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Cybersecurity Awareness: the need of the Hour for Businesses

Bineesh Mathew | October 13, 2021 | 918 views

Cybersecurity Awareness
No business can afford to be apathetic with cybersecurity. Cybersecurity awareness in businesses- it is high time for businesses to focus on this as the number of online frauds targeting corporates and other businesses to make easy money is increasing. As technology evolves, these online criminals invent new ways to get into accounts and steal sensitive data. No doubt that if businesses are not focusing on an effective cybersecurity strategy, it will jeopardize your businesses. Sadly and alarmingly, many are not aware of it, including corporates, or take it seriously.

In simple terms, cybersecurity awareness is the understanding of what cyber threats are, what impact they can make on a business, and the steps to reduce the risk and prevent online crime. This cybersecurity awareness will make your employees work safely and run your business hassle-free.

Phishing, viruses, malware, worms, trojans, spams, etc., are some of the cyber threats a business can undergo.  Need not say what impact these threats will bring to your business! It will create a lot of damage to your business; even the reputation and brand image can be lost. It can also devastate your business as a whole, and you may have to start from the beginning. How will you start again if you have invested all earnings in your business, which is devastated due to the cyber-attack?

How can you promote cybersecurity awareness at your work premises and among your employees? Read further to get insights and protect your business.


Promoting Cybersecurity Awareness in businesses


A simple mistake from any of your employees can be an opportunity for online fraud to get into your business and steal sensitive data. Moreover, this human error is the most significant factor in significant cybersecurity breaches. This can be due to the employee not being aware of it and its consequences. Indeed, you cannot blame the employees if they are ignorant of it. Therefore, as an employer, the ball is in your court.

Thus, promoting awareness of cybersecurity risks is a need of the hour for corporates and even for other small businesses. Go further to get some tips on how to promote cybersecurity awareness in your business.


Not Just the Job of IT Department


To maintain cybersecurity, you have to take every employee of your business onboard. Therefore, the cybersecurity strategy you develop should be inclusive of every employee in your organization. In addition, all departments promote better cyber awareness, including human resources, legal, marketing, sales, and finance.

Therefore, the cybersecurity awareness efforts are simply a job of the entire organization and not just the responsibility of the IT team. Therefore, your success lies where you successfully involve every employee under the IT team's leadership.

In an interview of Media 7 with Anjali Gugle, Security Architect and Officer, CX Cloud Platform Security at Cisco, she said,

“Security is everybody’s responsibility. Because of that, it spans over different roles and responsibilities. In most cases, security is often an afterthought in the development lifecycle. We have embraced the "Shift left” approach to enterprise security with centralized policy management in cloud-based management. This enables deriving valuable security insights and continuous security monitoring as different security services come under one roof.”

Anjali Gugle, Security Architect and Officer, CX Cloud Platform Security at Cisco


Educate Yourself and Your Employees


Your business needs to educate your employees about the probable cyber threats your business can face. Cybersecurity awareness programs will be in vain if you and your employees are not aware of the possible cyber security threats your business can face. This will make them recognize and get away from the most common threats the businesses face, including phishing emails, other traditional fishing attacks, ransomware, malware, and malicious social media links. You can also make them aware of the recent cyber-attacks in the business world and their losses.

This knowledge is vital to any cybersecurity awareness efforts. Moreover, you cannot teach your employees unless you are aware of it.


Awareness Programs


As part of generating cybersecurity awareness in businesses, you can also conduct various cybersecurity awareness programs for your employees. For example, you can have the below methods as part of your cybersecurity programs.

  • Cybersecurity quizzes
  • Displaying cybersecurity posters at prominent places
  • Sharing occasional cybersecurity updates and tips
  • Showing interesting and entertaining cybersecurity videos

This will inculcate a sense of cybersecurity awareness in their minds. Moreover, this awareness will make them think twice before they take any action online.


Regular Cybersecurity Audits


The cybersecurity requirements of each company can be different. The success of cybersecurity awareness programs, policies, and safety measures depends upon how they serve the needs of the organizations. Therefore, solutions that best meet the particular cybersecurity demands of the company should be implemented in companies. Business owners and managers have to focus on ensuring this.

Regular cybersecurity audits will give you a picture of what requirements you have at present. It also will evaluate how effective your present policies are. This way, the company can formulate new protocols to protect your company.


Summing UP


Compromising with cybersecurity will devastate your business. Therefore, IT professionals should have the skills related to cybersecurity, while other employees need to have cybersecurity awareness. Cybersecurity awareness comprises knowledge of possible threats, their impacts, and measures to protect your business.

Businesses can have various awareness programs to educate employees to be aware of the threats and increase awareness. Also, have to audit regularly the policies in your company to check their effectiveness.


Frequently Asked Questions


Why is cybersecurity awareness in businesses so important?

When the employees in a company are aware of the possible cybersecurity threats, they are likely to refrain from suspicious activities. This is because they know the impact of cyber-attack on business.


How can a company raise cybersecurity awareness among employees?

The company can make the employees aware of cybersecurity threats by educating them on recent attacks and their impacts. Moreover, the company can also educate the employees regarding the possible threats a particular company can have.

