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BigDataPro

  • US Agencies Request the Most User Data From Big Tech, Apple Complies the Most

    US Agencies Request the Most User Data From Big Tech, Apple Complies the Most

    Americans concerned about their user data falling into the hands of foreign governments may want to look closer to home.

    According to new research by VPN provider SurfShark, the US government makes the most requests for user data from Big Tech companies than any other jurisdiction in the world. The company analyzed data requests to Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft by “government agencies of 177 countries between 2013 and 2021.”

    The US came in first with 2,451,077 account requests, more than four times the number of Germany, the number two country on the list. In fact, the US made more requests than all of Europe, including the UK, which collectively came in under 2 million.

    While the US and EU were responsible for a combined total of 60% of all data requests, the US “made 8 times more requests than the global average (87.9/100k).”

    The number of accounts being accessed is also growing, with a five-times increase in requests from 2013 to 2021. The US alone saw a 348% increase during the time frame, and the scope and purpose of the requests are expanding.

    “Besides requesting data from technology companies, authorities are now exploring more ways to monitor and tackle crime through online services. For instance, the EU is considering a regulation that would require internet service providers to detect, report, and remove abuse-related content,” says Gabriele Kaveckyte, Privacy Counsel at Surfshark. “On one hand, introducing such new measures could help solve serious criminal cases, but civil society organizations expressed their concerns of encouraging surveillance techniques which may later be used, for example, to track down political rivals.”

    The report also sheds light on which companies comply the most versus which ones push back against requests. For all of its privacy-oriented marketing — “what happens on your iPhone stays on your iPhone” — Apple complies with data requests more than any other company, handing it over 82% of the time.

    In contrast, Meta complies 72% of the time, and Google does 71% of the time. Microsoft, on the other hand, pushes back the most among Big Tech companies, only handing data over 68% of the time.

    The findings may also put a dent in US efforts to ban TikTok and other foreign apps under the guise of protecting user privacy and data.

  • Protecting Data Is Nonnegotiable Today – Do You Have The Skills To Do It?

    Protecting Data Is Nonnegotiable Today – Do You Have The Skills To Do It?

    As we share an ever-increasing amount of personal and professional data online, hacking and cyber attacks seeking to steal that data for the benefit of cybercriminals are increasing as well. Far from being of little importance, the information we share online can be very valuable to digital fraudsters, even causing severe loss or damage to the victims of any leak.

    Therefore, to maintain good digital hygiene and protect our data online, these are some of the habits that we should keep:

    Opt for safe browsers

    We can use a wide variety of web browsers to access all kinds of web pages, but not all of them are the same, so it is convenient to choose the ones that are the most secure.

    Browsers such as Chrome, Safari, or Edge are developed by Google, Apple, and Microsoft, respectively, which tend to favor the installation of cookies and the collection of data for advertising purposes. That is why it is usually more advisable to use robust and independent browsers such as Firefox or Brave.

    Browse encrypted

    Using a VPN for gaming and browsing is one of the best ways to protect our data online, especially when browsing from insecure Wi-Fi networks. The possibility of a cyber attacker intercepting your passwords or credit card details while you are connecting to Wi-Fi in a coffee shop is very real. Still, this data will be indecipherable if you use a premium VPN.

    In most cases, you will also be able to use a free VPN for at least the first month of trial, which will help you assess its services.

    Use strong passwords

    In the absence of a better method – which will presumably be biometric verification systems – passwords continue to be the main way we can authenticate our identity on the internet. However, reports are continually being published denouncing the weakness of most of the keys we use online, making them very easy for hackers to break.

    The use of random, long, and unique passwords is essential to ensure the security of our digital accounts.

    Activate two-step verification

    As an extra layer of security, two-factor authentication should be enabled on all platforms where it is possible to do so. Generally, this type of verification uses the cell phone to confirm transactions or attempts to access our digital accounts, thus preventing hacking.

    For example, if your online banking password is leaked and a cyber attacker tries to use it to access your bank account, Two-Step Verification will ask for confirmation on your phone, allowing you to deny access and keep your funds safe. 

    Minimize the use of social media

    In recent years, security recommendations on social networks have multiplied, and the notion that we should limit the personal content we share is more widespread. However, millions of people still share their private lives openly and almost without any type of filter.

