Implement Network Segmentation

One of the first things organizations should do to protect their sensitive data is implement network segmentation. This is a flexible and highly effective strategy for keeping vulnerable information safe, even in big data environments. It can also minimize the threat of cyber incidents in worst-case scenarios.

Network segmentation involves breaking up your organization’s network into multiple chunks with layers of security isolating them from each other. They all live under the roof of one system, but movement between the segments is restricted. You can customize the safeguards for different layers, allowing you to have more open and heavily protected data groups in the same environment.

There are a few ways you can implement network segmentation. Most strategies employ a combination of physical and virtual tools. For example, firewalls are a core technology for segmenting networks. You can also use software like VLANs and network overlays, as well as identity management products like access control lists.

Segment your network based on levels of risk. Low-risk data is usually more easily accessible since users often need it regularly. In contrast, high-risk data should have finely tuned firewalls and access controls separating it from the rest of the environment. This will make it harder to access, but that shouldn’t impact the user experience since it shouldn’t be accessed frequently.

Increase Network Visibility

Visibility is crucial for protecting sensitive information. One of the most common drawbacks of a big data environment is the sheer volume to monitor. It’s easy for unusual activity or exposed data to go unnoticed. Hackers often exploit that weakness.

Increasing visibility is vital to eliminate this risk factor. In fact, poor visibility is one of the top indicators your organization might need to upgrade its computing infrastructure. Disorganized networks with poor communication often suffer from low data clarity, leaving them highly exposed.

There are several ways you can improve network organization and transparency. Automated monitoring is a great option, particularly for big data environments. Visibility will naturally be a challenge if you have a lot of information to track. Automating some monitoring tasks can reduce the workload and make effective monitoring more achievable.

Additionally, automated monitoring will significantly improve your threat detection capabilities. It’s all too easy for breaches to go unnoticed in big data environments. Time is critical for minimizing the threat of a hack, though. Automation enables you to detect suspicious activity sooner rather than later.

As a general rule, automating security features as much as safely possible will simplify things in a big data environment. You can automate repetitive tasks like flagging suspicious activity, rejecting unauthorized access, encrypting sensitive information and more. Utilizing automated security tools will make protecting vulnerable data much easier for your security team.

Another vital aspect of improving network visibility is understanding your entire computing environment. Take time to completely map out your data, users, traffic patterns and security protocols. It’s much easier to see where you’re going when you have a road map. Plus, the network mapping process often highlights existing vulnerabilities and weaknesses.

Also Read: Cybersecurity: How To Properly Protect Your Professional Email?

Make Access Control a Top Priority

Identity and access management should be part of every organization’s cybersecurity strategy, but it’s especially important for big data environments. Access control can help with network organization and visibility. It’s one of the foundational methods for keeping sensitive information safe, even in a large, dispersed system.

The principle of least privilege is a great place to start. This approach to access control only grants users the absolute minimum amount of access they need and nothing more. It often goes hand in hand with zero-trust security, which uses continuous verification to confirm user authorization.

Both of these can also factor into your network segmentation strategy. You can restrict access to entire segments and use more granular control for specific files or applications that are especially vulnerable.

With this type of data, it is usually best to create a short white list of approved users rather than a much longer black list of unauthorized ones. As with the least privilege approach, limit your safelist to only the people who absolutely need to access the sensitive data and no one else.

Physical security is also important to address. Big data environments can be fully cloud-based, all on-prem or a hybrid combination of infrastructure models. Regardless, the information is still ultimately tied to a physical server somewhere in the world. When selecting a data center provider or managing in-house servers, it’s crucial to ensure physical access control protocols are in place.

On-site server security can be automated or contracted out, much like virtual security automation. This is the case with most cloud providers and colocation data centers, which often provide in-house security services like 24/7 surveillance, advanced access control, alarm systems and more.

You may be able to have sensitive data stored on one or two isolated server racks if you want to ensure maximum on-site security for specific information. Work with your in-house IT team or data center partner to determine the best way to physically secure servers.

Conduct Tests and Audits Regularly

Testing and audits are essential components of any robust cybersecurity strategy. They’re a great way to regularly check in on the health and effectiveness of your security protocols and ensure you are adapting to new threats.

You can use these tests to verify that your sensitive data has the best security possible. During penetration testing, you can even prioritize certain information so the tester can direct their focus there.

You’ll know you most likely have strong protections if the tester can’t successfully access your organization’s sensitive data. If they do succeed, they can help you identify and eliminate vulnerabilities so real hackers can’t get through. Either way, testing is invaluable for protecting your information.

You can hire a white hat hacker to put your big data environment to the test. This is someone with hands-on experience in hacking who uses their knowledge to help security teams rather than commit cybercrime.

White hat hackers know how cybercriminals would look at a network. This unique perspective allows them to see weaknesses others wouldn’t notice. They may be able to identify vulnerabilities even a penetration tester might miss.

Additionally, consider adopting a formal cybersecurity framework. NIST is among the most popular today, particularly in the United States. It has a large community that offers best practices, tips and guidance, as well as audit support. Security frameworks can help you stay ahead of emerging threats and leverage expert advice in your strategy.

Ensuring Security in a Big Data Environment

Managing a big data environment can be daunting, especially when it includes pockets of sensitive information requiring more protection. You can utilize several strategies to protect high-risk data, including network segmentation, automated monitoring, least-privilege access control and penetration testing. These tactics will build layers of security and increase visibility.

