The Ease of API Coding vs API Security: Key Considerations – 

“Make haste slowly” was something I learned about learning. The Latin phrase is “Festina lente” (Latin always makes things sound scholarly). Take the time to pay attention to detail in the beginning, and along the way one avoids foundational mistakes and completes tasks sooner. The same applies to API coding, and here are several considerations in the overall milieu of API coding.

Also Read – What are Advantages of Investing in Mobile App Development?

Code Quality –

Anyone can learn to create APIs, even for free. This and numerous other helpful resources, including ready-made APIs, make the barrier to entry for API use very low. An inherent drawback to any passive learning (when one doesn’t have direct contact with a teacher or mentor – an all-too-common occurrence) is that the deeper disciplines involved in creation by considering a 360-degree view of the business and customer needs get lost. Any kind of code learning is preferable to none, but that’s not the complete and end goal. The end goal (at least in part) is clean, useful, and secure code.

I’m reminded of the first tenet of the Zen of Python: “Beautiful is better than ugly.” Code should be easy for others to follow (this is important, especially if you want to take a vacation). If it can be beautiful, that’s even better.

Following available API documentation is part of achieving readable API code. One example of artful documentation Is Twitter, and one tool for creating beautiful documentation is Swagger.

In the book “Advanced API Security: OAuth 2.0 and Beyond”, author Prabath Siriwardena writes, “All in all, a connected system, not planned/designed quite well, could easily become a security graveyard.” Well-designed code is part of the path to secure code.

Secure Code –

There’s more to secure code than just writing it so it looks good and others can follow. APIs need to consider items such as input validation, data length, and error handling. API security also needs to include at least the triad of confidentiality, integrity, and availability, but due to its complex nature it requires extra attention. Among the many resources available is the Salt API security best practices checklist, which contains an overview, guide, and spreadsheet.

Another good resource for learning API security is this project from OWASP, which is a purposely vulnerable B2C application for finding API flaws.

Secure infrastructure –

API code can be better secured, but there’s even more to securing the API than just secure code. Three areas for better securing APIs are Development, Staging, and (especially pertinent) Runtime. Additionally, there are a traditional four pillars of security management: Administration, Authentication, Authorization, and Auditing.

Whatever the API architecture (e.g., REST, GraphQL) or usage (e.g., Private, Public), and whatever the infrastructure choices, the virtual or physical hardware must be able to handle the demands of the API activity, management, and maintenance.

Threat Modeling –

Think of “What if?” scenarios. What if the app is slow? What if the app gets DDoSed? What if the UI looks outdated? What if the UX is not on par with other UXs in the industry? What if the API is vulnerable and gets breached?

Businesses must consider all angles of any product or service and determine the ROI of investing in API technology. Based on the questions above, change the “What” to “How much would be lost…” How much would be lost if the app is slow? All the way down to “How much would be lost if the API gets breached?”

While threat modeling receives some criticism, it’s a natural part of any process. Don’t hold back; make it a reality in API development.

What if API code is not secured? 

Let’s look at a couple examples.

1. Consider the Uber vulnerability found by security researcher, Anand Prakash. In this case, due to a lack of authorization, Anand was able to discover the private information of any Uber account by knowing only their phone number or email.

2. Consider the John Deere API leak. This page provides an excellent review of the process used to discover API security vulnerabilities. Here, a security researcher was able to extract the names of many who owned John Deer equipment.

A fascinating aspect of both examples is that the tools used were most, if not all, free. Remember that criminals have the same opportunities to learn and “test” as the protectors, but with fewer boundaries.

Challenge –

One obstacle to implementing security is that it slows down the process. A rebuttal to that is to think of what people do every day to secure their physical lives. We lock doors and windows and ensure the stove is off before we leave the house; lock our car doors, lock our locker at the gym, get our vehicles maintained – the list of the extra time and money we spend every year is extensive, yet we have made if part of daily life so that we are reasonably secure.

Businesses should make securing their products part of daily life.

Third-Party Vendor Monitoring –

One of the largest risks is not monitoring for dependencies. This isn’t to say that third parties are suspect, but rather that, because one doesn’t have direct contact with a third-party dependency, there’s no direct way to monitor what happens elsewhere. Even with a good vendor management program, things can go wrong.

One example is the recent GitHub leak. “The attackers had used a compromised AWS API key. After initiating an investigation on the same day, the Microsoft subsidiary said the attacker(s) obtained the API key upon downloading a set of private npm repositories.” That led to Heroku and Travis-CI getting compromised, which led to those two companies needing to further communicate with their customers.

This leads to our final point.

Incident Response –

Bad things happen – criminals commit crimes, natural disasters occur, black swan events transpire. Have an incident response plan. What will be your response if an API gets breached? This is part of the “life’s not fair” side of business – considering the worst-case scenarios. If you need assistance in crafting an incident response plan, SANS is one of many resources for security policy templates. https://www.sans.org/information-security-policy/

APIs are not a separate part of a business, nor are they a nice-to-have. They are integral to an online business and need to be treated as part of the corporate risk management program and as a critical asset. Whatever rigor would be applied to web applications needs to be intensified with API code. It will take creativity and effort, but it needs to be done; customers depend on it.

