The Channel Standard December 2014

www.itincanadaonline.ca

DECEMBER 2013

ON LOCATION AT HP DISCOVER PAGE 12

ERIC GALES

predictions for the cloud in 2014 PAGE 9

CRITICAL INSIGHT FOR CHANNEL MANAGEMENT

PREDICTIONS

2014

Publications agreement number 42169527. Canada Post please return undeliverable address blocks to 24-4 Vata Court, Aurora, ON, L4G 4B6

   Do your sales reps spend more time looking for special pricing approvals than talking to customers?

Is your purchasing team struggling to keep up with requests to validate pricing and discounts?

 Is your sales team aware of all your customers’ upcoming maintenance, support and warranty renewals?

Are your client entitlements lapsing, leaving your customers exposed and your accounts vulnerable to your competitors?

We Can Help                  





CONTENTS

13.06

FEATURED THIS ISSUE CLOUD PREDICTIONS FOR 2014 Businesses are increasingly moving to the hybrid cloud, and they’re looking to have their data centres hosted locally.

INDUSTRY ISSUES Symantec revamps its channel strategy.

INDUSTRY ISSUES Websense talks to us about security threats the industry can expect to see in 2014.

9 8 16

4 EDITOR’S NOTE

Industry insiders have shared with us their product and trend predictions for the new year. What are your thoughts?

6 CHANNEL NEWS

IBM to resell Rocket Software’s Servergraph, Scalar Decisions receives NetApp award, a Canadian company joins EventTracker’s partner program, Bsquare is named Microsoft’s top distributor, and iSIGN agrees to a seven-year partner deal.

12 SUPPLIER POV

IT in Canada was on location at HP Discover in Barcelona, where the company made a number of significant product announcements.

18 DISTRACTIONS

This month’s roundup of weird and wonderful news from the world of tech.

December 2013

| 3 | The Canadian Channel Standard

EDITOR’S NOTE A LOOK INTO THE CRYSTAL BALL

INSIGHTS FOR TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONALS EDITORIAL ACTING EDITORS: AMY ALLEN AND DANIELA FISHER

amy.allen@itincanadaonline.ca daniela.fisher@itincanadaonline.ca

SENIOR STAFF WRITER: RACHEL LEVY SARFIN

editorial@itincanadaonline.ca STAFF WRITERS: AMY ALLEN

amy.allen@itincanadaonline.ca DANIELA FISHER

daniela.fisher@itincanadaonline.ca CONTRIBUTOR: CHRISTOPHER ROGERS SALES NATIONAL ACCOUNT MANAGER: PATRICIA BUSH

905-727-4091 x336 trish.bush@itincanadaonline.ca

ACCOUNT MANAGER: LASKEY HART

905-503-1376 laskey.hart@itincanadaonline.ca EVENTS

EVENTS MANAGER: SANDRA SERVICE

sandra.service@itincanadaonline.ca ART & PRODUCTION ART DIRECTOR: ELENA PANKOVA

elena.pankova@itincanadaonline.ca

SUBSCRIPTIONS AND ADDRESS CHANGES

2013 IS COMING TO A CLOSE, and leaders from across the industry have weighed in with their predictions for 2014.

We spoke with Websense about the threats we can expect to see in the coming year, and they were plentiful. Which social media platforms will adversaries use to target businesses? If you guessed Twitter or Facebook, guess again. And what methods will politically-motivated groups use against businesses to get their message out? What can we do about ongoing Java vulnerabilities?

As for the cloud, experts say we’ll be seeing businesses shift to the hybrid cloud model, with more emphasis on network virtualization and encryption of the data centre. Moreover, enterprises will look to cloud providers for disaster recovery services, and they will increasingly want their data centres to be located in Canada instead of the U.S. We were on location at HP’s Discover conference in Barcelona in December, where the company described its vision for what Meg Whitman, president and CEO, termed “the new style of IT.” In this issue, you’ll find coverage of their product releases: from ConvergedSystem and Converged Storage to the company’s indestructible laptops and hybrid cloud solutions.

They also announced their Earth Insights project: using big data, HP has been helping Conservation International monitor animals in tropical forests to determine which populations are in danger of declining. Their research yielded some alarming results, but HP has hinted that the tools and processes they used to come to these conclusions could also be applied to other industries in the future. Big data will make the world better not only for endangered species, but also for people across the planet.

Do you have any thoughts about where big data could lead us in the coming year? Let us know on Twitter @realitincanada, or send us an email at editorial@itincanadaonline.ca.

December 2013

| 4 |

CIRCULATION DIRECTOR: JAMES WATSON

circulation@itincanadaonline.ca CIRCULATION COORDINATOR

circulation@itincanadaonline.ca GENERAL INQUIRIES

24-4 Vata Court, Aurora, ON, L4G 4B6 Phone 905-727 4091 Fax 905-727-4428 CORPORATE COO AND GROUP PUBLISHER: JOHN JONES

publisher@itincanadaonline.ca www.itincanadaonline.ca

PUBLISHER’S MAIL AGREEMENT: 42169527

IT in Canada Online magazine is published six times per year. All opinions expressed herein are those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher or any person or organization associated with the magazine. Letters, submissions, comments and suggested topics are welcome, and should be sent to publisher@itincanadaonline.ca www.itincanadaonline.ca REPRINT INFORMATION

High quality reprints of articles and additional copies of the magazine are available through circulation@itincanadaonline.ca or by phone: 905-727-4091 ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTION RATES

Canada: $50/year; USA $60/year; International $100/year. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. All inquiries should be addressed to circulatin@itincanadaonline.ca

The Canadian Channel Standard

media:scape™

furniture and technology merged to help teams access and share information www.steelcase.com/cometogether

expect more

Contact us to learn more

·media:scape™ creates a collaborative destination ·Everyone can share their digital information instantly ·Information is visible by all participants

POI Business Interiors has more than 50 years of experience in providing knowledge, products and services that help people work more effectively.