Also Read: Apps And Data Protection – How To Secure Your Data

The post How Can Organizations Protect Sensitive Data In Big Data Environments? appeared first on Tech Today Reviews.

Anyone who wants to buy a router is usually faced with a hodgepodge of technical terms : WLAN 5 or WLAN 6, Mesh, LAN and WPA, to name just a few. This makes the choice difficult for lay people.

But don’t give up! In this article you will learn how to recognize a good router and which functions are particularly important. We will then introduce you to four of the most popular routers .

Buy Or Rent A Router – Which Is Better?

Anyone who concludes an Internet and landline contract can buy or rent the router from the same provider . The advantage: You get a guarantee that the router is compatible with your tariff. In addition, the provider makes the necessary settings, which is a relief for those who are not technically familiar. If problems arise with the router, you can count on the support of the provider.

However, there are also reasons to buy your own router:

• Compared to renting, you save money in the long term.
• You can continue to use the router even if your Internet tariff ends.
• The router you purchased may have functions that the provider’s rental device does not offer.

Router freedom has been in effect in Germany since August 1st, 2016 . This means that you are no longer dependent on the provider’s device, but can choose the router yourself.

So that the choice does not become a bad buy, you should pay attention to the following criteria:

What Makes A Good Router?

Compatibility With Your Connection

Internet is not always the same: Depending on the tariff, you surf via DSL, fiber optics, cable or LTE. So you need a router that is designed for the corresponding connection . At the same time, it is worth asking your provider whether the router can be used with your tariff.

Once these questions have been answered, it’s time to get down to the details:

DSL

Many older DSL routers only support VDSL with 100 Mbit/s . They are sufficient if you do not want to upgrade your connection in the near future. But keep in mind: In order to enable speeds of up to 250 Mbit/s , the router must be VDSL Super Vectoring- capable.

Cable

Cable Internet offers you astronomical transfer rates of up to 1 Gbit/s. You need a router that supports at least the DOCSIS 3.0 standard . In addition, providers such as Vodafone have already begun to implement the DOCSIS 3.1 standard . Anyone who buys a corresponding router can look forward to even faster Internet in the future.

LTE/5G

If you have an LTE connection, you surf via the mobile network . Accordingly, you need a router with a SIM card slot . In this case, also make sure that the router supports 5G . Only then can you use the speed of this Internet standard at home.

Also Read: Is The Internet Slow For You? Find Out How To Fix Speed Issues

Built-In Modem

The terms router and modem are often used synonymously in everyday life. In fact, however, the devices have different tasks : while the modem establishes a connection to the Internet, the router forms a network between the connected devices – such as a laptop, smartphone or tablet.

Some routers are combination devices with an integrated modem. Since you do not have to buy this device separately, you can save money. Additional wiring is not necessary, and the power consumption is also lower than with two devices.

Things are different if your provider has already supplied a modem. In this case, a combo router would be a waste of money.

WiFi 5 Or WiFi 6?

Fewer and fewer users connect to their router via cable – no wonder, because WiFi offers significantly more convenience. Nevertheless, the question remains: Which WLAN standard should it be?

WLAN 6 was presented for the first time in 2018 and promises one thing above all: more speed . While WLAN 5 offers a maximum of 3.5 Gbit/s, this throughput increases to up to 9.6 Gbit/s with the successor standard. However, this speed is only achieved under ideal conditions – i.e. in the immediate vicinity of the router.

You also need the appropriate end devices to be able to use WLAN 6 . If the standard is not supported by your smartphone or laptop, for example, the device automatically dials into WLAN 5.

That means: WLAN 6 is not always automatically faster than its predecessor. Nevertheless, there are other reasons to choose this standard:

More Frequency Ranges

Routers can operate on different frequency ranges – and this affects their performance.

Older devices only use a single band with 2.4 GHz . This frequency is often overloaded, especially in large cities, which can lead to interference and reduced speeds.

On the other hand, there are WLAN 6 routers with dual band , which also transmit with 5 GHz in addition to 2.5 GHz : The latter frequency is characterized by a shorter range, but provides more stability and speed.

With tri-band , the router can even use two 5 Ghz frequency bands . The advantage: Devices that rely on particularly fast internet – for example to stream 4K videos – are slowed down less by slow devices.

If there were still WLAN 6E : This standard allows transmission at 6 Ghz for even faster transmission rates. However, there are currently not many end devices that are compatible with WLAN 6E.

MIMO-OFDM

WiFi 6 routers use MIMO-OFDM: a technology that distributes the WiFi signal more evenly to each device . This is particularly useful when there are many WLAN-enabled devices in the household. For this reason , anyone considering setting up a smart home system is well advised to use WLAN 6.

Target Wake Time

WiFi 6 helps your end devices’ batteries last longer – even if they don’t even support the standard. It is made possible by intelligent control of the data streams. This means that the devices have to transmit less often and can spend more time on standby.

WLAN Mesh

As a homeowner, you may be familiar with the problem: You use your WLAN in one room without any problems. But then you go into another room and the reception gets weaker , so that your video stream falters, for example.

Routers that support Mesh WiFi promise a solution: Several Mesh Repeaters or Access Points form a wireless network that optimally covers the entire household . The mobile end devices then automatically dial into the strongest WLAN source.

Alternatively, the coverage can also be improved with classic repeaters . These are cheaper, but do not allow automatic connection. That means you have to dial into the repeater network manually with your device. Another disadvantage: If many end devices use the repeater, the speed suffers more than with Mesh WiFi.

