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Microsoft Improves Cloud Security

Microsoft has recently announced its huge developments in the cloud security sector that will allegedly improve the security of online companies. Microsoft plans to unveil more at the RSA Conference, taking place from February 29th to March 4th in San Francisco. These new developments include Customer Lockbox, Microsoft Cloud App Security, Azure Active Directory Identity Protection, and Microsoft Operations Management Suite.

Customer Lockbox: Lockbox helps Microsoft engineers achieve more transparency when they require access to Office 365 accounts to aid in troubleshooting. Lockbox aims to make the customer approval process more efficient. Lockbox is already available to those using Exchange Online.

Microsoft Cloud App Security: This application provides both security and control over data stored in app clouds, including SalesForce and Office 365. This application comes after the addition of security broker Adallom to the cloud giant. Office 365 was also upgraded in conjunction with Microsoft Cloud App Security: users will be made aware of suspicious activity. Uses will also have the choice of approving third party services.

Azure Active Directory Identity Protection: Microsoft has yet to unveil much about thus application, but it is expected that it will provide threat detection. It will utilize Microsoft’s data to investigate threats such as authentications from unfamiliar locations.

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Microsoft Operations Management Suite: Some improvements were made to the Microsoft Operations Management Suite; users will receive information pertaining to malware detections, network activity, and system updates.

 

Comments:

Bret Arsenault, Microsoft’s chief information security officer: “Keeping our network safe, while protecting our data and our customers’ data, is paramount. As Chief Information Security Officer at Microsoft, I am constantly looking for ways to improve our security posture, through new technologies that accelerate our ability to protect, detect and respond to cyber incidents… After years of examining crash dumps that our customers opted to send to Microsoft from more than a billion PCs worldwide, Microsoft has developed the capability to analyze this data to effectively detect compromised systems because crashes are often the result of failed exploitation attempts and brittle malware.”

 

Sarah Fender, principal program manager of Microsoft Azure Cybersecurity: “After years of examining crash dumps that customers sent to Microsoft from more than 1 billion PCs worldwide, we are able to analyze these events to detect when a crash is the result of a failed exploitation attempt or brittle malware. Azure Security Center automatically collects crash events from Azure virtual machines, analyzes the data, and alerts you when a VM is likely compromised…Starting next week, in addition to configuring a Security Policy at the subscription level, you can also configure a Security Policy for a Resource Group—enabling you to tailor the policy based on the security needs of a specific workload. Azure Security Center continually monitors your resources according to the policy you set, and alerts you if a configuration drifts or appropriate controls are not in place.”

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Nimble Collective Funding

Nimble Collective has recently closed a round of funding that raked in $8.5 million. This funding was led by venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates. $1 million of this funding comes from individual investors.

With this funding, New Enterprise Associates Partner Greg Papadopoulos joins the board at Nimble Collective. Three executives were from the animated film industry were also named. These executives are Mark Walsh (former director at Pixar), Eric Darnell (previously with DreamWorks), and Peter Ramsey (previously with DreamWorks). The leaders of this startup have a plethora of experience with the animation industry.

The startup aims to develop a platform that could help an estimated 10 million professional and amateur animation artists. The platform will allow artists to create and collaborate and gives them the ability to distribute their work.

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The platform will require licenses for existing animation software, but provides artists with a secure cloud environment to work. It will establish a community that allows artists to communicate with ease.

While pricing for this service has not been announced, the startup wants to lower the cost of animation to give as many people possible access to this service.

A beta launch is expected in the second half of 2016.

Comments:

Nimble CCO Rex Grignon, former head of character animation on DreamWorks’ Madagascar, commented, “Nimble is delivering studio caliber tools and collaboration capabilities–all in the cloud–that free-up animators to do what they do best — create. Our goal is to enable a new generation of creatives to create, collaborate and prosper by building their own unique, modern content to reach huge audiences

Howse said: “The animation content market generates $90 billion annually, yet millions of talented animators simply do not have access to the expensive studio-quality technology tools and big budgets currently required to bring high-quality creative projects to fruition. Nimble will change that by democratizing the market with the world’s first collaborative, cloud-based platform for generating content that animators can distribute and profit from in exciting new ways.”