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At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, organizations witnessed a significant surge in cyber threats or alerts, with 61% reporting a substantial increase of 25% or more. With users accessing cloud applications and corporate networks remotely, hackers actively sought to exploit potential security gaps. Protecting Businesses: The Importance of Cybersecurity Detection Early threat detection is a fundamental aspect of effective cybersecurity. By closely monitoring network traffic, system logs, and user behavior, businesses can swiftly detect suspicious activities that may signal an ongoing or imminent cyber-attack. Such proactive detection enables organizations to respond promptly, mitigating potential financial losses from data breaches, system downtime, regulatory fines, legal battles, and reputational damage. For businesses entrusted with sensitive customer data, cybersecurity detection plays a vital role in maintaining trust and complying with data protection regulations. 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Businesses that invest in robust detection measures are committed to safeguarding sensitive information, thus fostering trust among customers, partners, and stakeholders. Guard Against Cyber Threats with onShore Security’s Panoptic Cyberdefense Panoptic Cyberdefense by onShore Security is a Managed Cybersecurity Detection solution that recognizes security as an ongoing process, not just a mere product. For effective cybersecurity operations, round-the-clock monitoring is required using Security Operations Center (SOC) offered by onShore’s cyberdefence solution. To maximize visibility, businesses need to immediately respond to security threats while also requiring to identify non-threatening data. Leveraging Panoptic Cyberdefense helps streamline identifying, monitoring, and detecting cyber threats. During a conversation with Media 7, Stel Valavanis, CEO, onShore Security highlighted the impact of cyber threats and talked about cybersecurity detection solutions. We have developed our detection platform, the Panoptic Sensor and the Panoptic SIEM over many battle-hardened years. And the process is well-oiled, as you can imagine, involving tiers and workflow communication for alerting, analysis, tuning, and threat-hunting. As cyber threats evolve in complexity and frequency, businesses must remain vigilant in safeguarding their digital assets. onShore Security's Panoptic Cyberdefense offers a comprehensive suite of solutions, including Panoptic Sensor and the Panoptic SIEM, to help organizations mitigate risk, protect sensitive data, elevate their security team, and meet compliance requirements. Through Panoptic Sensor, organizations gain proactive threat intelligence, enabling the early detection and prevention of potential security breaches. Complementing this, the Panoptic SIEM provides powerful analytics and monitoring capabilities, empowering businesses to swiftly identify, investigate, and respond to security incidents. To navigate complex data protection and privacy regulations, minimizing the risk of non-compliance penalties and legal ramifications is needed. Panoptic Cyberdefense offers three levels of cybersecurity detection. The levels of detection, response and analysis include managed detection and response (MDR), second level has both network detection response (NDR) + MDR, and the third level is security orchestration. Harness the Power of Detection By integrating detection capabilities into every layer of protection systems, including user involvement, businesses can establish a formidable defense against cyber threats. Consolidating data from various sources into a centralized platform for analysis becomes essential. Implementing a managed detection and response process enables continuous analysis of this data, empowering early detection of potential attackers and facilitating ongoing security enhancements. Collaborating with government and industry partners can further demonstrate a commitment to high-security standards and compliance requirements. Remaining prepared for potential attacks is crucial. In the event of an incident, prompt response becomes paramount. Equipped with comprehensive data providing attestation of methods and impact, organizations can swiftly and effectively address any cybersecurity breaches.