Important: Before setting up the network, you should find out which access points are supported, because: Some routers are only compatible with products from the same manufacturer .

Number Of Antennas

If you compare the look of routers, you will quickly notice that some of the devices have 2 or even 4 external antennas . This allows them to send multiple streams of data at the same time, which, at least in theory, increases the transmission rate. In practice, however, the end devices also play a role: if a device only has 2 antennas, for example, more antennas on the router do not offer any increase in speed.

Nevertheless, there is another advantage: antennas mounted outside can be rotated and tilted to improve WiFi reception in certain areas of the home. This is of course not possible with internal antennas. In this case, you have to turn or tilt the whole router until you are satisfied with the result – difficult when the device is hanging on the wall.

LAN Ports

Even though wireless networks are extremely popular today, there is nothing wrong with connecting devices using a LAN cable. Routers have LAN ports for this purpose . Of course, how many of these should be available depends on how many devices you want to connect. Transmission speed is also important: Many older devices are limited to 100 Mbit/s, while current LAN ports usually allow 1,000 Mbit/s or more.

USB Ports

Some routers allow devices to be connected via USB . For example, you can connect an external hard drive or a printer that all users in the network can access.

In addition to the number of connections, the standard used is also crucial: USB 3.0, for example, allows faster transfer rates than its predecessor, USB 2.0

Encryption

Encryption is important to protect your router from unauthorized access. WPA 2 is currently the standard here, while WEP or WPA no longer offer the necessary security.

Some routers already support WPA 3: This standard has even better encryption methods. However, you should make sure that your end devices also support WPA 3. Only then is it worth making the switch.

Also Read: 7 Infallible Tricks To Improve The WiFi Signal At Home

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In this blog post we want to deal with the use of ChatGPT in general. We also look at the associated benefits, opportunities, risks and threats that come with technological development.

ChatGPT: The hype about speed, productive work and automation

The progressive development of artificial intelligence has led to a large number of applications and innovations, so-called AI or AI tools, in recent years. One of these breakthrough innovations is ChatGPT, a text creation system based on the concept of the generative pre-training transformer. This technology will fundamentally change the way we interact with computers.

What is ChatGPT?

ChatGPT is an interactive chatbot developed by OpenAI to have human-like conversations and answer users’ questions. Depending on the subscription and model, ChatGPT is based on GPT-3.5 or GPT-4.0. With the wide range of knowledge from various databases and results from the World Wide Web, ChatGPT can provide information on various topics.

How does ChatGPT work?

ChatGPT works based on machine learning trained on a huge amount of text data. It uses Transformer architectures to generate natural language and respond to text-based human interactions. Its ability to produce contextual responses makes it a powerful tool for communication. For example, ChatGPT can be used as a virtual assistant to help customers with technical support requests or to answer general questions. The input or the question of the user is referred to as a “prompt”.

KI and AI tools, such as ChatGPT and your chances and advantages in everyday life

IT security is now more than ever a central issue, both for companies and for private individuals. The increasing number of cyber attacks and the increasing complexity of attack methods require innovative solutions to effectively counter this threat. In this context, AI tools and ChatGPT can also be considered part of the solution.

The advantages and opportunities with ChatGPT

In this section you can find out what advantages or positive aspects ChatGPT can have for you when you use it:

Research and Writing

ChatGPT can provide you with supportive assistance with various tasks: from writing texts, essays, speeches and general research to summaries on a desired topic. Even the improvement of existing texts can be checked with ChatGPT and optimized accordingly for spelling mistakes and grammar.

Coding and Debugging

Developers in particular can look forward to using ChatGPT in everyday work. Tiresome research for the code examples or the required “snippets” for the implementation of the current project are provided by the AI. ChatGPT can also detect errors in the code, such as logical errors or syntax errors, and point out where the error is or how you can make your code more efficient. This means that vulnerabilities are found before they are passed on.

Detect and analyze Cyber Attacks

ChatGPT can help you analyze and predict past and historical attacks. The analysis gives you an answer as to which tactics attackers used and you can upgrade, promote and strengthen your IT security with the appropriate protective measures.

Perform forensic analyzes and find causes

ChatGPT can also be used to investigate security incidents that have already occurred and to determine the cause, why the previously integrated defense measures have not worked and what steps should be taken to close these gaps. Without AI tools, forensic analysis and manual correlation of security data is tedious and very time consuming.

Configure and automate IT security

The desire for automation in relation to the everlasting and increasing mass of data handling in IT is understandable. The challenge here is to “get it up and running” efficiently and flawlessly. The basis here is that most security tools and systems are properly configured. ChatGPT can help set up automated system updates and rule building of firewall, intrusion prevention systems and server configurations. It is also possible to uncover errors in the configuration and thus minimize the weak points.

Uncover knowledge deficits and eliminate skills shortages

Because ChatGPT can access a large number of knowledge-filled databases that a single person cannot learn, store and use due to the mass of information. Thus, AI tools can help as gap sensors in case of uncertainty and research in order to implement the task accordingly. In addition, there is a shortage of skilled workers in some industries, which can be partially remedied by using ChatGPT by automating processes and reducing the dependence on manual interventions. Thus, IT departments can concentrate on the demanding tasks and the administrative ones are taken over by artificial intelligence.