About the Author:

Ross Moore is the Cyber Security Support Analyst with Passageways. He was Co-lead on SOC 2 Type 1 implementation and Lead on SOC 2 Type 2 implementation, facilitated the company’s BCP/DR TTX, and is a HIPAA Security Officer. Over the course of his 20 year IT career, Ross has served in a variety of operations and infosec roles for companies in the manufacturing, healthcare, real estate, business insurance, and technology sectors. He holds (ISC)2’s SSCP and CompTIA’s Security + certifications, a B.S. in Cyber Security and Information Assurance from WGU, and a B.A. in Bible/Counseling from Johnson University. He is also a regular writer at Bora.

Also Read – Top 5 Organizational Apps for Improving Productivity

 

Mitto AG & Cryptocurrency: The Future of Transactions –

The Future Is Now: an overused phrase, especially in the world of tech. However, it remains pertinent to many technological applications, including cryptocurrency’s latest tech phrase. Currently being coined as the future of money, crypto is used by more than 300 million people worldwide. Additionally, over 18,000 businesses accept cryptocurrencies as payment.

And the numbers are only growing. Fifty million Americans that have never owned crypto plan to buy some in the coming year.

Also Read – Why Do People Prefer Cryptocurrency over Usual Money?

With digital currency becoming the future, social media giants are noticing. WhatsApp recently launched a cryptocurrency payment pilot program in the United States. Though it’s currently limited to Peer to Peer (P2P) transactions, the program is likely to gain traction and be utilized in the Business to Customer (B2C) space.

If your business hopes to leverage this new type of currency, an omnichannel messaging approach – one of the services provided by Andrea Giacomini and Ilja Gorelik’s Mitto, could prove advantageous. Here’s why omnichannel and cryptocurrency work so well together.

The Rise Of Conversational Commerce –

Today’s consumers are getting in touch with brands via social platforms more now than ever before. This has led to the rise of omnichannel providers like Mitto AG. Shoppers can browse inventory, ask questions, track their packages, and even receive product recommendations right from their social messaging channel of choice. So why would paying for their purchases through DM be any different?

Messaging-based payment options, like Apple Pay and Google Pay, are now available within their respective messaging apps. Payment options through social communications make it simple for customers to close out a sale right within the chat conversation. Whether they’re using Facebook, Instagram, or another platform, consumers expect convenient and quick shopping solutions.

Businesses offering conversational commerce can boost both sales and brand loyalty. The numbers don’t lie: global spending via conversational commerce channels totaled about $41 billion in 2021. That figure is expected to grow almost sevenfold by 2025, totaling $290 billion. So, what’s the next step? For successful businesses, harnessing the power of conversational commerce, including in-chat crypto payment options, will make or break their business in the coming years.

Omnichannel Messaging + Crypto = Flawless Customer Experiences –

Digital currency allows consumers to buy virtually anything whenever and wherever they are, all from their phones. The use of phones to create a seamless transactional platform is something Mitto’s Andrea Giacomini and Ilja Gorelik could have only dreamed of when they started.

Customers can pay their way by taking an omnichannel approach to payment solutions. They can also pay right from the conversation app on their social platform of choice. Modern shoppers expect brands to be responsive, innovative, and dependable. They also expect a customized experience that accommodates their personal needs and desires. Omnichannel messaging strategies enable your business to respond to customers immediately. By catering to customer habits, businesses can improve their experience, deepen brand-customer connections, and further grow well into the future.

Additionally, by answering queries and resolving issues via social communications, brands cultivate trust with their customers – even from the most skeptical shoppers. Offering cryptocurrency payment options shows consumers that your business embraces innovation.

How To Ensure A Pleasant Crypto Exchange Experience –

To guarantee that your customers have the best experience possible, there are some steps businesses can take to streamline their omnichannel communications strategies. These include:

• Leveraging personalized and engaging experiences with AI: Businesses should offer their customers fast, friendly service 24/7 by using chatbots. These bots can support consumers in a wide array of scenarios. Chatbots are actual digital agents that can engage and support your customers, even during more complex conversations.
• Leveraging analytics and data: It’s essential to create a 360-degree customer view by connecting different data sources across all social media channels. Analytics can transform this data into actionable insights that give you an intimate understanding of your customer’s experiences. This allows you to improve upon your campaigns and omnichannel tactics.

About Mitto AG –

Mitto is an omnichannel communication solutions company dedicated to bringing about the future of B2C digital messaging. The company has evolved from a handful of tech experts spearheaded by Ilja Gorelik and Andrea Giacomini to a global company with 18 locations worldwide.

Also Read – Future of Digital Payments in a Post Pandemic World

 

Top 3 Prepaid Plans with OTT Subscriptions in 2022 –

The changing times have come as a blessing for OTT platforms. The demand for streaming channels has significantly increased as people prefer watching the latest movies, web series, and TV shows from the comfort of their homes.

Due to the massive growth of the OTT platforms in recent years, many telecom operators, such as Airtel, Jio, and VI have seized the opportunity to market their prepaid plans with subscription benefits. Thus, it is important to understand these additions in detail for a seamless entertainment experience.

Also Read – Importance of Data Security For Your Smartphones

We’ve curated a list of the best-prepaid plans that offer free OTT subscriptions below. Take a look:

1. Airtel Prepaid Plans –

This popular telecom operator has introduced prepaid plans that provide standard and entertainment perks to its customers. While it offers unlimited calling and texting benefits, it also provides free access to OTT platforms- all at a reasonable price.

