What is HIPAA and why should I care?
Posted on July 18, 2013 by Rob Sobers

Top Lessons Learned From Yesterday’s Tech
by Mindy Powers 

Incident Response Plan – How Great It Is!
By Susan Carter    

Securing industry mobile initiatives beyond BYOD

By Palo Alto Networks

Does PRISM Really Change our View on Privacy?
by Jon-Louis Heimerl

Big Data and Sports: A Winning Strategy

by Richard G. Twilley

Mobility and the Enterprise: How is Business Technology Adapting?
by Mindy Powers

An Interactive Look at Connected Devices in 2020 by Richard G. Twilley

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Measuring the Success of Your IT Security Program
By Rob Kraus, Solutionary

Building Blocks for a Proactive Cybersecurity Strategy

By Danelle Au, Palo Alto Networks

Will Big Data Give Each of Us a Pop-Tarts Moment?
By Andy Green, Varonis

Road Warriors Ready to Embrace Tablets
By: Jack McCarthy, Content Manager

“Well, at least you brought lunch.” – Every CIO’s reaction after I tell them we’re going to talk about backup.

Backup is broken. Backups are slow and restores are even slower. Even worse, application administrators assume they’re unprotected because they have no visibility into backup processes. To compensate for these limitations, IT teams deploy point data protection products. Snapshots, clones and replicas can improve backup and recovery performance while giving the data owners more control. However, they can also lead to internal chaos, which can have significant business and IT performance side-effects.

WIRED Conference: ‘Think Bigger’ to See Business Success.

by Mindy Powers

OpUSA Hacktivist Campaign Expected to Launch May 7
by Joseph Blankenship, Solutionary

Velocity Replication Acceleration

10 Years of iTunes: Digital Music Paves Way for Cloud-based Music Industry
 by Mindy Powers

Music has its share of pioneers – acts such as Elvis, The Beatles, and Michael Jackson –  who left their mark by initiating great change in what people listen to. But there’s anotherpioneer that, in the past 10 years, has sparked a revolution in how we listen to music. 

This week, that technological pioneer, Apple’s iTunes, celebrates its 10-year anniversary. So it’s an appropriate time for us to look at how this technology and its successors in the  cloud have changed both the way we consume music and the industry itself.   The iTunes store, which launched in 2003, gave people the ability to buy music one song at a time, with just the click of a mouse. And buy they did – to the tune of  30 million digital downloads in that first year. That number has grown exponentially, and today, iTunes music spans  35 million songs in 119 countries.   Let’s take a look at just how dominant digital music has become for the industry:  

 

The New "How Can We Help?"

Chuck Hollis
VP -- Global Marketing CTO
EMC Corporation
@chuckhollis

 

 

NCA is pleased to announce a break-through security service we call Security Analytics.

According to the 2013 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report most breaches take months or even years to detect.  Why is this true when everyone has technology such as firewalls, intrusion detection systems, sandboxes, and anti-malware software?  As the study and our own experience indicates, many threat vectors are undetectable by current methods.  The role of active hackers has evolved to include nation-states, organized crime, and corporate spies.  As their methods become more sophisticated the likelihood of experiencing a “fresh” attack vector increases.  In response, we must work to close the time window between network compromise and exfiltration of critical data.  The best way to close this time gap between attack and data loss is to look closely at the traffic patterns on your network.  Of course, the problem most of you face is that you don’t have the time or resources to sift through billions of packets of data to find the needle in the haystack.  This is where NCA can help.

Modern Malware Review: FTP Surprises

Modern Malware Review: FTP Surprises

In late March, Palo Alto Networks announced their first Modern Malware Review, where Wade Williamson and other Palo Alto Networks experts had the opportunity to analyze 3 months of data from an innovative anti-malware solution called WildFire, including data from more than 1,000 real networks and more than 26,000 seemingly unique samples of malware collected in real enterprise networks (out of 60k+ that evaded AV solutions on customer networks). You can find the full report here.

The Unique Challenges of Controlling Java Exploits

By Wade Williamson
Java has been a very hot topic for security managers this year due to a steady stream of 0-day Java vulnerabilities that have been disclosed, with many of them being exploited in the wild. However, the challenges of Java-based threats go deeper than your average 0-day vulnerability, and these challenges will likely affect your approach to controlling them.

The State of the Breach

by Andy Green

By coincidence, Verizon’s Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) for 2012 was released this week along with the results of our Privacy Survey. So it’s a good  time for a quick tour of the state of the breach. In reviewing this latest DBIR, much has stayed the same. However, Verizon’s report emphasizes two key points that caught my attention: 80% of breaches could be easily prevented with two-factor authentication; and it still takes months for most breaches to be discovered.

