resource configuration and uses telemetry to
detect risks and potential issues, then draws on best practices to recommend solutions to improve the security, performance, and reliability of applications. The release is now available in public preview.
Microsoft Shows Off Azure Disk Encryption IaaS VM (11/21/2016)
Microsoft introduced its new Azure Disk Encryption IaaS virtual machine offering. This pay-per-use Infrastructure-as-a-Service runs on Windows and Linux, and is available via Azure Government cloud regions. It is designed to help protect operating
systems and data disks that are “at rest” using industry-standard encryption technology. The offering supports BitLocker Windows-based and DM-Crypt Linux-based technology.
Microsoft Unveils StorSimple Extension (11/29/2016)
Microsoft incorporated a new StorSimple extension for its Azure portal that can be used to manage the StorSimple Virtual Device Series. This app is designed to help create Azure Resource Manager-based StorSimple managers to control virtual arrays, and
offers a self-service sandbox environment for creating Dev/Test environments.
Microsoft Updates Azure IoT Suite with New Features (11/21/2016)
Microsoft added new features to its Azure IoT Suite for helping better extend, manage, and monitor IoT (Internet of Things) deployments. These additions include enhancements to the IoT Gateway SDK; IoT Hub device management capabilities for more easily
organizing, monitoring, querying, configuring, and updating software and firmware configurations; and a new IoT Hub IP filter security feature for configuring IP filtering rules.
New Artificial Intelligence Services Unveiled by AWS (11/30/2016)
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is jumping into artificial intelligence with three new services focusing on natural language processing, text-to-speech conversion, and image
analysis such as the recognition of facial features, objects, and scenes. The company positions the new offerings as a way for developers to “focus on defining and building an entirely new generation of apps that can see, hear, speak, understand, and
interact with the world.” Amazon Rekognition is an image analysis service that can identify various attributes of an image. Amazon Polly accepts text or a string and returns an MP3 audio file containing the speech, supporting 47 different voices in 23
different languages with a variety of accents to make applications for users around the globe. Amazon Lex is the natural language processing and automatic speech recognition service that converts text or voice that developers can parse to perform a set of
actions. Amazon Lex uses the same deep learning technologies that power Amazon’s Alexa and Echo.
SAS Updates Data Management Portfolio (11/21/2016)
SAS updated its Data Management portfolio with a new version of its Data Loader for Hadoop. This software focuses on improving data preparation, data access, cloud-based readiness, and improved Hadoop governance and security. Other new features include
adaptive data management during the discovery and deployment phases; added data sources; cloud-ready support for migrating data to remote locations and pushing/pulling from Amazon in cloud-based environments; and features for improved security and
governance. These elements, in particular, include functions to better protect sensitive data, ensure secure collaboration, and provide comprehensive lineage across the SAS environment, third-party tools, and traditional and Big Data sources.
Seagate Creates Duet Cloud-Syncing Portable Hard Drive (11/30/2016)
Seagate Technology introduced Duet, a cloud-syncing portable hard drive for Amazon Drive. This product delivers a 1TB storage capacity and offers features for streamlined local transfer and offline access. The release also comes with a free one-year
subscription to the Amazon Drive Unlimited Storage service. Seagate’s Duet is available for pre-order in the US, exclusively via Amazon, for $99.99.
Data Breaches
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Data Breach Hits Michigan State University (11/21/2016)
Michigan State University (MSU) has confirmed that on
November 13 an unauthorized party gained access to a university server containing sensitive data. The database, which contained about 400,000 records, included names, social security numbers, and MSU identification numbers of some current and former
students and employees. It did not contain passwords or financial, academic, contact, or health information. Of those records, 449 were confirmed to be accessed by the unauthorized party. The affected database was taken offline within 24 hours of the
discovered breach.
Hackers Attack xHamster Database, 380,000 Have Their Data Breached (11/29/2016)
Information including emails, usernames, and hashed passwords associated with US Army personnel are part of a data breach that was reported by Motherboard and hit about 380,000
accounts. The hacked database came from xHamster, a free adult content site that also lets individuals upload videos, create playlists, and save videos for future viewing. The information appears to have been infiltrated earlier in 2016, but xHamster said
in a statement, “The passwords for all xHamster users are properly encrypted, so it is almost impossible to hack them. Thus, all the passwords are safe and the users data secured.”