Here’s a complete list of Airtel’s prepaid plans that combine OTT and basic benefits for your betterment. So, let’s take a look below:

 

Price	Validity	Benefits
Rs. 299	28 Days	Unlimited calls, 100 SMS, Free Hello tunes, Rs. 100 cashback on FASTag, Airtel Xstream subscription, Wynk Music, Shaw Academy, Amazon Prime Free Mobile Edition
Rs. 359	28 Days	2 GB/ day, unlimited calls, 100 SMS/day, Amazon Prime Free Mobile Edition, Free Hello tunes, Rs. 100 cashback on FASTag, Wynk Music, Shaw Academy
Rs. 455	28 Days	6 GB, Prime Video Subscription, Apollo 24/7 circle access, Shaw Academy, Rs. 100 cashback on FASTag
Rs. 549	56 Days	2 GB/day, unlimited calls, 100 SMS every day, Amazon Prime Video membership, free online courses, Apollo 24/7 circle access
Rs. 2999	365 Days	2 GB data per day, 100 SMS a day, unlimited calls, Prime Video membership, access to Apollo 24/7 circle, Wynk music, and Shaw academy

2. VI Prepaid Plans –

It offers an array of prepaid plans with streaming and data benefits. Besides, VI also allows you to access their dedicated apps, such as VI movies and TV.

Below is a list of their prepaid plans along with the benefits and prices:

 

Price	Validity	Benefits
Rs. 355	28 Days	Free one-year subscription to ZEE5 Premium
Rs. 405	28 Days	90 GB data, unlimited calling, 100 SMS/ day, free ZEE5 Premium subscription for 365 days, VI Movies, and TV
Rs. 795	84 Days	2 GB/ day, unlimited voice calls, 100 SMS per day, ZEE5 Premium subscription, free access to VI movies and TV, weekend data rollover offer

3. Jio Prepaid Plans –

It provides a variety of prepaid options with different validity, benefits, and costs. So, it is important to compare their offerings before making a final purchase decision.

We’ve listed down below some of the best Jio prepaid plans that provide multiple benefits at affordable prices. Here, take a look:

 

Price	Validity	Benefits
Rs. 499	56 Days	1.5 GB/day, yearly VIP subscription to Disney+ Hotstar, Jio subscription
Rs. 598	84 Days	2 GB data a day, unlimited calls, 100 SMS per day, 2000 FUP minutes for Jio & Non-Jio calls, Disney+ Hotstar VIP subscription, additional 5 GB data
Rs. 777	56 Days	Daily 1.5 GB data provision, 100 SMS per day, unlimited calling facility, complimentary Jio subscription, 3000 FUP mins for Jio and Non-Jio calls, Disney+ Hotstar VIP subscription for 365 days
Rs. 2,599	365 Days	2 GB data per day + 10 GB extra data provision, VIP Disney+ Hotstar subscription, and unlimited voice calls

The focus of telecom companies has shifted towards offering streaming benefits along with data packs. Therefore, see to it that you choose the best-prepaid plans from a reputable operator only. Happy shopping!

Also Read – Top 10 Apps That Every Student Must Have In Their Smartphone

 

Everything You Need to Know About Zero Trust Network Access –

As we all adjust to the pandemic’s impact, our modes of communicating with each other are highly dependent on our devices. While relying on our personal devices may be optimal for personal communications, using them for sending and receiving confidential information related to our work can jeopardize our company’s security. Since the pandemic began, many individuals have shifted to working remotely, and businesses have increased their reliance on cloud-based solutions.

While cloud-based solutions may be optimal options for working remotely, they may also give easy access to hackers, security threats, etc. Therefore, companies using a cloud-based solution may be more vulnerable to different threats and with this vulnerability rises a need for choosing a secure layer of protection. Out of the different solutions available, opting for the Zero Trust Network Access Model can be the most suitable option available.

Also Read – Top 5 Tips To Speed Up Your Home Internet Connection 

What is a Zero Trust Network Access Strategy?

A Zero Trust network security model works on the motto ‘Never Trust, Always Verify’. At its core, the Zero Trust network design was built on the assumption that there will always be attackers originating from both inside and outside the network. Therefore, with a Zero Trust Network Access no device or individual will be automatically trusted, even if they move past the perimeter security.

A Zero Trust network model needs verification whenever a device or a user requests access to resources, irrespective of whether someone inside the company’s network makes the request. A Zero Trust network doesn’t rely on different security features like edge servers, firewalls, VPNs for protecting restricted resources.

The Working of Zero Trust Network Access –

Zero Trust network access products and services build an environment that defends your physical and logical resources. The applications hosted on the network are hidden, and to access them, users will have to follow a few important steps:

1. Verification when they sign on to the system.
2. Validate the devices before entering the network. Users must ensure that the devices used are known, trustworthy, and updated on the security and the patches.
3. Limit access depending on the POLP (principle of least-privilege) model. The user or device will be provided access to the resources they need depending on their role and designation in the company.