    Social networks can be addictive and even become a fast track to gaining popularity. Still, the information we publish on them can lead to serious cases of harassment, and, in addition, it is often used by hackers to try to violate other online accounts. 

    Monitor the apps that we install on the cell phone

    There are millions of apps on the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store, but not all apps are equally reliable. When we install apps on the phone, they request a series of permissions that can be very dangerous, including the possibility of accessing the photos in our gallery, reading our SMS, or making calls without our knowledge.

    Furthermore, these are not isolated cases. Apps as popular as Facebook are among the most requested permissions from their users, and often millions of people accept them without considering their risks. That is why it is important to review them carefully and, if in doubt, avoid installing suspicious apps.

  • Microsoft CEO Bullish on Asian Data Center Market

    Microsoft CEO Bullish on Asian Data Center Market

    Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is bullish on the Asian data center market, including China and India, at a time when trade tensions are ramping up.

    Microsoft operates the second-largest cloud platform and, as such, operates data centers around the world. As one of the world’s largest growth markets, Asia represents tremendous opportunity for the company.

    “Absolutely. We’re very, very bullish about what’s happening in Asia,” Satya Nadella, said in an interview with CNBC’s Tanvir Gill.

    Nadella singled out two countries as especially important to the company’s future: China and India.

    “We’re absolutely committed to all of these countries and in China too,” Nadella said. “Today, we primarily work to support multinational companies that operate in China and multinational companies out of China.”

    Similarly, while India is important to the company’s future, Microsoft sees significant changes to the market.

    “Microsoft’s presence in India was about mostly multinational companies operating in India. But for now, it’s completely changed,” he said.

    “It’s the reverse where these companies who are innovating in India, whether it’s the big large conglomerates, or the new startups, are all using [artificial intelligence] cloud technology to be able to innovate and create services that are obviously popular in India and elsewhere,” he added.

    In all, Nadella said Microsoft plans on investing in at least 11 different regions.

  • IBM Launches Business Analytics Enterprise to Tackle Data Silos

    IBM Launches Business Analytics Enterprise to Tackle Data Silos

    IBM has launched a new suite of business tools designed to help companies break down information silos and better utilize data.

    Data has become the new currency, with companies collecting and analyzing data to better meet the needs of their customers. IBM cites data from Forrester proving that “advanced insights-driven organizations are 1.6x more likely to report using data, analytics, and insights to create experiences, products, and services that differentiate them within the market when compared to beginners.”

    IBM’s latest solution is designed to help companies gain those insights and put them in the hands of the decision makers. Business Analytics Enterprise has a suite of included tools and products to aid companies, including a new IBM Analytics Content Hub. The suite also includes IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson, IBM Planning Analytics with Watson, and other business intelligence tools.

    “Businesses today are trying to become more data-driven than ever as they navigate the unexpected in the face of supply chain disruptions, labor and skills shortages and regulatory changes,” said Dinesh Nirmal, General Manager of Data, AI and Automation, IBM. “But to truly be data-driven, organizations need to be able to provide their different teams with more comprehensive access to analytics tools and a more complete picture of their business data, without jeopardizing their compliance, security or privacy programs. IBM Business Analytics Enterprise offers a way to bring together analytics tools in a single view, regardless of which vendor it comes from or where the data resides.”

  • Salesforce and AWS Deepen Partnership With Salesforce Genie

    Salesforce and AWS Deepen Partnership With Salesforce Genie

    Salesforce and AWS are deepening their partnership with the release of Salesforce Genie.

    Salesforce and AWS are the leaders in their respective industries, making collaboration between the two companies a natural step. As part of Dreamforce, the two companies have announced deepening integration between their two platforms. Customers will be able “to use Amazon SageMaker, AWS’s machine learning (ML) modeling service, alongside Einstein, Salesforce’s artificial intelligence (AI) technology.”

    The key to these new integrations is Salesforce Genie, “a hyperscale real-time data platform that powers the entire Salesforce Customer 360 platform.” The new tool is designed to help companies make the most of the data they have, adapting to changes in real-time.