HPE Data Breach Compromises Info for 134,000 Navy Personnel (11/28/2016)
The US Navy was notified on October 27 by Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) that one of the company’s laptops operated by an HPE employee supporting a Navy contract was reported as
compromised. Analysis of the incident determined that sensitive information, including the names and social security numbers for 134,386 current and former sailors was accessed by unknown individuals. Chief of Naval Personnel Vice Admiral Robert Burke said
in a November 23 statement, “We are in the early stages of investigating and are working quickly to identify and take care of those affected by this breach.”
Payment Cards Affected by Nearly Year-Long Breach at Madison Square Garden (11/23/2016)
The Madison Square Garden Company is notifying customers that it identified and has addressed a payment card issue. Malware placed on the company’s payment processing system may have
affected cards used at merchandise and food and beverage locations at Madison Square Garden, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, Beacon Theatre and The Chicago Theatre between November 9, 2015 and October 24, 2016.
Desktops
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Dell Introduces Wyse 5060 Thin Client (11/29/2016)
Dell Technologies announced the new Wyse 5060, a high-performance thin client. The Wyse 5060 offering is designed to provide virtual desktop performance; support for UC offerings; and improved security options and virtual workspace compatibility. It runs
an AMD quad-core processor, supports up to 8GB RAM and 64GB Flash, and runs “with a choice in OS.” The Wyse 5060 thin client will be available in the US and select countries starting December 13, 2016.
Development Software
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Microsoft Issues Azure PaaS Services Technical Preview 2 Release (11/21/2016)
Microsoft issued a Technical Preview 2 release of Azure PaaS services for Azure Stack. This release includes the Azure App Service, which includes Web Apps, API apps, and mobile apps; as well as updated versions of the SQL and MySQL database. The
software can be used to build “powerful” Web-based and mobile applications between Azure and Azure Stack, for “true hybrid cloud consistency.”
Enterprise Application Software
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Avaya Introduces IP Contact Center 10 (12/01/2016)
Avaya announced a new version of its contact center platform for offering omni-channel customer services. The new IP Office Contact Center 10 offers end-to-end support, features, and tools for running out-of-the-box configuration wizards and templates;
making “on-the-fly” changes to flows; streamlining Web-based administration tasks; improving real-time and historical reporting; adding customer callback features; and supporting high availability, resiliency, and workforce optimization.
CA Releases Identity Suite Software (11/30/2016)
CA Technologies released the CA Identity Suite. This software integrates with CA Privileged Access Manager to provide governance for privileged accounts and flexible deployment options for identity management and access governance. The release also
includes new deployment tools, including a virtual appliance and pre-configured user scenarios to help meet security and compliance needs. The new Identity Suite also includes the Deployment Xpress marketplace of pre-configured use-case scenarios, which
are drawn from hundreds of deployments.
Microsoft Publishes Clip Layer for Android App (11/29/2016)
Microsoft released a new app through Microsoft Garage – known as “Clip Layer” – for helping snip and share information from one’s Android screen. The Clip Layer app applies a universal overlay over any screen for helping select a snippet of information,
then copy and act on it by sharing or including it in an e-mail. Microsoft’s Clip Layer app is now available via Google Play.
Microsoft Rolls Out “Significant” Update to Office Online Server (11/21/2016)
Microsoft released its first “significant” update to the Office Online Server, a software set that allows organizations to access browser-based versions of Word, PowerPoint, Excel, or OneNote, among other software packages. Added features include
co-authoring support for Word Online; embedded Power View sheets in Excel Online; improvements when working with tables in Word Online and PowerPoint Online, including better drag-and-drop support; support for viewing spelling errors inline via the
PowerPoint editor; and improved picture resizing functions in Word Online.
SAIC Unveils Integrated Training Edge Platform (11/28/2016)
SAIC introduced the Integrated Training Edge platform, a service whereby “experts” can analyze a customer’s training needs and constraints in order to design, implement, and assess a customized training solution. This platform integrates SAIC’s people,
processes, tools, and technology into a single ecosystem. The Integrated Training Edge provides standard business and training development processes, and takes advantage of cloud-based technology to deliver solutions “on tighter timelines and with less
infrastructure investment.” Specific areas of service focus include curriculum competency, augmented and virtual reality, gaming, facial recognition, accelerated learning frameworks, and cyber “intel” training.