The Zero Trust network access solution includes various technologies to verify the user or the device and then offers access. Here are some of the technologies used in the ZTNA architecture:

1. Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
2. 2-Factor Authentication
3. Network Access Control (NAC)
4. Device Access Control
5. Privileged Access Management (PAM)
6. Micro-segmentation

Benefits of Incorporating ZTNA Model –

Listed below are some benefits you can get by using the ZTNA model:

1. Optimal for a remote working business model –

Unlike other security models, the Zero Trust security model offers secure and safe remote access to every user on the network. Zero Trust models also allow companies to build the network system a bit dynamic without impacting the security. Companies can also adjust the privileges and important systems to improve the infrastructure’s scalability. The model also offers a decent amount of control over the cloud-computing system, which is essential for remote working.

2. High security –

A Zero Trust model offers a high level of security to the company. This is done by dividing the company’s network system. No user will be allowed access to resources without proper authentication. Companies like InstaSafe offer ZTNA security with different features, ‘behavioral authentication’, which can identify user impersonation by analyzing past behaviors. The inclusion of such features in the InstaSafe ZTNA model can be quite beneficial for a company’s security.

3. Easy integration –

ZTNA models are quite easy to integrate. It also comes with an easy base. Therefore, it can complement anything and offer a transparent and seamless authentication process.

Conclusion –

Zero Trust network models are one of the most preferred options for network security these days. Several companies in the country rely on the ZTNA model for protecting their organization from security threats, hackers, etc. With the ZTNA model, no user is trusted, and everyone will need the proper authentication for accessing the resources.

Also Read – How To Hide Your IP Address: Strategies From IT Experts

 

8 Tips For Adapting New Technology For Your Team –

With so many tools and software on the market, it can be confusing to know which is the best fit for your organization. It’s not always easy or practical to trial each one to see how it might work for you. Introducing new technology into your internal systems and processes can sometimes take a bit of time to bed in and can be met with varying degrees of acceptance. Different teams are able to adapt to new software at different rates depending on their skill level. Often, however, it is the mindset of your workforce that determine how well they get on with new technology.  

Also Read – Software Engineers And Developers: Putting Technology at Our Fingertips

The road to adaptability –

Introducing new technology in any organizational setting is almost always tricky. You’re not certain if your team will be flexible enough to embrace it. What if there’s resistance? What if your staff find it difficult to adapt or struggle to keep up? This can be magnified in small business settings. If you’re not careful, the resistance or inability to adapt could be the only thing standing between you and successful integration. 

If you ever find yourself in such a bind, here are eight tips to help your team adapt to new software that promises plenty of benefits for the company in more ways than one: 

• Make sure your IT team is ready 

Before you go ahead and introduce new technology to the organization, you should first talk to your IT department to ensure they’re ready to provide support when needed. The IT team should also be fully aware of the project’s objectives and its benefits so they can influence or encourage the rest of the company to give it a try and take the lead with regards to training, if required. 

As much as possible, try to introduce the new software to the IT team first so they can get hands-on experience and support others in the workplace once they are familiar with using it. Being one step ahead of the game can help your tech people identify any possible issues or glitches that the team might encounter along the way. If so, they can quickly work to resolve issues and instill peace of mind with regards to convenience and ease of use to the rest of the team.  

• Choose wisely when shopping for new technology 

You have to weigh in all factors and considerations before deciding on new technology to use for your business. First off, consider your team and their ability to adapt to whatever it is you’re about to introduce to them. Whether it’s commercial landscaping software for your niche field service business, a customer relationship management (CRM) program, or an automation tool for logistics and warehousing, you must research what is going to benefit your business the most. 

I’ll help to evaluate not just functionality but also its user-friendliness. Employees will be interested to learn how the new tool works and if it’s easy to use, intuitive, and involves minimal training. To determine that, you can read reviews and testimonials from brands that have tried or are using the programs. 

• Provide necessary training 

Sometimes, your IT people won’t suffice when there’s a need to train employees regarding the new software, or you may not have an IT department at all. If you’re able to shop wisely, you should find that the service comes with post-deployment training for everyone who’ll be using the program. That’s one less burden for you, and the expertise provided by the software seller or developer is far more efficient since no one knows their product better than themselves. 

The training should also give way for the transition to be smooth. They’ll learn how to embrace the arrival of a new and more efficient system. Explain the benefits you can get from the latest technology and how it can make their job easier, faster, and more productive. (1) (2)

Your team may find it difficult at first to get used to the new system, but with proper training and support, they’ll eventually ease into it and start recognizing its benefits and new features. If the training is intended to be more complex and time-consuming, consider reducing the workload of those who’ll be in training. That way, they can focus better on understanding the platform. 

• Let the team learn by group or pairs 

Everybody can relate when they say learning is more effective when you’re not doing it on your own. As you introduce new technology to your team, consider dividing them into groups or pairs so they can interact while learning. Make sure the group has at least one or two members who can serve as mentors to new users. If it’s by pair, one member should be somehow familiar with the new software and how to use it. 

• Acknowledge small wins 

It’s not every day that your team is faced with a challenge like learning a new system. That’s why it makes sense to acknowledge their effort and desire to learn. If you do, your employees will be more inspired and motivated to work harder and understand how to use the new technology. 

One idea you can try is to incentivize the team through a rewards program that’ll celebrate wins, no matter how small or huge they may be. Doing this will encourage everyone in the group to work harder and adapt to the new technology with an open mind. If your managers and department heads agree, the incentivization can be included in assessing employees’ annual review and performance goals. 

