The average data breach cost to Canadian firms studied hit $7 million
With Cyber Security Awareness Month almost upon us, I thought it might be helpful for executives to see an actionable list of topics to ask their techies about. Reasonable answers will build your confidence that your organization’s risk of a cyber security breach is being sensibly addressed. The average data breach cost to Canadian firms studied…
Can you really justify the added costs and headaches?
Organizations face the buy vs. build decision for software frequently. The breadth and depth of software packages available to license or use via a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) are astonishing. Software is readily available for every sector of our economy and every business function. The number of websites that list software packages is so large that I’m…
Your app's success is related to the actual value you create for your customers, not media buzz
It’s mind-boggling that only 25 per cent of all installed apps are ever used more than once. End-users are easily impressed by the promise of new apps, but their expectations, perhaps unrealistically high, are often crushed during their first app experience. The founders of Uber didn’t think about the challenges of routing cabs. Instead, they…
The signs you've been hacked and how to minimize the risk
Hackers try to hide their activities and hope you won’t notice when they steal your identity and your data from your smartphone. Here are the more frequent signs that you’re being hacked and how to minimize the risk or thwart the attack. Unsecure Wi-Fi Wi-Fi in public places, such as cafes or stores, is often…
How many breaches must we read about before we take action to protect our customer information?
I’m astonished that major data breach stories are still occurring and generating unnerving headlines. How many of these instances do we have to read about before we finally take at least basic action to protect our customer information? As a result of an attack, adult dating and pornography website company FriendFinder Networks exposed the personal…
October is Cyber Security Awareness Month. But don't wait until then to incorporate security measures
Phishing has evolved into the most effective social engineering attack hackers use to infiltrate organizations. Phishing aims to con employees into unknowingly downloading malware or revealing their access credentials. The best defence is our individual vigilance. Phishing.org defines phishing as “a cybercrime in which a target or targets are contacted by email, telephone or text…
In addition to hardware, network and a building, cloud service providers offer a rich range of software functionality
How does a cloud computing environment compare to an on-premises computing environment? Are the benefits of cloud computing overhyped? Isn’t the cloud just someone else’s data centre? What topics should chief information officers (CIOs) consider when deciding whether to adopt more cloud computing services for their organization? Functionality In addition to hardware, network and a…
Software is everything. It’s the glue that makes every application work
Do you love those interactive maps that report United States election results on television? I loved the GIS map interface, the effortless drill-downs and rollups, the comparison of this election to previous ones, the simultaneous display of multiple measures and the rich touch-screen navigation. There are no blue screens of death. Never does a pesky…
Episode 19 in our DECARBONIZATION series is the third of three episodes on the role of hydrogen in addressing Alberta’s commitment to emissions reduction in energy production. Yogi Schulz of Corvelle Consulting, Bill Howell, and Brent Lakeman of Edmonton Global answer questions raised by Alberta Associate Minister of Natural Gas and Electricity Dale Nally's presentation…
Our eyes become fatigued when we spend too much time in front of our computers without configuring our work environment appropriately. I recently focused on this problem, pun intended, when I suffered horrible computer withdrawal while recovering from an eye operation. Here’s how you can protect your eyes in our world dominated by long working…