Author: Kishore

This author has written 23 articles

What is Azure Defender?

Mention the name "Defender" in relation to Microsoft and I'm taken back to the launch of the Windows Defender anti-spyware product, in 2006. This was truly breaking news that Microsoft would launch their own protection software, off the back of the acquisition of GIANT anti-spyware, that would be free to users of Windows XP. Fast forward fourteen years and there's a new Defender in town - or is there? Not a new product - but some new capabilitiesPreviously we've talked about Azure Security Center having two "tiers" of features and pricing: the Free tier and the Standard tier. Azure resources were enabled with the free tier by default and could be upgraded to Standard. Azure Defender is the new name for the standard tier, but it goes further than just a name change. Azure Defender unifies the security management of different workload types, within the Azure Security Center. In addition to a list of supported (generally available) and newly supported (in public preview) services, Azure Defender also analyzes signals from Azure network fabric and the service control plane, to detect threats across all Azure resources.…

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Cisco Router Vulnerability Puts Network Segmentation at Risk

The network vendor is urging customers to patch, as attackers actively exploit the CDPwn vulnerability. Data centers using Cisco routers with the IOS XR software need to be on alert. Cisco issued a warning last week that attackers were actively exploiting a vulnerability in the Cisco Discovery Protocol, part of a set of vulnerabilities called CDPwn. Cisco recommended that customers upgrade to a fixed version of the software. "There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability," the company said in its alert. However, a patch has been available since February. The vulnerability affects a Layer 2 protocol, meaning the attackers need to be in the same domain. What's significant about this particular vulnerability is that the Layer 2 protocols are the underpinning for all networks and serve as the foundation of network segmentation. These kinds of vulnerabilities can put the network infrastructure itself at risk, reducing the effectiveness of network segmentation as a security strategy, according to Ben Seri, VP of research at Armis, the security firm that originally discovered the problem. If attackers succeed in exploiting CDPwn, they trigger a stack overflow that allows them to execute code with…

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Why On-Premise And Cloud Solutions Fall Short When It Comes To Open Source Software

Rome was not built in a day, nor were the data centres. Picking the real estate, power and cooling plant installations, server installations take months and not to forget how expensive the whole ordeal is. The time duration increases whenever an organisation decides to upscale. So, for companies who do not want to burden themselves with the woes of building a data centre, on-prem cannot be an option. That said, the cloud is not without its own hassles. Even migration is a tricky, tedious process for many organisations. When it comes to open-source software solutions, both on-premise and cloud platforms have their fair share of challenges. Companies like Google, with its diverse big data solutions, have been trying to address challenges on both ends. In the next section, we take a look at pressing issues concerning big data applications, according to Google Cloud. On-Prem & Cloud Challenges Companies might find themselves locked into a certain cloud provider. Vendor lock-in can become an issue in cloud computing because it is very difficult to move databases once they’re set up, especially in a cloud migration, which involves moving data…

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VMware Clinches Samsung Deal for Cloud Native 5G

Samsung is linking up with VMware to integrate its network core, edge, and radio access network (RAN) offerings with VMware’s Telco Cloud Platform. The agreement calls for Samsung to extend its support for cloud-native architecture by adapting its suite of products for containerized network functions (CNFs) and virtual network functions (VNFs) on VMware’s software stack and network automation services. The partnership with VMware follows a run of efforts taken by Samsung of late to join the wave of 5G network virtualization. The vendor plans to release a fully virtualized 5G RAN portfolio with a virtual centralized unit, a virtual distributed unit, and software that allows operators to move from dedicated baseband hardware to x86-based servers before the end of the year. Samsung also recently inked a deal with Red Hat that makes it the first major RAN vendor to publicly build 5G services on OpenShift. Samsung said it has been working with VMware at its lab to integrate and validate its VNFs and CNFs for virtualized RAN, the 5G core, mobile edge computing, management, and analytics with VMware’s Telco Cloud Platform. The result of those efforts will allow mobile network operators to onboard and deploy new 5G services more…

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Microsoft Releases Gaze-Tracking System That Works On Any Device