We understand the issues facing organizations today.

T 888 296 9967, F 905 479 6941 www.poi.ca info@poi.ca

CHANNEL NEWS IBM to resell Rocket Software’s Servergraph

Rocket Software has signed a software remarketing agreement with IBM, whereupon IBM will resell Rocket Servergraph.

Servergraph is an enterprise-class storage product that addresses the problem of monitoring backups. The software was designed to enhance timely business decision making for backup administrators, IT managers and CIOs. “This is another excellent opportunity for us to continue our long-standing work with IBM,” said Brian Starr, VP and GM, Rocket. “Servergraph is ideal for any size backup environment and for organizations that face problems managing or understanding their backup environment. This is a great fit for both Rocket and IBM, and organizations around the world will benefit from this agreement.”

Rocket Servergraph provides dashboards, rich data visualizations, alerts and graphical reports that transform the way users manage their backup environments. The storage product offers integrated monitoring and reporting support for the data protection environment.

It also has a complete set of reports and dashboards available at the enterprise and server level, for a wide range of supported applications, including IBM Tivoli Storage Manager (TSM), Symantec Netbackup, EMC Avamar, IBM Tivoli Storage Manager FastBack, EMC NetWorker and VTL device support for EMC Data Domain, IBM ProtecTIER and Sepaton.

“Rocket Servergraph complements IBM’s Tivoli Storage Manager Operations Center and Cognos reporting capabilities by extending visibility and control across multi-vendor storage environments,” said Ian Smith, director, storage software, IBM. “This is a great example of IBM’s work to build an innovation ecosystem, by providing business partners with access to open technology which they can leverage to address client needs for visibility and simplicity. Servergraph will provide value to clients worldwide looking for heterogeneous environment visualization and assessment.”

Scalar Decisions honoured by NetApp

Scalar Decisions, a Canadian IT solutions integrator, has been named NetApp’s Partner of the Year for Central Canada for the second consecutive year.

The award honours Scalar for generating the highest sales bookings and new clients for NetApp in Central Canada in 2013, as well as its certification and training programs.

“Scalar has been and continues to be a major contributor of NetApp’s success in Canada,” said Jeff Goldstein, VP and GM, NetApp Canada. “Scalar continually goes above and beyond for its clients and that dedication is reflected in its industry leading performance. It is with great pleasure to name Scalar as NetApp’s Partner of the Year in Central Canada for the second year in a row for their outstanding work and technical leadership.”

In addition to both Partner of the Year awards, Scalar, which has been a platinum core partner of NetApp since 2005, also received NetApp’s Outstanding Contribution Partner Award in 2009.

“Scalar prides itself on helping our customers solve business problems through technology,” said Paul Kerr, president and CEO, Scalar Decisions.

“Our customers expect the best solutions and technical expertise available.

NetApp Canada continues to be a great partner, allowing us to meet our customers’ data needs.”

Scalar was also included in PROFIT magazine’s list of fastest-growing Canadian companies for the fourth year in a row.

Norman Hartshorne

EventTracker welcomes Canadian addition to partner program

EventTracker, a provider of SIEM solutions, announced that it has added a new member to its Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP) Partner Program.

The addition signals EventTracker’s further expansion of its SIEM solutions into the Canadian market.

Secure Links, a Canadian IT services company, will provide and manage EventTracker’s suite of log management and SIEM solutions for security, operational and regulatory compliance monitoring.

As a company that provides a range of services for network security, becoming an MSSP Partner allows Secure Links to offer EventTracker’s SIEM and FIM solutions with its ANSWR brand of services.

“Secure Links is very excited to have EventTracker as a key strategic partner,” said Norman Hartshorne, President, Secure Links. “EventTracker’s SIEM and FIM solutions will not only be offered to Secure Links customers as a standalone service, but also as a core component of our ANSWR for Network services.”

EventTracker executives expressed similar enthusiasm for the partnership. “We are excited to build this strategic partnership with Secure Links,” commented A.N. Ananth, CEO, EventTracker. “As a trusted and experienced provider of IT security services, Secure Links will be able to effectively expand the reach of our SIEM solutions and help customers achieve security and compliance while remaining focused on their business.”

December 2013

| 6 |

The Canadian Channel Standard

CHANNEL NEWS

Microsoft names Bsquare top distributor Bsquare Corporation, a vendor that has been distributing Microsoft’s products for the past 15 years, has received the OED Americas Channel Sales and Marketing Award for Distributor Sales Excellence.

Bsquare – a Windows Embedded Gold Partner – distributes the complete line of Microsoft Embedded Operating Systems within North America and in parts of Europe.