    “Einstein makes it easy for our customers across every industry to get started with AI. With over 175 billion predictions per day across the Salesforce Customer 360, Einstein operates at a massive scale and helps our customers across every industry sell smarter, deepen customer relationships, scale customer support, and personalize experiences,” said Rahul Auradkar, EVP and GM, Unified Data Services and Einstein at Salesforce. “By opening our platform, we’re enabling data scientists and developers to bring their own AI models with SageMaker, and quickly deploy custom AI into the Salesforce Platform. And, with Salesforce Genie, tap into real-time data that makes it easier than ever to hyper-personalize every moment and every application, in real time.”

    “The biggest challenge customers face today isn’t that they don’t have data — it’s that the data isn’t connected, and it’s difficult to glean business insights or easily put that data into action. With Amazon SageMaker and Salesforce, we aim to solve this challenge by enabling data scientists and developers to successfully build, deploy, and run high-quality machine learning models at scale,” said Ankur Mehrotra, Director, Amazon SageMaker at AWS. “Amazon SageMaker offers the deepest and broadest set of machine learning services and we’re excited to help our joint customers accelerate innovation and time-to-value by bringing our collective product suites, ecosystems, and resources together.”

  • President Biden Tackles EU-US Data Privacy Concerns

    President Biden Tackles EU-US Data Privacy Concerns

    President Joe Biden issued an executive order to address EU-US data privacy regulation concerns.

    Data privacy has become a major concern and impediment to EU-US commerce. Because US intelligence agencies have a well-deserved reputation for conducting mass data collection on average citizens, the EU has been cracking down on companies sharing EU citizen data with US companies.

    President Biden’s Executive Order on Enhancing Safeguards for United States Signals Intelligence Activities (E.O.) is designed “to implement U.S. commitments under the European Union-U.S. Data Privacy Framework (EU-U.S. DPF).” At stake is the $7.1 trillion EU-US economic relationship.

    The executive order adds additional safeguards regarding the circumstances data may be collected, mandates how the data must be handled, and requires US intelligence agencies to update their policies and procedures to be in harmony with the agreement. The order also provides a framework for individuals to seek redress if their data was collected in violation of US law or the agreed-upon safeguards.

    The order makes clear the hope that these measures will pave the way to restore normal operations between EU and US commerce:

    U.S. and EU companies large and small across all sectors of the economy rely upon cross-border data flows to participate in the digital economy and expand economic opportunities. The EU-U.S. DPF represents the culmination of a joint effort by the United States and the European Commission to restore trust and stability to transatlantic data flows and reflects the strength of the enduring EU-U.S. relationship based on our shared values.

    These steps will provide the European Commission with a basis to adopt a new adequacy determination, which will restore an important, accessible, and affordable data transfer mechanism under EU law. It will also provide greater legal certainty for companies using Standard Contractual Clauses and Binding Corporate Rules to transfer EU personal data to the United States.

  • Virginia Is the Data Center Capital of the World

    Virginia Is the Data Center Capital of the World

    Silicon Valley may be the tech center of the world, but Virginia is the undisputed data center capital, with more capacity than China or Europe.

    According to Synergy Research Group, the US has the majority of the world’s data centers, coming in at 53%. Impressively, Virginia alone accounts for more than one-third of the country’s capacity and surpasses both China and Europe.

    “In Europe, the Netherlands and Ireland have always punched far above their weight, beating out countries with larger economies like Germany and the UK,” said John Dinsdale, a Chief Analyst at Synergy Research Group. “But globally, the standout region is the US state of Virginia. Virginia has far more hyperscale data center capacity than either China or the whole continent of Europe. However, our analysis of the future data center pipeline shows that the relative importance of these hot spots will tail off a little over the next five years, as hyperscale infrastructure permeates a broader geographic footprint.”

  • Privacy Advocates Want Stronger Data Rules For Mobile Providers

    Privacy Advocates Want Stronger Data Rules For Mobile Providers

    Privacy advocates are pushing for stricter rules about how mobile carriers handle users’ wireless data.

    While social media companies are often targeted for their handling of user data, wireless carriers have a treasure trove of information on their customers, including location data, internet usage, call history, texting history, and more. An FCC inquiry regarding the habits of the top 15 carriers in the US showed that data retention practices are “all over the map.”

    That was the assessment of Harold Feld, senior vice president at digital privacy group Public Knowledge, according to The Seattle Times.

