Security risks in Cloud Computing

This is an era of mobile broadband, smart phones, and users who run multiple computers and devices. Therefore it makes sense to move e-mail, photos, documents, calendar, notes, finance, and contacts to impressive web applications like Gmail, Evernote, Flickr, Google Docs, mint, etc. But the transferring of data to hosted web applications has its potential pitfalls and risks that are lost in all the hype around Cloud-centric systems.

Cloud Computing is one of the biggest changes in IT, with computing functions as a service with promising innovations that we can not yet imagine. Customers are both excited and nervous about the prospects of cloud computing. They are excited by the possibilities of reducing capital costs and the ability to strip them of infrastructure management, and focus on core competencies. What excites them most is the agility offered by the demand supply of computing and the ability to align information technology along business strategies.

At the same time, customers are also very concerned about the security risks of cloud computing and the loss of direct control over the systems they are responsible. Whether a company uses Software as a Service (SaaS) version of customer relationship management (CRM), creating offsite backups of company data, or setting up a page of social media marketing, it is trusting a third-party organization with business information.

While cloud computing can provide significant business cost reducing benefits, the service does come with some security risks. As per Gartner, a leading analyst firm, cloud computing is loaded with security risks. Customers must demand transparency, avoiding vendors that refuse to provide detailed information on security programs. It is very important to understand the qualifications of policy makers, architects, programmers and operators; risk control processes and technical mechanisms and the level of testing been done to verify that the service and control processes work as expected, and that vendors can identify unanticipated vulnerabilities.

• Secure data transfer - All of the traffic in a network through clouds of the Internet, must be on a secure channel.
• Secure software interfaces - Companies must be aware of software interfaces, or APIs, which are used to interact with cloud services, otherwise risk of being exposed to a variety of security issues related to confidentiality, integrity, availability and accountability arises.
• Secure the data stored - Data should be securely encrypted when it is on the provider's servers and while it is being used by cloud service. According to Forrester, another analyst firm, some cloud providers ensure the protection of data used in the application or for disposal of your data.
• User Access Control - Data stored on the server of a cloud provider can potentially be accessed by an employee of this service. Companies should ask suppliers for details on the people who manage their data and the level of access they have to it.

• Separation of data - Each cloud-based service shares space on the provider's servers and other parts of the provider's infrastructure. Dangerous Subdivision Techniques, such as poor data encryption, may give other customers of the service an easy access inside your virtual container.
• Lower Privacy Protection by Law - To search for a home or office, the authorities need a search warrant. But they do not need any warrants to obtain information stored on third-party's Web servers. Moreover, such research can also occur without the knowledge of the company.
• Unavailability of the Server and Account Lockout - A great advantage of storing data on a server cloud is that the firm does not need to take backups anymore. But what would happen if the servers go down, and employees are dependent on the cloud for e-mail or to access the PowerPoint slideshow for an important presentation?

In conclusion, although a company must meet these safety issues with the cloud provider before entrusting their data to its servers, these risks should not be a stumbling block. Cloud computing also offers companies many benefits, so that instead of rejecting cloud computing, companies should establish strictcontrols and security measures in place.

Green Computing/Green IT: Need of the Hour

The exponential growth of the IT industry has brought with it new inventions and infrastructure needs, which resulted in inappropriate use of resources and production of environmentally unfriendly products. It is as if the whole IT / ITES community ignored the impact on the environment, while they were busy ideating and creating new versions of the same gadgets and use of resources such as paper, water, plastic and electricity,
without giving much thought to the environment.
When Al Gore started waking powers to the injury, which took place on the environment on a global scale, many stood up and noticed. Not only did folks started being environmentally friendly, companies began to "care" for the environment. Soon, with the celebs jumping on the bandwagon and showing the error of our ways, large companies joined the initiative to "go green", thus leading the way for other companies. Finally, the IT industry to realized that they too can do its bit and began to contribute towards the environment. The Outcome? Green Computing - or Green IT to some - is touted as one of the major trends in the recent years.