“Bsquare is honored to receive this award,” said Scott Caldwell, VP, Worldwide OEM Sales, Bsquare. “Microsoft and the Windows Embedded products are key components of the intelligent systems that Bsquare provides to our customers. This award validates our success in providing personalized account management and highly responsive technical support for the embedded community as a whole.”

The OED Americas Channel Sales and Marketing Awards are awarded to OEMs and distributors that drive the Microsoft Embedded business by bringing Windows solutions to a wide range of industry devices. Industry devices that utilize Windows Embedded allow data to flow across an enterprise, collecting data from employees and customers and sending it to the back end for analysis.

“Windows Embedded is excited to award Bsquare with the award for Distributor Sales Excellence,” said Karen Roberts, senior partner and channel marketing manager, Windows Embedded, Microsoft. “Bsquare has been instrumental in driving innovative solutions through industry devices that enable unique customer value and experiences.”

iSIGN nets 7-year partner network agreement

iSIGN Media Solutions, a provider of mobile advertising solutions, announced a seven-year partner network agreement with Speech and Software Technologies (SST). Under the terms of Alex Romanov the agreement, SST has the exclusive rights to distribute and resell iSIGN’s software and hardware solutions in India and Southeast Asia. iSIGN is a data and Software as a Service company based out of Richmond Hill, Ontario. Its new partner agreement signifies the company’s expansion into Asia.

Under the deal, iSIGN also grants SST data sales and reseller status in the United States, in tandem with GraphicMedia - iSIGN’s master distributor in North and South America.

Alex Romanov, CEO, iSIGN, commented: “In addition to working with SST on data sales, we have finalized the Partner Network Agreement with SST and believe this will introduce and launch our data and technology throughout Asia and eventually Europe. We expect this Agreement will be very mutually beneficial to iSIGN and SST, as it will provide access to an extremely large market.”

In addition to the reseller partnership, iSIGN made another company announcement. As previously agreed with SST, iSIGN will now start to deliver data to its data partner Newcomp Analytics for analysis and evaluation purposes. iSIGN’s data is considered to be ‘clean data,’ meaning that while the company collects information including shopper product, brand and offer preferences as well as final purchases, no personal customer information is gathered that could identify individual shoppers in any way.

Since 2007, iSIGN has been developing multi-platform advertising and marketing solutions to help businesses attract and retain customers through their mobile devices. Its partners include IBM, Keyser Retail Solutions, Verizon Wireless, TELUS and AOpen America Inc., with distribution by GraphicMedia and BlueStar.

December 2013

| 7 | The Canadian Channel Standard

INDUSTRY ISSUES

Symantec revamps channel strategy

BY AMY ALLEN

In July 2012, Steve Bennett was named president and CEO of Symantec Corporation. Formerly a Symantec board member, Bennett knew something in the company had to change – so he packed up his bags and travelled around, talking to Symantec employees, partners, and customers in an effort to find out where the company had gone wrong and – more importantly – how it could right itself.

“His learning from that was really that Symantec had a great set of assets that were not necessarily performing to market.

We had a solid set of solutions, but we weren’t delivering on the growth plans that we wanted,” said Jim Willis, Channel Director, Canada, Symantec. “We really lacked a comprehensive corporate strategy, which included both the portfolio and our approach to the marketplace, as well as our channel strategy.”

As a result of these consultations, the company announced Symantec 4.0 at its Partner Engage event in November 2013.

The strategy consists of three parts: a short-term, long-term, and a very-long-term plan, though Willis stresses that the strategy does not include an end point.

“This whole transformation is a journey,” he said. “It’s not necessarily a destination we’re trying to get to.”

Willis explained the company’s key objective: “To achieve sustained, profitable growth greater than market for partners and Symantec, leveraging joint assets to deliver value to our customers.”

With this new strategy, the company has moved to a competency model of delivery rather than a product-based model.

The strategy includes 10 core offerings, which are housed in three key areas: user productivity and protection, information management, and information security.

The company is looking to leverage its partners’ assets – in terms of products, critical expertise and consulting services – and also to ensure that value for customers is built into the plan. Symantec will identify the best routes to market, and the areas that it needs to invest in and optimize, to deliver the best value to its customers.

It will also provide support for partners by guiding them to appropriate avenues for investment, and helping them understand their ROI as a result of those investments.

December 2013

| 8 |

The company has created what Willis calls a “focus partner list”, in which it has identified partners that create the greatest value and have the capability to deliver on Symantec’s 4.0 objective. It has also created compensation benefits to its own employees to work with some of those partners, and has invested resources in Canada to encourage Jim Willis, Channel Director, transformation.

Canada, Symantec Symantec’s partners, Willis says, have been responding positively to the changes.

“I think they’re recognizing that we’re spending a lot more time understanding our partners’ value with the strategy, and making sure it’s aligned to business growth,” Willis said.

“We have the ultimate customer view – as the primary driver behind this strategy – and we recognize that our partners play a significant role, not only in capturing that value, but in generating that value as well.

“We just came back from our Partner Engage event that occurred in mid-November,” he continued. “We had a number of our Canadian partners there, and the feedback that I received was very optimistic about what Symantec is going through. They believe we have the right strategy and direction on how to capitalize on this, and are very anxious to participate.”