SAP Adds Intelligent Mentoring to SuccessFactors Succession & Development (11/29/2016)
SAP added an intelligent mentoring component to its SuccessFactors Succession & Development solution. This feature is designed to help increase employee engagement and retention by replacing manual, intensive, and subjective administrative work with a
more automated approach. Further information is available via the SAP SuccessFactors Web site.
Software AG Introduces webMethods Insight Enterprise Edition Software (11/29/2016)
Software AG released webMethods Insight Enterprise Edition. This software is designed to help collaborate across an enterprise to detect, diagnose, and repair problems and exceptions that could disrupt business transactions, in addition to helping
prevent them from recurring. The release delivers business and system insight, and provides full design-time to runtime application lifecycle validation, execution-time visibility, and control for distributed applications.
Software AG Publishes webMethods 9.12 (11/30/2016)
Software AG released webMethods 9.12 software that includes “significant enhancements,” including support for enhanced mapping, out-of-the-box scripts to create Docker Integration Server images, and enhanced event-based integration with a new Digital
Event Services communication layer. The release also includes the unified webMethods API Gateway, which combines mediation and security capabilities from webMethods Enterprise Gateway and Mediator.
Financial
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Accenture to Acquire Nearly 50% Stake in OCTO (11/28/2016)
Accenture completed the acquisition of a 47.4% stake in OCTO Technology, a consultancy firm that specializes in digital transformation and software development. The closing of this transaction follows the gaining of clearance
from regulatory authorities as well as consultation with OCTO’s works council.
HPE’s Profits Fall Off by 78% Y2Y (11/22/2016)
Hewlett-Packard Enterprise (HPE) reported that its net earnings plummeted by 78% year to year for the fiscal 2016 fourth quarter ended October 31, 2016. The company’s profits were just $300,000, or $0.18 per share for the
three-month period, compared to fiscal 2015 fourth quarter earnings of $1.4 billion, or $0.75 per share. Revenues, meanwhile, were $12.5 billion, which marked a 7% dropoff from fiscal 2015 fourth quarter sales of $13.4 billion. By business segment, HPE’s
Enterprise Group revenue fell 9% year to year to $6.7 billion; Enterprise Services revenue was down 6% to $4.7 billion; Software sales declined 6% year to year to $903 million; and Financial Services revenue grew 2% to $814 million. HPE’s full fiscal year
net income was $3.2 billion, or $1.82 per share. This was up 28% from fiscal 2015 profits of $2.5 billion, or $1.34 per share. Revenues, meanwhile, were $50.1 billion, which was down 4% from fiscal 2015 sales of $52.1 billion.
Oracle to Invest $1.4B in Computer Science Education (12/01/2016)
Oracle announced plans to invest $1.4 billion in “direct and in-kind” support of computer science education for European Union member states. As part of this pledge, the Oracle Academy noted that it plans to help train 1,000 educators in computer
science, Java, and Database instruction, in addition to reaching students across an added 1,000 educational institutions over the next three years.
Reuters: Samsung Rumored to Be Considering Split (11/28/2016)
Samsung is rumored to be considering a split of its business operations. Per Reuters, the
Galaxy manufacturer is set to “disclose plans to boost shareholder value on Tuesday” amidst “pressure from US fund Elliott Management to split the company in two and provide more in payouts.” Elliott, an activist hedge fund, owns just under 1% of Samsung.
This news was further bolstered by a report by South Korea’s Seoul Economic Daily, which cited an “unidentified source” and noted that Samsung plans to at least “consider a split.” The rumor also comes, Reuters noted, just days after reports that Samsung’s
offices had been raided by “prosecutors” late last week, although it is not known what was discovered. For its own part, Samsung has not commented on the rumors, but stated that it will host a conference call on Tuesday to discuss its plan.
Toshiba Sells Irvine, California Campus (11/30/2016)
Toshiba America Information Systems (TAIS) revealed that it sold its Irvine, California campus to LBA Realty for US$65 million. Toshiba established the campus as its information equipment business headquarters for the US
in 1987, and ran its PC manufacturing operations there for 15 years. TAIS noted that it has entered into a lease-back agreement and plans to relocate to a new corporate office facility “within the next 12 months.”