Also Read: ChatGPT: The Revolution That Could Change The Internet

AI Tools Disadvantages, Risks and Threats of Artificial Intelligence

Despite its technological advances, ChatGPT is still in its infancy. The concerns about using such tools are not unfounded.

Disadvantages of AI tools

In the following section we go into the disadvantages of using such AI tools:

Lack of human intuition

Although ChatGPT is capable of analyzing large amounts of data, the tool lacks the human intuition and experience that is essential when assessing the relevance of the relevant information. As a result, there is a risk that important aspects will be overlooked or underestimated.

Manipulation by criminals

ChatGPT can be used by criminals to optimize attacks and bypass security measures. The developed technology of AI tools can be misused to generate fake messages or phishing attacks that are difficult for humans to distinguish from the real communications. See the Risks and Threats section below for more information.

AI tools and privacy

The use of such AI tools in IT security requires access to large amounts of data, usually including sensitive customer data. From the point of view of data protection, this represents a fundamental potential danger if this information is “tapped”, falls into the wrong hands or is used improperly.

What many users do not know about ChatGPT is that the publicly accessible version of ChatGPT does not keep the entered data for itself, but it is used for future inquiries.

Therefore, users should also receive appropriate and appropriate security training and education on the use of the tool, ChatGPT.

ChatGPT: Risks and Threats of AI Tools

Not only private individuals, companies and cyber security experts use the efficient and generative AI tools for their purposes. We are talking about hackers and cybercriminals who use AI tools to further their criminal intentions.

The following scenarios are possible:

Creation of malware and mutations

As described above, ChatGPT is a text creation tool, so it can also reproduce code for malware and create code for cyber criminals. It gets the data for this from the databases of the World Wide Web. Even though ChatGPT’s OpenAI developers have defined this request as explicitly illegal or malicious, it is relatively easy for users to circumvent it.

The clue here lies in the wording: hackers simply ask ChatGPT to generate a penetration test in order to optimize and convert it accordingly. Hackers can easily circumvent a company’s security measure by developing and using different mutations of the same malware. ChatGPT can easily generate another malware version, automatically and on demand.

Phishing and social engineering attacks taken to a new level

Attackers usually use phishing emails as a first step to infiltrate the corporate network. From this point, different criminal strategies for follow-up attacks can be driven. There are even service providers on the Dark Web who offer this service as “Access-as-a-Service” with good quality. As with so many things here, it’s a question of price, nothing more.

What currently speaks for the human factor is that both the current technology with or without the combination of human intuition are able to intercept attacks. Therefore, the criminals either launch this attack en masse (billions of times) (via botnets ) or at great expense with human interaction.

The fear here is that with the help of artificial intelligence, convincing AI texts can be generated in the shortest possible time that fit the alleged victims perfectly, so that they can be found on the appropriate media such as e-mail, direct messages, telephone calls, chatbots, social media Vote comments and fake websites and fall for cyber criminals’ scam.

API attacks: find and exploit vulnerabilities

The use of APIs in companies has increased exponentially in recent years. So, logically, the number of API attacks is also increasing. According to API security firm Salt Security, the number of unique attackers targeting customer APIs increased by 874 percent in just the last six months of 2022.

Cyber ​​criminals could use AI technology to find API vulnerabilities in the company’s IT system. This is usually a process that takes a lot of time and energy, but is radically shortened by ChatGPT. Attackers simply ask ChatGPT to examine API documentation, gather information and create API queries to uncover vulnerabilities more efficiently and effectively, and thus exploit them. What was actually intended to reveal the vulnerabilities is used against the company and the users in this scenario and is now presented as a disadvantage.

Prejudice, ethical concerns and spreading misinformation

One of the fundamental negative aspects is the susceptibility to prejudice. After all, ChatGPT can only output the answers that the system has access to and was “fed” with. If the data are based on prejudices or half-truths, the already existing inequalities increase not insignificantly, but with potentially dangerous consequences. This means that cybercriminals can also provide ChatGPT with false information and manipulate the bot’s outputs.

In addition, there are general concerns about privacy and security. Assuming that the GPT model collects and stores information, there is a risk that this data could be stolen, tampered with or misused unless adequate protection is in place.

Thus, hacktivists, terrorist organizations, hate groups and even state-funded attackers can use ChatGPT to sow discord by undermining democratic values, spreading conspiracy theories and computer-aided propaganda (e.g. in the form of “deep fakes” ) .

Conclusion: future and outlook – can the symbiosis work with AI tools?

AI or KI tools such as ChatGPT are only tools that we can use for our purposes and goals. They are not fundamentally black or white, good or evil. In this respect, the coin has two sides and it depends on how ChatGPT is used by the user for his purpose.

As described above in the opportunities and advantages, AI tools such as ChatGPT offer increasing potential for different and versatile applications. Routine work can already be largely or even completely automated with an AI solution. Likewise, tasks that include regular analysis of large amounts of data and rapid detection of possible attacks on companies and private individuals. As you can see, a lot is possible these days!

However, the risks associated with this technology cannot be ignored. Cyber ​​criminals can also use this tool, the AI ​​and AI tools for themselves and their goals and thus cause damage to you and your company.

Programs and systems that are based on the principle of artificial intelligence are based on a large knowledge and data depot and can therefore appear quite convincing by arguing logically. These AI bots can impersonate real humans at the command and programming of the attacker, creating authentic content on a range of topics. When certain keywords or topics are triggered on social media, this created person bot can respond using ChatGPT to track and push specific actions and tasks.