The company is in the process of finalizing the program: it has been in discussions with over 70 partners in 27 countries to ensure that the programs being announced will deliver the intended benefits and the desired strategy direction.

Symantec is looking to roll the program out in phases over the coming year, beginning in January 2014, with a full rollout occurring around Q4 of 2014.

The Canadian Channel Standard

SUPPLIER POV cloud computing and more of a real hybrid environment.”

Also in 2014, businesses will need to address the implications that come with the hybrid cloud. We’ll see more discussions about what technology to use, how to secure enterprise environments, and how CIOs can create a cloud environment that accommodates different devices and is still secure.

“I think we’re certainly seeing a sort of tension in the continuation of the consumerization of IT, where end users want to be able to use the device of their choice and to float between their devices,” said Gales.

“Cloud computing gives you the capability to make that happen. But from an enterprise perspective, how you actually assemble that has to be very thoughtful in order to continue to maintain the levels of controls you need, particularly around security and privacy. Hybrid cloud computing is a way of making that capability available to users. They can use the devices they want to use, and float between.”

CLOUD PREDICTIONS

FOR 2014: adopting the hybrid cloud

The cloud goes local

A

s we get ready to say goodbye to 2013, we’re looking at what the new year holds for cloud computing.

IT in Canada recently talked with industry leaders Eric Gales, country manager for VMware Canada, and AJ Byers, president of Rogers Data Centres. They outlined a number of cloud computing trends that we’ll see more of 2014.

seeing is that hybrid cloud environment t is becoming the most popular environment for most businesses, as they transition into the cloud,”said Byers. “Due to the large number of security concerns that have faced data over the last 12 to 18 months, we’re seeing a shift to more private

The hybrid cloud will rule all others

We’ll continue to see adoption of the hybrid cloud in the new year. While 2013 was supposed to be the year of the hybrid cloud, we’ll see more businesses actually adopting hybrid clouds. For businesses looking to nail down the right combination of cloud solutions, hybrid will be a popular option in 2014.

“I’d say the biggest trend we’re

Eric Gales, country manager, VMware Canada

December 2013

Another big trend in cloud computing that we’ll be seeing more of in 2014 is preference for a local cloud.

Companies increasingly want their cloud infrastructure to be located in Canada instead of the U.S. “The cloud is supposed to be ambiguous and out in the ether, but in reality companies who are moving to the cloud are asking for their server and their data infrastructure to remain local,” said Byers. “They’re looking for cloud providers to actu-

“TO WHAT EXTENT CAN WE LEVERAGE THESE TECHNOLOGIES TO REALLY DRIVE AGILITY AND REDUCE COSTS WITHOUT COMPROMISING SECURITY, PRIVACY AND REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS AND WITHOUT LOCKING OURSELVES IN TO A NEW SILOED PARADIGM.”

| 9 | The Canadian Channel Standard

SUPPLIER POV

AJ Byers, president, Rogers Data Centres

ally have local environments. So when we’re in Alberta, companies are looking for a local cloud in Alberta, or when we’re in Ontario they want a local cloud in Ontario.”

The same holds true for data centres: businesses wanted their data centre provider to be local. “We’re seeing a lot of people saying we want our data to remain in Canada due to the recent items around the NSA,” said Byers.“I think we’re going to see in-country data requests as it applies to cloud computing as well. We’re going to see a greater look at security in the cloud, people are going to be far more rigid about the security models and where their data resides.”

Data gets an encryption treatment

One of the main concerns with the cloud is an apparent lack of security.

That will change in 2014, with more data being encrypted in the cloud.

Cloud environments will require authentications and security measures similar to those in the credit card industry, to ensure that data is protected in the cloud.

“I would say very little data that sits in the cloud is encrypted today,” said Byers. “More and more data will become encrypted in the cloud through 2014. Managing access into cloud environments will become more rigid. You’ll start seeing all access in the cloud environments tie to standards that are kind of closer to the payment card industry with dual authentication and a number of other security and encryption concerns.”

“WE’RE SEEING A LOT OF PEOPLE SAYING WE WANT OUR DATA TO REMAIN IN CANADA DUE TO THE RECENT ITEMS AROUND THE NSA, I THINK WE’RE GOING TO SEE IN-COUNTRY DATA REQUESTS AS IT APPLIES TO CLOUD COMPUTING AS WELL. ”

Disaster service recovery in the cloud

We’re going to start seeing more technologies that allow companies to do disaster recovery right into the cloud.

“If they have a virtualized server environment in their office today, we’ll see deployments of technology where with a click of the button that server in the event of a disaster can be up and running in the cloud,” said Byers. “I’d say that’s becoming far more prevalent in cloud providers today. I’d say that’s the biggest one. The disaster recovery element or the disaster recovery benefits that the cloud can provide in-house virtualized environments is phenomenal.”

And in many cases, it will introduce capabilities that companies could otherwise not afford or could not deploy in a timely manner. By doing disaster recovery in the cloud, enterprises can avoid a lot of cost.

“We’re seeing the rise of more granular services available in the cloud that enterprises can plug in to,” said Gales. “For enterprises, instead of having to stand-up their own disaster recovery site and manage a second site, they can basically take that service from a public cloud provider.”

Long-term look: cloudbased applications win out

In terms of long-term trends, in the future most applications will be available in the cloud. 2014 will see more cloud-based application purchases.