Healthcare Systems
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IBM Watson Health, Merge Healthcare Introduce Imaging Technology (11/29/2016)
IBM Watson Health and IBM’s Merge Healthcare are preparing to preview new imaging solutions for helping healthcare providers “pursue personalized approaches to patient diagnosis,
treatment, and monitoring.” The new Watson Health releases include a cognitive review tool for reconciling differences between a patient’s clinical evidence and data; a cognitive data summation tool for providing patient-specific clinical information;
cognitive physician support software that integrates imaging data with other types of patient data; and the MedyMatch “Brain Bleed” App, a cognitive image review tool. Merge, meanwhile, will offer a Marktation process for interpreting medical images; the
Watson Clinical Integration Module cloud-based app for reducing medical imaging errors; and the Lesion Segmentation and Tracking module, for streamlining the process of interpreting and comparing reports.
Legal
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Appeals Court Denies Samsung Request in Apple Patent Case (11/30/2016)
According to The Verge, the US Court of Appeals has rejected without comment Samsung‘s request for a
rehearing of the case involving its use of intellectual property developed by Apple. The patents in question involve the swipe-to-unlock home screen feature and the ability to turn phone numbers and addresses into
clickable links. Apple was originally awarded $119.6 million in a jury case that wrapped up in 2014. Since then, Samsung has been trying to fight the finding. A successful January 2016 appeal saw the entire award overturned by a three judge panel, but
Apple’s subsequent request for review resulted in an 8 to 3 decision by the full Appeals Court to reinstate the nearly $120 million levy. The latest decision means Samsung’s only available recourse is to the US Supreme Court. The country’s highest court is
currently deliberating a different Samsung-Apple patent case, which it heard earlier this session. A decision in that case is due in June 2017.
Malware Watch
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Check Point’s Research Finds Malware Attacks Continue to Increase (11/21/2016)
Check Point Software‘s monthly Global Threat Index, a ranking of the most prevalent malware families attacking organizations’ networks, found that
both the number of active malware families and number of attacks increased by 5% during October. Conficker retained its first place position as the world’s most prevalent malware, responsible for 17% of recognized attacks, followed by Locky and Zeus.
HummingBad was the most common mobile malware family, taking aim at Android, during October.
Cisco Points Out Bugs in HDF5 File Library (11/23/2016)
Cisco disclosed the discovery of four vulnerabilities which have been identified in HDF5, a file format that is designed to be used for storage and
organization of large amounts of scientific data . It is also used to exchange data between applications. The bugs have been patched.
Locky and Cerber Ransomware Up the Ante with New Versions (11/28/2016)
Both the Cerber and Locky ransomware families have launched new versions that have been analyzed by the research team at Check Point Software. A notable change introduced in Cerber 5.0 is the new IP ranges used for
command and control communication. Cerber is currently distributed via spam email campaigns and exploit kits, specifically Rig-V. The latest variant of Locky has added new evasion techniques to avoid detection and changed its encryption file extension to
.zzzzz.
Microsoft OneDrive for Business Abused to Spread Malware (11/28/2016)
Compromised Microsoft OneDrive for Business accounts are hosting malware and the generated download links are then included in mass mailing campaigns, according to analysis from the researchers at Forcepoint. Multiple malware families are being distributed using this method including Dridex and Ursnif. OneDrive for Business is a paid Microsoft service for businesses where employees can store and share files.
NetWire RAT Steals Payment Card Data Just Like POS Scraping Malware (11/30/2016)
Adversaries have used the NetWire remote access Trojan (RAT) to scrape payment cards for data instead of typical point-of-sale (POS) malware. NetWire has a built-in keylogger that can capture inputs from peripheral devices such as USB card readers and acts
similarly to traditional POS malware. Dell SecureWorks observed the NetWire RAT scraping data during a September incident.
Old Shamoon Malware Campaign Returns with a Vengeance (11/29/2016)
McAfee received notifications and samples from impacted organizations in the Middle East that have hallmarks of Shamoon campaign from 2012. The main component of these attacks was the usage of a wiper component that
once activated, destroyed the hard disks from the infected victims. The wiper module is responsible for overwriting various files on the hard disk and also the master boot record and boot sector. The wiper module also drops a file called drdisk.sys, which
is a standard component from a commercial application (Eldos) that is used to allow programs low level access to hard disk drives.
Spam Campaign Delivers More Than Amazon Packages in the Form of Locky (11/28/2016)
Messages that appear to originate from online retailer Amazon with updates on package deliveries are actually part of a sinister spam campaign that is serving up the Locky ransomware. Microsoft first noticed this campaign and said that while the messages appear to come from Amazon, recipients should be wary because they do not look like typical notes from the retailer and the attachments are .zip
files.