    “The only ‘industry standard’ appears to be that there is no standard at all for how long carriers retain data, how they protect it, or how hard they make it for their customers to invoke their rights,” Feld added.

    According to the Times, T-Mobile stores information on its customers, including their location data, for up to two years, while AT&T and its Cricket Wireless business store data for 13 months. Meanwhile, Verizon stores data for one year, and Mint Mobile stores data for 18 months.

    The lack of standardization and accountability, not to mention the stakes involved, prompted strong words from FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel:

    “Our mobile phones know a lot about us. That means carriers know who we are, who we call, and where we are at any given moment,” said Rosenworcel. “This information and geolocation data is really sensitive. It’s a record of where we’ve been and who we are. That’s why the FCC is taking steps to ensure this data is protected.

    “Today, I’m publishing the responses I received from mobile carriers on how they handle geolocation data to help shed light on this issue for consumers. Additionally, I have asked the Enforcement Bureau to launch a new investigation into mobile carriers’ compliance with FCC rules that require carriers to fully disclose to consumers how they are using and sharing geolocation data,” continued Rosenworcel. “Finally, if you, as a consumer, have concerns or complaints about how your provider is handling your private data, the FCC is making it easier for you to file complaints and make your concerns known—so we can take action under the law.”

  • AWS Bastion Aims to Help Advertisers Work Within Data Privacy Rules

    AWS Bastion Aims to Help Advertisers Work Within Data Privacy Rules

    AWS is preparing to unveil a new tool that aims to help advertisers work within the various data privacy rules that are currently hindering them.

    AWS is the leading cloud provider and is widely used across a variety of industries. One such industry, the advertising industry, is reeling from various data privacy efforts, both on the part of companies like Apple and Google, as well as various countries’ legislative efforts.

    According to The Information, via Tech Monitor, AWS wants to help advertisers deal with the restrictions in an innovative way with its upcoming Bastion service. The service acts as a “clean data room,” allowing companies to anonymously pool customer data in a way that prevents any company from viewing or accessing the entire pool.

    The Information uses the example of Target and HBO Max being able to see where their customers overlap, giving the retailer useful insight into whether it should target its customers with ads on the streaming platform. The clean data room, however, would still protect the privacy of the customers and help the companies stay compliant with privacy regulations.

    Unlike existing options, such as Google’s, AWS Bastion will allow companies to work with partners of their choosing, not even locking them into the Amazon Ads service. Amazon sees a future where Bastion could be used in other industries far beyond advertising, such as the financial industry, manufacturing, and more.

    AWS will likely launch the new service later this year.

  • Google Tops Big Tech Data Tracking With 39 Types of Private Data

    Google Tops Big Tech Data Tracking With 39 Types of Private Data

    Google is the most invasive of Big Tech companies, tracking 39 different private user data points, more than any of its peers.

    StockApps.com conducted an analysis of what data Google, Twitter, Apple, Amazon, and Facebook collect. Of the companies analyzed, Google was the most invasive, tracking 39 different points of private user data. Apple was the least invasive, only tracking 12 data points “necessary to maintain users’ accounts.”

    Twitter collected the second-highest number of data points at 24, while Amazon came in at 23. Surprisingly, Facebook only tracked 14 data points.

    “Twitter and Facebook both save more information than they need to,” writes Edith Reads for StockApps.com. “However, with Facebook, most of the data they store is information users enter.”

    One of the biggest challenges for users interested in limiting Big Tech’s data tracking is the difficulty in understanding the long and complicated privacy policies most companies utilize.

    “Most people do not have the time or patience to read privacy policies that can be several pages long for each website they visit,” says Reads. “Also, it is quite unlikely that all users have a background in law to properly grasp the privacy policy. Besides, users lack time, patience, or energy to try to figure out what information websites are storing and how they are using it to their advantage. As a result, users end up allowing Google to harvest all the data they need by agreeing to the privacy policy terms. “

  • Oracle Faces Class Action Suit Over Its ‘Mass Surveillance’

    Oracle Faces Class Action Suit Over Its ‘Mass Surveillance’

    Oracle is facing a class action lawsuit over what is being described as its “mass surveillance” of the general public.

