News

What Is Identity and Access Management (IAM)?

Posted in: IAM, IAM policies, identity access management, identity and access management, IT Strategy - Sep 17, 2021

Identity and access management (IAM) helps you securely control who has access to your systems, applications, and data within your organization, as well as where they can go within those systems.

With proper IAM solutions in place, organizations will be able to define who has what level of access. This shrinks the attack surface and prevents data leaks because user privileges are closely moderated.

What Is IAM?

Identity and access management encompasses a lot, but at its core IAM is about identity. IAM is set of policies, procedures, and protocols used to secure access to computing resources. Its primary purposes are security, compliance, and business continuity.

IAM is set of policies, procedures, and protocols used to secure access to computing resources.

The identity part of IAM is the methods by which an organization can verify that an individual is who they say they are. The access part of IAM refers to the process of determining how each individual should be allowed to access specific information, hardware, or software tools within an organization’s infrastructure.

The purpose of IAM is to provide access control to IT resources by managing user accounts, devices, applications, files, services, systems, and networks. In doing so, an organization can ensure that all business data is secure. IT can also create data policies that prevent data loss or theft.

Components of Identity and Access Management

But before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let’s break down exactly what identity and access management entails. There are four basic components:

• User provisioning
• Privileged Access Management (PAM)
• Account security
• Integration

An enterprise should have at least three to five goals when choosing an IAM solution — and again, these will depend on your unique needs. A good way to tell if your system is outmoded or inefficient is by monitoring login success rates. Ideally, your success rate should be above 95%. If it’s hovering around 75% or less, then something is wrong!

Read more: VPNs, Zero Trust Network Access, and the Evolution of Secure Remote Work

How to Choose an IAM Solution

IAM solutions can provide improved control over who has access to what. However, if IAM tools are deployed without regard to best practices, these solutions can actually become a source of problems. When adopting IAM software, it’s important to address your unique business challenges with a multi-tiered strategy that maps back to strategic goals.

If IAM tools are deployed without regard to best practices, these solutions can actually become a source of problems.

There are many ways to implement IAM strategies; it all depends on your specific needs. For example, one company might require only Windows authentication for all its accounts, while another might also want multifactor authentication included in its IAM package.

And if your enterprise relies heavily on cloud services, incorporating those into IAM will be essential as well. Do you need a single sign-on (SSO)? What about directory integration? Answers to these questions will help determine which software vendor would best suit your needs.

Read more: Access Control Security Best Practices

Top IAM Solutions

Most solutions offer either an on-premise or cloud option. On-premise solutions are usually catered toward larger organizations, because installation often requires customization. Cloud solutions are great for smaller businesses that don’t have dedicated IT departments, because everything is managed remotely.

Whether you choose to go on-prem or cloud, be sure to factor in IAM costs, including both annual subscriptions and associated fees.

Centrify PAM

Centrify PAM offers a variety of a cloud-based identity and access management tools, including multi-factor authentication to protect all of your business’s digital assets from cyberattacks.

Centrify PAM platforms feature an easy-to-use dashboard that gives IT control over who can access what in real-time. In addition, Centrify PAM can integrate with many third-party applications.

Microsoft Azure AD

Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) is a cloud-based directory and identity management service that enables users to manage user access, passwords, and multiple types of identities from one place.

It provides single sign-on capability for your online apps; Azure AD can be integrated with most applications. It can also be integrated with other IT systems to provide authentication across cloud and on-premises resources.

Oracle IAM

Oracle provides several identity management solutions that integrate with its suite of enterprise software products. For instance, Oracle Single Sign-On enables access to numerous applications, databases, and networks.

When users log in using their usernames and passwords, Oracle Single Sign-On logs them into multiple systems without prompting for additional credentials. It also offers an organization more control over privileged accounts by giving IT administrators granular access policies.

IBM Security Verify

IBM Security Verify is a cloud-based identity and access management solution that provides secure, easy-to-use access management capabilities to any environment.

It enables seamless application integration, control of information sharing, auditing, strong authentication support for mobile users, and customization options for end users to ensure they have access only to what they need — all while still complying with regulatory requirements.

ForgeRock

ForgeRock is a cloud-ready IAM platform that gives organizations complete control over user access to all systems, including databases, SaaS applications, mobile apps, physical assets, and more.

Using ForgeRock for secure identity management allows organizations to minimize security risks from bad actors using stolen credentials. Additionally, it enables compliance with regulations such as GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation).

See more IAM Solutions on eSecurity Planet: Best IAM Tools & Solutions for 2021

Why IAM Matters

Identity and access management helps you keep track of all the identities across your organization — employees, contractors, vendors, and customers — and manage their access to resources. No matter how big or small your business, investing in IAM is crucial.