 

 

About the Startup:

Based in Palo Alto, the startup was founded in November of 2014. The company was cofounded By Rex Grignon, Scott LaFleur, Michael Howse, and Jason Schleifer. Grignon is Nimble’s president and chief executive officer. He was previously he founding head of character animation at DreamWorks animation. Michael Howse is an entrepreneur who worked at 3dfx and was the CEO  of startup Bigfoot Networks.

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Microsoft’s Underwater Data Center

Microsoft has recently developed a data center in an extremely unusual place- the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. Microsoft has recently unveiled Project Natick, an initiative to bring cloud computing infrastructure to cities that are closer to bodies of water such as the ocean. It is estimate that half of the world’s population lives within 200km of the ocean, so placement of data centers underwater can strategically improve efficiency and response.

In 2015, Microsoft built a capsule filled with pressurized nitrogen that featured a single rack of servers and heat exchangers clamped to the hull in order to regulate the temperature inside. The capsule was submerged 30 feet underwater off of the California coast for 100 days. Such capsules could have their computing hardware replaced every five years; the lifespan of these capsules in 20 years. Microsoft aims to make these under water data centers self-sufficient by utilizing renewable energy to power them. Microsoft is exploring wave and tidal energy.

 

Microsoft explained that “Project Natick reflects Microsoft’s ongoing quest for cloud data center solutions that offer rapid provisioning, lower costs, high responsiveness, and are more environmentally sustainable…”The vision of operating containerized data centers offshore near major population centers anticipates a highly interactive future requiring data resources located close to users. Deepwater deployment offers ready access to cooling, renewable power sources, and a controlled environment.”

Microsoft stated: “We see this as an opportunity to field long-lived, resilient datacenters that operate ‘lights out’ — nobody on site — with very high reliability for the entire life of the deployment, possibly as long as 10 years.”

 

Additional comments:

Microsoft spokesperson Athima Chansanchai has commented, “That’s one of the big advantages of the underwater data center scheme—reducing latency by closing the distance to populations and thereby speeding data transmission. Half the world’s population, Cutler says, lives within 120 miles of the sea, which makes it an appealing option…Cooling is an important aspect of data centers, which normally run up substantial costs operating chiller plants and the like to keep the computers inside from overheating. The cold environment of the deep seas automatically makes data centers less costly and more energy-efficient.”

Oracle Expands Cloud Services to Hotel Industry

Oracle has further developed the quality of services offered to hotels and casinos with Oracle Hospitality cloud services. These new services aim to simplify IT infrastructure while simultaneously allowing increased efficiency in operation. Ray Carlin, vice president of product strategy at Oracle Hospitality, commented, “To win in the highly competitive hotel industry, hotels need to deliver personalized guest experiences, increase operational efficiency, and effectively manage distribution. “Oracle’s cloud-based solutions bring significant advantages in all these key areas, while at the same time streamlining on premise IT management and offering enhanced application and data security built in.”

Oracle OPERA cloud services allows for an extensive guest profiling capability, allowing hotels and casinos to personalize a customer’s experience with ease. Positive guest experience increases chance for return in the future. OPERA cloud also runs on MICROS tablets and other smartphones, allowing guest services to be accessed from a multitude of areas in or near the hotel. The service enables hotels to maximize occupancy while effectively managing room rates. OPERA simplifies information technology infrastructure which allows upgrades to be made with ease. With all of these services, Oracle included a high level of cloud security matched with high performance.

Carlin stated, “Mobility has become a key competitive differentiator in the hotel industry. With the ability to access information instantly via mobile devices, guests now expect a very personalized mobile-enabled hospitality experience. Oracle OPERA Cloud enables operators to quickly and cost-effectively make that vision a reality.”

Oracle’s OPERA allows hotels and casinos to enhance a guest’s experience and provide important services.

 

Oracle continues to display its strength in the public cloud computing industry. Oracle Cloud currently supports 62 million users and upwards of 23 billion transactions per day. With 19 data centers across the globe, Oracle is giving the cloud giants like Microsoft a run for their money.