“I would say all applications

December 2013

| 10 |

that people are buying today are certainly moving to the cloud,” said Byers.“We’re going to see a greater view on that, where probably a year ago 50 or 60 per cent of the applications out there were available in a cloud-based scenario – we’re going to see that increase to 70 or 80 per cent of the time, that application will be available in the cloud.”

“Over the course of the next five years, I think we’ll increasingly see an abstraction of applications away from device dependency,” said Gales. “Increasingly, more capabilities in enterprises will be centred around provisioning applications and data around either private or public clouds - most commonly, a hybrid cloud situation - so that users can get access to their applications and data from any device.”

Also internally, companies will see a migration from the traditional way of servicing IT to more of IT as a service within an organization.

Businesses will be taking a more holistic view to how we can take advantage of cloud computing to meet the needs of their business.

“To what extent can we leverage these technologies to really drive agility and reduce costs without compromising security, privacy and regulatory requirements and without locking ourselves in to a new siloed paradigm,” said Gales.“My view is that as we look forward, we’re seeing many more CIOs take a much more holistic view to where can cloud computing fit in and how to embrace this full continuum, but in a way that doesn’t compromise those things that are very important.”

The Canadian Channel Standard

http://www.itincanadaonline.ca/index.php/subscriptions

ARE YOU MISSING OUT? Please supply us the following information to allow us to provide another year of Free Subscriptions to The Channel Standard.

SUBSCRIBE

NOW!

Fax: 905-727-4428 Mail: 24-4 Vata Court, Aurora, ON, L4G 4B6 Email: circulation@itincanada.ca

NAME:

TITLE:

ORGANIZATION:

ADDRESS:

CITY:

COUNTRY:

PROVINCE:

POSTAL CODE:

E-MAIL ADDRESS:

PHONE:

WHICH FORMAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE YOUR COPIES?

SUBSCRIBE TO FREE WEEKLY E-NEWSLETTER?

Privacy Policy: we do not share or sell our mailing list

YES, PLEASE

PRINT

DIGITAL

NO, THANKS

ON LOCATION

ON LOCATION AT HP DISCOVER

IT in Canada attended HP’s Discover conference in Barcelona earlier this month, where the company made some major product announcements in the areas of Converged Systems, Cloud, Printing and Personal Systems, and Big Data.

STORIES AND PHOTOS BY AMY ALLEN

MEG WHITMAN’S NEW STYLE OF IT

From left: Kerry Bailey, SVP, HP Cloud Worldwide Go-To-Market, Justin Arbuckle, chief architect, GE Capital, and Patrick Debus-Pasquet, CTO, Numergy, discuss HP’s hybrid cloud solutions.

BARCELONA, SPAIN – The New Style of IT was the hot topic at HP Discover in Barcelona this week. From converged systems to storage, from printing and personal services to cloud, it was the phrase on every executive’s lips. And in her keynote address, Meg Whitman, president and CEO, expanded on this theme – and explained the company’s goal of being the best technology provider and partner in the industry.

Whitman said the new style of IT is defined by today’s constantly changing trends in technology, and the way business is being shaped by it. It’s a two-sided coin, as much about the new pressures businesses are facing as it is the opportunities that are becoming available to them.

It’s about tackling tomorrow’s challenges – like the need for more sustainable data storage infrastructure – and solving these problems to create business advantages.

“HP understands that companies are facing a storm and that IT executives now have to build new skillsets that weren’t part of the job description even two years ago. Driving this huge shift is the rise of cloud, mobility, big data, and security,” said Whitman. “This new style of IT spans devices, infrastructure, software. It is now a critical strategic factor in determining whether any organization will win or lose in the market.”

The company’s strategy, she said, is to provide solutions for this new style of IT. She touched on several examples of this – such as ConvergedSystem, Converged Storage, Moonshot, and HP’s big data software platforms – and alluded to the company’s foray into the world of 3D printing.

“HP has been the leader in bridging the physical and virtual world for more than 20 years, and we’re going to bring that to 3D,” she said.

She brought out some of HP’s clients, such as John Hinshaw, EVP, Technology and Operations, HP, and John Herbert, EVP and CIO, 20th Century Fox, to attest to how HP’s products and services have helped their operations run like a well-oiled machine.

She also sat down with Conservation International’s Sandy Andelman and Jorge Ahumada for a Q&A on how HP’s big data technology has been helping scientists save the tropical forests.

“Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard believed the company should create great products, but also make the world a better place,” she concluded. “We aim to be the most partner- and customer-centric business in the world.”

HP “SHARKS” SURFACE AT DISCOVER CONFERENCE IN BARCELONA BARCELONA, SPAIN – HP announced the third wave of virtualization at HP Discover this week, paving the way for more cost-effective and efficient data centres. Tom Joyce, SVP and GM, HP Converged Systems, unveiled a new line of products – also known as “Project Sharks” – which are built on Converged Infrastructure assets.

The 100, 300, and 700 models of ConvergedSystem provide enterprises an all-in-one solution for their data centre needs, including server, storage, and networking, and address the December 2013

| 12 |

demand for simplicity, speed, cost savings, and risk management. HP claims that ConvergedSystem’s capabilities are above and beyond what their competitors are offering with similar products.