    Oracle is the world’s leading database provider and a popular cloud provider. The company is accused (PDF) of using its position and platforms to collect real-time data on hundreds of millions of users and selling it. The lawsuit alleges the data is being collected on the general public, including individuals who have no direct relationship with Oracle nor any ability to consent or object to the data collection.

    This complaint sets forth how the regularly conducted business practices of defendant Oracle America, Inc. (“Oracle”) amount to a deliberate and purposeful surveillance of the general population via their digital and online existence. In the course of functioning as a worldwide data broker, Oracle has created a network that tracks in real-time and records indefinitely the personal information of hundreds of millions of people. Oracle sells this detailed personal information to third parties, either directly, or through its “ID Graph” and other related products and services derived from this data. The proposed Classes herein lack a direct relationship with Oracle and have no reasonable or practical basis upon which they could legally consent to Oracle’s surveillance.

    The plaintiffs consist of Dr. Johnny Ryan, a Senior Fellow at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, and a Senior Fellow at the Open Markets Institute; Dr. Jennifer Golbeck, an associate professor at the University of Maryland in College Park and Director of the Social Intelligence Lab; and Michael Katz-Lacabe, a privacy rights activist.

    The plaintiffs make the case that company founder Larry Ellison set out to establish Oracle as a surveillance powerhouse.

    According to Ellison, the purpose of Oracle ID Graph is to predict and influence the future behavior of billions of people. He explained Oracle could achieve this goal by looking at social activity and locations in real time, including “micro location[s].” For example, Ellison has represented that companies will be able to know how much time someone spends in a specific aisle of a specific store and what is in the aisle of the store. “By collecting this data and marrying it to things like micro location information, Internet users’ search histories, websites visits and product comparisons along with their demographic data, and past purchase data, Oracle will be able to predict purchase intent better than anyone.”

    It’s unclear how successful the lawsuit will be. The US notoriously has no comprehensive privacy legislation, making any such lawsuit an uphill battle. At the same time, the lawsuit was filed in California, one of the few states in the US that does have privacy legislation.

    If the plaintiffs are successful, it could have profound repercussions for the US data broker industry, an industry that is already under scrutiny from privacy-minded lawmakers.

  • 94% of CDOs See Privacy Technology Leading to Increased Revenue

    94% of CDOs See Privacy Technology Leading to Increased Revenue

    While many companies have built businesses profiting on consumer data, 94% of CDOs see a prime opportunity in privacy tech.

    TripleBlind conducted a survey of 150 chief data officers (CDOs), as well as other executives in the healthcare and financial services industries. Interestingly, some 94% believe that deploying data privacy tech will lead to increased revenue for their organizations, especially tech that enforces privacy regulations. In addition, 37% believe improved collaboration could increase revenue up to 20%, while 46% believe they could gain a competitive advantage through increased data collaboration.

    TripleBlind’s survey also shed light on exactly what CDOs are concerned about.

    • 64% are concerned that employees at partner organizations may not abide by legal agreements regarding the use of data.
    • 60% are concerned that employees at partner organizations will violate HIPPA laws and/or privacy regulations.
    • 60% are concerned that privacy-enhancing technology (PET) used by partner organizations may modify data in a way that hinders analysis.

    “There is strong agreement that optimizing effective data collaboration through advanced PET solutions will result in both increased revenues and enhanced competitive advantage,” said Riddhiman Das, TripleBlind’s Co-founder and CEO. “Today, advanced PET solutions exist that render legal agreements obsolete and prevent people at both the data user and data owner from using data in a way that violates HIPAA and other data privacy regulations or modifies data in a way that results in inaccurate analyses.”

    The findings stand in stark contradiction to some companies’ claim that stricter privacy standards will lead to increased costs and decreased profits.

  • Capital One Launches B2B Software Business

    Capital One Launches B2B Software Business

    Capital One is expanding into new markets, launching Capital One Software, an enterprise B2B software business.

    Capital One is already one of the leading companies in the US banking industry. The company has a long history of using the cloud to power growth and solve problems, and now it wants to leverage that experience to help its customers do the same with its Capital One Software.

    The new business’ first product is Capital One Slingshot, “a data management solution for customers of Snowflake, the Data Cloud company.” Slingshot is built on Capital One’s experience managing vast amounts of data, and will help customers scale their cloud data, automate governance, and manage costs.