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AliCloud and NVIDIA to Invest $1 Billion

AliCloud, the public cloud computing sector of Alibaba, has recently joined with NVIDIA to invest a billion dollars in cloud computing research and development. AliCloud claims that it will hire up to 1,000 data developers over the course of the next three years in order to compete with cloud giant Amazon Web Services and develop its big data analytics program. The investments will assist AliCloud’s data analysis implementations. AliCloud has recently commented in a statement: “These products and services cover all aspects of the so-called data development chain, including processing, analysis, computing engine, machine learning and data application.” This investment is made in the hopes that the demand for storage and processing from organizations and agencies will increase in the following years.

The big data platform will allow complex information to be analyzed with increased efficiency. s. Simon Hu, AliCloud’s president claimed that “The Big Data Platform fulfills our vision of sharing our vast data troves that will create immense value to our users. AliCloud’s rate of growth is one of the fastest among global peers.”

NVIDIA will help Alibaba transform its AliCloud sector, allowing the cloud to provide learning capabilities for businesses. It is also rumored that NVIDIA will help AliCloud with it quantum cloud computing research. Because this quantum computing is just beginning to emerge, Alibaba may be planning to become one of the first providers of this advanced form of computing. Alibaba has already co-founded a quantum computing lab with the Chinese Academy of Sciences; so, Alibaba may become the first provider of quantum computing as a service and establish its dominance in the cloud computing industry.

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Microsoft Plans to Make Billion Dollar Donation

According to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Microsoft will donate a billion dollars’ worth or cloud computing services over the next three years to 70,000 non-profit groups and researchers. This announcement is only part of Microsoft’s initiative to leverage cloud computing services for public good.  Microsoft President Brad Smith commented in a release, “We’re committed to helping nonprofit groups and universities use cloud computing to address fundamental human challenges. One of our ambitions for Microsoft Philanthropies is to partner with these groups to ensure that cloud computing reaches more people and serves the broadest array of societal needs.” The decision to donate the amount of one billion dollars is not based on the cost to provide these cloud services, but is instead based on the market price of cloud services according to the company.

This initiative is said to consist of three stages, including making cloud services like Microsoft Azure more available to non-profits, which will occur through the donation program. In addition, Microsoft plans to expand the Microsoft Azure for Research program by fifty percent. This program allows free Azure storage and cloud computing resources to help research at the university level; upwards of 600 research projects currently receive free cloud computing through the program. Microsoft also plans to support 20 partnerships focused on connectivity and training in 15 countries by the middle of 2017. The donation program will launch in the spring of 2016.

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Nadella commented, “Among the questions being asked in Davos are these: If cloud computing is one of the most important transformations of our time, how do we ensure that its benefits are universally accessible? What if only wealthy societies have access to the data, intelligence, analytics and insights that come from the power of mobile and cloud computing? Last fall, world leaders at the United Nations adopted 17 sustainable development goals to tackle some of the toughest global problems by 2030, including poverty, hunger, health and education.”

Some have become concerned that this massive donation could undermine the work of companies specializing in software for nonprofits.

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BT Earns Major Contract

BT has recently been awarded contracts from the European Commission to provide public and private cloud services to a multitude of EU Institutions, including the European Parliament and the European Defense Agency. The contract is worth 24 million Euros and will
rum for 4 years. The services will be hosted on many servers throughout the European Union (EU) and will be managed on BT’s Computer Management System (CMS). Corrado Sciolla, BT’s Global Service President for Europe and global telecom markets commented, This is a milestone in our journey to be the leading global cloud services integrator, and demonstrates how we minimise the complexity, risks and costs for our customers as they move to the cloud.”

These contracts are not the first awarded to BT by the European Commission. The first was created in March 2015. Worth 55.7 million Euros, the contract aimed to provide Internet to EU institutions. The second contract was created in August 2015. This was a framework contract worth 15.2 million Euros and included voice services across more than twenty European Institutions.

ABOUT BT
BT has been delivering services to the European Union for ten years. BT, founded in 1969, is a British multinational telecommunications company. Its headquarters are located in London England and is currently conducting operation in over 159 countries. BT aims to “use the power of communication to make a better world.” It’s main services include networked IT, broadband, and mobile services.