In summary, it will be an exciting and interesting development that we will see in terms of artificial intelligence and AI content. In this regard, careful consideration of the opportunities and risks is of great importance in order to use tools such as ChatGPT responsibly and effectively.

Also Read: ChatGPT Tools Useful For Human Resources

The post ChatGPT: Opportunities And Risks Of Revolutionary Development appeared first on Tech Today Reviews.

The company RH Tomorrow has researched the features of ChatGPT that can be useful for human resources. She was able to identify 10 interesting features that could be effective. The company based its request on its needs and on the contributions that AI can offer for the productivity of the company. There are useful features for recruitment, file selection and personnel management . Each of these tools has its specificities, advantages and disadvantages. It should be remembered that artificial intelligence like chatGPT has some flaws despite its effectiveness. But, an IT consultant can be done to look into it and solve them.

What are these different features?

The search performed on ChatGPT 3.5 had the query: “What are the 10 useful ChatGPT tools for HR managers?” Thanks to this, RH Tomorrow Theory was able to draw the most interesting tools from it:

• ChatGPT API
• Recruitment chatbot
• Analyze the CV
• Automated responses to common questions
• Integration training
• Assistance to employees
• Schedule planning
• Evaluation of performances
• Analysis of employee feedback
• Formation continues

Each of these tools can be used in the recruitment process or employee management.

To find the tools that correspond to the needs of a company, it is quite possible to carry out an IT consultation . This will let the company know whether it needs to integrate new software or not.

What are the pros and cons of these tools?

During the analysis carried out on these tools, it has been shown that each of them has its advantages and its shortcomings. Indeed, RH Tomorrow was able to study them, which made it possible to assign them marks.

Among the most noticed advantages is the speed of execution, which undoubtedly improves HR productivity. As an example, for the Recruitment Chatbot, it was rated 4/5 for productivity. It automates recruitment, which saves HR time for other tasks.

That said, despite the advantages, there are of course the flaws . The reduction of human contact is one of them. For example, the employee support tool is rated 3/5 in terms of productivity. Indeed, the lack of humanity does not solve problems effectively. In addition, it could possibly put employees’ personal information at risk.

Another example, the employee feedback analysis feature is also not entirely reliable. Indeed, generative AIs can interpret comments in another way, which can be misleading.

Also Read: ChatGPT: The Revolution That Could Change The Internet

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How to do Big Data in your company, for what purpose and with what technology. After having defined the concept of Big Data, the manager’s blog summarizes its usefulness for the company and gives you its prerequisites for implementing one or more Big Data technologies in your organization.

Reminder of the facts: What is Big Data?

Big Data has gained momentum as the web has entered our lives. Indeed, the term defines all the new technologies that make it possible to collect, store and analyze data that are a priori independent of each other, in order to come up with correlations or decision-making aid conclusions for companies. By “data”, we mean all the personal information that we sow on the Internet (social networks, connected objects, Web browsing, etc.), which serve the commercial and marketing departments of a company, but it is also its financial information and reporting data. specific to each service… In short, Big Data makes it possible to gather a set of data, analyze them and correlate them. Big Data is also possible thanks to new technologies, which optimize the collection and storage of an increasingly large volume of information. Finally, the new artificial intelligence algorithms have the ability to analyze in real time and in a refined way all the data they are asked to process.

Big Data in my Company: What for?

The challenge for companies is to use Big Data to improve the profitability of their services:

• Improve knowledge of customer behavior for the marketing department
• Anticipate purchasing behavior
• Personalize and automate communication campaigns for the sales department
• Anticipate recruitment and training needs, better manage the age pyramid of your company for the human resources department
• Optimize costs and deadlines
• Make strategic decisions based on trends and statistics from a large volume of data (which improves the possibility of results)

Also Read: 5 Keys That Make Big Data The Perfect Ally For The Retail Sector

How to do Big Data in my Company: Prerequisites

1. Identify the Objective

The real challenge is to identify for what purpose you want to integrate Big Data technology into your business. To do this, ask yourself:

• Which position or service should be optimised/profitable
• How should the position be optimized (saving time, automating a time-consuming task with low added value, lowering costs, better understanding of a problem, etc.)
• What variables influence the optimization of your position/department
• What data should be collected and correlated to obtain a relevant result / analysis

Note that Big Data is generally only effective if it takes into account variables from multiple sources. You will need to take into account data that is outside the scope of the position or department you are looking to optimize. For example, a better understanding of customer behavior (optimization of the marketing department) requires data from social networks, web browsing, data collected in store (use of the loyalty card by your customers, for example – sales department), their interactions with the call center (sales department), the amount and dates of their purchases (invoicing department), etc. An effective Big Data system will have to include a cross-functional organization of your company; your identified data sources must leave their usual base to match towards the same analysis system.

2. Identify the appropriate Computer System

Some software and Saas offer Big Data technologies , particularly in the field of marketing where many tools are available. The analysis platforms set up by Google are Big Data tools, for example. You can visit the Google-Trends website to view the most popular keywords and web queries in France and around the world. Google Analytics is also a Big Data tool used by anyone who manages a website and wants to track their popularity on the Web. For specific purposes, you will need to deploy your own computer system and approach an expert.