Personnel and Organization
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Accenture Expanding AWS Business Group (11/30/2016)
Accenture announced the expansion of its Accenture AWS Business Group to help enhance application migration, development, and management offerings for the Amazon Web Services Cloud. Since launching
in 2015, Accenture AWS has trained 2,000 technologists and helped numerous clients migrate to the cloud-based service. Accenture is also a “Premier Consulting Partner” with the AWS Partner Network.
Accenture Opens Liquid Studio in Italy (11/28/2016)
Accenture opened a Liquid Studio in Milan, Italy. This facility will assist organizations in accelerating innovation by transforming ideas into applications and services. In particular, it will offer access to the latest technology, intelligent
automation, contemporary architecture, and software development methods.
Agilent Founds Technology Center in California (11/30/2016)
Agilent Technologies opened a new $14.7 million Technology Center in Folsom, California. This 53,000 square-foot facility will house 60 additional staff members, and will include a customer applications laboratory and collaboration space, as well as
facilities for providing scientific consumables and supplies.
IBM Expands UK Cloud-Based Data Center Presence (11/21/2016)
IBM reported plans to add four new cloud-based data centers in the UK. These facilities will be “infused with cognitive intelligence,” and will expand IBM’s cloud-based data center footprint to six in the UK and 16 across Europe. The new data centers
will provide clients with access to IBM cloud services for running mission-critical workloads through more than 150 digital services. Available services will be based on Bluemix and include Watson.
KPMG Appoints New Managing Partner for Silicon Valley, California Office (11/29/2016)
KPMG appointed Lisa Daniels as the managing partner for its Silicon Valley, California office, effective January 1, 2017. Daniels – who succeeds new Global and US Chair for KPMG’s Technology, Media and Telecommunications practice Tim Zanni – will be
responsible for strategic direction and growth. Daniels previously served as a KPMG managing partner at its Phoenix, Arizona office.
Raytheon to Hire 2,000 in Arizona (11/21/2016)
Raytheon revealed plans to expand its Southern Arizona operations by adding nearly 2,000 jobs at its Missile Systems business headquarters over a five year period. The company plans to hire workers at all skill levels with an emphasis on engineering and
other technical positions.
Siemens Announces Personnel Changes (11/30/2016)
Siemens announced a number of new personnel appointments. These nominations include Cisco Systems executive Cedrik Neike and E.ON CFO Michael Sen, who will join the company’s Managing Board; and Managing Board members Roland Busch, to lead R&D as CTO
and Corporate Development, and Lisa Davis, to oversee Siemens’ US business. Siemens also noted that it is reorganizing responsibilities within the board to “rejuvenate” it and help “lay the basis for accelerating the implementation of Vision 2020.” The
changes are effective April 1, 2017.
Unisys Hires Dell Executive to Lead Enterprise Solutions, EMEA Group (11/21/2016)
Unisys hired Bill Brown to lead its Enterprise Solutions, EMEA group. Brown – a former executive with Dell Services – will focus on strengthening the company’s client relationships and regional capabilities within areas such as Travel & Transportation,
Telecommunications, Manufacturing, Consumer Goods, Pharmaceuticals, and Life Sciences. He will report directly to VP and GM, EMEA Tom Higgins.
VMware Chooses New EVP, GM, Telco Group (11/22/2016)
VMware promoted Shekar Ayyar to EVP and GM, Telco Group. Ayyar leads VMware’s effort to accelerate telecom digital transformation through VMware’s Cross-Cloud Architecture, and software-defined infrastructure for NFV (network functions virtualization).
Ayyar reports to CEO Pat Gelsinger, and will also continue to lead VMware’s strategy and corporate business development activities.
Security Flaws & Fixes
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DoS Condition Likely in Earlier Versions of Network Time Protocol Daemon (11/23/2016)
The Network Time Foundation’s (NTF) NTP Project released network time protocol daemon version ntp-4.2.8p9 to address various issues including a highly critical vulnerability
affecting Windows that could create a denial-of-service condition. A vulnerability note offers further information about these issues.