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Embrace the transformative power of identity-based authentication to establish new industry standards for safe and seamless user onboarding processes, enhancing security, workflows & user experience. The increasing adoption of decentralized identity systems, including blockchain-based solutions, introduces intricate challenges in the verification and authorization of identities across distributed networks. During interoperability, the threat to privacy and security within these systems is emerging at an alarming rate that requires urgent attention. Additionally, combating synthetic identity fraud poses a significant hurdle as fraudsters adeptly combine genuine and false information, making it arduous to differentiate between authentic and fraudulent identities. Deepfakes are the rising concern, which generate remarkably realistic audio, video, or images, mimicking genuine individuals and heightening the difficulty of detecting and preventing impersonation attacks. Password fatigue stems from the constant need to create and remember multiple passwords, leading users to choose weak or reused ones. Reusing passwords increases the risk, as compromising one account grants access to others. Password theft is a concern, with attackers employing phishing attacks and malware. A study by Google found that passwordless authentication can reduce password-related help desk tickets by up to 60%. (Source: PYMNTS) Complex password requirements can be challenging, pushing users towards weaker options. Password resets are time-consuming and frustrating. Solutions should alleviate fatigue, promote secure practices, and offer robust protection against theft and unauthorized access. All service providers or product companies confront a common challenge in this novel era of vulnerabilities, the question of creating an optimal and seamless user onboarding cycle while adhering to the necessary standards. This keeps them up at night as they attempt to find the optimal balance between seamless and secured-data onboarding. In this digital age, identity-secure data is the most valuable asset and a transformative resource. Organizations with data stored in cloud storage and password-based authentication systems are vulnerable to cybercrime. These are susceptible to numerous security threats, including phishing, social engineering, and brute-force attacks. These hazards may result in security breaches and sensitive data loss. Additionally, password management becomes burdensome for users, resulting in password fatigue, weak practices, and IT department involvement for password resets. This impacts user experience and productivity. Identity-Based Authentication (IBA) comes into action while implementing this secure identity verification. To ensure widespread adoption of IBA, the industry must standardize two crucial aspects of identity: ‘Identification Verification’ and ‘Passwordless Authentication’. Automating identity verification fundamentally transforms the onboarding work processes by shifting administrative burden to user endpoints and automating data capture, credential validation, and document workflow. This leads to increased user satisfaction and faster access to required services, driving efficiency and reducing the time to generate revenue for customers. BlockID Verify by 1Kosmos prevents such fraudulent accounts through an identity proofing process that verifies identity anywhere, anytime, and on any device with over 99% accuracy, thereby preventing the use of stolen or synthetic identities during customer onboarding. During a conversation with Media 7, Michael Cichon, CMO, 1Kosmos stressed on the implementation of identity proofing and authorization. At 1Kosmos we bring our solutions to the market through three distinct products. One product focuses on workforce authentication, another caters to business-to-consumer use cases, and the third product revolves around self-service identity proofing. These give organizations the ability to remotely verify an identity on the web with a high level of assurance, and then verify that identity at every access attempt. Onboarding users with security and data protection is a critical activity. It is a one-time action that must be combined with an authentication mechanism for long-term identity to be genuinely effective. Organizations with data stored in cloud storage and password-based authentication systems are vulnerable to cybercrime. While these are susceptible to numerous security threats, including phishing, social engineering, and brute-force attacks, these hazards can result in security breaches and sensitive data loss. A recent report by Verizon demonstrated that 61% of all data breaches are caused by compromised credentials. (Source: 1Kosmos) The catch that robust identity verification alone does not guarantee future authentication, calls for FIDO (Fast Identity Online). It is backed by an industry-leading organization 1Kosmos, which provides solutions for Identity Based Authentication. FIDO uses cryptography in the form of a public and private key to authenticate a user. With FIDO2 authentication, employees can authenticate into corporate systems and applications using their personal devices. This eliminates the need for conventional passwords and reduces the likelihood of security vulnerabilities resulting due to password-related attacks. With FIDO2, the user's keys are stored on their devices and not the service provider's server and thus proves to be less vulnerable to identity theft and phishing attempts. This is where the password to cryptographic passkeys adoption comes into picture. BlockID Workforce by 1Kosmos implements password-less authentication using FIDO, and has thus become a necessity, adopting self-service identity verification serving as a credential service provider. The ‘Identity Proofing’ together with ‘Passwordless Authentication’ results in a seamless user experience addressing credential theft, eliminating unauthorized users logging in corporate IT network and thus preventing data breaches, financial fraud, and ransomware.

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Enterprise Security

Protect your Business with these Active Directory Security Best Practices

Article | January 10, 2022

Software supply chain attacks, such as the recent one involving MOVEit Transfer, are a serious issue for modern enterprises. Their dependency on third-party software makes it difficult to successfully vet the security integrity of every product used by enterprises. Software is especially difficult to assess securely, as it can be modified through updates throughout its lifecycle. For threat actors, targeting popular enterprise software tools is a lucrative and time-efficient way to gain access to the systems of a large number of corporate users. Verifying the integrity of software, and using attestation services, is one way to minimize the threat surface. So how can these concepts be leveraged in software? Software integrity (also known as code integrity) refers to the quality of the source code and allows the determination of the safety, security, and reliability of the software. It can mean that the code is unaltered by unauthorized parties, or it can also provide protection against hacks and guarantee privacy. Integrity checking can be relatively complex, but includes, at a minimum (from a security perspective), security features and ensures that security vulnerabilities have been eliminated. It does what it should, can be tested, and is easy to understand and edit, without introducing new errors or flaws. There are code analysis tools that can enable this. Beyond that, the code can be signed through the application of a digital signature to seal that integrity check. This can happen several times during the lifetime of that software: at production, for upgrades and patching, etc. This provides assurance that the software came from the developer and that it has not been changed in an unauthorized manner. This proof of authenticity becomes important in supply chain scenarios, and can be an important tool for brand protection of the developers. Code signing makes use of digital certificates; the signature is cryptographically hashed and packaged in a certificate. This certificate can then be verified by the user of the software through a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), with a certificate authority validating (or refuting) the applied signature. There are various types of code signing certificates: standard and extended. The latter involves a more complex process and stricter requirements for validation and key management. Software attestation is essentially the other side of that process. It’s a trust mechanism that allows the user to independently validate the integrity asserted by a provider. Attestation might require not just the vendors name, version of the software, and origins of the code, but also other software artifacts, such as statements to the effect that they have followed secure development practices, information on external dependencies used to build it, the build process itself, the test suites that were run, and any security checks passed. Together, these artifacts form the metadata of the software, which then can be independently signed. A PKI can then be leveraged to verify the applied digital signature. There are software attestation standards that can be leveraged, including open ones (in-tot and Binary Authorization being two popular ones). The U.S. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is working on a self-attestation form (Secure Software Development Attestation Common Form) for software producers serving the federal government. The form will require them to confirm implementation of specific security practices. This was following the White House’s 2021 Executive Order 14028 and the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) M-22-18, “Enhancing the Security of the Software Supply Chain through Secure Software Development Practices.” Digital signatures for code integrity and software attestation will increasingly be in demand, especially as governments on both sides of the Atlantic (in the European Union and the United States) are pushing for policy and regulation on mandatory Software Bills of Materials (SBOMs). The goal is to make software developers and device manufacturers accountable for the components that make up their products. An SBOM will have to list known vulnerabilities associated with each component (open source and third party), pushing security rights to the forefront of product development. This visibility will allow for product development teams, DevOps, and implementers to address vulnerabilities and thereby strengthen security. SBOMs will likely form part of the software’s metadata, so signing will have a role to play here. In short, code signing and software attestation can both confer a level of security that can minimize the threat of a supply chain attack. It’s important to keep in mind, however, that they won’t address all issues, and will not be 100% fool-proof either. Of course, threat actors know this, and many are already targeting the code signing process in order to inject malicious code. This requires threat actors to compromise development platforms where code signing takes place. Ultimately, the use of digital signatures, from creation to management, is another aspect that will need to be secured from a developer perspective. DevSecOps will also have an important role to play here in order to avoid such malicious tactics, thereby providing a holistic security context for using digital signatures. But there is no doubt that digital signatures are a key technology for code integrity and software attestation, and will have a positive impact on thwarting the progress of supply chain attacks, if used widely. Sources: CISA WH EO 14028 OMB

