Symantec explores Future of the Internet at Cyber Symposium

By admin | February 23, 2011 | 2 Comments 

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This evening, the first Symantec Cyber Symposium will see academics, security professionals and industry thinkers gather in London for a thought-provoking discussion about the future of the internet. We’ll be looking at the online world and the associated security challenges that will shape the thinking of business decision makers, governments and consumers in years to come.

What factors will determine the way in which the internet evolves? How might our use of it – at home, in business, or even on our body – change? How will the potential threat landscape shape the way we use it in the future?  And what will the implications be for personal privacy, commercial and national interests, which are some of the considerations that are so pivotal in society today?

I’m excited to be hosting the event, and look forward to debating some of the above. We are also welcoming some great guest speakers, including:

  • Dr. Chris Hankin, Director for the Institute for Security Science and Technology at Imperial College London, discussing issues on protecting the enterprise in the future
  • Derek Wyatt, a former MP, presenting ideas on policing international frontiers
  • Professor Richard J. Aldrich, Professor of International Security, University of Warwick, talking about extending the frontier of the internet into the human body

To date, the internet has fundamentally enhanced the way we communicate and socialise. It has made our lives easier, both at home and at work, and it’s changing all the time. By the end of this decade, the online world will look very different than today’s and only by understanding the internet’s potential evolution and the threats that may emerge, can we continue to reap its benefits in years to come.

- Ilias Chantzos, Director of Government Relations, Symantec

2002 The Start Of the Digital Age…

By Guy Bunker | February 17, 2011 | 1 Comment 

Guy Bunker

OK, so we were digital long before 2002, but it was then that the amount of data stored digitally overtook that which was stored in an analog manner. A recent analysis of ‘all’ storage also showed that we now have enough capacity for 295 exabytes of information… which is about 404 billion CDs.

Of course how much if it is actually used is not presented – and neither is how much of it is repeated, i.e. the amount of unique data is probably just a fraction of that. Finding things you know exist becomes harder each day, and a good friend Adrian Seccombe has written a short post on just this problem… losing things in your digital pocket. For enterprises this particular problem is worse, with thousands of hours of productivity lost each year due to people looking for data they know exist but can’t find – and then trying to reproduce it.

Archiving with full-text indexing is one option – but that is often catching less and less information as more ‘digital pockets’ are used. Furthermore, the loss of an unsecured ‘pocket’ could now result in a £500K fine from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Data growth is inevitable, but as the legislation evolves to encompass new working practices (the cloud, consumerization of IT, social networking sites, …) so too will the risks. As ever, it is time to revisit policies around security and data management and check that they have moved with the times… and if not, make the change before they become a liability.

Guy Bunker

The King Is Dead… Long Live The King…

By Guy Bunker | February 4, 2011 | Leave a Comment 

Guy Bunker

So, the final blocks of IPv4 Internet addresses have been handed out. And, when they’re gone, they’re gone… fortunately we have all been prepared for this for a while with IPv6 – which was originally published in 1998, it is still behind in its uptake. But as with most things, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” – and so it has been with IPv4. Now there is no longer an option – the next sets of addresses to be allocated will be IPv6 (only 1% of devices currently use IPv6, even though most are enabled with it).

As for the difference in size, an IPv4 address was 32 bits, whereas IPv6 is 128 – plenty to be going on with. With the rapid increase in devices connecting to the Internet (at home now I have more ‘other’ devices that connect than computers!) they will be exhausted at some point in the future… time to place your guesstimates as to when!

In the mean time, we can all look forward to World IPv6 Day on June 8th later this year. So long IPv4, you have led a revolution… long live your successor.

Guy Bunker

Learning From Risks To Government Clouds

By Guy Bunker | February 4, 2011 | 1 Comment 

Guy Bunker

ENISA LogoENISA has recently produced a report as part of their cloud computing initiative which looks at Security and resilience in Governmental Clouds (gClouds). The report makes for interesting reading – if you happen to be a government, BUT it is also very useful to other organizations that are considering moving applications to the cloud.

It gives some good examples for carrying out a comparative risk assessment – figuring out which cloud is best for which applications / data. For example whether to use a private cloud or a public one, or a community (share with known others). This is an important step for everyone moving to a cloud solution, but often overlooked – or rather replaced with the simple ‘Cloud: Yes/No’ decision point. There is also an excellent list of resilience threats – all of which are pertinent to the private sector. Well worth a read…

Guy Bunker