“This is the place where we separate the men from the boys,” said Joyce, adding that although ConvergedSystem has fewer components, it offers “more compute power, more memory, and more things that do matter.”

App Maps simplify and secure applications running on the

The Canadian Channel Standard

ON LOCATION

Tom Joyce, SVP and GM, HP Converged Systems, introduces HP’s new ConvergedSystem.

platform, including those certified by VMware and Microsoft, and ConvergedSystem can be deployed in 20 days, the company says. As a result, partners will be able to take advantage of more revenue streams, such as the ability to create more deals with customers.

“With faster time to market, partners won’t have as much of their capital tied up in a few deals,” said Paul Miller, VP, Converged Systems, HP. “They can turn their cash over faster, create more capital, both human and financial, and move on to the next customer.”

ConvergedSystem 300 for Vertica, one of HP’s big data analytics platforms, boasts a performance speed of 50 to 1,000 times faster than traditional legacy storage, and at 70 per cent lower cost.

ConvergedSystem 100 – based on HP’s Moonshot server – offers six times faster graphics performance, at 44 per cent lower cost, for SMBs. Customers will also be able to take advantage of HP’s payas-you-go model, Flexible Capacity service, with prices starting at $2,250 per month and additional capacity starting at $550 per month.

HP DEBUTS A NEW LINE OF MOBILE WORKSTATIONS – INCLUDING ONE YOU CAN THROW ON THE GROUND BARCELONA, SPAIN – New generations of workers are increasingly asking for mobile workstations, and HP is listening.

“Anytime, anywhere workers increased from 15 per cent in 2011 to 29 per cent in 2012,” said Dion Weisler, EVP, Printing and Personal Systems, HP. “Employees increasingly need to be able to print from any device, and any location. They also want input into the tools they use, to the point that they’ll even pay out of pocket for it.”

At the Discover conference in Barcelona, the company unveiled a new line of mobility and printing solutions designed to meet the needs of both mobile professionals and the enterprises they work for.

“Employees want to have good connectivity, a sleek device, and the latest technology. Managers want data security, easy deployment and management, and global availability,” said Enrique Lores, SVP and GM, Business Personal Systems, HP, adding that “a balance needs to be found” between the two.

The products include the EliteBook Folio 1040, which HP claims is the lightest and most durable laptop in the world, the HP EliteDesk800 G1 Business Desktop Mini, the HP ProDesk 600 G1 Business Desktop Mini, and the HP Spectre 13 Pro, which was originally released in September.

“The most exciting product we introduced is the [EliteBook Folio 1040],” said Jeff Wood, VP, Worldwide Marketing, HP. “You can put the full weight of a human on it and it still works, and it opens up the secondary workspace again.”

Additionally, HP introduced the HP Classmate Notebook PC and HP Education Services, which will provide students around the world with better access to educational tools. The Classmate notebook provides students with video conferencing capabilities for guest lectures and field trips, and has a sturdy design for use in the field.

December 2013

David Scott, SVP and GM, HP Storage, with HP’s ConvergedSystem and Converged Storage offerings.

HP Education Services give teachers the training they need to use technology more effectively in the classroom, which will in turn produce a future workforce that is more skilled in IT. But mobility wasn’t the only card in HP’s hand. The company also introduced a new line of multi-function printers designed to reduce business costs, decrease environmental impact, mitigate risks, and support mobility.

The 900 series of laser printers is compatible with other HP printing products and services, including HP document and security solutions, providing customers with a unified printing environment in the workplace.

The line includes one monochrome laser printer – the MFP S956dn – and three colour printers – the HP Color MFP S951dn, the HP Color MFP S962dn, and the HP Color MFP S970dn.

“This isn’t just another device,” said Pradeep Jotwani, SVP, LaserJet and Enterprise Solutions, HP. “These fleets are managed in a consistent way. With the series 900, we have made it such that the same security, the same mobility, the same management, the same workflow, and the same connections are there. It’s an extension of our existing fleet.”

| 13 | The Canadian Channel Standard

ON LOCATION

HP USES BIG DATA TO SAVE THE TROPICAL FOREST BARCELONA, SPAIN – The planet’s tropical ecosystem is in trouble, and HP is here to help.

At a press conference in Barcelona on Dec. 10, the company introduced HP Earth Insights, a collaborative initiative between HP and Conservation International (CI) intended to speed up the data collection and analysis process in tropical forests around the world.

By leveraging the HP Vertica Analytics Platform and the Wildlife Picture Index Analytics System, HP helped deliver near-real-time data to CI scientists, whose access to data was previously hindered by limited scale and a lack of necessary technology.

“Analytics has transformed almost everything except the health of the planet,” said Sandy Andelman, SVP, Betty and Gordon Moore Center for Ecosystem Science and Economics (BGMC), and executive director, Vital Signs, CI. “In 2010, 193 countries couldn’t report on the health of their environments because they didn’t have the data. This is what Conservation International and Earth Insights are trying to fix.”

She hopes that by 2020 – the next time these countries have to report on their ecosystems – they will have the tools to do so.

“This is really a game-changer. HP technology is help-

ing us produce better results. It’s helping us take action right away, rather than waiting until bad things happen.