3. Found a Big Data Service or Position

Ideally, a Big Data manager will be able to manage the procedures to be put in place for the proper management of company data: establishing data platforms, simplifying the tools for collecting and transmitting information to the main system. This position is called the “Chief Data Officer (CDO)” ; essential for good fluidity in the transmission of data from services that are a priori independent of each other. Finally, a draconian IT security policy is essential and a user charter must be established for your entire team. Found a Big Data department or position. Thus, setting up efficient Big Data requires extensive upstream thinking, or even a reorganization of your services. According to a study by Capgemini Consulting, 74% of the companies surveyed that have implemented Big Data have not clearly defined the criteria allowing them to identify, qualify and choose their use case in terms of Big Data (study carried out out of 250 executives and business leaders). To get out of the game and not invest at a loss in Big Data technology, we can only advise you to be accompanied by experts in the field!

Also Read: Big Data Analytics: What Is It, And Why Is It So Important?

The post How To Do Big Data In My Company: Prerequisites appeared first on Tech Today Reviews.

What is video editing and what is it for?

Video editing consists of assembling different audiovisual pieces such as several videos, images, music, dubbing… until a single video is obtained. With this you can create from a short, an advertisement, a report or any type of video. Currently, the audiovisual world is in constant movement and every day you will see a multitude of different pieces almost without realizing it.

With each video that we create or edit, we want to convey a message, an idea, create emotions, reactions, responses, etc. You may think that video editing is something simple, but if you want to get good results , you have to put the time and effort into it. Above all, in a society in which the public or the viewer is very critical and wants to see exactly what they demand.

Therefore, it is essential to have a good team of professionals who will be in charge of taking into account all the details. We cannot forget that obtaining good video material is also important, therefore, we must always seek the highest possible quality. Lastly, having the best possible video editing tools. There are different programs to use, the team of professionals will know which is the most appropriate.

Video types

There are different types of videos depending on the objective you want to achieve with it. The companies themselves can create it or contract the external services of other companies that are in charge of the creation and edition of video. Regarding videos that are related to the company, we highlight the following.

Corporate videos

These videos are mainly used for the company to show its target audience products and services or in a general way its brand. However, they can also welcome you to your website or can be used to communicate with your team. But the most important thing you can offer in a corporate video is the values ​​of your company. Let the public know your philosophy and business culture and understand what you want to convey.

Creating a corporate video has numerous advantages and we want to show you some of them.

• More traffic on your website. If you manage to create an attractive and explanatory video about your company, it can generate an increase in traffic that will allow you to see it more on the internet. In addition, you can get potential users or customers to end up becoming customers.
• Let it be shared. Help yourself with the company’s social networks to get the video to reach as many people as possible. Encourage users to share the video with their contacts on social networks so they can discover new users.
• Improve against the competition. You should always keep in mind what your main competitors are doing. This will help you to have some advantage over them. If you give the public what they need, your company will be the choice over the competition.
• Show your company. Your corporate videos should show what your company is like. They must be informative as well as attractive and attention-grabbing. In addition, they must be entertaining enough that the user wants to see it to the end and does not close early. The user has to know what are the points you wanted to show at the end of the video.

Also Read: 8 Best Free Video Editor

The post Video Editing As A Communication Tool appeared first on Tech Today Reviews.

Vulnerabilities

If you want to protect your computer from viruses and attacks, you have to protect your computer all around. There are security gaps not only in programs and operating systems, but also in BIOS, firmware and hardware. The better you protect yourself, the less likely it is that your PC will be infected.

What malware is there?

In addition to other malware, well-known and frequently occurring malware will now be described.

Computer virus

Computer viruses spread from PC to PC and can appear as file or link viruses, for example. The files usually end with “.exe”, “.com” or “.scr”. As soon as such a file is opened, the virus starts automatically.

Computer worm

The so-called worms spread independently within a network and are typically e-mail attachments. Worms multiply extremely quickly and sometimes take up entire memory resources – the computing power drops and the computer can be paralyzed.

Trojans

A Trojan, or Trojan horse, is an apparently harmless program with an embedded virus. Here, programs are installed on the PC in order to access sensitive data such as passwords or credit card numbers.

Spyware

Spyware hides programs that spy on user behavior on the Internet or personal data and transmit them over the Internet. Spyware can be spread via worms or Trojans, for example.

How can I protect myself?

Every computer should be equipped with an up-to-date antivirus program. An antivirus program recognizes most attacks right away and can quickly detect and ward them off.

Nevertheless, caution is advised. Pay attention to what programs they download and open. The same applies to emails. If an email seems strange to you, under no circumstances open the attachment and check the sender. In addition, you should not store passwords and sensitive data on your computer.

Also Read: Cybersecurity: How To Properly Protect Your Professional Email?

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With the advancement of new technologies, it has meant that teaching is adapted and other types of models are offered through the Internet. Companies have also seen a great opportunity in this, to be able to train their workers without having to go anywhere.

In this article we are going to explain more characteristics of virtual teaching, as well as explain why it is useful for a company and 8 easy steps to create it from scratch.

What is virtual education?

Virtual teaching is a way of education in which the teaching process is carried out over the Internet. Learning is allowed to be flexible , adapting to the needs of the student. Virtual education is defined as e-learning , online training or virtual education.

The characteristics of virtual teaching are the following:

• The role of the student is active , that is to say that he has to carry out the learning autonomously.
• There is flexibility to carry out the activities , since you can do them whenever you want within a wide range. And the flexibility of the place, because you don’t have to live near the place where the course is taught.
• The subject matter taught can be specific or more extensive , that depends on how the company is organized and the needs of the student.
• One of the main reasons why virtual education is so popular today is because the learning experience can be fully customized. There are many methodologies that can make learning more enjoyable. For example, virtual reality videos with which the student can carry out activities.