    “As one of the first large enterprises to go all-in on the public cloud, Capital One has pioneered the adoption of modern data and cloud capabilities. We’ve solved technology challenges faced by America’s largest enterprises and increased our speed and agility in delivering breakthrough products and experiences for customers. We recognize that many other businesses are facing similar data management needs as they accelerate their cloud and data journeys, so bringing some of the tools we’ve built and scaled to market as enterprise B2B software solutions is a natural evolution for us,” said Ravi Raghu, Executive Vice President, Head of Capital One Software. “Starting with the launch of Capital One Slingshot, Capital One Software will offer proven solutions that have been battle-tested by one of the nation’s largest enterprises serving more than 100 million customers.”

  • Big Data Analytics Market to Top $100 Billion by 2027

    Big Data Analytics Market to Top $100 Billion by 2027

    Big data analytics is expected to grow to more than $100 billion by 2027 as companies become more reliant on data.

    Big data has become big business, with companies of all sizes relying on the data they collect to tailor their services and gain a competitive advantage. As large as the industry has become, it’s poised to become much larger.

    According to the latest data from Statista, big data analytics will top $100 billion by 2027, coming in at an estimated $103 billion.

    The global big data market is forecasted to grow to 103 billion U.S. dollars by 2027, more than double its expected market size in 2018. With a share of 45 percent, the software segment would become the large big data market segment by 2027.

  • Expand Credit Access with Alternative Data

    Expand Credit Access with Alternative Data

    Helping more US consumers obtain access to mainstream financial services requires new insights into individual financial history.  Right now, 1 in 5 adults in the US lack the credit history needed to establish a credit score.  An even larger proportion of Americans have a “thin” credit file, meaning 4 or less accounts.  Those with little to no credit history tend to come from groups historically underserved by traditional financial institutions.  3/4 of them make under $50,000 a year.  Many of them are young, recently immigrated, a member of the Hispanic or African American community, and/or recently widowed or divorced.   When traditional financial services exclude a group of people, they often turn to high-cost alternatives such as check cashing services or pawn shop loans.

    A Look at Credit Invisibility

    Credit invisibility costs consumers dearly.  When lenders see that someone has limited or no credit history, they charge that person higher interest rates on loans.  Said person also faces higher premiums for car, home, and rental insurance.  A person given a subprime mortgage loan pays an extra $32,923 in interest compared to someone who received a prime rate. 

    The problem is not necessarily that so many Americans are credit unworthy.  The problem is that current calculation methods do not offer the full picture of some people’s ability to pay back loans.  Leveraging alternative data could move 20 million more US consumers into scorable credit bands.  Many of these people could potentially qualify for prime or near prime offers. 

    What are Alternative Data Sources?

    Three examples of alternative data sources that credit scoring agencies could include in their calculations are bank transaction data, rental payments, and telecom/utility payments.  All three sources would require consumer permission to use, but they could benefit the credit invisible population greatly.  The first source, bank transactions, could reduce the credit unscorable population by 50% if considered on all consumers.  Bank transaction data could increase the number of prime or better borrowers by almost 4 million.

    The next source, rental payments, is especially important.  Right now, many landlords perform credit checks on potential tenants as part of the leasing process, but rental data itself is not included in credit reports.  For people who have only rented their housing, this disparity puts them at a disadvantage next to homeowners, whose mortgage payments do show up in credit reporting.  Rent payment reporting is one of the most under-utilized tools for building credit histories.  The majority of consumers believe it is helpful to have rental payment information factored into credit scores.

    Finally, telecom and utility data has a wide reach across America.  90% of American adults have at least 1 utility bill in their name.  9 million consumers could become scorable thanks to consented telecom and utility payment information.  Over 7.5 million US consumers could move into the prime or near prime categories once this source of data is added to the calculation.  

    All three of these data sources indicate someone’s financial responsibility.  It’s time for alternative data to be added to American credit score considerations.

    Equifax expands access to credit with alternative data
  • Intelus, Founded by Former Microsoft & Salesforce Execs, Tackles No-Code AI

    Intelus, Founded by Former Microsoft & Salesforce Execs, Tackles No-Code AI

    Intelus has emerged from stealth, hosting an open beta for companies interested in its no-code, Machine Teaching platform.

