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Researchers Find 29 Types of USB Attacks, Recommend Never Plugging into a USB You Don't Own
New research from Ben-Gurion University has exposed 29 types of USB attacks, including ones that extend to your smartphone. It shows that you should never use a USB charger you find lying around or plug into a public USB port.
Intel to Make All Future CPUs Meltdown- and Spectre-Proof
Intel announced architectural changes that are being made to harden the security of future CPUs. Starting with the 8th generation Intel processors, expected to ship in the second half of this year, as well as the Cascade Lake series of scalable Xeon processors, the firm will put in place extra protections that the company described as "additional 'protective walls' between applications and user privilege levels to create an obstacle for bad actors."
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Windows Security: New Microsoft Dashboard Shows PCs at Risk from Meltdown-Spectre
Microsoft has updated its Windows Analytics service to give IT pros an overview of how well protected their IT estate is against the Spectre and Meltdown security vulnerabilities. A dashboard details which firmware, operating system, and AV compatibility updates are installed, disabled or need to be put in place.
Fujitsu Develops Technology to Verify Blockchain Risks
Fujitsu Laboratories and Fujitsu Research and Development Center have developed technology that can verify, in advance, risks associated with smart contracts, which are programs that automatically execute transactions on blockchain platforms. The technology also identifies relevant locations in the source code.
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Triton Rolls Out Connect 6.1 ATM Management Software
Triton announced the rollout of Triton Connect 6.1, an update of the company's PC-based software that allows the remote management of one or more Triton ATMs. The new features integrated into 6.1 include: 1) An added dashboard; 2) Updated configuration overview; and 3) SQL support for journal data storage and terminal data.
Diebold Nixdorf Launches AllConnect Services
Diebold Nixdorf announced that it has launched Diebold Nixdorf AllConnect Services. It includes ATM-as-a-Service whereby Diebold Nixdorf takes the responsibility to operate a CU's entire self-service fleet, providing increased availability and expanded payment processing functionality. ATM-as-a-Service also helps optimize internal operations and helps minimize the total cost of ownership.
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38 Percent of Millennials Abandoned Mobile Banking Activities Because the Process Took Too Long
Millennials lead the charge in mobile banking usage, but FIs must adapt their user experience for onboarding to attract and retain these consumers, according to findings released by Jumio and Javelin Strategy & Research. The Javelin report found that the user experience for mobile banking asks too much of millennials; 43 percent have abandoned mobile banking activities versus only 25 percent of Gen Xers and only 13 percent of Baby Boomers. Overall, the highest source of complaint across generations of mobile banking users was that the process took too long (36 percent overall and 38 percent for millennials) or they could not remember their password (28 percent).
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Avoiding Security Event Information Overload
The author maintains that not every event log message needs to be collected and analyzed. Organizations should collect and analyze only messages that could actually indicate a security event. Even if the message might indicate a security event, but if your team could not easily confirm it, then you shouldn’t collect it. It’s especially important to understand the latter issue.
Deep Learning Technology Powers Sophos' Endpoint Security Solution
Sophos announced Sophos Mobile 8, the latest version of its Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) and mobile security solution. The software includes deep learning capabilities that were developed using technology from Invincea, acquired by Sophos last year.
The Peculiarities of the US Financial System Make It Ideal for Money Laundering
According to one analysis, the US is second—behind only Switzerland—as the most secret and nontransparent incorporation system in the world. In its 2015 National Money Laundering Risk Assessment, the Treasury Department estimated that about $300 billion in illegal proceeds is generated annually in the U.S.
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How to Make Your Content More Readable
For CMOs who want more engaging content, you now have ways to measure and benchmark clarity across the organization. Now, with advances in natural language processing and artificial intelligence, a new breed of technology can test content for readability and clarity, which go to the heart of user experience and engagement. This interesting article covers these tools and technologies.
Geotargeted Marketing Strategies: Using Location Data to Engage Consumers
FIs have yet to harness the power of location-based data lurking in consumers’ mobile devices. Even if they had access to it, most probably wouldn't know what to do with it. But it’s time FIs start experimenting with geo-targeting, because megabanks on the leading edge are already eyeing all the ways they can leverage location-based data to drive greater engagement and marketing ROI.
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Online Banking/E-Commerce/Website Design
You May Soon Be Able to Use Amazon's Alexa to Send Money
A handful of FIs already offer Alexa skills, the term Amazon calls its voice apps. Many of these skills let you pay off a credit card balance or fund a monthly auto loan payment. But none of these FIs so far allow their users to send money to other people's accounts through Alexa. Now Daon, a Virginia company that develops biometric software, has created a way for FIs to let their account holders send money to friends, a landlord or just about anyone else using Alexa.
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SD-WAN provider Aryaka, which is now neck and neck with VeloCloud/VMware in market share, according to IHS Markit, announced Passport, a multi-layered security platform and ecosystem that they say provides best-of-breed security at every level of a software-defined WAN (SD-WAN). Most SD-WAN vendors encrypt the traffic between two points, and that is certainly important, but data in flight isn’t the only way an SD-WAN can be breached, and Aryaka’s Passport offers end-to-end protection using a number of best-of-breed security partners.
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The Growing Importance of Chatbots
Thanks to a combination of artificial intelligence and machine learning, chatbots are well on their way to taking over an important part of the customer journey. According to Gartner, by 2020 chatbots will be handling no less than 85% of all customer service interactions.
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