The post What Is Identity and Access Management (IAM)? appeared first on CIO Insight.

top

Top Edge Computing Companies for 2021

Posted in: ADLINK, Amazon AWS, ClearBlade, Dell EMC, edge computing, edge computing companies, EdgeConneX, Google Cloud, HPE, IBM, Infrastructure, Intel, Mutable, Section - Sep 16, 2021

Edge computing companies offer a more efficient way to process and transmit data, solving two problems: the need for more IT infrastructure, and the massive amounts of unused data generated by edge points. With the rise of 5G networks, some believe edge computing is the next evolution in this space.

If you’re trying to find the best edge computing company for your business, this article will help you narrow your search.

Read more: Biggest Challenges & Rewards of Enterprise SaaS

Table of Contents

• What Is Edge Computing?
• Best Edge Computing Companies
• Edge Computing Use Cases
• Choosing the Best Edge Computing Company

What Is Edge Computing?

Edge computing minimizes the latency of cloud communication between a client and a server by bringing the infrastructure closer to the edges of the network. With edge computing, companies gain near real-time insights with less latency and lower cloud server bandwidth usage.

With edge computing, companies gain near real-time insights with less latency and lower bandwidth usage.

Cloud computing fulfills the “need to deploy edge servers, gateway devices, and other gear that reduce the time and distance required for computing tasks,” according to Datamation. “Part of this infrastructure may include smaller edge data centers located in secondary cities or even rural areas, or cloud containers that can easily be moved across clouds and systems as needed.”

The best edge computing companies also allow users to harness comprehensive data analysis, with many possible applications like internet of things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), cybersecurity, and remote workforce support.

Back to top

Top Edge Computing Companies

AWS

Amazon Web Services (AWS) offers a cloud-edge hybrid model that allows a consistent experience on both the edge and the cloud. AWS includes services and solutions that package IoT, AI, ML, robotics, analytics, and compute and storage capabilities to achieve business outcomes across common industrial workloads.

Amazon Web Services also provides solutions like its Connected Vehicle solution, IoT Device Simulator, and AWS IoT Camera Connector. AWS also sells edge products — including Alexa and Echo devices. AWS edge computing is good for those in the industrial and commercial markets.

ClearBlade

In 2020 ClearBlade released its Edge Native Intelligent Asset Application. This app allows edge maintainers to connect IoT devices, define asset types, and build alert systems without needing any coding ability.

ClearBlade allows a single platform to enable customers to leverage local compute, operationally solve business problems, and artificial intelligence. It also offers real-time location and asset tracking, and its middleware platform helps connect various parts to IoT.

ClearBlade will make sense if your company is in the following industries: mining, facilities, oil and gas, rail, logistics, healthcare, and energy. It can also be great if your business is in the public sector.

Dell

Dell has invested heavily in edge computing. Through OpenManage Mobile, Dell EMC offers edge-computing management and orchestration capabilities.

Dell EMC divides the company’s edge computing hardware into three different categories. These are the Mobile Edge portfolio (which includes cloud-enabled hardware for mobile or remote locations), the Enterprise Edge portfolio (consisting of the VEP460 Open uCPE platform), and the IoT Edge portfolio, which offers Edge Gateways for manufacturers, retailers, and digital cities.

EdgeConneX

EdgeConnex focuses on positioning data facilities where they’re needed the most for better network and IT connectivity. Its thinking is that the edge is an amorphous and non-specific in location, with IoT sensors anywhere and everywhere.

In addition, EdgeConneX offers EdgeOS, a self-service management application meant for high observability, with a single universal dashboard to manage it.

EdgeConneX’s far edge use cases include artificial intelligence, AR/VR, IoT, low latency media streaming, connected and automated vehicles, immersive gaming, and machine learning.

They work closely with customers to ensure tailored scalability, power, and connectivity. As a result, EdgeConneX is ideal for hyperscale customers. Its main clients include content providers, network and cable operators, and colocation companies.

ADLINK Technology

ADLINK offers users a super-specialized focus on edge computing, making it stand out from others on this list.

With features like IoT hardware and software, AI software, and robotics solutions, ADLINKS would be suitable for those in the military or aeronautics spaces, as well as companies whose focus is healthcare, manufacturing, networking, or communications.

Google Cloud Platform

With its global network and reach, few companies have the technical infrastructure to support edge computing like Google.

Many consumers already have a Google device in their home. Google offers a line of connected home products for edge computing. It also provides cloud computing services for managing edge data — most notably with its Cloud IoT Core service.