• Nurture a culture of growth, flexibility, and change 

You can actually skip through the hassle of helping your employees adapt to new technology if there’s already a culture of flexibility, growth, and change present in the workplace. With such a culture, the team is already keen on embracing growth and change even when there’s no new tool to use. To do just that, you can start by involving your people in every decision that the company makes, especially if it concerns the welfare of the workers as a whole. 

Even when you don’t have this culture in the office, it’s not too late to start now. You can begin by providing the organization with the tools, support, and training needed. Help team members who are unconsciously and admittedly uncomfortable to try new things. You can look into giving continuing education to workers struggling to understand the new system. That way, they’ll feel entirely supported and will be more motivated to advance their learning. 

• Be open to feedback 

Introducing and implementing a totally new system will cause teething problems, especially among its users. It’s something that you should expect. To make the transition more effective, it’ll significantly help if you’re open to feedback and suggestions from your team. Be attentive to their experiences and hear out the challenges they’ve encountered while in the process of adapting. 

It’ll put your employees’ minds at ease knowing that you’re listening and are eager to help them work things out. Let them know you’ll be there every step of the way and that you’ll overcome the challenges together—schedule regular meetings to be aware of anything that may occur while on the road to transition.

• Monitor and measure 

Even when training is over, and your employees seem to have adapted to the new technology, it doesn’t mean nothing will go wrong moving forward. Keep track of all progress reports and pay attention to bugs, errors, and downtime that your team may experience while using the new system. 

As you monitor, it’s also the chance to measure results. You can create surveys within the organization to ask team members how they’re coping with the software. You may also start checking if there’s a positive impact on the employees’ productivity levels. Of course, if the measurements come back positive, your new tool is already contributing to the company’s overall operation.  

Final words –

The workplace is constantly changing, and if you want to keep up, your team should also be ready to evolve, grow, and be adaptable. Thanks to the advent of technology, there’s now a myriad of tools, software, equipment, and products that you can take advantage of to take you one step further to convenience and success.  

Don’t be afraid to explore new technologies for your company’s benefit. Just make sure you shop wisely and determine what it can bring to the table. You can help your team adapt to the new system by taking note of the tips mentioned above. 

Author Bio –

Benjamin Laubaugh is an IT and digital marketing professional who juggles freelancing gigs, blogging, and webinar hosting. In his free time, he likes spending time with his family, watching movies, and traveling.

Also Read – What is Mobile Intelligence? Influence of AI in Mobile Industry

 

Why Big Data Developers Are in Hot Demand in 2022?

Are you in a job market where Big Data developers are highly valued? Are you undecided about pursuing a career in Big Data? What employment alternatives will be accessible to me after Big Data? Simply spending some time reading this blog will provide you with the answers to all of these issues as well as the reasons why big data developers are in hot demands in this decade. So, let’s get into it!

Also Read – How To Hire Freelance Web Developers Who Get The Job Done?

Check out reasons why big data developers are in hot demand in 2022 as below –

1. Increase in Job Opportunities –

With technology reaching new heights, Big Data is surely becoming a buzzword and a growing demand for enterprises in the next years. However, as Jeanne Harris, a senior executive at Accenture Institute, put it, “data is useless unless you know how to interpret it.”

Big Data professionals are in high demand in enterprises all over the world today. To keep ahead of the competition, businesses are making extensive use of Big Data. Candidates with Big Data expertise and talents are in high demand. According to IBM, the number of data professionals in the United States will grow to 2,720,000 by 2020.

2. High Salaries –

Wages for competent experts are being affected by the high demand for Big Data professionals. According to Glassdoor, the following are the salaries offered by various organizations based on employees working in these organizations in the US region:

Big Data experts’ salaries are directly related to aspects such as their talents, education, domain expertise, technological understanding, and so on. In addition, one must understand and solve real-world Big Data problems, as well as have a solid understanding of tools and technology.

3. Massive Big Data Adoption –

According to Forbes, big data use in organizations has risen from 17 percent in 2015 to 59 percent in 2018, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 36 percent. Big Data is steadily spreading its wings over a wide range of industries, including sales, marketing, R&D, logistics, strategic management, and so on.

According to Intel’s ‘Peer Research – Big Data Analytics’ survey, Big Data is one of the top priorities of the firms participating in the survey because they believe it improves the performance of their organizations. According to the survey, 45 percent of respondents believe that Big Data would provide greater business benefits, propelling them to the top of the Big Data industry.

4. High Variation in Job Titles and Responsibilities –

Big Data workers can choose from a variety of job titles based on their previous experience. There are numerous possibilities for Big Data job seekers, and they are free to align their career pathways based on their employment preferences. The following are some of the job roles that Big Data specialists can hold:

• Data Engineer
• Business Analyst
• Visualization Specialist
• Machine Learning Expert
• Analytics Consultant
• Solution Architect
• Big Data Solution Architect
• Big Data Analyst

5. Usage Across Numerous Firms –

Big Data is now employed in practically every business. Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (27 percent), Information Technology (19 percent), Manufacturing (15 percent), Finance and Insurance (9 percent), Retail Trade (9 percent), and Others (21 percent) are the top five industries that are actively seeking Big Data professionals.

The Career Path of a Big Data Professional –

• Data Scientist
• Big Data Engineer
• Big Data Analyst
• Data Visualization Developer
• Machine Learning Engineer
• Business Intelligence Engineer
• Business Analytics Specialist
• Machine Learning Scientist

Let’s talk about each career in detail.