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Markit Adopts Services

Markit, a financial information service firm has recently adopted Amazon Web Services (AWS). This adoption is set to optimize efficiency and capabilities of the firm while allowing for better performance of services such as thinkFolio, enterprise data management, and indices. Andrew Eisen, managing director, cloud strategy, enterprise software at Markit, has commented, “By embracing AWS’ services, we are extending our capabilities across divisions. Markit is taking a leadership role in how the financial services industry can leverage the cloud to create a step change in innovation. Our industry faces many dynamic challenges and this new partnership will enable us to be more creative in finding solutions to challenges faced by our customers.”

Scott Mullins, head of worldwide financial services business development, Amazon Web Services, has stated, “Markit’s migration of applications to AWS demonstrates the growing importance of data-driven decision making, increased risk management, accelerated go-to-market speed, and improved automation in financial services. Organizations like Markit benefit from the cloud’s global scale, cost efficiencies, and world-class security—all of which are also enjoyed by their customers.” Many customers are currently utilizing the new managed service.

About Markit

Markit is a global, financial information and services company consisting of upwards of 3,600 employees. Founded in 2003, Markit aims to reduce financial risk while simultaneously increasing efficiency. Its headquarters are located in London and its current CEO is Lance Uggla. In the third quarter of 2015, the company boasted a 5.6% increase in revenue. It also launched “Know Your Third Party” a centralized cloud based data hub that aims to simplify third party risk management processes.

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Synergy Declares 2015 “The Year of the Cloud”

Synergy Research Group has recently declared 2015 “The Year of the Cloud,” as 2015 featured unprecedented growth in the cloud industry. For the first time, cloud infrastructure and service became the norm in enterprises. The study measure the growth of six different cloud sectors, including Software as a Service (SaaS) and the public cloud.

Between the fourth quarter of 2014 and the third quarter of 2015, total cloud revenue reached $110 billion, according to Synergy. This means that all measured sectors displayed a 28 percent annual growth rate. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS) showed the highest growth rate during 2015 (51%) with private and hybrid cloud services following with a growth rate of 45%. All sectors measured experienced a growth rate of at least 16%. $60 billion was spent on infrastructure hardware and software, while $30 billion was spent on the development of the private cloud. Investments also returned large sums with $20 billion resulting from cloud infrastructure services and $27 billion coming from Software as a Service (SaaS) and other internet services.

Synergy Research Group Chief Analyst John Dinsdale commented, “Cloud technologies are now generating massive revenues and high growth rates that will continue long into the future, making this an exciting time for IT vendors and service providers that focus on cloud.”

Cisco Systems, Amazon, and Microsoft continue to dominate the cloud industry. While the cloud infrastructure industry has experienced massive growth in 2015, other cloud services, such as cloud security, may have their chance to dominate in 2016.

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Qingteng Funding

Chinese based enterprise security start-up Qingteng Cloud Security has recently gained its first round funding of 60 million Yen from CBC Capital and Redpoint Ventures, setting a record among cloud security start-ups in China for amount of first round funding. Prior to this round of funding, Qingteng received 6.5 million Yen from investments from ZhenFund, Cloud Angel Fund, and Fenghou Capital.
The founder of Qingteng, Zhang Fu, has commented on the severity of the current Internet enterprise security situation. Security operations occur when problems arise, instead of establishing a system of consistent security maintenance. The most efficient way, according to Zhang, to react to external attacks utilizing internal resources is to give security teams tools that allow security operations staff to divert attention from emergency situations, as the tools will take care of them, and instead focus on regular security management.

The security platform was created to be able to adapt to various infrastructures and situations. It may automatically process security issues, construct a safe model for enterprises, analyze internal and external abnormalities that could lead to security issues, and detect as well as block hacking activities. According to Zhang, this security platform has already reached enterprises in many business sectors, including healthcare and finance.

About Qingteng

Qingteng was founded in August of 2014 and is dedicated to offering an adaptive cloud security program that can protect data on various systems and enterprises.

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