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Network Threat Detection, Platform Security, Software Security

Digital Defense 2023: Top Network Security Trends for Businesses

Article | June 28, 2023

Discover emerging network security trends to stay informed about evolving landscape and safeguard business operations, protect sensitive data, and fortify defenses against evolving cyber threats. Contents Introduction The Latest Network Security Trends Every Business Should Know in 2023 Zero Trust Architecture Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Internet of Things (IoT) Security Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) in Network Security Privacy-Enhancing Technologies Third-party Security and Interoperability Incident Response and Cyber Insurance Network Security: Beyond the Horizon Introduction The landscape of network security is evolving rapidly, driven by advancements in technology and the cyberattack tactics of cybercriminals. There has been a significant rise in network security threats, such as ransomware attacks, Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), phishing, and others, over the past few years. According to a report by Barracuda, 81% of the companies surveyed stated that they had suffered at least one security breach in 2021. As a result, it is increasingly becoming crucial for businesses to stay vigilant and well-informed about the recent trends in network security to protect their critical assets, maintain the trust of their customers, and mitigate the potentially devastating consequences of current cybersecurity threats. The Latest Network Security Trends Every Business Should Know in 2023 As technology evolves, so do the threats that businesses face in the digital landscape. Network security has become a critical concern for organizations as they navigate the complex world of data protection, privacy, and cyber threats. Several upcoming network security trends are shaping the landscape, demanding the attention of businesses worldwide. Understanding and adapting to these trends is crucial to maintaining a secure and resilient network infrastructure. Key emerging network security future trends in the information security industry are as follows: Zero Trust Architecture Traditional perimeter-based security approaches are no longer sufficient to protect today's dynamic and distributed networks. The zero trust architecture is gaining massive traction as an emerging cyber security technology in the network security sector. It operates on the principle of "never trust, always verify," requiring continuous authentication and authorization for every user, device, and application seeking access to network resources. Implementing these conditions enables businesses to significantly reduce the risk of unauthorized access, lateral movement, and data breaches. Consequently, organizations are focusing on embracing this approach to strengthen their security posture and safeguard critical assets, ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of their network infrastructure. Secure Access Service Edge The rapid adoption of cloud services and the proliferation of remote work have accelerated the need for a unified and cloud-native network security solution. Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) combines network security functions, such as secure web gateways, firewall-as-a-service, and data loss prevention, into a single cloud-delivered service. SASE offers businesses a scalable and flexible approach to secure their networks, providing consistent security policies and access controls regardless of the user's location or device. As SASE simplifies network security management, reduces complexity, and improves visibility, organizations are increasingly adopting these solutions to enhance overall security posture. Internet of Things (IoT) Security The proliferation of IoT devices presents significant security challenges for businesses today. These devices often have limited computing resources and lack built-in security features, making them vulnerable to exploitation. Additionally, continuous monitoring, threat intelligence, and timely patching of IoT devices are essential to identify and address vulnerabilities promptly. As a result, businesses are paying close attention to IoT security by implementing robust security controls, device authentication mechanisms, and network segmentation. Prioritizing IoT security, they can safeguard their networks and sensitive data, as well as maintain trust with customers. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Network Security As cyber threats become increasingly sophisticated, leveraging AI and Machine Learning (ML) in network security becomes essential for businesses to stay ahead of evolving threats. These technologies analyze vast amounts of data, identify patterns, and detect anomalies in real time, enabling companies to proactive threat detection and response. The threat detection and remediation capabilities of AI and ML-powered solutions provide organizations with rapid real-time protection. These solutions enable them to analyze complex datasets without human intervention by automating routine security tasks, enhancing network visibility, and empowering faster incident response times. Privacy-Enhancing Technologies With the increasing emphasis on data privacy regulations and consumer expectations, privacy-enhancing technologies are extensively gaining importance in network security. These technologies, including differential privacy, homomorphic encryption, and secure multiparty computation, allow businesses to protect sensitive data while performing essential operations. The adoption of privacy-enhancing technologies also assists organizations in maintaining compliance with privacy regulations, building customer trust, and mitigating the risks of data breaches and privacy violations. Consequently, they are increasingly implementing these advanced technologies to demonstrate their commitment toward data privacy and strike a balance between data utility and protecting individual privacy rights. Third-party Security and Interoperability Organizations often rely on third-party vendors, suppliers, and partners for critical services and solutions, in today's interconnected business landscape. However, this reliance introduces potential vulnerabilities and risks to the network infrastructure. A study by Forrester anticipates that nearly 60% of security incidents will involve third parties. Ensuring third-party entities adhere to robust security standards and practices is crucial to maintaining a secure ecosystem. Thus, businesses are implementing robust interoperability protocols, secure APIs, and standardized security controls to enable secure communication and data sharing between different network components. Incident Response and Cyber Insurance Despite comprehensive security measures, organizations can still fall victim to cyberattacks. Incident response plans ensure a swift and effective response to security incidents, enabling the detection, containment, and recovery from breaches. Businesses can minimize damage, protect sensitive data, and maintain operational continuity by promptly addressing security incidents. Furthermore, considering the increasing financial impact of cyberattacks, organizations are obtaining cyber insurance to mitigate the potential financial losses associated with data breaches, business disruptions, and legal liabilities. This allows organizations to transfer some of the financial burden of a cyberattack. Network Security: Beyond the Horizon With the proliferation of cyber threats and the increasing value of data, organizations must prioritize the protection of their networks and sensitive information. A robust network security framework ensures the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of critical business data, guarding against unauthorized access, data breaches, and potential financial and reputational damage. Businesses must prioritize improving their network security to protect their operations, reputation, and sensitive data effectively. Keeping pace with these global security trends enables organizations to identify vulnerabilities, implement robust safeguards, and deploy advanced defense mechanisms. Actively monitoring and responding to these emerging security trends in network infrastructures enable organizations in fortifying their resilience, maintaining customer trust, and securing their long-term success in an ever-evolving digital environment.

