Author Archives: sam_plecic

Black Mirror, recently bought by Netflix, is a hugely popular TV series that is a dark, twisted but spot-on portrayal of the possible ramifications of technology in the future. Advertisements for the show are ironically targeting ad block users, and some argue, are “intentionally creepy.” For better or worse, ad tech is an industry that somehow finds itself embroiled in controversy. Ad blocking was the controversy du jour, until recently when ad blocking rates have leveled out or even dropped. Ad tech’s explosion in recent years, due to the overwhelming user demand for free digital content, has caused the mighty backlash of ad blocking.

Ad tech executives are finally taking a breath after ad blocking has stabilized, yet another monster (or two) have been slowly eating away at the industry: ad fraud and transparency issues.

The International Advertising Bureau (IAB) estimates the economic cost of ad fraud to be around $8.2 billion annually

An Internet of Things (IoT) solution offers a multitude of business benefits from decreased operational costs to new revenue streams. But it also comes with a host of security considerations, including an ever-changing array of regulatory compliance requirements, demanding expert navigation and acute attention to detail.

Below I’ve listed some of the critical questions to ask when deploying a secure IoT solution. To learn more about IoT security, be sure to register for the IoT in Action event in San Francisco on February 13.

How secure are your things?

For starters, the actual devices must be secure. In the next few years, a new wave of innovation will drive down costs and inundate the market with internet-connected devices in every price range, from electronic toys to manufacturing sensors. In anticipation of this, my Microsoft colleagues have identified The seven properties of highly secure devices. I have listed o

In the 2006 science fiction thriller Déjá Vu, Denzel Washington plays a government agent who uses novel government technology to fold time and space back onto itself so that he can retroactively prevent a terrorist attack. It’s a creative interpretation of the concept of déjà vu, and, of course, Washington’s character uses this technology only for good. While the idea of literally bending time and space to repeat the past is relegated to science fiction, the film raises important questions about the ethics and prevalence of government surveillance, which are particularly prescient for our modern times.

As part of the natural evolution of technology, the internet of things (IoT) has established itself as one of the most transformative innovations of our time. IoT is a simple process of connect

Science fiction technology may not be as far off as we believe. The Internet of Things (IoT) uses the powerful combination of Wi-Fi and cloud technology to send information and perform actions through devices with Internet capabilities. This advance stems from the use of telemetry, decades-old machine-to-machine communication via wired sensors and transmitters. Now the wires have been replaced by radio waves that transfer a nearly infinite amount of data.

IoT technology ranges from entire smart cities that streamline traffic to fridges that detect when you’re low on milk and order it for you, among many other products and services. Devices such as Fitbit and Nest are growing in popularity due to their low price, practicality, and variety of automatic functions. Nearly any object you use regularly can be exchanged for a “smart” version that logs usage, performs tasks for you, or learns your schedule and changes the environment accordingly—rapid

Online media companies are chasing their tails when it comes to policing terrorist material, and other dangerous and offensive content. But there is artificial intelligence-based technology out there that can spot it before it goes live, says David Fulton, CEO of WeSee.

Leading figures in both government and academia have been focused on a common cause in recent months – how best to solve the growing problem of online terrorist content. However, the jury’s out on whether the big digital media players, like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, are up to the job, despite being under growing pressure from pending legislation. The good news it looks like a powerful new image-recognition technology based on deep learning and neural networks could provide a solution.

In the same week in June that German lawmakers passed a bill forcing major internet companies to banish “evidently illegal” content within 24 hours or face fines up to $57 mill

When it comes to the Internet of Things, traditional cybersecurity approaches are difficult to integrate and can’t keep operational devices secure. Many embedded device approaches isolate systems, offering only partial protection, and only against known attack vectors. Could all of our IoT security issues be resolved through a simple tweak to the supply chain?

In my mind, yes, if we start thinking about it as the IoT Supply Chain of Trust. The IoT Security Foundation coined the idea in May 2016, that IoT security has no single owner and all vendors are have a duty to care for their direct customers and the wider ecosystem.

Let’s think about it in a slightly more practical manner. If you are a manufacturer, the Supply Chain of Trust is knowing from where you’re sourcing software or hardware and understanding the security inside of whatever it is you’re sourcing. It boils down to taking ownership for each layer of security.