Also Read: Virtual Reality: From Science Fiction To Everyday Life

Differences between virtual education, online education and distance education

Online education is a teaching method in which classes are taught in real time. In this way, the worker or student can attend classes in person with their classmates. In this teaching what is valued is the debate and dialogue between the participants.

Virtual education differs from the previous one, it means that teachers and students do not have to coincide at the same time on the platform for the course. It is similar to distance education, with the difference that only technological resources are used to communicate and carry out the activities.

Students and the teacher communicate through forums or email. When the students finish their activities, the teacher later informs them of how they have gone. It is a flexible and effective method.

Distance education somewhat unites the other two methods, because it can involve face-to-face and virtual . Internet connection is not needed, because the forming entity gives physical materials to the student for the course. If it is true, that some evaluation process can be online, which means that at some point the Internet is needed.

Why is virtual education useful for companies?

There are many companies that use e-learning to broaden the knowledge of their workers, to improve their skills and teach them new tools. Here we are going to explain 6 reasons why e-learning is useful for your company!

• It is training at a lower cost , because it is no longer necessary to hold seminars, you just have to do an online course.
• There is greater coverage to train your employees. You can train much more employees from different locations, since they don’t have to be present in person, it means less effort.
• There is only one knowledge base , in the LMS that the company has created. Employees will know where to connect to find the documents and the course.
• The worker will be able to go at their own pace, combining work and training. Being an online course, you can connect to the LMS when you consider and have a gap.
• It is also advantageous for teachers , as the worker’s process is easily monitored. The normal thing is that the program itself creates statistics for its later evaluation.
• And finally, virtual education adapts to companies. It helps companies strike a balance between new training and solving problems in real time.

Have we been able to convince you with these reasons? At ARTINE we can manage and create different types of content for your training portal. We just need you to tell us what you need, what values ​​your company has and we will be at your side to create the perfect course for your workers.

8 steps to create a virtual education course

• In the first step you must set the objectives , basically be clear about why you want to implement the course. We recommend that they be personalized and specific objectives for the company.
• Select which tools you want to use in your virtual education course. The best thing in this case is to create a learning platform that allows you to upload all the documents or videos you need.
• Now is the time to create the plan , you have to devise stages and assign them a time. You should not forget about the budget either , look at what you can and cannot do.
• Next, you must specify the content that you want your employees to dedicate their time to.
• You always have to do a test to see if everything works, perhaps directly with an employee so that there is no problem. And if there is, correct it before all the workers try it.
• You must write an internal communication and announce the launch of the course to your employees. If you sell it well, it will attract their attention and they will participate with more enthusiasm.
• Start training! With an email you can send your employees the links to the LMS and remind them of the start.
• And as the last step, you should review how the virtual education course works. If something unforeseen happens, you should know about it and change things if necessary. At the end of the course you can ask your employees through a questionnaire what they thought.

Also Read: The Rise Of E-learning, Learning From Anywhere

The post Virtual Education: Why It Is Useful And 8 Steps To Create It appeared first on Tech Today Reviews.

1. Understand Common Microinteractions

Nielsen Norman Group’s UX Metrics and ROI 5th Edition report looked at 44 case studies and found that every $1 invested in usability resulted in a return on investment between $10 and $100. It all starts with the most commonly used microinteractions people recognize and know how to interact with. For example, a “Submit” button has a clear outcome.

Look at the language of the CTA to see if the user knows what happens when they click on it. Also, consider whether the result matches user intent when they take action. If someone hits a button that reads “Add to Cart,” they expect to go to a shopping cart page. Consider how well the action relates to the intention.

2. Embrace Feedback

One of the quickest ways to improve UX is to give customers feedback for each action they take. If they click on a button, you should confirm their selection occurred correctly.

Put yourself in the shoes of the average app user. They fill in information for a new diet app so they can gain access to a customized menu. When they hit the submit button, they should get confirmation that their input arrived and the plan will be emailed to them or distributed another way. Providing feedback along the way keeps loose ends tied up and shows the user they are progressing forward on the site.

Also Read: Cross Platform vs Native App: Which Is Better?

3. Know Your Audience

The better you understand your users, the more intuitive your microinteractions will be. For example, you may have a lot of customers in the senior age bracket. In the United States, approximately 10,000 people a day turn 65 years old, so the chances of older adults using your app are high.

Keep in mind how to create an age-friendly design. Do some of them have arthritis? If the buttons are too small, they may have difficulty touching them on a smartphone screen. You can improve your UX throughout the process, from the contrast between the background color and the text to the font sizes you use.

4. Capture User Attention

Microinteractions can grab your users’ attention and keep them moving through your app smoothly. By breaking things into individual steps, the user must take more actions than if they had one big form to fill out.

The more engaged the person is, the more likely they will stick around. The last thing you want is for them to bounce from your app to competitors’ programs. So, have them fill in their first name and click a button before moving to a new screen and adding more information. Breaking up loads of text with small changes keeps the design highly intuitive and interactive.

5. Study the Competition

The app store features around two million different apps. While they are not all your competition, you are still fighting to be seen and gain traction against millions of other options. Take the time to look at your direct competition and top-ranking apps across multiple categories.