Escalation of Cyberattacks from North Korea 

by Jon Heimer

How many times in the past year have you heard language about cyberwar and whether or not it has a place in physical war?

Do we have an answer? Not a firm one, but at the very least we have a sense of it.

Moving Accounting to the Cloud – It All Adds Up

by Richard G. Twilley

In honor of Tax Day, we thought we’d share some of the ways organizations are benefiting from moving financial functions to the cloud.  

Many organizations have indicated that they are ready to move finance and accounting systems and applications to the cloud, according to a survey by KPMG Research. When asked about the practicality of moving these functions to the cloud, the vast majority of respondents said it was “very practical” or “somewhat practical.” Providers and financial solutions powered by Software as a Service (SaaS) are giving businesses new options to deal with increased financial requirements.   Using cloud computing for accounting and other financial functions can simplify tasks, facilitate company growth, and aid in global reach and expansion.

Green Data Centers: Good for the Environment and Business

by Blake Wetzel

We celebrated Earth Day this week, but for many organizations, supporting the environment isn’t just a one-day affair. That’s because companies have learned that by taking steps to go green, particularly when it comes to the data center, they are helping protect the environment — and in the process, their business.  

NCA recognized for outstanding achievement in customer satisfaction

 

April 16, 2013

Thomas Gobeille
Network Computing Architects
330 120th Avenue NE Bellevue, WA 98005

Dear Thomas,

ShoreTel is pleased to recognize your outstanding achievement in customer satisfaction for the reporting period from October 1, 2012 through March 31, 2013. Your exceptional score reflects an industry recognized world class level of professionalism and customer care in all aspects of the customer experience as reflected in the ShoreTel customer experience surveys administered by an impartial third party.

Do you need a Repair or Trouble Ticket Opened? Please follow the steps below for remediation:

1). Contact your Service Provider
2). Obtain a trouble ticket number
3). Contact NCA Carrier Services Department to escalate the issue

Below is a list of common carrier customer support numbers. 

Network Computing Architects Inc. (NCA)  866-452-5190

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ACC Business
888-286-2686

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AireSpring
888-320-7075 - Commercial
888-356-0706 - Residential

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Broad Sky Networks
877-291-9575

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CBeyond
866-424-5100

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CenturyLink (formerly Embarq)
800-786-6272

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CenturyLink (formerly Qwest)
800-603-6000 - Customer Care
800-524-5249 - Integrated Access, VOIP, Long Distance
877-886-6515 - Internet Access, MPLS, DNS
800-268-2980 - Managed Services & Security Services
800-227-2218 - Ethernet, Frame Relay
800-223-7508 - POTS and Analog Services
800-247-7285 - Broadbrand, HSI or DSL
888-678-8080 - Designed Network Services, DS1, DS3, OCn, PRI
888-638-6771 - Centurylink Technology Solutions

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Charter
800-314-7195
800-391-3000 - COAX Based Services
877-543-3961 - COAX Based PRI
888-262-7300 - Legacy Metro - E
800-741-4141 - Metro - E
877-742-5092 - PRI over Fiber
800-472-4176 - Managed Business Class Voice

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Comcast
800-391-3000 - SMB/Coax Customers
800-741-4141 - Ethernet Customers
877-543-3961 - PRI Customers
855-368-0600 - Mixed Orders

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EarthLink Business
877-435-7950

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Integra
866-468-3472 - Customer Care
800-360-4467 - Repair
866-871-1114 - Internet Support

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Internap
877-843-4662 or noc@internap.com

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Level 3
877-253-8353

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Masergy
877-462-7374

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McGraw
888-543-2000

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MegaPath
877-634-2728

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NetWolves
800-676-8870

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RapidScale
866-686-0328

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Savvis
888-638-6771

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ShoreTelSky
877-654-3573

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Stratus Networks (formerly Access2Go)
866-822-2246

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TelePacific
877-487-8722

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Telx
888-835-9832

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Thinking Phone Networks
800-890-1553

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Time Warner Cable Business Class
877-892-4662

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TNCI
800-800-8400, 2

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tw telecom
800-829-0420

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ViaWest
866-808-9378

WAVE
866-928-3123

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WCI
877-652-4470

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Windstream (formerly NuVox)
800-600-5050

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XO
800-421-3872

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Zayo (formerly AboveNet)
888-636-2778

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ShoreTel Advances Unified Communications for the Apple iPad

ShoreTel Mobility 6 & ShoreTel Conferencing redefine Enterprise Communications

By ShoreTel, SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 5, 2013 – ShoreTel® (NASDAQ: SHOR), the leading provider of brilliantly simple unified communications platforms, including business phone systems, applications, and mobile UC solutions, today announced the availability of ShoreTel Mobility 6 and ShoreTel Conferencing – two new releases optimized for turning the Apple iPad into a business communications tool, enabling integrated collaboration capabilities, increased accessibility and improved communications, regardless of the user’s location.