What is Green IT anyway? We all are doing our bit for the environment, right? Well, Green IT is an organization's way to go green. There are many definitions / explanations that can be found over the Internet.
Here is the exact one found on Wikipedia: The study and practice of design, manufacture, use, and disposal of computers, servers, and associated subsystems—such as monitors, printers, storage devices, and networking and communications systems—efficiently and effectively with minimal or no impact on the environment (Source: Wikipedia.org). Green IT also aims to achieve profitability and improve system performance and utilization, while maintaining our social and ethical responsibilities. So, Green IT includes dimensions of environmental sustainable development, economics of energy efficiency and total cost of ownership, which includes the cost of disposal and recycling. It is the study and practice of using computing resources efficiently.
Too much information? Simply put, it is the practice of using computing resources more efficiently, while maintaining or increasing overall productivity. The aim is to reduce consumption of hazardous materials, maximize energy efficiency and promoting recycling or biodegradation of non-existent products and factory waste.Easier said than done, for the company to go green overnight. Instead of looking at the company's position as a single unit, companies will have to take a step back and see the Green IT in the big picture. For example, when building the infrastructure owners will have to think about building a 'Green Campus': where you have one side of the building consisting of glass, rather than bricks and mortar, or building where there is natural ventilation and lighting. Usage of resources such as electricity, paper and water should be significantly reduced. Buying "green computers" will save energy and causes less damage to the environment, virtualization reduces the consumption of paper documents, buying new services: hardware and software that improve performance saves time and money by finding areas that take up a lot of electricity and addressing those areas also reduce costs.

We, as responsible citizens can always do our bit, too. Here are some ways (which I found across various websites):

1. Switch the computer off if you do not use it, especially at night, and if the whole day.
2. Print wisely - only print when you really need to have a hard copy and resist the temptation to print "All pages" when all you need is/are some particular page(s).
3. Use Google alternatives, such as the Smallest Google, which saves energy, time and bandwidth.
4. Buy a laptop. Laptops consume less energy than a desktop.
5. Choose a wired keyboard and mouse over the wireless.
6. Advanced users can get rid of unnecessary fans and drives. If you have a spare CD-ROM, use it once in a while and then unplug it.
But wait, green computing is not cheap. Did you know that these energy-saving software and hardware upgrades cost a bomb? Many companies, especially small and medium-sized companies have to think twice as they try to balance their desire to go green, and their financial resources. But again, looking at it from another perspective, by resorting to green computing, these companies are saving money and  the environment as well. Big companies also use a lot of manpower and energy. To reduce energy consumption will lead to lower efficiency. But analysts predict that the advantages of going green will encourage companies to look at technology and energy models that will use less energy and saving energy. I think it is a big plus.
Being a tree hugger myself, I hope that Green IT is here to stay and start now in any way possible. We also need to educate people around us about green computing, if they are not already aware of. And remember that in everything you do, Go Green!!!

The Descending Future of Technology

For years now there have been some principles that drive the technology forward. It is not a justification, continuous or material standard, but more to do with emotion and passion. This is called the WOW Factor and it describes the emotional state that you specify when you see a new category of technology that's completely and totally breathtaking. The first time you saw an ultra-portable, super slim notebook, the initial euphoria of using a digital camera for the first time, the pure bliss of wire free surfing on Wi-Fi computer, the initial shock of seeing the clarity of a High Definition Plasma Display, the pure sensory experience of hearing a perfectly tuned 5.1 Home theater - that Ladies and Gentlemen is called WOW Factor, and unfortunately it may be time for us to bid farewell to this amazing experience.

Face it, when was the last time you really felt the earth has moved when you had either heard or seen anything new in the consumer technology arena. Innovations and inventions in this area have been few and far between for quite sometime now. Things have moved to an evolutionary phase, and adds features that always comes to mind. The iPod is in its fifth generation, and still looks pretty much the same, plasma screens have entered their eighth generation and still suffer from burn in, the CD has been around forever and still gets scratched, cell phones still crash, cameras continue to generate red-eye, laptop batteries exploding all over the world and all it takes is 3 wrong keystrokes to bring your computer to a grinding halt.

About the biggest thing that we all have been waiting for the past few years has been High Definition Displays. While it has been slow to come, today most companies deliver some groundbreaking products.They are rock solid, crystal clear, larger than ever, has great color depth and incredible resolution. But what now? These screens are already as clear as the human eye can perceive. Going any clearer or increase the resolution further will be a zero sum game with very few benefits. They cannot make them bigger that even the 110 inches weighs about 400 pounds and need 8 people to carry them. The fact that the house doors and maybe a few walls must be demolished to carry the TV - can be another dampener.

Consider the other holy grail of Technology. We all want it lighter, thinner and more elegant. Today we have hybrid cars, video cameras so small they barely fit in our hands, MP3 players the size of the nail, our notebooks so slender that they look like they may snap into two and phones that are clean Featherweight. While these Micromachines are radical units - the small ergonomics and form factor may have affected the law of diminishing returns. Have these products been so diminutive that they are now effectively useless? Our fingers are already too big and clumsy to press the buttons on our gadgets, our eyes can hardly make their small screens and most of us can not grasp or control such tiny gadgets properly. It's just not possible for us to make them any sleek or tiny without sacrificing ease of use altogether. Technology will still continue to enthrall us - but only to a small surge. It may be time for us to embrace the fact that from here on technology will only move forward in small incremental steps. It's light out for WOW technology, and the sooner we all realize it - the lower the chances of being disappointed.