Headphones, Speakers Altered with Malware Turn into Spying Devices (11/28/2016)
Security researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev say that headphones (or earphones) when connected to a computer, can be manipulated to silently turn them into a pair
of eavesdropping microphones. This can be achieved with software and can also manipulate some types of loudspeakers to capture audio data and use them to spy on people. SPEAKE(a)R is a software that can covertly turn the headphones connected to a PC into a
microphone that can be utilized for spying purposes. The scientists have provided a demo of their work.
High Employee Turnover Among Security Management Issues Plaguing OPM (11/21/2016)
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) continues to be deficient in terms of its security management structure more than a year after a massive data breach rocked the agency and affected millions of people, an audit from the inspector general has found. A high employee turnover rate and the struggle for OPM
to fill these positions is among the major issues. For example, OPM has had five different people serve as chief information officer in the past three years. The audit stated, “We believe that OPM’s IT security management structure – as defined on paper –
can be effective with some minor improvements. However, this structure was not operational for the majority of FY 2016, and therefore we believe that this issue again rises to the level of a significant deficiency.”
JavaScript Exploit Proves Tor Users Aren’t Anonymous (11/30/2016)
A zero-day Firefox ESR browser exploit can uncover the identities of Tor users. This information comes from a post on the tor-talk mailing list and has been acknowledged by the Tor Project. Mozilla is working on a fix for the JavaScript vulnerability.
Mozilla Releases Updates (11/29/2016)
Mozilla has released an advisory along with updates for Firefox, Firefox ESR, and Thunderbird. The updates remedy a use-after-free
vulnerability in SVG Animation has been discovered. An exploit built on this vulnerability has been discovered in the wild targeting Firefox and Tor Browser users on Windows.
OTA Update Mechanism in Ragentek Android Vulnerable to Attacks (11/21/2016)
Ragentek Android software contains an over-the-air update mechanism that communicates over an unencrypted channel, which can allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code with root privileges. According to a vulnerability note, there are multiple techniques used to hide the execution of this binary and this behavior could be described as a rootkit. Various manufacturers are affected by the issue and have been
documented in the vulnerability note.
PayPal Boots OAuth Token Issue (12/01/2016)
PayPal patched a critical vulnerability that could allow hackers to steal OAuth tokens that are used in payment apps. Researcher Antonio Sans warned PayPal of the bug in September and it was fixed in November.
Symantec Pushes Out Updates for DLL Pre-Loading Vulnerability (11/21/2016)
Norton Security products, Symantec Endpoint Protection Small Business Enterprise clients, and Symantec Endpoint Protection Cloud clients are susceptible to a potential DLL pre-loading issue. The issue is caused by
improper restrictions when system libraries are loaded. Symantec has released product
updates to address this issue.
Uber Patches Data Leakage Bugs in UberCENTRAL Service (11/28/2016)
Security researcher Kevin Roh notified Uber that three flaws in its UberCENTRAL service could expose user data. Roh found that one bug enabled attackers to enumerate users’
universally unique identifiers (UUIDs) with possible email addresses and if that email address matched the account, the server would send the user’s UUID. The second vulnerability was similar to the first, but the third bug could leak the UUID as well as
full name, phone number, and email address. Roh said that Uber patched the vulnerabilities in October.
Updates Address Vulnerabilities in VMware Products (11/23/2016)
VMware announced updates that address a partial information disclosure vulnerability in Identity Manager and vRealize Automation. An additional
advisory addresses information disclosure vulnerabilities in vCenter Server, vSphere Client, and vRealize Automation.
USCIS Continues to Have Problems with Proper Green Card Issuance (11/23/2016)
A new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Inspector General (DHS OIG) report concludes that
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) continues to struggle to ensure proper green card issuance. The audit was a follow-up to a March 2016 report where the DHS OIG disclosed that USCIS had sent potentially
hundreds of green cards to the wrong addresses, but this audit proved the issue was far worse than initially expected. Over the last three years, USCIS produced at least 19,000 cards that included incorrect information or were issued in duplicate. The
majority of the card issuance errors were due to the flawed design and functionality problems in the agency’s Electronic Immigration System.
Vanderbilt Plugs Vulnerability in Siemens-Branded IP Cameras (11/21/2016)
Siemens has reported a vulnerability in its branded IP cameras from Vanderbilt Industries, which acquired the products in
2015. Vanderbilt has released updates to mitigate this vulnerability, which could allow a remote attacker to obtain administrative credentials from the integrated Web server.