It’s an early-warning system,” said Jorge Ahumada, executive director, TEAM Network, BGMC, CI. “What used to take a team weeks or months can now be done by a single person in a matter of hours,” he added.

As a result of HP Earth Insights, CI scientists now have a clearer picture of animal populations in tropical forests. They found that 22 per cent of the 275 species being monitored are either significantly decreasing in population, or decreasing compared to baseline populations, while 33 species – or 12 per cent – have significantly decreased numbers. The data also projects that a number of insectivore populations are declining.

The news isn’t good, but scientists can use the data to inform global decision-makers on how best to proceed with conservation. Now that the data is near-real-time, scientists and governments will be alerted to declining populations before it is too late to do anything about it.

For now, the technology is only being used to collect data on tropical forests, but it can be applied to other industries, particularly health care, financial services, and the public sector.

THE HYBRID CLOUD IS THE FUTURE BARCELONA, SPAIN - The future of storage is in the cloud. HP unveiled its new cloud offerings at the Discover conference in Barcelona on Dec. 11 – the “biggest launch in cloud we have ever done,” according to Saar Gillai, SVP and GM, Converged Cloud, HP. The offerings will cater specifically to businesses using a hybrid cloud, which HP believes will be the business delivery model in the future.

“There has been significant debate in the market: is it going to be a public cloud or private cloud market?” said Kerry Bailey, SVP, Sales, HP Cloud. “The debate is over: it’s a hybrid cloud market.”

Yet according to Gillai, the main challenges faced by businesses looking to adopt cloud technologies are centred on security, management complexity, and interoperability.

HP’s new offerings are meant to address those challenges.

The next-generation HP CloudSystem with Cloud OS includes a redesigned, easily navigable interface, simplified management tools, and OpenStack. It can be deployed in a matter of hours rather than weeks, and it is compatible with other public cloud platforms, such as Microsoft Windows Azure, Arsys, and SFR. HP also introduced HP Hybrid Cloud Management Platform, a self-service marketplace portal that integrates HP Cloud Service Automation 4.0 and supports HP Cloud OS and OpenStack, providing for easier management of IT environments.

The company is also expanding its Virtual Private Cloud portfolio, which is based on OpenStack technology and provides users with a self-service window to choose among configurations, storage options, and network connectivity types.

December 2013

| 14 |

A visitor studies HP’s Earth Insights demonstrations in the Discover Zone.

“This lets customers run a legacy app in a cloud environment on a pay-as-you go model,” said Gillai.

To complete these new offerings, HP introduced HP Flexible Capacity, a solution that allows business owners to pay for extra data centre capacity only as it is needed.

It is built on a pay-as-you-go model, and supports legacy equipment to help customers migrate to the cloud.

“The heartbeat of IT is not able to keep up with the heartbeat of business,” said Scott Weller, VP and GM, Support, Technology Services, HP, adding that HP Flexible Capacity is intended to address this particular issue.

“It’s important to remember the HP promise to customers: choice and open. Enterprises require specific things, so when we talk about cloud enterprises, we talk about having the cloud your way,” said Gillai. “There is no one-sizefits-all in cloud. The reality is, there’s going to be multiple journeys, for every enterprise. We’re building the cloud enterprises can rely on.”

The Canadian Channel Standard

01001001 01100110 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00100000 01100011 01100001 01101110 00100000 01110010 01100101 01100001 01100100 00100000 01110100 01101000 01101001 01110011 00101100 00100000 01101111 01110101 01110010 00100000 01100011 01101100 01101001 01100101 01101110 01110100 01110011 00100000 01100001 01110010 01100101 00100000 01110011 01100101 01100001 01110010 01100011 01101000 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01100110 01101111 01110010 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00101110 If you can’t read this, we’ll connect you to the people who can.

4fmv.ca

The right candidates.

The right opportunities.

INDUSTRY ISSUES

Security threats to evolve and escalate in

2014

BY AMY ALLEN

T

he new year will soon be upon us, along with a host of new security threats. As technology evolves and enterprises get wise to the tactics of adversaries, cyber criminals will look for new ways to infiltrate and steal critical information. Websense, a company that specializes in security software, recently released its security predictions for 2014 – and Alex Watson, director of security research at Websense, sat down to talk to us about some of those predictions.

The predictions cast a wide net over an array of security issues that companies will be facing in 2014 – everything from malware to attacks on the cloud to mining for information on social media sites. We are familiar with attacks such as these, but in many cases, they look different than they did before, because adversaries will start using old tricks in new ways.

A break from traditional attack methods

While attackers have traditionally used indiscriminate tactics – such as malware – to mine for information, Websense believes they will begin to use targeted attacks in the coming year.

“The use of malware is becoming somewhat risky for them (attackers),” said Watson. “It’s in all likelihood going to be the first point where they’re detected. A lot of the time, attribution for attacks is based on the malware that they use.”

December 2013

| 16 |

Although the decrease in malware at first sounds like a positive development, the company cautions that targeted attacks can be more dangerous because they are more difficult to detect.

Moreover, Websense cautions against danger in the cloud.

The report suggests that enterprise clouds will be more appealing to attackers than traditional networks in the coming year.

Businesses are increasingly placing critical data in the cloud, and this presents a golden opportunity for attackers to mine for information – especially because there are fewer security controls for the cloud than there are on traditional networks.

