Back in October, my son’s robotics team said “Hey! You work for a software company, can you build us an application that will help us with scouting and competitions?” Foolishly, ego stepped in before a careful outsourced review of my existing skills could take place, so I said “Sure! Not a web developer, but how hard could it be?”
Seriously… how hard could this be? I see web application traffic all the time. On the wire. And I can even manipulate that traffic at the protocol level and do amazing things with it programmatically. But…changing application traffic in flight is not development of that application. Nor is it an understanding of all the considerations one must evaluate and handle to get from idea to solution. So yeah, it is hard. Dang hard. Actually, getting to a dynamic web experience «hello world” is easy, but getting to a working application? Not so easy. Or quick. And rightfully so. Skills take time to master, and mastery unlocks new levels with which to master.
Whitman thanks partnerships for strong HPE Q1
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) has claimed earnings of $300 million in its first quarter of 2016 show it is shaping up for the cloud more strongly than expected.
HPE CEO Meg Whitman claimed that the success of the company was a consequence of a strong product offering. “Our portfolio is truly the best we’ve had in years and is driving strong customer traction,” said Whitman, who claimed the company was in better shape for the cloud, describing it as ‘agile and nimble’. In January BCN reported how HPE is faced with making 72,000 more redundancies this year, according to IT market watcher Trip Chowdhry at Delaware-based Global Equities Research.
The results created earnings of 41 cents per share in HPE, exceeding the expectations of Wall Street analysts, who reportedly expected non-GAAP earnings of 40 cents a share. While Wall Street had estimated HPE’s revenue to be $12.68 billion, the unexpectedly good revenue figure was marginally higher, at $12.7 billion.
According to HPE, the earnings for the next quarter could be as high as 43 cents a share.
Whitman told analysts that HPE is in a much better position, being the main infrastructure provider for SAP HANA with double the number of shipments of its nearest competitor. Another important deal, with Canadian comms company Rogers, helped HPE establish its credential as a leader in creating hybrid cloud infrastructures for enterprises as the move away from their existing traditional IT systems. In January BCN reported how hybrid cloud management is the main focus of HPE’s cloud strategy.
Meanwhile, HPE’s networking revenue showed 62% growth on the same period last year. This was attributed to the acquisition of wireless networking specialist Aruba Networks in March 2015, which has created record revenue from China revenue performed well in other regions. “We are seeing strength in China,” said Whitman. Aruba also grew double digits at an operational level and the vendor enjoyed demand for HPE’s switching portfolio to complement Aruba’s wireless offerings.
Enterprise group revenue was up 1% on the equivalent period in 2015, at $7.1 billion. Networking revenue grew by 54%, through Aruba’s wireless tech sales, however server and storage sales declined, falling by 1% and 3%. More worryingly perhaps, enterprise service revenue is also in decline, falling by 6% to $4.7 billion, while software revenue dropped by 10%.
BT beefs up Cloud of Clouds security with Palo Alto Wildfire
BT is to install a cloud-based breach prevention security system from Palo Alto Networks (PAN) into its global Cloud of Clouds, writes Telecoms.com.
Under the terms of a new BT-PAN agreement, BT’s existing Assure Managed Firewall service will now include PAN’s cloud-based WildFire malware prevention system, described as a ‘key component’ of the security specialist’s Next-Generation Security Platform. In a statement, BT said the installation is part of a long term plan to roll out stronger protection for its cloud-based applications as it aims to encourage enterprise customers to benefit from its Cloud of Clouds.
Though enterprises are keen to embark on a digital transformation, security concerns continue to hold them back, according to Mark Hughes, CEO of BT Security. The most obviously profitable use cases for cloud computing, such as big-data analytics and access to more cloud based applications, are the very attractions that cyber criminals are most likely to target. In the rush to provide greater levels of security telcos and cloud service providers face an investment protection challenge, Hughes said.
While enterprise customers need to access these applications quickly and securely, they must also find future-proof tools that can go with the cloud and won’t have to be expensively replaced in a few years time. “Enterprises need security that can protect them against targeted and increasingly sophisticated cyber-attacks. They need a tougher lining around their cloud services,” said Hughes.
Palo Alto Networks will provide intelligent security monitoring and management services to the BT Assure portfolio of security services. The Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Security Platform includes a Next-Generation Firewall, Advanced Endpoint Protection and a Threat Intelligence Cloud.
BT recently won two new cloud service contracts with the European Commission worth £24 million, bringing its total of EC contract wins to four in 12 months, BCN reported in January. With data security an increasingly sensitive issue with the EC (as reported in BCN), BT has taken on a challenging brief to provide public and private cloud services across 52 major European institutions, agencies and bodies.
Tech News Recap for the Week of 2/29/2016
Were you busy this week? Here’s a tech news recap of articles you may have missed for the week of 2/29/2016!
Interesting statistics were released in the 2016 State of IT report. UC Berkeley made its 3rd data breach disclosure in the past 15 months. The EU has approved the Dell buyout of EMC. Cisco has aquired cloud management startup CliQr for $260 million to bolster its software defined networking strategy. At the RSA conference, VMware CEO Pat Gelsinger discussed executive changes at VMware, implications of the Dell-EMC merger, and his focus around security. Microsoft continues to support Apple against the FBI, The US Department of Defense is searching for hackers to find and fix security vulnerabilities in its system, and more top news from this week!