VMware Releases Update for vRealize Operations (11/21/2016)
VMware has updated vRealize Operations to address a REST API deserialization vulnerability.
Vulnerabilities Detected in Siemens’ SIMATIC Products (11/21/2016)
SIMATIC CP 343-1 Advanced/ CP-443-1 Advanced devices and SIMATIC S7-300/ S7-400 CPUs are affected by two vulnerabilities. One of the vulnerabilities could allow remote attackers to perform operations as an authenticated user under certain conditions. Siemens has released updates for SIMATIC CP 343-1 Advanced devices. In addition, Siemens has released an advisory to inform its users how to mitigate vulnerabilities that affect SIMATIC CP 1543-1.
Vulnerabilities Have Been Discovered in Emerson Products (11/30/2016)
Several vulnerabilities across multiple Emerson product lines have been reported by ICS-CERT. An open SSH port vulnerability in the DeltaV Wireless I/O
Card resulted in Emerson producing a firmware patch that disables the SSH port. Following notification of a vulnerability that affects DeltaV Easy Security Management, Emerson is
terminating support for the DeltaV Easy Security Management application and highly recommends users uninstall it from all DeltaV and non-DeltaV workstations. Finally, Emerson produced patches for an XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability affecting its Liebert SiteScan application.
Vulnerabilities Resolved in New Version of SoftCMS (11/21/2016)
Moxa recommends updating the SoftCMS Webserver Application to version 1.6 to mitigate vulnerabilities. SoftCMS is a central management software that
manages large-scale surveillance systems, is used in multiple sectors, and is deployed primarily in North America and Europe with a small percentage of users in Asia.
Security Products & Companies
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DDoS Used to Distract Businesses for Launch of Other Types of Attacks (11/23/2016)
Distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks are sometimes used by cybercriminals to distract businesses while hackers sneak in through a back door, a new survey from Kaspersky Lab shows. Fifty-six percent of
businesses polled are confident that DDoS has been used as a smoke screen for other kinds of cybercrime, and of those business respondents, 87% reported that they had also been the victim of a targeted attack. The survey showed that when businesses have
suffered from cybercrime, DDoS has often been part of the attack tactics (29%).
Deep Security as a Service from Trend Micro Now Available on AWS Marketplace (11/29/2016)
Trend Micro‘s Deep Security as a Service is now available on the Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) Marketplace. Deep Security as a Service provides customers a hosted security
management experience with consolidated payments through their AWS bill.
F-Secure’s Security Cloud API Is Available from AWS (11/29/2016)
F-Secure is launching a new URL-checking application program interface (API) that runs on Amazon API Gateway and is available on Amazon Web Services (AWS) Marketplace. Security
Cloud API for AWS checks URLs in the cloud for malicious content and categorizes them by content type.
Intel Security Makes Predictions for 2017’s Threat Landscape (11/29/2016)
Intel Security released its McAfee Labs 2017
Threats Predictions Report, which identified 14 threat trends to watch for in 2017. According to the report, ransomware attacks will decrease in the second half of 2017 in volume and effectiveness, Windows vulnerability exploits will continue to
decline, while those targeting infrastructure software and virtualization software will increase, and hardware and firmware will be increasingly targeted by sophisticated attackers.
Kaspersky Lab’s Encryption Technologies Receive FIPS 140-2 Certification (12/01/2016)
Kaspersky Lab‘s encryption technologies for businesses have been certified by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) as fully compliant with the Federal
Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 140-2 standard. FIPS 140-2 is a national computer security standard and introduces strict requirements for the operation of a cryptographic module.
MasterCard Certifies Safran’s Style2Pay (11/29/2016)
Safran Group‘s secure element for contactless payment, Style2Pay, has been certified by MasterCard. The Style2Pay tag can be inserted into any form factor, such as a
wristband, a key holder, a watch, or a necklace.
New Additions Join Axis Communications’ Q35 Camera Series (11/28/2016)
Axis Communications has added new models to its Q35 Series of fixed dome cameras. The new Q3504-V and Q3504-VE cameras, the updated Q3505-V Mk II and Q3505-VE Mk II, and the new stainless Q3505-SVE Mk II models (also
named Mk II since they have the same camera performance inside) are available through Axis’ distribution channels.