How do they engage users and keep them coming back? Make sure you hit the same highlights with your interactions. Remove anything that seems to create a bottleneck in the process. If you notice users start to register but stop halfway through, what is creating a stumbling block? Keep tweaking your design until your conversion rate is high enough to meet industry standards.

6. Survey Users

Adding tons of new microinteractions only works if you increase customer satisfaction during the process. Spend time sending out surveys and reading them. What elements of your design do users most enjoy? What do they think you could improve?

You can tell a lot from your internal analytics. If users bounce away from your app at specific points, pay attention to those pages, and how you might engage people better or clarify matters. Data only tells part of the story, though — you need direct feedback from your audience to understand how best to improve your design.

Put yourself in the shoes of your customers. Why do they download the app in the first place? Most have a pain point they want to solve. Fix any areas where the app fails to meet user expectations and fix the issue.

7. Create a Loop

One of the most exciting things about microinteractions is how you can create a loop that keeps people on your app rather than bouncing away. How do you shift them back to the main page or a new interaction when they finish one task?

Ideally, they will start with one action, complete it via a series of micro-events and eventually loop back to begin a second process. The system might look different depending on the business model, but the idea of a series of actions and loops to start again engages users.

Do Microinteractions Create an Effective Model?

Properly executed microinteractions should create a balance between intrusion and engagement. The feedback they receive each time an action finishes shows customers you see them, which they need. Hone in on improving your microinteractions and watch your results climb beyond your expectations.

Also Read: Apps And Data Protection – How To Secure Your Data

The post The Power Of Microinteractions In Mobile App Design appeared first on Tech Today Reviews.

The Mobile Application: Overview of its Security

The development code of a mobile application is complex, whether on Android or iOS. Thus, its security is a major issue for both the company and the users.

What is Application Security?

The issue of mobile application security is based on the theft or misappropriation of data or code contained in the applications. Securing an application begins during its design , continues during development and intensifies after it is made available on the stores . More concretely, application security can include the hardware, software and procedures used to prevent and mitigate security vulnerabilities. For example, a hardware-based application security solution might be a router that prevents a computer’s IP address from being displayed to users of other computers. In general, mobile application security measures are integrated directly, such as the application firewall.

The Mobile: A device to be Secured

The stores on which mobile applications are available, iOS (App Store) and Android (Google play store) differ according to the level of security they offer app users. Android customers, for example, see their applications access many services such as: camera/microphone, Wi-Fi connection information, location, contacts, calendar, photos and media… Behind these groups of Permissions hides a variety of individual permissions that can interfere deeply with privacy . These services offered by the phone are actually widely used by applications and can be the subject of an attack. The security mentioned is in fact global on all devices working with the Internet. We will focus here on applications.

There are many vulnerabilities in apps , whether it is a native Android or iOS application. An app-creating company should be aware of the risks and ideally be trained in the vulnerabilities.

Also Read: Apps And Data Protection – How To Secure Your Data

Application Data Risks

There are different risks related to the data stored in the applications: those concerning personal information or malware infections.

Malware infection

In fact, malware is malicious software, a virus , which integrates into the application solution through fake applications. This danger is widespread. For example, some malicious apps send expensive and unsolicited premium SMS. The risk of infection can, again for Data, be data-related. There is also malware that allows the application provider to track a number of user actions on their smartphone . It intercepts conversations, images, data, passwords… Thus, a bad security configuration can jeopardize the good functionality of the application and its viability.

These two risks are correlated with regard to user data but with two different systems: one is linked to poor protection and the other is linked to an attack . In a company carrying out an application project, it is recommended to benefit from training to prevent the many risks linked to possible flaws in the development code.

Solutions for better Mobile App Security

There are many solutions to mitigate these different risks and threats and thus avoid application security vulnerabilities . Some are more complex to set up than others. Every day there are many threats and solutions emerging, which is why the level of training is important.

Highly Secure Authentication

It is very common for security breaches to be caused by weak authentication . The latter concerns passwords in particular. Application creators have a duty to encourage their users to create complicated passwords. This may involve rules to be applied such as the use of uppercase, lowercase, numbers and special characters, with a minimum total number of characters required. The best is also to invite to create a new password every three months. In addition, and especially for particularly sensitive applications, two-factor authenticationis a very good solution. For example, for a banking application, going through an authentication that requires a password and a biometric identification (fingerprint) is essential to have a satisfactory level of security.

Application API Security

An API is a particularly popular entry point for hackers to steal data . Indeed, APIs allow mass data transfer, which is why it is essential to take into account the security of web applications to prevent hackers from having access to many applications, compromised by the insecure interface. . APIs must be very secure , this requires life cycle management methods. In fact, the work of programming an API by developers must make it difficult to access data resources : the back-end must be difficult to access. There are increasingly complex lifecycle management methods for APIs, but they are not applied well enough by developers or are simply not adopted by new APIs. Also, ensuring comprehensive API security takes time.

Other Solutions

SSL certificates can be a solution for securing data exchanges, in fact they allow them to be encrypted. Data exchanges concern in particular forms, bank transactions, etc., between the web server and the Internet user’s browser. Finally, there are VMware solutions and resources for application security. VMware is a multi-cloud services company, making it possible to manage networked environments remotely in particular and to avoid service interruptions before they occur. Furthermore, it is important to ensure that the level of training in terms of safety is sufficient with your developers. The good health of the mobile app code and final customer satisfaction depends on it.

Also Read: Mobile Security: How To Equip Your Phone With Proper Protection

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