    Big data has become one of the hallmarks of modern business, with companies of all sizes relying on data to make decisions, reach new customers and retain existing ones. Unfortunately, making use of data can be a challenge on both ends of the spectrum. Small companies don’t often have the datasets they need, or processing power to make use of them, while large companies struggle to scale and respond to the data they do have.

    Intelus’ SaaS Duet platform is designed to address those issues. With founders that formerly served as execs at Microsoft and Salesforce, the company has the pedigree necessary to tackle the problem.

    “We are here to address all these issues, and to place the power of data back in the hands of business owners and domain experts,” said Patrice Simard, CEO & Co-founder, Intelus. “For the past decade, organizations have been at the mercy of specialists. It’s a situation that prevents smaller companies from competing and hampers innovation at large firms, where incumbent technology is placed before informed business decisions.”

    “The cost and complexity of machine learning has long been a barrier too steep for most enterprises,” said Gary Flake, former CTO Search & Data Science, Salesforce. “Intelus makes a new paradigm possible with machine teaching, a framework that democratizes machine learning by empowering anyone to teach, test, and deploy state-of-the-art models with no code, no hardware, low complexity, and at low cost.” 

    Interested parties can register for the beta here.

  • App Annie Pays $10 Million to Settle SEC Securities Fraud Charge

    App Annie Pays $10 Million to Settle SEC Securities Fraud Charge

    App Annie, the mobile app data firm, has agreed to pay $10 million to settle SEC charges of securities fraud.

    According to the SEC, App Annie and its co-founder and former CEO, Bertrand Schmitt, misled customers about how data was collected. 

    App Annie and Schmitt understood that companies would only share their confidential app performance data with App Annie if it promised not to disclose their data to third parties, and as a result App Annie and Schmitt assured companies that their data would be aggregated and anonymized before being used by a statistical model to generate estimates of app performance.

    Unfortunately, that’s not what App Annie did. Instead, the company used non-anonymized data, in direct violation of its promises, even selling that data to trading firms — something it explicitly said it would not do.

    Contrary to these representations, the order finds that from late 2014 through mid-2018, App Annie used non-aggregated and non-anonymized data to alter its model-generated estimates to make them more valuable to sell to trading firms.

    “The federal securities laws prohibit deceptive conduct and material misrepresentations in connection with the purchase or sale of securities,” said Gurbir S. Grewal, Director of the SEC’s Enforcement Division. “Here, App Annie and Schmitt lied to companies about how their confidential data was being used and then not only sold the manipulated estimates to their trading firm customers, but also encouraged them to trade on those estimates—often touting how closely they correlated with the companies’ true performance and stock prices.”

    “App Annie sought to distinguish itself in the alternative data space by providing securities market participants with valuable information in a new and innovative way,” said Erin E. Schneider, Director of the SEC’s San Francisco Regional Office. “It went to great lengths to assure its customers that the financial and app-related data it sold was the product of a sophisticated statistical model and that it had controls to ensure compliance with the federal securities laws. These representations were materially false and misleading.”

    The settlement is significant, as it’s the first enforcement action against an “alternative data” provider. Alternative data does not have to be disclosed in a company’s financial results, or in traditional data sources.

    App Annie issued a statement, neither confirming nor denying guilt, saying it had made changes to improve trust and transparency.

    Without admitting or denying the findings in the SEC’s order, App Annie settled the matter and we are pleased it is now resolved. Over the past 3 years, we made a number of material changes to our operations and established a new level of trust and transparency.

    While the company says the investigation does not pertain to its current customer relationships, it’s a safe bet its customers may not have such a rosy outlook.

  • SaaS Has a Problem: 40% of Data Access Unmanaged

    SaaS Has a Problem: 40% of Data Access Unmanaged

    Software as a Service (SaaS) may be one of tech’s hottest fields, but it has a security problem, with 40% of data access unmanaged.

    The report comes from DoControl, a company specializing in SaaS security. According to the company’s research, many organizations are opening themselves up to inside and external threats due to their handling of SaaS data.

    Based on customer data, the findings clearly illustrate there is a magnitude of SaaS data exposure, with 40% of all SaaS assets unmanaged, providing internal, external and public data access. 

    The issue is a high-stakes one, with the average 1,000 person company using SaaS to store anywhere between $500K and $10 million in assets.