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Enterprise Security

OpenAI Announces ChatGPT Enterprise for Business Needs

OpenAI | September 07, 2023

OpenAI unveils ChatGPT Enterprise, which provides businesses with enterprise-grade advanced capabilities. ChatGPT Enterprise offers a brand-new administrator portal with tools to manage how employees utilize ChatGPT within an organization. The launch of ChatGPT Enterprise coincides with intensifying competition in the chatbot domain with companies such as OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and Anthropic. According to OpenAI, artificial intelligence can enhance numerous aspects of professional lives and increase team creativity and productivity. This represents an important milestone in the development of an AI assistant for the workplace that can help with any task, which is tailored to business needs and protects sensitive information. OpenAI, an industry-leading AI research and deployment organization that conducts research and implements machine learning (ML), announced the introduction of ChatGPT Enterprise. The latest product offers enterprise-grade protection and privacy, extended context windows for processing longer inputs, limitless higher-speed GPT-4 access, customization possibilities, additional data analysis capabilities, and much more. ChatGPT Enterprise introduces an all-new admin portal equipped with essential tools for managing and controlling ChatGPT's usage within a company. These tools include domain verification integrations, single sign-on integrations, and a user-friendly dashboard packed with usage statistics. Employees can leverage ChatGPT to streamline internal processes and construct internal workflow through easily shareable discussion templates. Additionally, businesses have the option to tailor ChatGPT-powered solutions to their specific needs by utilizing credits on OpenAI's API platform. OpenAI’s latest product grants users unrestricted access to an advanced data analysis feature previously known as Code Interpreter. This capability empowers ChatGPT to proficiently analyze data, solve mathematical problems, create charts, and perform a range of other tasks. Both ChatGPT Plus and ChatGPT Enterprise operate on the powerful GPT-4, OpenAI's cutting-edge AI model. However, ChatGPT Enterprise customers enjoy priority access to GPT-4, which boasts twice the speed of the standard GPT-4 model and an expanded context window that accommodates up to 32,000 tokens, equivalent to approximately 25,000 words. The introduction of ChatGPT Enterprise overlaps with intensifying competition in the chatbot sector. OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and Anthropic are engaged in an intense AI arms competition. In addition to releasing new chatbot applications, their objective is to introduce innovative features that encourage the widespread adoption of generative AI in daily operations. Google and Microsoft, for example, are continuously refining their respective Bard and Bing chatbots with innovative features such as visual search. In the meantime, Anthropic, an AI startup founded by former OpenAI executives, has made a splash with its AI chatbot, Claude 2.

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Enterprise Security, Web Security Tools

