Towerwall's InfoSec Blog

The Enterprise is at risk from malware and vulnerabilities hiding within mobile apps. You have to test your mobile apps to preserve your security. Mobile apps are ubiquitous now, and they offer a range of business benefits, but they also represent one of the most serious security risks ever to face the enterprise. The mixing of devices and software for work and leisure opens up many potential avenues for attack, but even purpose-built enterprise apps are shipping with woefully inadequatefalse

Encryption has a bad rap and far too often protection schemes are deployed foolishly without encryption in hopes of protecting data. t's a heartache, nothing but a heartache. Hits you when it's too late, hits you when you're down. It's a fools' game, nothing but a fool's game. Standing in the cold rain, feeling like a clown. When singer Bonnie Tyler recorded in her distinctive raspy voice "It's A Heartache" in 1978, you'd think she was an oracle of sorts, predicting the rocky road thatfalse

Encrypting data on your own might be the smartest move. For those of you old enough to remember the TV comedy series "Get Smart" featuring a spy that used his shoe for a phone, the good guys belonged to an agency called "Control," and the bad guys were affiliated with "Chaos." This month "Get Smart" celebrates its 50th anniversary, yet CIOs continue to struggle in a seemingly never-ending battle to restore control in a chaotic, cloudy world in which data security is less than transparent.

10. You need a WISP. A written information security policy, or WISP, is vital. Make sure there’s a person in charge of enforcing it.

Non-compliance is a risk, and the Attorney General's office carries a big stick for those who don't follow the rules. If you don't have a written information security program (WISP) in place for your business, then you could be risking data theft, legal action, and punitive fines. The law in many states now dictates that you must take steps to safeguard personal information. They vary in strictness, but there are nearly 50 different regulations you need to cater for if you're doing businessfalse

Are you patching quickly enough? How safe is the software you use? Do you have a system in place to identify vulnerabilities and patch them when they are discovered? How quickly do you react to vulnerability reports? There's evidence that software vulnerabilities are on the rise, and few companies are taking the necessary action to combat them.

Falling victim to a ransomware attack is most definitely inconvenient, but it could also serve as a wake-up call to the importance of backing up important data. You're minding your own business, sitting at your office computer. Suddenly, a pop-up appears – with the logo of the FBI – warning that you're under investigation for trafficking in child pornography. Your computer locks up. The message also instructs you to pay a fine with a gift card or money order, or risk being arrested. In returnfalse

Once again, the Information Security Summit hosted by Towerwall and MassBay was a resounding success. Hundreds of attendees and vendors participated in diverse data security panels and networked with industry leaders and peers. The Summit opened with Michelle Drolet, CEO of Towerwall, and Shamsi Moussav, Computer Science Professor at MassBay Community College, presenting scholarships to MassBay students Kirk Barge and Julius Newton. Michelle Drolet said,

The enterprise is facing a dangerous combination of mounting cybersecurity threats of increasing subtlety, and a widening gap in the skills required to identify and combat them. Having someone that knows how to lead the charge in identifying and analyzing threats, creating strategic security plans and ensuring compliance, requires the right level of expertise. Many businesses, especially small and medium businesses, simply don’t have it.

Is Android secure enough for the enterprise? Android has a bad reputation when it comes to security, which is unfortunate because it’s the biggest mobile platform around in terms of market share. Gartner says Android claimed 80.7% of the worldwide smartphone market in 2014. We know that the BYOD trend has sparked a dramatic rise in personal mobile devices being used for work, and the bulk of those devices are running Android. As the most popular mobile platform around, it’s inevitable thatfalse