    “The past year forced many organizations to collaborate with many external parties and adjust their existing workforce to support remote collaboration,” stated Adam Gavish, CEO and Co-Founder of DoControl. “To date, security practitioners focused on enabling SaaS access in a secure manner, now is the time for them to prioritize the relevancy of this data access internally and externally. Unmanageable data access poses a significant risk to any organization and increases the likelihood for a data breach. While SaaS apps are designed to promote collaboration, in this ever growing attack surface security teams must pay attention to ongoing data access at scale. DoControl is committed to helping organizations ensure no unauthorized person has access to company data without slowing down business enablement nor changing the end user’s day to day work.”

    DoControl’s white paper is well worth a read, and should be a warning for any company relying on SaaS.

  • China’s Regulators May Ban Data-Heavy Companies From US IPOs

    China’s Regulators May Ban Data-Heavy Companies From US IPOs

    China’s regulators may look to ban data-heavy companies from pursing IPOs in the US.

    Like the US, China is looking to reign in the power and influence of its Big Tech firms. Companies with access to large quantities of data are particularly important to the country, and have already been pawns in the trade war between Beijing and Washington. TikTok is one example, with the US trying to force a sale under threat of ban, and China taking steps to restrict the export of the kind of algorithms TikTok relies on.

    China’s latest move is in the form of proposed rules that would keep data-heavy companies from going public in the US, according to The Wall Street Journal. Such a move is sure to be unpopular with many companies looking to cash in on an IPO, but China clearly wants to keep what it considers to be sensitive technologies in-country.

    It remains to be seen if there will be any retaliation or fallout from Washington.

  • UK Looks to Revamp Privacy Policy Post-Brexit

    UK Looks to Revamp Privacy Policy Post-Brexit

    The United Kingdom is looking to revamp its privacy policy in the wake of Brexit, making a break from the EU’s GDPR.

    The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is one of the most comprehensive privacy legislation to ever be passed into law. As long as the UK was part of the EU, it was subject to the GDPR, the same as any other European country. With Brexit, however, UK regulators are looking to chart their own path.

    Oliver Dowden, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, spoke of the work John Edwards, New Zealand’s Privacy Commissioner and the likely next Information Commissioner, would undertake.

    “Now that we have left the EU I’m determined to seize the opportunity by developing a world-leading data policy that will deliver a Brexit dividend for individuals and businesses across the UK,” said Dowden, according to The Guardian.

    “It means reforming our own data laws so that they’re based on common sense, not box-ticking. And it means having the leadership in place at the Information Commissioner’s Office to pursue a new era of data-driven growth and innovation. John Edwards’ vast experience makes him the ideal candidate to ensure data is used responsibly to achieve those goals.”

    Edwards will have his work cut out for him, as any legislation will need to maintain the same level of protection as the GDPR. If it doesn’t, the EU would e forced to stop data-sharing with the UK, a move that would impact companies on both sides of the Channel.

  • Keystrokes and Mouse Clicks: Amazon’s Plan to Monitor Customer Service Staff

    Keystrokes and Mouse Clicks: Amazon’s Plan to Monitor Customer Service Staff

    Amazon is rolling out a sweeping monitoring program, with the goal of tracking the keystrokes and mouse clicks of its customer service staff.

    In the era of Big Data, few companies have access to as much customer data as Amazon. The company controls the largest e-commerce platform, a line of popular security devices and, of course, the most popular cloud computing platform in the world. As a result, the company is a prime target for unscrupulous individuals looking to access that data.

    According to a document seen by Motherboard, Amazon is preparing to roll out software designed to track customer service employees’ activity in an effort to prevent abuses from occurring. The company has already had instances where imposters have impersonated customer service staff and accessed information.

    The company has looked at various solutions, including those that capture all keystrokes and mouse clicks. The one the company appears to be leaning toward focuses on capturing patterns instead, building a profile of how a person interacts with their workstation, via the keyboard and mouse. If someone else tries to use it, their usage would stand out as different from the established pattern, making it easy to spot an imposter.

    “We have a security gap as we don’t have a reliable mechanism for verifying that users are who they claim they are,” reads the document.

    The lengths to which Amazon is going illustrates the ongoing struggle companies have, and the solutions that will likely become more commonplace as threats continue to grow.