Netskope Achieves AWS Security Competency Status for Infrastructure Protection

PR Newswire | August 28, 2023

Netskope, today announced that it has achieved Amazon Web Services (AWS) Security Competency status in the Infrastructure Protection category. As a widely recognized industry leader in secure access service edge (SASE), Security Service Edge (SSE), and modern connectivity and performance, Netskope works with AWS and other cloud providers to secure and optimize the most demanding cloud-first environments. Achieving the AWS Security Competency differentiates Netskope as an AWS Partner Network (APN) member that meets rigorous security specifications on AWS. In addition, Netskope was recently recognized as a "finalist" for the AWS US Rising Star Partner of the Year at this year's AWS New York Partner Summit. With the rapid migration of critical workloads to the cloud, the increase in the hybrid workforce, and today's complex cybersecurity landscape, the need for robust cloud security solutions is more critical than ever before. Netskope has helped thousands of customers, including more than 25 of the Fortune 100, improve their security posture. Netskope helps customers address AWS's shared responsibility model of cloud security for several important use cases: Provide secure remote access to private applications on AWS - Remote and hybrid workers need to access business-critical applications from anywhere. Netskope Private Access (NPA), Netskope's zero trust network access (ZTNA) solution, provides secure, granular access based on adaptive trust principles. This means that users can only access the applications and resources they need when they need them. NPA also improves security by replacing outdated VPN gateways and concentrators that expose their IP addresses to the public internet. Private resources are not visible on the public internet and are shielded from attackers. Discover shadow IT and block data exfiltration and threats - Netskope can act in real-time to block movement of sensitive data, threats, unauthorized users, and access to rogue accounts. Netskope Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) Inline monitors traffic to and from AWS resources and applications to expose suspicious or malicious activity. Netskope's Zero Trust Engine decodes activities in real-time to place activity-level restrictions on users, groups, and organizational units across more than 270 AWS services. Netskope's Next Generation Secure Web Gateway (SWG) blocks malware, detects advanced threats, and controls cloud apps and services for users located anywhere, using any device. Discover sensitive data and malware in Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) - Netskope CASB API scans Amazon S3 buckets to identify sensitive data and protect it from misuse. It also discovers malware and generates alerts to help prevent threats from spreading. Extensive integrations provide visibility and information sharing across cloud and hybrid environments - Netskope integrates with a variety of AWS services including AWS CloudTrail, AWS CloudTrail Lake, Amazon Security Lake, Amazon S3, and Amazon GuardDuty to share logs, alerts, events, and threat information. Netskope Cloud Exchange (CE) offers a wide variety of plug-ins and modules to facilitate exchange of information between cloud services, security tools, and data lakes, and automate remediation. CE can be deployed on Amazon Elastic Container Service (Amazon ECS) using AWS Fargate. Netskope also integrates with AWS Control Tower for customers needing automated deployment and consistent security policy across multi-account AWS customer environments. "We are thrilled to achieve the AWS Security Competency in the Infrastructure Protection category, as it highlights our ongoing commitment to help organizations provide secure access to applications and resources, protect data, and reduce risk in the cloud," said Andy Horwitz, Vice President, Business Development and Technology Alliances, Netskope. "This achievement demonstrates our commitment to AWS customers through our team's hard work and dedication to providing cutting-edge security solutions that address the evolving challenges of secure cloud adoption." AWS is enabling scalable, flexible, and cost-effective solutions from startups to global enterprises. To support the seamless integration and deployment of these solutions, AWS established the AWS Competency Program to help customers identify AWS Partners with deep industry experience and expertise. About Netskope Netskope, a global SASE leader, helps organizations apply zero trust principles and AI/ML innovations to protect data and defend against cyber threats. Fast and easy to use, the Netskope platform provides optimized access and real-time security for people, devices, and data anywhere they go. Netskope helps customers reduce risk, accelerate performance, and get unrivaled visibility into any cloud, web, and private application activity. Thousands of customers trust Netskope and its powerful NewEdge network to address evolving threats, new risks, technology shifts, organizational and network changes, and new regulatory requirements. Learn how Netskope helps customers be ready for anything on their SASE journey, visit netskope.com.

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Software Security

ZeroFox Unveils New Anti-Phishing Features to Stop Attacks at Source

ZeroFox | September 22, 2023

ZeroFox, an industry-leading provider of enterprise software-as-a-service for external cybersecurity, has announced the unveiling of multiple anti-phishing product enhancements. These updates solidify ZeroFox's position as the world leader in digital risk protection. Developed using cutting-edge AI/ML technologies and designed by a team of top-tier security experts, these new anti-phishing features boost escalated alert volume, reduce the occurrence of false positives, and expedite the process from threat identification to initial disruption and successful takedowns for all our customers. The importance of these new features cannot be overstated, especially given the rising threat landscape. In the first half of 2023, ZeroFox Intelligence has recorded a substantial increase in the volume and complexity of phishing attacks, including a 30% surge in domain takedowns compared to the first half of 2022. New ZeroFox phishing trend research also highlights the adoption of evasion techniques like cloaking alongside emerging tactics such as SEO poisoning and phishing-as-a-service. These developments underscore the critical role of these new capabilities in safeguarding against evolving cyber threats. Continuous and Complete Protection Against Domain-based Threats ZeroFox adopts a unique approach to phishing compared to email security and conventional anti-phishing providers. Its strategy revolves around the identification, disruption, and elimination of the domains necessary for launching phishing campaigns. With daily monitoring of over 65 million domains, ZeroFox combats various threats like typo squats, subdomain spoofs, homoglyphs, and other malicious domain and URL-based attacks, effectively shielding customers and preventing any disruptions to business operations. Incorporate advanced domain protection capabilities to enhance their cybersecurity measures, aiming to achieve substantial and measurable business outcomes: Reduce Phishing Risks with Anti-Cloaking Capabilities: Strengthen Compliance and Trust with SSL Monitoring Secure Brand Identity with Favicon Search Improve Operational Efficiency with Enhanced Subdomain Coverage Enhance User Experience (UX) with Weblog Monitoring Mike Price, Chief Technology Officer of ZeroFox, said, ZeroFox has been detecting and disrupting phishing attacks for the last decade, constantly enhancing our solution to protect our customers from changing phishing techniques used by threat actors, including the widespread use of malicious cloaking and subdomains techniques. [Source – Globe Newswire] Price stated that the enhanced capabilities being announced represented their ongoing commitment to tackling the increasing phishing challenge encountered by security teams. He emphasized that as phishing continued to evolve, ZeroFox would remain a trusted anti-phishing partner dedicated to safeguarding customers from both current and future phishing techniques. About ZeroFox ZeroFox, a prominent enterprise software-as-a-service provider in the field of external cybersecurity, has revolutionized security beyond the corporate perimeter on the internet, where businesses conduct their operations and threat actors are active. Their platform seamlessly integrates cutting-edge AI analytics, digital risk and privacy protection, full-spectrum threat intelligence, and a robust set of breach, incident, and takedown response tools. This enables them to uncover and disrupt various threats, including phishing and fraud campaigns, botnet exposures, impersonations, credential theft, data breaches, and physical threats that target domains, brands, personnel, and assets.