The researchers at Microsoft have developed an AI-based gaze tracking system that works on any device. This system is correctly dubbed as ‘hardware-agnostic’, given its ability to function on any type of device; further, the researchers believe that such a feature would now lay the groundwork for developing prediction capabilities of deep neural networks to control computers, tablets, or phones using just the eyes. This system utilises a deep neural network architecture as an appearance-based method that uses facial imagery for constrained gaze-tracking. The said facial imagery is captured on an ordinary RGB camera present in most modern computing devices. Microsoft’s new gaze-tracking architecture could find its application in enabling people with motor-neuron disabilities such as ALS and cerebral palsy to control their devices, for doctors to interact with patient information without touching the screen or the keyboard, interactive gaming, behavioural studies, and user experience research. Hardware-Agnostic GazeTracker Eye-gaze based computers depend on complex computational tasks requiring measuring the user’s head-pose, head-positioning, eye-rotation, and the distance between the user and the object. All the mentioned variables are calculated with respect to the observer’s frame of reference,…

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Broadband Internet Users Can Enhance Their Connection with Simple Tricks

Every one of us at some point face issues with the speed of our broadband internet connection. We can’t do a lot of things without a high-speed and reliable internet connection such as streaming full HD or 4K videos, real-time online gaming, and more. If you have picked a high-speed internet plan and yet you don’t get the high speeds, then there are a few things you can do to optimise your Wi-Fi connection. Mentioned below are all the things you can do to improve your Wi-Fi connection. Ways to Improve Broadband Internet Connection First thing’s first, if you have an old router, then please upgrade it to a new one. Modern generation routers provide easy configurations and more data throughput. Once that is done, check the direction of the antenna in the router. Ensure that the antenna of the Wi-Fi router is parallel to the antenna in your gaming device. Even keeping one antenna horizontal and the other one vertical can work well for your gaming, video, or downloading experience. Another thing which you must do is evaluate the strength of the Wi-Fi network.…

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Are You Utilising Your Broadband Connection to its Full Potential

A broadband connection can help you do a countless number of things, but some people might not be utilising it to its full potential The internet has become the oxygen of communication, business, and entertainment for the world. Without the internet, even for a day, many would feel that the whole planet would come to a stop. Since the time COVID-19 pandemic hit the world, people have been relying on their broadband internet connections more than ever. They need it to study and do their work from home. But is it all that a broadband connection is good for? Fibre broadband connections are quite expensive, thus it would be a waste if you get a connection and don’t even use it properly. Today, we are going to list a few ways in which you can utilise your broadband internet connection to its full potential. Communication Via Online Tools and Apps One of the things that the internet has done for people is bring them close to each other. Communication has become seamless because of the internet and all of it happens in real-time. You can text…

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Ubuntu 20.10 Available to Download!

Here are 11 New Features in Ubuntu 20.10 Groovy Gorilla Ubuntu 20.10 releases today. An Ubuntu fan may get excited about the new features it brings. Ubuntu 20.10 codenamed Groovy Gorilla is a non-LTS release with nine months of life cycle. You cannot expect drastic changes between subsequent releases. It doesn’t mean you won’t find new things in Ubuntu 20.10. There are some performance improvements, new Linux kernel and visual changes thanks to the latest release of GNOME 3.38 (and other desktop environments in various other Ubuntu flavors). Let’s see what new features Ubuntu 20.10 brings. New features in Ubuntu 20.10 Groovy Gorilla I am listing the features in the default GNOME edition of Ubuntu 20.10. You’ll find the same visual changes that you have already seen in the GNOME version 3.38 release. Ubuntu 20.10 has the purple shade Groovy Gorilla theme default wallpaper. However, I took a liking for the yellow wallpaper of an old camera roll (nostalgia perhaps). I have used the same wallpaper in most of the screenshots here. 1. Calendar events in the message tray 2. Battery percentage indicator 3. QR Code WiFi sharing…

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Microsoft says it took down 94% of TrickBot’s command and control servers

TrickBot survived an initial takedown attempt, but Microsoft and its partners are countering TrickBot operators after every move, taking down any new infrastructure the group is attempting to bring up online. Last week, a coalition of cyber-security firms led by Microsoft orchestrated a global takedown against TrickBot, one of today's largest malware botnets and cybercrime operations. Even if Microsoft brought down TrickBot infrastructure in the first few days, the botnet survived, and TrickBot operators brought new command and control (C&C) servers online in the hopes of continuing their cybercrime spree. But as several sources in the cyber-security industry told ZDNet last week, everyone expected TrickBot to fight back, and Microsoft promised to continue cracking down against the group in the weeks to come. In an update posted today on its takedown efforts, Microsoft confirmed a second wave of takedown actions against TrickBot. 94% OF TRICKBOT SERVERS TAKEN DOWN IN A WEEK The OS maker said it has slowly chipped away at TrickBot infrastructure over the past week and has taken down 94% of the botnet's C&C servers, including the original servers and new ones brought online…

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