Daily Tech Digest - December 04, 2016

Dive Deep Into Deep Learning

The most remarkable thing about deep learning is that we don't program them to perform any of the acts described above. Rather, we feed the deep learning algorithm with tons of data such as images or speeches to train it, and the algorithm figures out for itself how to recognize the desired targets. The ability of Deep Learning methods to learn complex nonlinear relations by churning high amount of data, creating features by themselves makes it stand out from the other traditional Machine Learning techniques. To know how a standard Deep Learning algorithm works, we have to follow its predecessors, neural networks. Well, some practitioners also refer Deep learning as Deep Neural Networks, which is also a choice.


Machine learning: A new cyber security weapon, for good and ill

Darktrace claims its self-learning approach has been “inspired by the biological principles of the human immune system, identifying never-seen-before anomalies in real time, including insider threats and sophisticated attackers - without using rules, signatures or assumptions.” Modesty is not the company’s strong point. It claims to be “the only technology capable of detecting and responding to emerging cyber-threats, from within the network,” and that its self-learning software has been “recognised as the de factostandard for defending organisations of all sizes from constantly-evolving threats.” Darktrace announced Telstra as a customer in February, saying that the telco had decided to deploy the Darktrace Enterprise Immune System across its enterprise network “because of its unique capability to spot emerging abnormal behaviours in real time within the organisation.”


What is the Blockchain – part 5 – ICOs and DAOs

An ICO is increasingly being used by cryptocurrency and Blockchain startups to raise money by distributing a percentage of the initial coin supply. ... The tokens, or cryptocoins, which are sold during the crowdsale will be used on the platform to pay for transactions. ‘Investors’ that purchase these coins during the ICO do not get a share in the startup, but they hope that the price of the coin will rise and as such they can get a (substantial) return on their investment. ... A DAO is a grouping of smart contracts connected together, possibly in combination with IoT devices, AI/Machine Learning and big data analytics. It is run by irreversible computer code, only under control of a set of, irrevocable, business rules. As a result, a DAO does not have any governance by management or people, but is governed by code.


Growth Drivers, Trends, and Developments in UK Fintech Market

There is a move away from free float revenue models or paid subscriptions to alternative models that are based on monitoring and advertising or reselling of data to 3rd-party firms. This is due to data richness in financial services and development of a liquid and sophisticated market for digital leads. Identity and fraud protection are another development in UK fintech market. A connected world is complicated and makes protection of personal financial details challenging. As start-ups come up with untested and new business models, security is often viewed as a secondary focus. Infrastructure replacement is also a development in UK fintech market. Emergent fintech players are unsatisfied with current infrastructures and are side-stepping it. Infrastructures that have been developed to replace the old ones include cryptographic currencies like Bitcoin and peer-to-peer networks.


Trump presidency could sound death knell for offshore outsourcing

“Any Trump-inspired reform of the U.S. immigration laws will likely make it harder to move employees into the U.S. market,” says Peter Bendor-Samuel, CEO of outsourcing research firm Everest Group. “This will likely take the form of fewer H-1Bs, higher costs for visas, and caps on the number of visas the firms can utilize. That would likely result in IT services firms having to hire more U.S.-based resources, raising operating costs and reducing the labor cost advantages of offshore outsourcing. ... Industry observers expect the corporate lobby to push back on populist proposals. “Politics is still very much a money sport,” says Bendor-Samuel. “Trump is likely to quickly find that campaigning and governing are far different, with members of congress being much more concerned about corporate welfare than the average voter.”


Enterprise architecture model helps to maximize mobile empowerment

The biggest problem with mobile empowerment is that typical strategies don't account for mobility; they account for mobile devices only. A worker, who is supported by a mobile device, doesn't need to get the same information again, which is simply formatted for mobile display. They need to get different information, because the availability of IT support at their activity points changes how they work. Ideally, an enterprise architecture model could step back to business processes and then define its implementation in a mobility-optimized way. ... The challenge many enterprise architects value in driving mobility empowerment will be reduced because pure business requirements are lost or confused. In every enterprise architecture model, there is an implicit or explicit boundary between abstract business process requirements and explicit methods dictated by available IT tools.


How today’s tech tools take marketing automation to the next level

It’s no longer sufficient to send the same message to thousands of people at once. Businesses realize they must reach out to customers on an individual basis for them to pay attention. This starts with creating a subject line that will connect with them as they’re casually scrolling through their overstuffed inboxes, but it continues to the message itself. When an email contains information that specifically speaks to a customer’s preferences, that customer is more likely to take action. Many of today’s top email marketing tools offer the opportunity to direct email messages to certain audience segments. You can deploy one set of emails to customers who have purchased from you before, for instance, and another for customers who have shown an interest but never bought anything.


16 high-tech features you need in your next car

Vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication is basically exactly what it sounds like. It's a type of communication technology that lets cars talk to other vehicles, as well as surrounding infrastructure like traffic lights.  Why is this important? Because as cars become more autonomous they will need to be able to communicate with other cars on the road in order to operate more safely. ... More automakers are beginning to offer WiFi and LTE 4G connectivity in their newer vehicles. However, you'll still have to pay for whatever data plan you opt for.  WiFi and LTE 4G basically turns your car into a hotspot, allowing for you to connect several devices to the network. This means passengers can easily stream music, video, and surf the web without having to worry about killing the battery of your mobile device.


Internet Archive Seeks Emergency Backup - in Canada

Presumably, the Internet Archive has backups in place. But war and natural disasters aside, Kahle says deeper, intentional actions have previously affected libraries, citing in particular "legal regimes" and "institutional failure." "Throughout history, libraries have fought against terrible violations of privacy - where people have been rounded up simply for what they read," he writes. "At the Internet Archive, we are fighting to protect our readers' privacy in the digital world." Never before have humans had so much access to information than through the capabilities of the internet. And never before have governments, spies, cybercriminals and others been able to exploit it for profit, surveillance and influence.


Best practices for lowering cyber insurance costs and cyber risk

With cybersecurity threats on the rise, companies are increasingly taking advantage of cybersecurity insurance. And while cyber insurance can be worth it, it’ll cost you. Last year, U.S. insurers earned $1B in cyber premiums. You can minimize your premiums by showing your insurance company you’re actively mitigating cyber risks, which is a win-win: lower your risk and secure a more cost-effective insurance plan. Purchasing cyber insurance for the first time can be intimidating because every insurance vendor has unique offerings, but here are two best practices on how to approach cyber insurance to ensure it’s a good fit and cost-effective for your company



Quote for the day:


"Men who are in earnest are not afraid of consequences." -- Marcus Garvey


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