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Enterprise Security

OpenAI Announces ChatGPT Enterprise for Business Needs

OpenAI | September 07, 2023

OpenAI unveils ChatGPT Enterprise, which provides businesses with enterprise-grade advanced capabilities. ChatGPT Enterprise offers a brand-new administrator portal with tools to manage how employees utilize ChatGPT within an organization. The launch of ChatGPT Enterprise coincides with intensifying competition in the chatbot domain with companies such as OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and Anthropic. According to OpenAI, artificial intelligence can enhance numerous aspects of professional lives and increase team creativity and productivity. This represents an important milestone in the development of an AI assistant for the workplace that can help with any task, which is tailored to business needs and protects sensitive information. OpenAI, an industry-leading AI research and deployment organization that conducts research and implements machine learning (ML), announced the introduction of ChatGPT Enterprise. The latest product offers enterprise-grade protection and privacy, extended context windows for processing longer inputs, limitless higher-speed GPT-4 access, customization possibilities, additional data analysis capabilities, and much more. ChatGPT Enterprise introduces an all-new admin portal equipped with essential tools for managing and controlling ChatGPT's usage within a company. These tools include domain verification integrations, single sign-on integrations, and a user-friendly dashboard packed with usage statistics. Employees can leverage ChatGPT to streamline internal processes and construct internal workflow through easily shareable discussion templates. Additionally, businesses have the option to tailor ChatGPT-powered solutions to their specific needs by utilizing credits on OpenAI's API platform. OpenAI’s latest product grants users unrestricted access to an advanced data analysis feature previously known as Code Interpreter. This capability empowers ChatGPT to proficiently analyze data, solve mathematical problems, create charts, and perform a range of other tasks. Both ChatGPT Plus and ChatGPT Enterprise operate on the powerful GPT-4, OpenAI's cutting-edge AI model. However, ChatGPT Enterprise customers enjoy priority access to GPT-4, which boasts twice the speed of the standard GPT-4 model and an expanded context window that accommodates up to 32,000 tokens, equivalent to approximately 25,000 words. The introduction of ChatGPT Enterprise overlaps with intensifying competition in the chatbot sector. OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and Anthropic are engaged in an intense AI arms competition. In addition to releasing new chatbot applications, their objective is to introduce innovative features that encourage the widespread adoption of generative AI in daily operations. Google and Microsoft, for example, are continuously refining their respective Bard and Bing chatbots with innovative features such as visual search. In the meantime, Anthropic, an AI startup founded by former OpenAI executives, has made a splash with its AI chatbot, Claude 2.

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Enterprise Security, Web Security Tools