Google uses Edge TPU hardware to run analytics and AI at the edge. In addition, Google’s other AI cloud services are an excellent complement to its edge computing products.

HPE

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) offers both wireless and wired networking products that enable edge computing, such as its network security solutions. These include control systems, telecommunications, industrial networks, and IoT data acquisition.

HPE allows telcos to deploy innovative new edge computing services to customers via IT infrastructure located at the edge of networks or on customers’ premises. Edge Orchestrator drives new revenue streams, exploring use cases such as AI-powered video analytics, VR retail services, and industrial automation.

HPE is well-positioned to serve larger companies, particularly with cloud deployments, and has a long-standing interest in enterprise IT.

IBM

IBM has a strong relationship with large businesses and offers an IoT solution for enterprise asset management, facilities management, and system engineering.

IBM’s edge computing platform is based on OpenShift technology, and the Watson IoT applies its AI technology there.

The company touts an advantage in cloud computing by offering a way for organizations in the telecommunications, retail, and automobile industries to manage the infrastructure at the edge of their networks, using edge computing for servers.

Intel

Intel is well-known as a chipmaker. However, its family of edge computing products puts them on the list as a top edge computing company.

The Intel IoT Platform products include gateways for IoT, the Intel Secure Device Onboard (SDO) service, Wind River Helix Device Cloud, and Wind River Titanium Edge, in addition to edge computing components featuring Intel processors and storage.

Intel also has reference architecture, developer kits, tools, and SDKs for IoT deployments. It chiefly sells products that your company can use to create its IoT products and services.

Mutable

Mutable’s software platform runs enterprises’ existing servers. It automatically prioritizes the workloads of the owner while selling the unused compute capacity through its own public cloud to unlock the full revenue potential of existing servers. This handles the increase in internet traffic both effectively and sustainably.

Mutable Public Edge Cloud harnesses the ultra-low latency of 5G networks to provide consistent connectivity between wired and wireless devices on the edge. Mutable also allows developers to deploy their apps to end users without having to maintain their own cloud footprint.

Mutable OS is an edge computing software solution designed for container organization and multi-data center server management.

Section

Section is an edge computing platform focused on DevOps — the edge platform fully integrates with application engineers’ workloads. Section’s newest launch, the patent-pending Adaptive Edge Engine technology, paves the way for complete edge computing.

Users can understand how their edge performs in real-time using Section’s traffic visualization console, which provides next-gen observability tooling for DevOps teams.

Section’s edge computing platform powers next-generation applications for SaaS, PaaS, and application providers to deliver more secure and quicker digital experiences. Additionally, Section allows developers to deploy a workload where, when, and how they need to.

Back to top

Edge Computing Use Cases

Machine Learning

The most used case in edge computing, machine learning, helps reduce reliance on cloud networks by performing deep dives into learning algorithms and processing data locally.

AI

Edge AI allows better performance with faster insights, faster computing, better data security, and continuous operation. This therefore keeps operating costs down and enhances the performance of AI-enabled applications.

Cybersecurity

Companies use edge security to protect both users and applications at the farthest reaches of their network, where sensitive data tends to be more vulnerable.

Remote Workforce Support

Edge computing allows those working remotely to increase efficiency and preserve bandwidth. COVID-19 has accelerated the shift to edge computing to help those now working remotely.

Back to top

Choosing the Best Edge Computing Company

Every company on this list has pros and cons that may make or break them as the best edge computing company for your business. For example, not every edge device offers the same security, analytics capability, or remote workforce support as others.

When deciding on the best edge computing company, consider which features are most important for your type of business. Then, use the list above to compare and contrast the best companies that can help deliver the solutions you need.

Read next: Is Biometric Technology Worth the Cost?

The post Top Edge Computing Companies for 2021 appeared first on CIO Insight.

top

What Are the Differences Between ITSM & ITIL?

Posted in: IT Management, ITIL, ITIL best practices, ITIL certification, ITSM, ITSM software, ITSM suite - Sep 15, 2021

One common confusion you may encounter the workplace centers around the difference between ITSM vs ITIL. You may have even asked yourself the question: Aren’t they the same thing?

Not really, no. While the two acronyms sound similar, and are both used by IT teams, ITSM and ITIL do not refer to the same thing. If you’ve ever confused the two, you’re not alone. The confusion may stem from how people usually apply the ITIL framework to ITSM.

Let’s explore the differences between ITSM and ITIL, and how IT teams can use both to better their workplace strategies and deliverables.

Read more: Key DevOps Principles & Practices for Success

What Is ITSM?

