TWTW Weekly Wrap Up: 4-10 Dec

Last Week’s Latest

1. Palo Alto Networks launches cybersecurity solution to protect hospitals and their networks.
2. Blockchain oracle network Chainlink has unveiled its staking feature with the aim to amplify economic security around the platform’s oracle services, as reported by Cointelegraph.
3. Few months before Nigeria’s general elections, the parent body of Facebook and Instagram, Meta announced that it had invested over USD 16 billion in its team and technology in order to fight fake news and misinformation.
4. Apple launched Advanced Data Protection, a new, optional end-to-end encryption scheme that prevents data in a customer’s iCloud from being decrypted on an “untrusted” device. 
5. Security compliance and automation platform Drata nabs USD 200 million at USD 2 billion valuation.
6. The Institute of Indian Technology (IIT) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Microsoft to foster and support startups. 
7. K8 School, an online school, has announced plans to launch artificial intelligence (AI) enabled Learning Management System (LMS) in India.
8. 'Supreme Court Mobile App 2.0 ready for android users': CJI says it enables government department to track cases.
9. G20 delegates call India a 'pioneer' of digital technology as they opt for digital payment for buying crafts.
10. Airtel has reportedly partnered with Meta and STC (Saudi Telecom Company) to bring 2Africa Pearls to India as part of its ongoing effort to improve the nation's infrastructure.

Focused Story Of The Week #1: India - A Pioneer Of Digital Technology In The Eyes Of The World

On December 1, India assumed the Group of 20 (G20) presidency for a year, succeeding Indonesia. The G20 was initially established as a platform for finance ministers and central bank governors in the wake of the financial crisis that devastated Southeast Asian nations in the late 1990s. G20 was upgraded in 2007 to include heads of state and governments.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi underlined a need to "address climate change, depoliticise the global supply of food, fertilizers and medical products, so that geo-political tensions do not lead to humanitarian crises". Tech has a huge role to play in addressing the above-mentioned. 

Technology has accelerated climate change awareness by enabling people to understand their impact on the environment and create solutions to global warming. With the use of supply chain technology, it is simpler to assess data, acquire understanding of factors such as customer demand, transportation, and supplier lead times and make decisions that have both direct and indirect implications on the operation of the supply chain as a whole. Today, practically every element of healthcare has been impacted by technologies like AI, automation, and IoT, which have reduced diagnosis times and enabled clinicians to treat patients effectively.

With India stepping into the spotlight in front of the entire globe and G20 representatives referring to India as a "pioneer" of digital technology, it is clear how important technology will be to India's development in the years to come. The world's problems, not only those faced by India, can be solved by technology.

"Tech and its endless possibilities to address challenges poised by nature is going to play a big role in the success India’s Presidency at the G20."

Focused Story Of The Week #2: The Increasing Need To Address Data Security In The Digital Era

Advanced Data Protection is a brand-new, optional end-to-end encryption system that Apple has introduced to stop customers' iCloud data from being decrypted on "untrusted" devices. A computer algorithm transforms written characters into an unintelligible format with the aid of encryption keys, which can only be opened and accessed by authorised individuals.

Data is expanding more quickly than ever. Every second, new data is produced at a rate of almost 1.7 megabytes. Organisations must continue to secure sensitive personal information in addition to their customers' sensitive personal information. A public tracking website for data breaches, Breach Level Index, reports that since 2013, almost 9,198,580,293 data records have been lost or stolen.

Misuse of data is a possibility while it is being moved around. Globally, this demand has increased as a result of ongoing data breaches. The amount of data passing across the network in a Cloud- and data center-based environment has increased dramatically. Consequently, in this case, both data centre security and cloud data security are relevant. The best course of action is to control and secure the transfer of private or sensitive information at all known locations.

Data security is increasingly a requirement, and its significance is growing daily. Today, even one error may bring down a whole network. Therefore, the financial commitments that your business is willing to make to data security should match the level of protection that they are prepared to offer to their clients.

"As we usher into an era of digital transformation for organisations of all size, the need to address data security is paramount."