Peep in the world of Cloud Computing

My idea of cloud computing was always that it would be beneficial, but that it would actually save so much time was unthinkable.
In these times of increased workload and costs of production and the explosion of data, companies need a database that they can draw resources from, while reducing costs at the same time. Cloud computing has filled this need and has helped the business to act quickly. Not only reducing the amount of time it takes to complete a task by about 90%, but it also reduces the costs borne by the company drastically.

Previously, companies required bandwidth, servers, offices, developers, testers of various programs and other resources that costs a great sum. With cloud computing, all that these companies need is a computer that is connected to a cloud (a term for the Internet)! Open source software set the trend and what we have now is this huge cloud that hosts resources as programs, software, licenses, storage, servers, Web services, infrastructure (to run programs) and a variety tools in an accessible form.
All one need do is log in, search for the service in accordance with the need of the hour, adapt the service / program or ask for help, and start using it. The applications are not just based on IT anymore. You can find services related to HR, accounting and other such services, in addition to customized services. Large companies like Amazon.com and IBM offer storage space on demand. Purpose-built applications can be up and running in 2 days thanks to the development and testing done by millions of users. Services can be measured and selected. Cloud computing is a platform used by some common trading companies to interact with each other.

Perhaps the most comforting features of cloud computing is that it allows the company to pay for what it uses and nothing more, reducing the investment in hardware, software or services, making it similar to other utilities such as electricity. Users can have as little or as much of a service at a given time for as little or as long as they want. Companies also have the opportunity to subscribe to the cloud, or some vendors in a monthly basis and can stop whenever they want. It also offers complete restoration, share models, supports different languages and is easy to use. Also, users have several advantages such as security, new features and performance.

Cloud computing is a revolutionary change that is transforming the face of the business. Not only does it offer the true value to the costs that are pleasing, but it also allows management to focus on areas that may lead to more innovations. Cloud computing breaks the monotony of a rigid infrastructure by taking advantage of options that are flexible, economically viable and cut corners without cutting the bottom line of organizations.

The Future of Social Networking

The social networking is now integrated not for marketing and PR can be a complete denial. From every child in school to major organizations and celebrities, a major number of folks now have their presence in any available Social Forum, the popular ones being Facebook and Twitter. Social media has changed daily routines to get people to whatever forum is always there to use that they are hooked to. This year and the decade that follows, will see how social media will maintain its place in the marketing arena, and the time and the talent of millions of people.

What are the implications of social media on traditional marketing? Will we never be alone again? How much profit can one reap with this new tool? What's next? With more than two billion (and that number is rising as I type) people connected to the Internet and redesigned structure of the compound (usage: Mobile also, available: on the whole time, access: many things that were not accessible before), the Internet is all set to revolutionize, thanks to social networking.
Here's what I think is the future of social networking (and as I write this, I see a few changes happening around).
First, It has a large increase in sales of mobile phones and, above all smartphones. The phone is now another tool, especially for those who call on the move and have no access to social networking sites at work. Since there are an enormous amount of information available on the net now, for the entertainment channels and opportunities remain to be in contact, many prefer their phones to a PC. In addition, companies have now recognized the potential of smartphones, and develop applications for users such as Yammer and Scheduling applications.
Second, Social networking has taken its toll on e-mails. Those so-called "forward" messages have been reduced, with links that are written in social forums around. But companies still continue to use e-mail. The flow of projects, however, can check the progress of different applications, so e-mails. The rise of tools like Google wave will see innovative forms of communication.
Third, Devices such as Apple iPad - also known as the third device - opens a world of possibilities, with the merging of phone and PC and it will give rise to new forms of social networking.
Fourth, Not many people know that they leave their tracks when they use social networking forums like Facebook. This will make things easy to align for the big players on social networking addicts with their products and information. Since there is now a shift towards content comes with a price, and the user being away from traditional search engines to find, integrating the content of specific locations with their own information, it will be now easy for the companies with the data which targets people who need their data.
Fifth, Social and Intranet platforms will be combined in order to give rise to social intranets. Many companies now have their own social networks already!
Sixth, Another "big thing" is to integrate the different login IDs and passwords. The next five years will have access to multiple platforms with a single ID.
Seventh, To generate the use of video content to such training, or with solutions to problems, has increased. In the recent past year, this trend shifted to social networking as well.
Wake up with social media giant slowly to see the profitability of their creations, we are sure to witness a bright future that benefits both individuals and organizations.