1. Data Scientist –

This is the most looked for job path among Big Data professionals. Data Scientists are those who use their technical and analytical abilities to extract meaning from data. They are in charge of gathering, cleansing, and modifying data.

2. Big Data Engineer –

Big Data Engineer is a well-known and challenging job path. Data Engineers are the individuals in charge of constructing the designs created by Solution Architects. They are in charge of designing, testing, administering, and supporting big data solutions in businesses.

3. Big Data Analyst –

Data Analysts find important information from datasets using their knowledge of big data technologies such as Hadoop, Hive, Pig, and others, as well as their analytical skills. This is also the most difficult aspect of a Big Data career.

4. Data Visualization Developer –

Data visualization developers are in charge of creating, envisioning, developing graphics or data visualization, and supporting data visualization activities. They must have good technical abilities in order to use tools to implement visualization.

5. Machine Learning Engineer –

Machine Learning is now an essential skill of Big Data developers. As a machine learning specialist (Machine Learning Engineer), you will be in charge of developing data analysis software that will allow the product code to function without the need for human involvement.

6. Business Intelligence Engineer –

According to a Forbes research, 90 percent of IT professionals aim to boost their spending on BI technologies, putting Business Intelligence Engineers in high demand. BI engineers are in charge of maintaining large data warehouses using Big Data tools and resolving difficult Big Data issues.

7. Business Analytics Specialist –

A Business Analytics Specialist is an expert in the field of Business Analytics who assists in the development of scripts to test scripts and the execution of testing. They are also in charge of conducting business research in order to identify problems and propose cost-effective solutions.

8. Machine Learning Scientist –

Machine Learning Scientists are most likely employed in the R&D department. They are in charge of creating algorithms for usage in adaptive systems, as well as adding product proposals and anticipating demand for the same.

Also Read – Software Engineers And Developers: Putting Technology at Our Fingertips

 

How To Hide Your IP Address: Strategies From IT Experts –

The Internet is like highways that you see, and the computers are like houses at the side of the streets. That means the address of the house can be considered IP addresses.

Without an IP address, you cannot access the internet network or perform any online activity. It is the IP address that enables you to send a query to the internet and help you receive the information.

We have been using the internet and computer systems for almost a couple of decades, but only a few people truly know about its importance.

Today, in this article, we will talk about IP Addresses and why hiding your IP address has become a necessity in the digital world.

Also Read – Top 5 Tips To Speed Up Your Home Internet Connection

What Is An IP Address?

There are millions of computer systems on the internet. So, how can the internet network identify your computer or device accessing the internet? Every device connected to the internet has an IP address similar to your home address.

An IP Address is a series of numbers that usually looks something like 182.178.2.1. These IP addresses are unique to one device, and hence, the internet network can find your device easily.

As IP addresses are unique to one device, you risk being exposed to cybercriminals when you use them on the internet. In fact, IP Addresses help the ISPs, and government institutions block certain websites from the internet.

Therefore, those who are familiar with the risk associated with the IP Addresses exposure know that the best way to secure it is to hide the IP Address.

Why Would I Need To Hide My IP Address? 

Now, you must be wondering why to hide IP Addresses. Well, that is a fair question. When you have nothing to hide or have done nothing wrong, there is no need to hide your IP address. However, what if you are visiting a torrent website like ipiratebay.org or visiting suspicious-looking links? Then, you risk exposing your IP address, resulting in identity theft.

That being said, it is always a good idea to hide your IP address while going online.

Here are a few benefits of hiding your IP address –

• Evades government censorship.
• Preserve your online privacy.
• Protects you from hackers.
• Public wifi might allow your device to be exposed to malware attacks.

How To Hide An IP Address?

Now that we have you interested in how hiding IP addresses can be beneficial. You might be interested in knowing how you can actually do this.

Well, we have also prepared a solution for that.

1. Use VPN –

A VPN is the best solution to mask your IP Address. It allows you to change the IP Address because it passes your network connection through an encrypted tunnel that changes your IP Address. By allowing your connection to pass through VPN, it completely masks your IP Address.

2. Use Proxy Servers –

If you are not comfortable using software applications to mask your IP Address, you can use a proxy server to hide your address. A proxy server acts as an intermediate between you and the internet and hence, prevents any kind of surveillance activity on your IP Address.

3. Connect To Public WiFi –

This might be the dumbest idea to hide your IP Address, but it certainly works. However, while you are using public wifi, you must understand that public wifi is not safe at all. In fact, they are infested with hackers that are looking for the right opportunity to hack into your device. This is why we do not recommend this method, even if it’s effective.

4. Unplug Your Modem To Change Your IP Address –

All IP addresses are given a dynamic ISP by the DHCP server. The way a DHCP works is that a lease is assigned to your router. This lease may expire in 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 2 hours, or 24 hours. That being said, if you are assigned to a dynamic IP Address, unplugging the modem will give you a new IP Address.

The Best Choice: VPN

It’s fairly clear that VPN is the best when it comes down to hiding your IP Address effectively. Furthermore, VPN not only masks the IP Address but also encrypts the data that you send and receive using the internet network. This increases the security of your online activity.

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Understanding What is The Difference Between Hot and Cold Lamination?

If you are looking at laminating a project or investing in high-quality binding equipment for your office, you need to know about the different types of lamination available.