ITSM stands for Information Technology Service Management and is a process that IT teams use to manage the end-to-end delivery of services to customers. It includes all the strategies and activities to design, create, deliver, and support IT services.

ITSM includes all the processes to design, create, deliver, and support IT services.

The core concept of ITSM is the belief that IT should be delivered as a service, and customer satisfaction is one of the top priorities of ITSM.

Someone who works in ITSM may use tools that can cover things like service desk management, incident and problem management, change management and release management.

Read more on TechnologyAdvice: 8 of the Best ITSM Tools for Every Business Need

What Is ITIL?

ITIL, or Information Technology Infrastructure Library, is a framework that can help businesses mitigate risk while strengthening relations with their customers, establishing best practices, and cutting costs.

Many IT professionals choose to get certified in the ITIL framework.

ITIL differs from ITSM by describing how a company can apply processes and procedures to plan strategy, deliver value, and maintain competency. The ITIL framework explains how things need to be done and is used to demonstrate compliance and measure improvement within companies.

Companies can implement ITIL wherever it will help them the most, picking the processes that will benefit them the most and will have the most impact. Many IT professionals choose to get certified in the ITIL framework, which can significantly bolster their chances of getting hired or advancing in their current role.

Read more: ITIL Certification Guide: Overview & Cost

How Is ITIL Applied to ITSM?

When you think about ITSM vs. ITIL, the two can easily be confused. Even though they encompass two different IT processes, the two acronyms do have a relationship. ITIL can include all things ITSM, and is the actual guidance on how to do that work effectively.

So how is the ITIL framework applied to ITSM? ITIL is split into a series of five stages that each cover a different ITSM lifecycle. We can break these into the following:

1. Service strategy
2. Service design
3. Service transition
4. Service operation
5. Continual service improvement

The ITIL framework is the set of guidelines that teaches the best practices to implement ITSM in an organization. ITSM is the practice of managing IT on the delivery of those services to businesses.

ITSM vs ITIL

The popularity around ITIL probably explains why it gets confused with ITSM. ITIL is the default ITSM framework, but ITSM is a discipline in itself. ITIL, on the other hand, is a way to achieve this discipline.

The next time you get hung up on your acronyms and aren’t sure if you’re supposed to say ITSM or ITIL, simply remember that ITSM defines the what, while ITIL defines the how.

Read next: Continuous Delivery vs Deployment: What Are Key Differences?

The post What Are the Differences Between ITSM & ITIL? appeared first on CIO Insight.

top

Key DevOps Principles & Practices for Success

Posted in: DevOps, DevOps methodologies, DevOps mindset, DevOps model, DevOps processes, IT Strategy - Sep 15, 2021

The term DevOps is a combination of Development and Operations. It is the name for a set of practices that not only integrate, but also automate the processes of both Development and Operations. Software development teams plan, build, and test software, while those in IT deploy and maintain that software.

In the DevOps framework, these two groups work together in a continuous feedback loop to churn out quality products more quickly. Ultimately, this creates a stronger infrastructural backbone for the company.

Read more: Continuous Delivery vs Deployment: What Are Key Differences?

What Are DevOps Best Practices?

• Automation: It’s important, especially for large DevOps teams, to automate configuration, deployment, infrastructure, and testing, among other processes.
• Collaboration: Unlike the traditional Development and IT silos, working together is key in successful DevOps.
• Customer Focus: Like Agile, DevOps keeps the end user in mind. Teams continue to build, test, release, and monitor new software to keep internal and external users happy.
• Improvement: Gaining insight from Agile methodology, DevOps keeps improving and optimizing its processes and workflows through continuous monitoring and testing.

What Is the Difference Between DevOps and Agile?

Agile methodology breaks down a project into smaller parts, ensuring that a software product is released iteratively. Agile is also self-reflexive, so the workflow continuously improves over time. DevOps principles are certainly woven into this process of project management and continuous improvement, but DevOps is different from Agile methodology.

The primary difference is that Agile addresses communication gaps between the clients/end users and the developers. DevOps, on the other hand, addresses internal communication gaps between developers and the IT team. The two therefore differ primarily in relation to which part of the product lifecycle they’re targeting. 

Read more: Best Agile Project Management Tools for 2021

Who Is on a DevOps team?

The DevOps team can be quite large. It is usually made up of teams of designers, developers, testers, engineers, production staff, and operations staff. They all work together to launch and maintain new software.

DevOps teams have to work cross-functionally, making the whole team greater than the sum of its members to ultimately deliver more value to the customer.