Netskope Achieves AWS Security Competency Status for Infrastructure Protection

PR Newswire | August 28, 2023

Netskope, today announced that it has achieved Amazon Web Services (AWS) Security Competency status in the Infrastructure Protection category. As a widely recognized industry leader in secure access service edge (SASE), Security Service Edge (SSE), and modern connectivity and performance, Netskope works with AWS and other cloud providers to secure and optimize the most demanding cloud-first environments. Achieving the AWS Security Competency differentiates Netskope as an AWS Partner Network (APN) member that meets rigorous security specifications on AWS. In addition, Netskope was recently recognized as a "finalist" for the AWS US Rising Star Partner of the Year at this year's AWS New York Partner Summit. With the rapid migration of critical workloads to the cloud, the increase in the hybrid workforce, and today's complex cybersecurity landscape, the need for robust cloud security solutions is more critical than ever before. Netskope has helped thousands of customers, including more than 25 of the Fortune 100, improve their security posture. Netskope helps customers address AWS's shared responsibility model of cloud security for several important use cases: Provide secure remote access to private applications on AWS - Remote and hybrid workers need to access business-critical applications from anywhere. Netskope Private Access (NPA), Netskope's zero trust network access (ZTNA) solution, provides secure, granular access based on adaptive trust principles. This means that users can only access the applications and resources they need when they need them. NPA also improves security by replacing outdated VPN gateways and concentrators that expose their IP addresses to the public internet. Private resources are not visible on the public internet and are shielded from attackers. Discover shadow IT and block data exfiltration and threats - Netskope can act in real-time to block movement of sensitive data, threats, unauthorized users, and access to rogue accounts. Netskope Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) Inline monitors traffic to and from AWS resources and applications to expose suspicious or malicious activity. Netskope's Zero Trust Engine decodes activities in real-time to place activity-level restrictions on users, groups, and organizational units across more than 270 AWS services. Netskope's Next Generation Secure Web Gateway (SWG) blocks malware, detects advanced threats, and controls cloud apps and services for users located anywhere, using any device. Discover sensitive data and malware in Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) - Netskope CASB API scans Amazon S3 buckets to identify sensitive data and protect it from misuse. It also discovers malware and generates alerts to help prevent threats from spreading. Extensive integrations provide visibility and information sharing across cloud and hybrid environments - Netskope integrates with a variety of AWS services including AWS CloudTrail, AWS CloudTrail Lake, Amazon Security Lake, Amazon S3, and Amazon GuardDuty to share logs, alerts, events, and threat information. Netskope Cloud Exchange (CE) offers a wide variety of plug-ins and modules to facilitate exchange of information between cloud services, security tools, and data lakes, and automate remediation. CE can be deployed on Amazon Elastic Container Service (Amazon ECS) using AWS Fargate. Netskope also integrates with AWS Control Tower for customers needing automated deployment and consistent security policy across multi-account AWS customer environments. "We are thrilled to achieve the AWS Security Competency in the Infrastructure Protection category, as it highlights our ongoing commitment to help organizations provide secure access to applications and resources, protect data, and reduce risk in the cloud," said Andy Horwitz, Vice President, Business Development and Technology Alliances, Netskope. "This achievement demonstrates our commitment to AWS customers through our team's hard work and dedication to providing cutting-edge security solutions that address the evolving challenges of secure cloud adoption." AWS is enabling scalable, flexible, and cost-effective solutions from startups to global enterprises. To support the seamless integration and deployment of these solutions, AWS established the AWS Competency Program to help customers identify AWS Partners with deep industry experience and expertise. About Netskope Netskope, a global SASE leader, helps organizations apply zero trust principles and AI/ML innovations to protect data and defend against cyber threats. Fast and easy to use, the Netskope platform provides optimized access and real-time security for people, devices, and data anywhere they go. Netskope helps customers reduce risk, accelerate performance, and get unrivaled visibility into any cloud, web, and private application activity. Thousands of customers trust Netskope and its powerful NewEdge network to address evolving threats, new risks, technology shifts, organizational and network changes, and new regulatory requirements. Learn how Netskope helps customers be ready for anything on their SASE journey, visit netskope.com.

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Software Security

ZeroFox Unveils New Anti-Phishing Features to Stop Attacks at Source

ZeroFox | September 22, 2023

ZeroFox, an industry-leading provider of enterprise software-as-a-service for external cybersecurity, has announced the unveiling of multiple anti-phishing product enhancements. These updates solidify ZeroFox's position as the world leader in digital risk protection. Developed using cutting-edge AI/ML technologies and designed by a team of top-tier security experts, these new anti-phishing features boost escalated alert volume, reduce the occurrence of false positives, and expedite the process from threat identification to initial disruption and successful takedowns for all our customers. The importance of these new features cannot be overstated, especially given the rising threat landscape. In the first half of 2023, ZeroFox Intelligence has recorded a substantial increase in the volume and complexity of phishing attacks, including a 30% surge in domain takedowns compared to the first half of 2022. New ZeroFox phishing trend research also highlights the adoption of evasion techniques like cloaking alongside emerging tactics such as SEO poisoning and phishing-as-a-service. These developments underscore the critical role of these new capabilities in safeguarding against evolving cyber threats. Continuous and Complete Protection Against Domain-based Threats ZeroFox adopts a unique approach to phishing compared to email security and conventional anti-phishing providers. Its strategy revolves around the identification, disruption, and elimination of the domains necessary for launching phishing campaigns. With daily monitoring of over 65 million domains, ZeroFox combats various threats like typo squats, subdomain spoofs, homoglyphs, and other malicious domain and URL-based attacks, effectively shielding customers and preventing any disruptions to business operations. Incorporate advanced domain protection capabilities to enhance their cybersecurity measures, aiming to achieve substantial and measurable business outcomes: Reduce Phishing Risks with Anti-Cloaking Capabilities: Strengthen Compliance and Trust with SSL Monitoring Secure Brand Identity with Favicon Search Improve Operational Efficiency with Enhanced Subdomain Coverage Enhance User Experience (UX) with Weblog Monitoring Mike Price, Chief Technology Officer of ZeroFox, said, ZeroFox has been detecting and disrupting phishing attacks for the last decade, constantly enhancing our solution to protect our customers from changing phishing techniques used by threat actors, including the widespread use of malicious cloaking and subdomains techniques. [Source – Globe Newswire] Price stated that the enhanced capabilities being announced represented their ongoing commitment to tackling the increasing phishing challenge encountered by security teams. He emphasized that as phishing continued to evolve, ZeroFox would remain a trusted anti-phishing partner dedicated to safeguarding customers from both current and future phishing techniques. About ZeroFox ZeroFox, a prominent enterprise software-as-a-service provider in the field of external cybersecurity, has revolutionized security beyond the corporate perimeter on the internet, where businesses conduct their operations and threat actors are active. Their platform seamlessly integrates cutting-edge AI analytics, digital risk and privacy protection, full-spectrum threat intelligence, and a robust set of breach, incident, and takedown response tools. This enables them to uncover and disrupt various threats, including phishing and fraud campaigns, botnet exposures, impersonations, credential theft, data breaches, and physical threats that target domains, brands, personnel, and assets.

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