In particular, what is the difference between hot and cold lamination?

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Hot Lamination –

A laminator effectively covers an item in plastic. This process is intended to protect the object as it is sealed in. In short, you can spill things on it or even put it out in the rain and the object inside will stay dry.

Heat laminators need to warm up before they can be used. This is because they operate at between 180-300°F. As the item is pushed through the laminator, it is surrounded by the plastic sheet which already has adhesive attached to them. It’s invisible to the human eye but the laminator will heat the adhesive, allowing it to attach to the item being laminated, or even to a secondary sheet of plastic.

Hot lamination is very effective and the finished document is generally very resistant to wear and tear. However, you do need to verify that the ink, or any other material on the document, will not melt at these temperatures. If it will, heat lamination is not an option for you.

Cold Lamination –

Cold lamination also uses plastic sheets that are coated with adhesive. However, the difference is that the adhesive is not heated to allow it to create a lasting bond. Instead, it reacts to pressure. The cold laminator effectively pressurizes the plastic sheet, forcing the adhesive to stick to the document, product, or another sheet.

Naturally, because there is no heat involved, cold laminators are much safer to use than heat ones. They also don’t need a warm up period which means you can use them straightaway.

It’s also worth noting that a cold laminator doesn’t usually require any electricity to work. That can be a cost saving and even allow laminating during a power outage.

Which Type To Choose?

Your decision will be based on what you intend to laminate. Anything that is heat sensitive should be put through a cold laminator. This covers a variety of inks and even some papers. If you are looking at laminating pictures or anything on ink-jet paper, a cold laminator is definitely the way to go.

But, if the item doesn’t have issues with heat then the better option is heat lamination. This process is more durable and you will create a stronger bond. This is particularly important if you are dealing with thicker materials, such as laminating some plastic.

Heat lamination sheets are polyester and adhesive and they will have a ratio noted on the. For example, ¼. The one is the polyester content and the four is the adhesive. The higher the first number the stronger the plastic and the more rigid the laminated product will be.

Both machines have their place, you simply need to consider what you are going to be using it for. This will guide you to the right laminator.

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Software Engineers And Developers: Putting Technology at Our Fingertips –

There is no doubt that you’ve heard about the digital transformation that companies are undergoing right now. Unfortunately, this means that many of these companies will still need software experts five years from now. Would you like to be a part of this rising tide of growth and change this wide-ranging industry across the globe?

Every year the number of software engineers is rising extremely. They also want to start their technological ventures and develop computer or mobile applications that meet the needs of customers and industries. They are trained to design, develop, and enforce software solutions for new and existing software applications and maintain existing software applications.

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However, when starting their journey in this sector, they must also be trained on empathy, creative and critical thinking, humbleness, confidence, and management. Another quite significant aspect is to ask for software engineer feedback.

Peer feedback software engineer examples are many, but let’s say that you want to tell your new coworker that they should be more proactive, but instead of saying that, perhaps formulate it better, saying: “Do you have any problems with your tasks? We haven’t received anything completed yet. Let me know if you need help.” Perhaps Bill Gates, the current president of Microsoft, the world’s largest personal computer software company, used precisely this feedback for software developer example, so he has such a successful company. We don’t know, but we can always make assumptions.

When talking about Bill Gates, he is perhaps the most world-famous programmer ever. He is a US corporate business person, software engineer, a pioneer in PC development, investor, and philanthropist. During his first five years at Microsoft, Gates also supervised each code developed for his operating system and handled the business side. He has been said to be an unreliable enemy of bugs and errors, a perfectionist lunatic. He is well known for donating part of his wealth to charitable projects, such as global health-related donations and activities in Africa.

Software development is not a divine miracle that has sprung into existence. Instead, apps are primarily the result of individuals who have dedicated their time and brainpower to creating the environment in which we earn our living daily as a result. For these reasons, we’d like to honor some of these great minds with this article, share some information about them and their work, and hopefully inspire you to become one programmer or software engineer yourself. Of course, we’ve already mentioned Bill Gates, but here are a few others who are equally important.

1. Ada Lovelace –

Did you know that Ada Lovelace was the world’s first computer programmer, and beside this she was also an English mathematician. The most famous of her work was on the analysis machine, Charles Babbage’s mechanical calculator. The notes she created to develop this analytical machine include what can today be recognized as the first algorithm designed to process the first computer program solely on a device.

Ada was a talented girl from childhood, with an uncommon mentality, who predicted that computers would one day go beyond numerical calculations, totally against the popular opinion of the time. Who knows how long it would take a person to design a computer application if Ada hadn’t been inspired by her father. In her honor, the Ada programming language was created.

2. Sanjay Ghemawat –

He helped design and implement some of Google’s largest distributed systems, including MapReduce, BigTable, Spanner, and Google File System. In addition, he created ICAL, the calendar system. Sanjay was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2009, and he won the ACM-Infosys Foundation Award in the Computing Sciences in 2012.

3. Paul Buchheit –

Paul Buchheit started the development of Gmail in August 2001. However, it was a sequel to an earlier personal project that he abandoned before joining Google in 1999. That earlier work dates back to 1996 when he came up with the idea of making a webmail client that he left after a few weeks because he got bored with the idea.

When he finally resumed the project at Google, he changed his philosophy and dedicated himself to working on something that worked, even if only minimally, and then improving it. It all started by integrating a search engine into his email, but that feature was one of the keys to the fact that he ended up wiping many other solutions off the map. No other could compete in this area.

