Issue link: http://palletcentral.uberflip.com/i/666889
Security Bulletin: Predictions 2016," released in December 2015 by Kaspersky. But even while increasingly sophisticated hacker-breakins appear inevitable in 2016, IT security experts don't plan on taking the onslaught lying down. Indeed, major hardware and software makers are hard at work developing new technologies so that pallet manufacturers and others can defend their digital perimeters. Google, for example, has announced that it will offer regular security updates for its Android software, after being repeatedly stung by a series of hacks in 2015. Plus, antivirus makers like Symantec, for example – which has candidly admitted that antivirus software is becoming increasingly ineffective against hackers – have added Behavioral Analytics to their arsenal. Essentially, Behavioral Analytics scouts your PC for signs of unusual behavior or the installation of unknown programs, and offers you quick tools and/or advice for how to (hopefully) neutralize the problem. "Integrating breach detection systems with intrusion prevention systems is fundamental to decreasing the time hackers dwell on their networks," says Trend Micro's Kellermann. Cyber-security experts also advise that pallet manufacturers implement an ongoing employee cyber-security awareness training program. The reason: Unfortunately, the human factor is often the weakest link in an otherwise well-secured company network, the experts say. Meanwhile, pallet industry businesses will also want to seriously consider eliminating ID and password security in favor of more modern security technologies. Apple Pay users, for example, can already rely on their thumbprint to make a purchase using their iPhones – not an ID and password. It's a technology that can easily be adopted for use by a pallet manufacturer. Mastercard is currently pilot-testing an online ID verification system for shopping – called Identity Check – which relies on a selfie taken by the shopper, or a fingerprint scan, to authenticate a purchase – another technology that can be repurposed for pallet manufacturers. And users of Microsoft's Windows 10 can replace ID and password access to their computers with 'Windows Hello'. It's software that offers users the ability to sign-in using fingerprint readers or facial recognition – although the facial recognition option requires a high-end, depth-perception camera. Meanwhile, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has licensed an advanced anti-hacker software tool to Cambridge Global Advisors. It's designed to pinpoint suspicious behavior by hackers, once they've compromised a systems' ID and password, and are freely roaming a computer network. "The future of authentication is free from traditional passwords," says Geoff Sanders, CEO, LaunchKey, which sells ID authentication technology that includes fingerprint verification, geofencing, facial recognition and other verification alternatives. Ultimately, something is better than nothing, advises many experts, stating that addressing priorities does not mean striving for perfection, but rather ensuring that "critical exposures are remediated and that the residual risks are minimal and acceptable." PC Increasingly vulnerable will be outdated computer systems…many of these old systems are still running Windows XP, an obsolete operating system that stopped getting security updates from Microsoft more than a year ago. Joe Dysart is an internet speaker and business consultant based in Manhattan. He may be reached at 646-233-4089 or Email: joe@joedysart.com. BUSINESS 30 PalletCentral • March-April 2016 palletcentral.com