In this week's edition of news for CIOs and IT pros, we take a look at the potential of big data and the latest security concerns on the horizon.
Big data, big potential
Big data is getting bigger by the second. Bernard Marr brings us a list of staggering metrics in Forbes this week to prove just that. But while he sets the stage by highlighting stats that show the massive scope of big data (e.g. “By the year 2020, about 1.7 megabytes of new information will be created every second for every human being on the planet.”), he closes the list with a sucker punch. “At the moment less than 0.5 percent of all data is ever analyzed and used, just imagine the potential here.”
Making big data work was the theme of Strata+Hadoop World 2015 in NYC, and SiliconAngle recapped many of the conference's takeaways and expert insights. For instance, in this video, Wikibon analyst George Gilbert discusses the future of Big Data 3.0. Another video touches on the potential of big data analytics in the healthcare industry. And in related news this week, InformationWeek featured a Q&A with Blue Cross CIO, Doug Porter, where he discussed how the healthcare company is beginning to find value in big data.
Security risks and education
In a BetaNews Q&A, writer Ian Barker interviews Gert-Jan Schenk, Vice President for EMEA at mobile security specialist Lookout, Gert-Jan emphasizes the importance of security at a mobile-device level in an increasingly BYOD enterprise environment. He touches on areas of risk, such as jailbroken phones, and the dual role of both education and technology as part of the solution.
Another story from this week, however, calls the education piece of the puzzle into question. Maria Korolov cites a survey in her article in CSO Online that shows that IT employees are surprisingly more likely to engage in risky behavior, like opening attachments from unknown senders, than any other department. She asks, “If even the best-trained employees are still making bad security decisions, is training just a big waste?” She goes on to offer best practices for maximizing efforts and investment in security training.
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