Read more: Top 10 Paying IT Jobs in 2021

Future of DevOps

DevOps is here to stay. Here are some of the key trends to watch out for.

• The timeline from product development to rollout will become increasingly shorter to meet customer demands for availability, speed, and performance.
• DevOps will continue to be a valued skill among employers hiring IT personnel.
• DevOps engineers will play an increasingly important role within DevOps teams.
• DevOps teams will become increasingly multidisciplinary. Members will have to train in skills outside of their wheelhouse, like automation, functional knowledge, soft skills, etc.
• As more parts of a business move to the cloud, security will be of greater importance for DevOps. Expect DevOps to use more AI, ML, and threat modeling to proactively address security threats.
• There will be less and less human intervention in DevOps, as Artificial Intelligence Operations (AIOps) is on the rise and will increasingly partner up with DevOps.
• We’ll see DevOps play a bigger role in business-level decisions and strategy.

Why It’s Important to Implement DevOps

In the DevOps framework, developers and IT work together on development, testing, integration, deployment, and monitoring. DevOps are becoming one of the primary driving forces for delivering value — not just for a product, but to the customer.

DevOps gets software to market more quickly and efficiently, especially if you adopt the best DevOps practices and keep an eye on emerging DevOps trends.

Read next: Biggest Challenges & Rewards of Enterprise SaaS

The post Key DevOps Principles & Practices for Success appeared first on CIO Insight.

top

Yet Another Security Headache, This Time From Messaging Apps

Posted in: Cloud Messaging, instant messaging, IT Strategy, messaging apps, messaging security, mobile device management, Mobile Device Security, Security, security vulnerability, shadow IT - Sep 14, 2021

It seems every week, a new security frontier must be navigated. On the device level, servers were the main threat at first, then PCs, laptops, tablets, and phones. But the bad actors have moved on; now it seems they are in love with messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Signal, and Telegram.

Read more: Top Cyber Security Threats to Organizations

The pandemic has seen a rise in remote enterprise workers using these apps. Many companies have tried to tie employee interaction to approved channels, such as Microsoft Teams. But just as many failed to achieve that. As a result, a large number of users prefer consumer-level messaging apps for keeping the boss updated or interacting with peers.

Blurring the Lines

Remote work’s way of blurring the lines between personal and professional time doesn’t help. If people use WhatsApp to stay in touch with family and friends, for example, you can see why many introduce it into their work-from-home life. Corporate dictates may demand otherwise, but users want an easy-to-use communication channel.

Corporate monitoring moved up to a whole new level during the pandemic.

Further, corporate monitoring moved up to a whole new level during the pandemic. Companies began tracking user logins, keystrokes, time active on devices, websites visited, and other metrics. This created resentment and suspicion in users.

The Shadow IT of Messaging Apps

Alternate channels are sometimes used to avoid management scrutiny, or just to stick it to Big Brother. In creeps a shadow IT of additional messaging channels. Unfortunately, this expands the attack surface of the enterprise. And thus increases the risk of data loss, ransomware, and other security threats.

“Attempting to solve a market demand for communications has led to a range of quickly launched apps that are not business- or enterprise-ready, with many having poor uptime and availability, and suffering from lack of inbuilt security, stability, and basic feature sets,” said Nick Emanuel, Senior Director of Product for Carbonite and Webroot. “Secure messaging protocols are often used by cyber attackers to hide data exfiltration, making it much harder for the company to identify that they are being attacked.”

Read more: VPNs, Zero Trust Network Access, and the Evolution of Secure Remote Work

He added that consumer-level messaging apps may include privacy policies that can run afoul of corporate and regulatory provisions. Thus, end-to-end encryption is recommended for any communications utilizing messaging apps in order to prevent interception during transit.

End-to-End Encryption Isn’t Enough

With WhatsApp having some potentially dodgy privacy policies from an enterprise standpoint, Telegram and Signal emerged with end-to-end encrypted messaging included. “Signal and Telegram have pushed growth, proliferation, and privacy as key business drivers,” said Emanuel.

But even if a messaging app uses encryption, many organizations don’t like the idea of corporate data sitting on unmonitored smartphones. Emanuel recommends prohibition of consumer-grade apps for company business or instituting detailed corporate policies to control them.

Similarly, laptops can be set up to block unapproved communication apps and other services at the firewall or port. Mobile Device Management (MDM) technologies can similarly address Android/iOS devices. “Embrace the free flow of communication, but offer safer ways for it to happen while highlighting the risks,” said Emanuel.

Read next: What Is Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE)?

The post Yet Another Security Headache, This Time From Messaging Apps appeared first on CIO Insight.

top