Tech News Recap
- UC Berkeley makes third data breach disclosure in past 15 months
- 2016 State of IT – 20 CIO Budget, Technology, and Digital Business Findings
- EU Approves Dell Buyout of Data-Storage Giant EMC
- Microsoft Announces Expanded Cloud Security Services
- Cisco Snapping Up CliQr For $260 Million To Better Manage Hybrid Clouds
- Amazon just removed encryption from its tablet devices
- Hacking Team may have released a new piece of OS X malware
- Azure Site Recovery: 4 Things You Need to Know
- Encryption still a low priority for too many cloud users
- VMware CEO Gelsinger talks exec changes, Dell deal, and his big security focus
- Cisco enters storage, hyperconvergence market with data center splash
- Why Migration To The Cloud Requires An IT Management Upgrade
- Microsoft Redoubles Support For Apple In Fight Against FBI
- VMware Simplified and Improves the Digital Health Experience for Doctors and Patients
- Data Security Is Both The Appeal And Angst Of Cloud Computing
- The US Department of Defense searches for hackers to penetrate the Pentagon
[Whitepaper: 6 Tips to Ensure a Successful Wireless Project]
By Ben Stephenson, Emerging Media Specialist
The cloud is becoming more secure – but it’s still costly to keep it that way
(c)iStock.com/RyanKing999
Fears over cloud security will continue to linger, but the situation is improving: almost two thirds (64%) of enterprises polled by analyst house Clutch argue cloud infrastructure is more secure than legacy systems.
36% of the 300 respondents polled said cloud was much more secure than legacy infrastructure, compared to 28% who argued it was “somewhat” more secure. Only 11% of respondents argued cloud was in any way less secure, with 1% saying it was ‘much less’.
Yet the majority of respondents don’t entirely trust their chosen vendor; three quarters of respondents say they add in their own security on top of the vendor’s solution. Additional security measures enterprises put in range from data encryption (61%), to identity access policies (52%), and regular audits (48%). More than half of enterprises polled say they spend between $10,000 and $50,000 on these measures.
Clutch argues cloud infrastructure offers three features which makes it more secure for enterprises; the infrastructure is monitored at all times, the security features are multi-faceted, and central management ensures security systems remain up to date at all times. “Legacy systems are more difficult to keep updated because enterprises may have to go around to several hundred thousand platforms to check and update security systems,” said cloud analyst David Linthicum. “It’s easier for legacy systems to fall behind in terms of updates.”
Yet security remains the biggest issue companies have encountered with cloud infrastructure in the past year. 31% of those polled cited it, ahead of training (28%), increased cost (28%), and downtime (25%). For Jason Reichl, CEO of Go Nimbly, IT teams struggle when more transparency is required. “Because of this, the IT team needs to build new security policies to create the impression that a business is investing a lot more resources in security,” he said. “Truthfully though, a company should already have had these security measures in place.”
You can find out more about the report here.
Hybrid Cloud Study | @CloudExpo @IBMCAI #Cloud #BigData #IoT #API
Two-thirds of organizations implementing hybrid cloud report they’re already gaining competitive advantage from their hybrid environments and are nearly three times as likely to use it to assemble data assets or monetize data, according to findings released by IBM (NYSE: IBM).
With a hybrid cloud approach, organizations can be selective about when to use cloud and when to use traditional IT infrastructure – delivering the best functionality while meeting speed and flexibility needs, as well as resiliency, security and regulatory requirements.
IoT Security: Five Fundamentals | @ThingsExpo #BigData #IoT #IIoT #M2M
A key and wide-ranging tech trend that’s affecting enterprises and consumers alike is the Internet of Things (IoT). It’s a development that’s already transforming how we work and live as entrepreneurial minds continue to create use cases for billions of connected things.
Transformations of this magnitude come with growing pains. Gartner recently revealed unexpected implications arising from the IoT, pointing out that by 2020, firms will have increased annual security budgets by 20 percent (up from less than one percent in 2015) in order to address security compromises in the IoT. Even more disturbing is that Gartner expects that a black market exceeding $5 billion will exist to sell fake sensor and video data that enables criminal activity by 2020.
Benefits and Security for IIoT Communications | @ThingsExpo #IoT #IIoT #M2M
*This is part of a series of blogs examining Sensor-2-Server (S2S) communications, development, security and implementation.
For the past two weeks, we’ve taken an in-depth look at what Sensor-2-Server communications are, how to implement these systems, and some of the specific aspects of communication that these systems facilitate. This week, for our final installment, we’ll examine some of the benefits, as well as security considerations, for S2S communications.
Leveraging the Power of Social Media as a Marketing Tool By @Dana_Gardner | @CloudExpo #Cloud
Savvy businesses are embracing social media and business networks both to increase their brand awareness and to drive sales.
The next BriefingsDirect business innovation thought leadership discussion focuses on building a modern marketing organization. Marketing today is a different game. Today’s buyers are more connected and informed than ever, and that’s creating major upheaval in the way companies promote their brands.
Social media and business networks have taken the lead in shaping perceptions about brands, products, and companies — and savvy businesses are embracing these new channels and technologies both to increase their brand awareness and to drive sales.
Taking Back IT – DevOps: Part 3 | @DevOpsSummit #DevOps #Microservices
In my last post I spoke about the concept that Operations needs to understand and embrace the ____ as a service model (viewable here). The concept is difficult, but the reason it has to happen is that it is the most core tenant of DevOps, and it is the only way organizations will be able to truly drive digital transformation. This matters more than ever, because in the new digital wasteland we live in, failing to transform is agreeing to die.