4. Mark Zuckerberg –

You probably know him very well, but if not, we are here to “introduce” you to this intelligent head. Mark is an entrepreneur and a skilled software engineer. Since 2004, he has been founding and president of Facebook, the world’s leading social network, with over 1.3 billion users. Mark is not just one of this century’s most talented and successful millionaires but perhaps the most outstanding example of today’s business strategies and corporate cultures which captivate and win over consumers.

Conclusion –

It doesn’t matter if you are already in the developer’s world or you are a newbie; we hope this article inspires you to continue your journey and go beyond simple computer programming and aspire instead to take advantage of the multiple current and future hardware and communications resources for the creation of new ways of exploiting information.

Author Bio –

Tosho Trajanov – Tosho is the CTO and co-founder of Adeva. He’s also a tech consultant with vast experience in working with startups and larger enterprises. His extensive portfolio includes giving back to the community by writing tech posts, speaking at conferences, and promoting the movement of cross-cultural, distributed teams. When he’s not helping tech companies scale their engineering teams, you can find him reading about Artificial Intelligence as the true enthusiast that he is https://mk.linkedin.com/in/tstrv

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Solving Password Fatigue with an SSO Solution Makes Security Sense –

There are very few people on this planet who like passwords, which is a problem as there are just so many of them. This has led to what some call password fatigue. Defined by the Collins Dictionary as “the feeling induced by trying to remember too many passwords,” not only is it a very real issue, it’s one that can impact negatively on your enterprise security posture. Users, when faced with too many passwords will do whatever possible to keep sane.

Which include reusing passwords across multiple accounts and employing construction tricks to aid the memory while passing whatever policy restrictions are in place. Both of which play directly into the hands of potential attackers. What if there was a better way, a method of access control that prevented password fatigue whilst meeting your business security needs as well as boosting productivity at the same time? There is, and it’s called single sign-on.

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So, what is SSO?

Single sign-on (SSO) is, when stripped back to a bare-bones definition, an authentication technology that enables users to access multiple applications, platforms and services using a single credential set. It’s probably apposite at this point to clarify that an SSO solution is not the same thing as a password manager, despite the latter requiring a single master password to enable access across multiple apps and services.

The key difference is one of trust: SSO is all about trust whereas a password manager is, rather obviously, password-centric. Whereas a password manager protects multiple passwords (and for most consumers, this increases their security posture), SSO moves the focus to identity and access management (IAM) through trust and robust authentication which are both vital in the business setting. So, how does SSO actually achieve this?

Tokens and Trust –

Technically speaking, SSO relies upon a process of identity federation by way of any number of different protocols such as Open Authorization (OAuth) and Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML). Regardless of the standards implemented, the core process is the same and involves a service provider (any application or platform being accessed) and an identity provider (which requires a user to prove they are who they say).

The SSO service creates a token for authentication which is stored by the identity provider. It is these tokens, this digitally signed structured data, that enable trust between the two. While these tokens enable the service to confirm the person is who they pertain to be they don’t contain a password or biometric data so don’t create a viable attack surface. Just as critically, the service provider can then authenticate access for all that users allowed applications without any requirement for further credential input.

Three essential SSO keywords: security, productivity, cost –

A properly architected and implemented SSO solution will serve to shrink the enterprise attack surface. How so? For one thing, it reduces poor password hygiene and all the risk that brings to the threat party. Furthermore, it makes relinquishing access privileges for former employees a cinch and that’s hugely significant as research suggests as many as one in four remember the access credentials for former work accounts. SSO can also increase visibility into which users are accessing what services and when. Lacking this visibility is a surefire way to expand the attack surface. The key here is the proper implementation, of course, as is made clear in the conclusion to this article.

Productivity should increase by reducing the time taken not only to enter the correct credentials to access multiple applications and services, but also the time taken by IT support for those that are forgotten or entered incorrectly and trigger a reset requirement. Anything that increases user productivity while at the same time reducing the help desk burden achieves another holy grail: it reduces overall costs to the business.

The Security Panacea Misstep –

So, is an SSO solution a secure user access panacea? Not really. It’s part of the process towards managing user access securely. While implementing SSO makes a lot of security sense, a poorly designed  SSO solution can present a single point of failure and weaken enterprise security as a result. If an attacker compromises one user’s credentials in such a scenario, they compromise access to every application that can be accessed just as easily as if that user had been reusing passwords elsewhere.

As Ambler Jackson, a consulting attorney with risk and compliance expertise, writes, SSO “must be combined with risk-based access control for tracking and controlling user behavior within an organization’s systems to enable conditional access and step up security using multi-factor authentication (MFA).” Eric Avigdor from Thales Identity-centric zero-trust, agrees that the idea of “a static login for all user activities is not enough to address the evolving risk landscape where businesses operate.” It is, however, Avigdor emphasizes, “a crucial element of access management.”

Author Bio –

Davey is a freelance technology journalist and a senior contributor to Forbes, as well as being contributing editor at PC Pro magazine. He was named ‘Cyber Writer’ of the year in the 2020 Security Serious Unsung Heroes awards. He also contributes to InfoSecurity Magazine, SC Magazine UK, The Observer/Guardian, and Digital Health Intelligence.

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