ESG Blogs

My experience using a consumer IoT tracker device for tracking keyrings shows how IoT networks are constructed
using a combination of Bluetooth, mobile networks and cloud computing networks.  

Bluetooth, a protocol best known for sending audio or keystrokes, is becoming a full-fledged data protocol that offers simplicity while participating in a complex end-to-end IoT system. There are many standards and technologies used for IoT networking.  

In addition to Bluetooth and mobile networks, there are many low-power wide area technologies, such as Narrow-Band IoT (NB-IoT) and Long-Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN), and nearby connection alternatives such as NFC or RFID. IoT networking requires a combination of different technologies working in conjunction, depending upon the use case requirements.

With memories of Black Hat still in my head, I’m back in Las Vegas for VMworld. I’m sure there will be plenty of generic VMware and partner announcements but I’m here to assess how VMware is addressing enterprise security requirements with its technologies and partner relationships. 

Today Nutanix announced it is acquiring Pernix Data and Calm.IO. Not a lot of details were announced, but these acquisitions provide a clear view into Nutanix’s broader strategy and future aspirations. Why? Because, as my colleague Mark Peters likes to say, over recent decades we have slowly moved from IT standing (as it was intended to) for “information technology” to it really being all about “infrastructure technology”.

I will be visiting VMworld in Las Vegas next week, along with many other ESG staff. Here are my thoughts on what we may see and what matters:

VMworld 2016 in Las Vegas promises to be an event where we see VMware make proclamations of how it continues to evolve in a changing world. When we get to see previews of technologies that may be productized, we await the following year to see whether those ideas have turned into products or remain in the research stage.

This year, we look forward to seeing how far the concept of NSX Everywhere has progressed, and what new technologies are coming out of the Cloud Native team, such as follow-ons to vSphere Integrated Containers and the Photon Platform.

Marketers in 2016 are absolutely required to have several arrows in their quiver. It's not enough to just blog actively, to just send emails to your customers and prospects, to just blanket search engines with PPC ads. No one tool in isolation is going to get the job done, you've got to pull on each of the levers available to you in various amounts until you find that magical recipe. And even then, you've got to keep tweaking, cause what works on Tuesday may be obsolete by Wednesday.

Companies now have alternatives to big capital outlays for networking equipment.

Most enterprises treat networking equipment as a capital expense. They purchase it, along with some maintenance and support, and depreciate it over several years until it’s time for an upgrade. The majority of the expenses in the first year are capital expenses and the rest are OpEx for support. There are some methods for leasing equipment that enables payments spread out time, but traditionally, enterprise networking equipment has been purchased like cars, through up-front payments.

Today, networking (along with the rest of IT) is transitioning to a consumption-based model like cloud computing or SaaS. Thus, there are some changes under way to alter the traditional methods of purchasing networking equipment. One is a standardization of leasing arrangements, and the other one is turning network solutions into a service via the cloud.

Visiting the F5 Agility conference in Chicago recently showed me that the company is adapting to major changes in the industry and evolving its product line to keep up with the changes.

There was an interesting combination of the familiar and new.

According to ESG research, 63% of networking and cybersecurity professionals working at enterprise organizations (i.e. more than 1,000 employees) believe that network security operations is more difficult today than it was two years ago.

Why?

Because enterprises have to deal with more connected devices, network traffic, and applications than two years ago. What’s more 47% of respondents claim that it is difficult to monitor network behavior from end-to-end while 41% claim that network security operations difficulties result from increasing use of cloud computing.

A new film examines society's reliance on the internet and the good and bad effects of global connectivity. You don't expect to find movie reviews on Network Computing, but a film produced by a networking company that examines the effect of the internet on society is an unusual event.

Lo and Behold: Reveries of a Connected World by German filmmaker Werner Herzog, released in selected theaters and available for streaming Friday, provides a unique, thought-provoking view of technology.

Coming out of Black Hat a few weeks ago, it’s pretty frightening what’s going on with cyber-threats.  Overall malware volume is down but the number of variants has gone up precipitously. In fact, according to the Webroot threat report, about 97% of all malware variants are seen only one time. In other words, they are designed to target and attack specific organizations.

The foundation of any data protection, preservation, and availability strategy is grounded in “backup,” period. Yes, a majority of organizations supplement backups with snapshots, or replicas, or archives, as shown in what ESG refers to as the Data Protection Spectrum:

Enterprise CISOs are in an unenviable position. Given today’s dangerous threat landscape and rapidly evolving IT initiatives, CISOs have a long list of tasks necessary for protecting sensitive data and IT assets. At the same time, however, most organizations are operating with a shortage of skilled cybersecurity professionals. According to ESG research, 46% of organizations claim that they have a “problematic shortage” of cybersecurity skills in 2016.

With the largest Black Hat to date now in the rear view mirror, it’s clear there is edginess not only in the hacker community, but also in hot cybersecurity market segments where vendors are competing for thought leadership as well as wallet share.

SuperZoo 2016, a pet retailer show, provided a bizarre, but fitting backdrop including those of the furry, four-legged variety co-mingling with the cybersecurity industry. I had the opportunity to speak with CISOs, vendors, threat researchers, and catch up with friends. After navigating the up and down escalators of Mandalay Bay, I left with these takeaways:

Last week’s Black Hat 2016 conference was a whirlwind of activity. Here are a few of my takeaways:

Ask any marketing professional at a small or medium-sized business — virtually every organization struggles with battles between marketing and other departments. Often, the fights erupt between the inbound marketing and the inside sales teams; how is a marketing-qualified lead defined, at what stage in the lead nurturing process is the contact handed over to the inside sales team, what activity markers are the strongest buying indicators, etc.

But it doesn't stop there. Marketing battles with engineering, senior management, and the services/support teams can also bring collaborative efforts to a screeching halt. Tension between departments is the easiest way to break a strong company culture, and letting that tension fester can turn cynicism into resentment and victimization.

There are ways to break the cycle of antagonization, though. Consider these four ways to de-escalate marketing's wars and reestablish harmony with the people who work with you to present your company's public face: 

Oracle announced last week that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire NetSuite. It's a good move for them to acquire a SaaS vendor. According to ESG research, Oracle is not perceived as one of the top viable competitors or alternatives to Amazon AWS as a cloud infrastructure service provider, so trying to jump-start the IaaS business would have been difficult, even with the deep pockets that Oracle has.