IMGCAP(1)]Security is hot right now. Or, perhaps, insecurity. This week’s biggest news in tech, Apple’s unveiling of its next generation of iPhones and futuristic Apple Watch, while earning raves, came on the heels of the large celebrity photo hacking scandal
Meanwhile,
These security concerns are as old as the cloud, but even as that gains traction, in adoption and concept,
As I gain further elucidation on the complexities of cloud-based systems in my role interviewing experts, even I find myself wary of the metadata I’m exposing with every Facebook upload.
So data security is a topic I’m not yet exhausted of exploring in speaking with various leaders in the space. As the largest cloud-based software providers move toward more integrated, open ecosystems, the emphasis remains on protection, for their partners and more savvy clients and consumers.
“We are seeing smarter clients as the concept of the cloud is becoming clearer,” Tony DiBenedetto, chairman and CEO of technology services firm Tribridge, No. 3 on our
Already a proponent, one Acumatica client I spoke to at the cloud ERP provider’s recent summit, Ehren Dimitry, president and CEO of New Jersey-based AME Corp., discovered the full extent of the cloud's power—and security—in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.
The tragedy provided an unfortunate but important example of the belief Dimitry had long espoused of the cloud being a safer space for data than physical storage vulnerable to the elements.
These progressive views, while interesting, are not unexpected coming from the leadership of technology companies with a stake in promoting innovation. Recently, though, the strategy of one CEO did take me by surprise.
Her name is
[IMGCAP(2)]Her story is awe-inspiring enough, but one tech-related moment of enlightenment came when she discussed the logistics of paying the women who provide content to the Women’s Annex platform.
Once explained it made perfect sense: they are compensated in Bitcoin. These women, under numerous restrictions including working outside of the home, and forced to depend on fathers and husbands to the point of not having their own bank accounts, have few options to take advantage of the freedoms money affords. For women carrying money on the streets, theft is also common, Roya told us, putting the threat of cybersecurity in perspective.
But through exchanging the online currency, both with customers and each other, Roya has watched some women gain larger standing not only in the economy, but their own households. It’s an inspiring use of new technology that remains unproven in many ways, but carries an enormous power those of us in places of greater privilege might take for granted. Yes, Bitcoin has made headlines for its
Bitcoin represents a bold new frontier that, like the cloud, requires education, trust and, as Joanne Barry, executive director of the New York State Society of CPAs, explained in an
That age will be on the cloud. And with all the innovation, equal access and blurring of socioeconomic constraints that provides, it’s a secure enough place for me.