Dealing with Mobility and BYOD Security Challenges? Start with The Network

by: Danelle Au, Palo Alto Networks

The topic of mobility and BYOD has become a fairly divisive subject, because of the differing perspectives on how to resolve security challenges for the mobile user. Within the Security Week contributor set alone, perspective on this ranges from the complexities of dealing with BYOD to a recommendation to keep personal and business devices separate. The fact is, we all have strong affinities for our favorite mobile devices, and just as organizations had to embrace the desire for users to use Macs in the office (remember that controversy?), users are now making their own choices about the mobile devices they use at work. When employees are given the resources to do their jobs in more places, they find better and more productive ways to work.

FTC Warning on Sharing Files in the Cloud
by Andy Green, Varonis

As part of a research project I’m doing on data breaches, I came across some great practical advice about file sharing in the cloud, courtesy of the Federal Trade Commission. By the way, the FTC also has extensive information on security incidents. In any case, this 2010 report warns businesses to carefully review the risks of sharing data outside the corporate intranet via cloud services.

The FTC reminds medical and financial organizations that they are under special obligations to protect social security and bank account numbers, healthcare data, and other personal information. But any business that has PII that can potentially leak out of their IT infrastructure will find their guidelines very useful.

Work Your Way with Mobile Collaboration
By ShoreTel

Mobile collaboration is a force multiplier of productivity for your business. That’s because mobile collaboration fits how people work today—anywhere, anytime. Advances in collaboration software, paired with the move to the cloud, are accelerating the adoption of mobile collaboration in businesses of all sizes. The need for new ways to collaborate is urgent, especially as the ranks of mobile and distributed workers are growing. According to Forrester, the number of “anytime, anywhere workers,” information workers around the world will grow to 29 percent in 2012, up from 23 percent in 2011.

The Art of Efficiency, IT Security and Programming
by Ramece Cave, Solutionary

Over the past few years, I have heard a couple of specific comments about IT security professionals and their ability to write code. In one capacity or another, whether it is a fellow IT security professional or manager, I heard that being able to write computer programs in this industry is an act of laziness, or not an efficient method for manipulating and analyzing data.

1NService. Your business connector.

Podcast: Tech Security Values with Tom Gobeille, President & CEO of Network Conmputing Architects

Click Here to View

 

Delivers New McAfee Vulnerability Manager to Provide Fundamental Layer for Continuous Device Monitoring Including BYOD Devices Such as Smartphones and Tablets

LAS VEGAS—(BUSINESS WIRE)—FOCUS12 – McAfee today announced a new McAfee Security Management solution that helps close a key gap in enterprise security by offering intelligent, automated real-time asset monitoring: the underlying architecture for continuous monitoring. McAfee Vulnerability Manager now includes McAfee Asset Manager to automatically discover and inspect assets as they connect to the network. This tight integration provides asset discovery and connectivity information to help eliminate vulnerability management gaps and identify policy violations to improve overall security posture.

October 30, 2012

Extreme Networks Honored with CRN's 2012 Tech Innovator Award for Industry Leading BlackDiamond X8 Data Center Fabric Switch

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Oct. 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/—Extreme Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq: EXTR) today announced that it has been honored with CRN's 2012 Tech Innovator of the Year award in the Enterprise Networking category for its high performance BlackDiamond® X8 Data Center Fabric switch.

May 2011 – Overlake Hospitals Dr. Bill Crenshaw and Senior Systems Analyst Dean Lee and NCA's generous donation are a big hit in Haiti Humanitarian Effort.

In mid-May Dr. Bill Crenshaw (OIA/WIS Interventional Radiologist) returned to Haiti for the fourth time to help the people ravished by the 2010 hurricane that left 1,000,000 people dead, injured, or homeless. Based out of the 1 year old Hospital Bernard MevsMedishare Facility in Port-Au-Prince, Dr. Crenshaw has seen the hospital grow into an 80 bed hospital that has treated 85,000 patients in its 1st year of existence and is the only critical care facility in Haiti.