Protecting Smart Hospitals from Threats Is Topic of ENISA’s Latest Report (11/28/2016)
ENISA has presented a study that sets the scene on information security for the adoption
of Internet of Things (IoT) in hospitals. The study depicts the smart hospital information communication technology ecosystem and through a risk-based approach, focuses on relevant threats and vulnerabilities, analyzes attack scenarios, and maps common
good practices. Among the suggestions offered by the report is that healthcare organizations should provide specific IT security requirements for IoT components and implement only state of the art security measures.
Public Can Comment on NIST Draft Guide to LTE Security (11/23/2016)
The NIST invites comments on Draft NIST SP 800-187, Guide to LTE Security. This document introduces high-level LTE concepts and discusses
technical LTE security mechanisms in detail. Comments are requested by December 22.
Researcher Uncovers Serious Linux Desktop Vulnerability (11/23/2016)
A heap corruption vulnerability exists in the gstreamer decoder for the FLIC file format. This decoder is generally present in the default install of modern Linux desktops, including Ubuntu 16.04 and Fedora 24. Gstreamer classifies its decoders as “good,”,
“bad,” or “ugly.” Despite being buggy, and not being a format necessary on a modern desktop, the FLIC decoder is classified as “good,” almost guaranteeing its presence in default Linux installs. Security researcher Chris Evans posted an advisory regarding this vulnerability that he discovered.
Security Is Not Always a Priority When Using New Holiday Gifts (11/21/2016)
Laptops and PCs, followed by smartphones and tablets, are among the most hackable hot ticket gift items for this holiday season, according to Intel Security. In the second annual McAfee Most Hackable Holiday Gifts survey, 79% of consumers start using connected devices within the first day of receiving them, but only 42% claim they take the proper security measures to protect these items.
Smartphones
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IDC: Smartphone Sales Slow Considerably in 2016 (11/29/2016)
The latest report from International Data Corporation’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker shows anemic growth in the smartphone market. Overall shipments for the year are
expected to reach 1.45 billion units, which is only a 0.6 percent increase over the previous year. In contrast, 2015 shipments were up 10.4 percent over 2014. The biggest growth comes from 4G smartphones in areas such as Latin America, Central and Eastern
Europe, and the Asia/Pacific region (excluding Japan), which saw a 21.3 percent increase in 2016. Reviewing the numbers in terms of the platform used, IDC notes that Android devices continue their dominance with 85 percent of the market share. Although Apple iPhones hold the lion’s share of the remaining market, IDC notes, “All signs point to 2016 being the first full year of declining shipments for Apple’s iPhone. The iPhone 7 and 7 Plus have done well, but three
quarters of year-over-year declines, as well as a projected fourth quarter decline by IDC, will account for negative growth.”
Storage
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HPE Unveils 3PAR Flash Now Initiative (11/28/2016)
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) announced its new 3PAR Flash Now initiative. This initiative is designed to better address the demand for flexible storage consumption models, accelerate all-Flash data center adoption, assure
proper resiliency levels, and help customers transform to a hybrid IT infrastructure. In particular, 3PAR Flash Now is designed to allow customers to acquire all-Flash technology, on-premise, starting at “$0.03 per usable GB per month.” The initiative is
expected to help accelerate service delivery, improve service levels, minimize refresh risk, maintain local control over data, offer high-performance networking and automation, and help protect application service levels.
Supercomputers
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Fujitsu Deploys Oakforest-PACS Supercomputer (12/01/2016)
Fujitsu completed its deployment of the Oakforest-PACS supercomputer, which is located at Japan’s Joint Center for Advanced HPC. This system runs on PRIMERGY CX600 M1 x86 servers and employs Intel Xeon Phi processors in
8,208 computation nodes for a theoretical computational performance of 25 petaflops. The Oakforest-PACS supercomputer is jointly run by the University of Tokyo and the University of Tsukuba.
Tablets
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HP Inc Rolls Out ProBook x360 11 Education Edition Tablet (12/01/2016)
HP Inc released the ProBook x360 11 Education Edition convertible tablet. This system, which is powered by Microsoft Windows 10, is designed to offer a number of “student- and teacher-friendly features.” This tablet features touch-based support and an
optional stylus pen for taking notes in OneNote or highlighting in Microsoft Edge; a Take a Test app that creates a browser-based, locked-down environment for more secure online assessments, clearances, and access to files; and a Set up School PCs app for
initial installation and customization.
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