Archive for April, 2010
New solution to common frustration
A big frustration of many employees is that they have problems sending very large files to other people, both inside and outside of their company. Often times IT has placed file size restrictions on email without providing an alternate solution for getting that really big (and often company-confidential) file to someone else.
So while IT has successfully relieved the burden from the email server, they have subsequently created a situation where employees need to scramble to find their own method for sending that large file such as USB drive, DVD, personal email accounts or file sharing website – All of which are outside of the control and visibility of IT, not to mention this adds extra security risk to the company.
In fact, Ipswitch’s recent survey uncovered that over 90% of IT and security executives admitted to using thumb drives and other external devices to move data. And nearly 70% said that they have no visibility into files outside of their organization.
The new MOVEit DMZ Ad Hoc Transfer module enables secure person-to-person file transfer using a Web browser or Microsoft Outlook. Unlike other software and services that are currently in the market today, Ipswitch’s Ad Hoc Transfer module not only allows users to seamlessly share information without sacrificing productivity, it also allows companies to stay firmly within compliance of their auditing policies particularly those around email/email attachment retention and discovery.
Please watch a short webcast where Tony Perri, CISSP and Senior Solutions Architect at Ipswitch File Transfer, showcase the new version of MOVEit DMZ and our exciting new Ad Hoc Transfer module
With all the news around the Apple iPad, I was determined that I would not buy one until the second generation became available. With the second generation, prices will undoubtedly come down and I’ll get more functionality than what’s available in the first generation. I learned my lesson with the first iPhone and the first iPod.
As I sat around on Sunday feeling very smug, I looked over at my five-year-old son who was playing with his iPod Touch. It hit me that not only do I have to base the decision of when to buy an iPad on my technology geekness, I have to base it on my son’s needs and desires. Simply put, the iPad, and similar gadgets, were not built for my generation…but built for my son’s.
With more and more digital natives entering the workplace and procuring executive positions in companies all over the world, the traditional methodologies, mechanisms, and technologies for dealing with risk will have to change. The reason for this is simple: digital natives place a different level of risk on personal and enterprise intellectual property and information. In a world where everyone can be found on Facebook and the intimate details of every company can be found via blog sites, forum discussions, and on a company’s website itself, determining how much risk should be assigned to any individual piece of information is changing and in fact becoming more dynamic.
Let’s expand this thought. What do we need to do to ensure that our technology is being built for use by “Generation I” (ones who always had iPods) and digital natives? If issues around security and trust dramatically change, as we see them already, what does the future WS_FTP client and WS_FTP server look like? What are the expectations that our future customers will have for this technology? Is it just a new experience, e.g. GUI change? Or do we assume that many of the basics around security and management are taken care of? What does it mean for portability and mobility? Should a user be able to carry around their WS_FTP license for use on any machine? This begs an answer to the question…are Google, Apple and Microsoft my real competitors or are they just enabling the underlying infrastructure that will be and should be commoditized?
These are real questions that need real answers…and we need to have those answers very soon. As we embark on delivering technology and services that are aligned with our next-generation architecture, issues such as what to do about “Generation I” and digital natives must be addressed.
Just a few thoughts…
I was reading an article about budgeting for a data breach and it got me thinking.
A breach is only as damaging as the publicity and awareness around it. I just found out that the lock on my backdoor has been broken for the last year and a half. What a breach! Fortunately no one knew. Now I have it repaired, yet I still will not tell many that the incident happened in the first place. I would hate for people to start checking that backdoor or checking the front door or any other door to establish my risk tolerance.
As most IT folks already know, “Net Neutrality” was dealt a blow today in federal court. ( http://www.suntimes.com/technology/2143440,comcast-fcc-net-neutrality-040610.article )
This has impact on the file transfer industry, as some carriers could now consider non-HTTP/S protocols such as FTP, SSH, FTPS and AS3 as non-core or superfluous and work to throttle or block these protocols. In fact, the root case was around the innovative file transfer protocol used by BitTorrent.
Opinion on the ruling is mixed, but there is an equally healthy debate about whether or not it will stand. One possible course the FCC may take is to reclassify high-speed Internet as a more regulated class of communications; essentially allowing the FCC to reassert Net Neutrality at that point.
But for now, Net Neutrality is dead – stay tuned.