“Look at businesses, and the type of information they put in the cloud,” said Watson. “Businesses are putting their most important information up there, using third-party programs, and they’re doing it for collaboration and the ability to work from anywhere. And in many cases, there isn’t the same level of security controls. From an attacker’s perspective, it’s a goldmine.”

Businesses that wish to avoid exploitation through the cloud should ensure that they have an extra layer of security and that the appropriate controls are in place for those authorized to access data in the cloud.

Data destruction

It has also predicted that a major data-destruction attack will The Canadian Channel Standard

INDUSTRY ISSUES

Alex Watson, director, security research, Websense

“BUSINESSES ARE PUTTING THEIR MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION UP THERE, USING THIRD-PARTY PROGRAMS, AND THEY’RE DOING IT FOR COLLABORATION AND THE ABILITY TO WORK FROM ANYWHERE. AND IN MANY CASES, THERE ISN’T THE SAME LEVEL OF SECURITY CONTROLS.”

occur in 2014 – mostly against high-profile, publicly visible companies, at the hands of hacker groups eager to grab public attention.

“Right now, you have politically-motivated groups that are mostly just trying to get their name out there and to create awareness,” Watson said. “They’ve done that by compromising sites like Twitter or hijacking accounts, things like that. I think people are getting increasingly aware [of cyber attacks], and even starting to tune out when those types of attacks happen.”

Watson cited the August 2012 attack on Aramco, Saudi Arabia’s national oil company, by a group called the Cutting Sword of Justice as one example of a politically-motivated strike that caused serious damage to a company’s operations.

Although the attack failed to stop oil production, it damaged approximately 30,000 computers and shut the company’s internal network down for a week as it worked to recover from the virus. It remains one of the worst cyber attacks against an enterprise in recent history.

“The prediction we made about major data-destruction is based around these politically-motivated groups that are trying to make a statement, to remain in the public eye,” Watson continued. “That it absolutely is possible to destroy data, and it definitely grabs public attention when it does.”

The more things change…

Java has always been an easily-exploitable application. This trend will continue in 2014, as organizations neglect to patch or update their software despite reports of numerous successful exploitations in 2013.

Flash and other web-kits that, like Java, are popular and infrequently updated will be another source of grief for businesses, as adversaries will look to them for easy exploitation in 2014.

Websense encourages companies to either patch their applications or simply uninstall Java when it’s not in use.

December 2013

Switching gears on social media

The predictions report also touched on the increaased use of social media in attacks, although Websense notes that adversaries will turn their focus to LinkedIn rather than Facebook and Twitter in 2014.

With LinkedIn, adversaries can glean information about businesses and provide a direct channel for the delivery of malware. They can create counterfeit accounts that look real and lure professionals into clicking through to malicious websites.

“LinkedIn and things like that are a goldmine of information for attackers to learn about inherent trust relationships between businesses,” said Watson. “What they’re taking advantage of in those types of attacks is people, so I recommend security awareness programs that train [employees] to think twice before opening an executable that comes in an email.”

What’s a company to do?

The report – and Watson’s recommendations – highlight the fact that traditional security software is no longer enough to protect data from adversaries. It still has its place in enterprise security, of course, but executives must build a more complete, end-to-end solution that defends every gateway an attacker could use to access company information.

And as always, software is never the only answer. Employee training is imperative when it comes to protecting data – especially at a time when adversaries are so quick to find new exploits, and when BYOD and other technological advancements have opened up new avenues of attack.

“Companies need to evolve how they look at security,” Watson said. “It’s not boundary protection anymore. Instead of this big focus on protecting infrastructure and creating a wall that no one can get through, the important thing is to identify where data is in the network and place protection mechanisms to keep that from being stolen.”

| 17 | The Canadian Channel Standard

TRACKER NETWORKS

DISTRACTIONS

BY CHANNEL STANDARD STAFF

Six technological advancements for 2014

In this issue, we talked about some of the trends IT executives think businesses will be seeing in the coming year. Inc. magazine had some mobility predictions of its own to share – like the real possibility that automobile manufacturers will soon produce cars with full-sized tablet displays.

As for the other five?

1. The curved phone, currently available only in Korea, may soon make its debut in the rest of the world.

2. Small cells for wireless will increasingly be placed in public areas to increase bandwidth and ensure that hundreds of connections in public places won’t weaken signals.

3. Retailers will start to take advantage of Li-Fi, which uses frequencies from lights to transmit signals to a user’s phone, to market more efficiently to their customers in-store. It could also be used on planes!

4. We will soon be able to pay for our purchases wirelessly at stores.

5. The Ubuntu phone will soon be upon us, and the company claims its OS will run faster than Android.

France to block video-streaming sites from search results

The BBC reported that a court in France is cracking down on pirate sites. The court has ordered Google, Microsoft and Yahoo to block 16 sites that stream videos from their search results. The High Court in Paris ruled that the video streaming sites broke French intellectual property laws and were dedicated to streaming content without the permission of their owners.

The case was brought before the court by five groups of film companies, distributors and producers. Some Internet service providers were also ordered to block the sites. In the next two weeks, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo must ensure that the blocked pages will not be found in their search results. ISPs, including Orange, were also ordered to prevent users from accessing the sites. Google has said it is disappointed with the court’s ruling.

December 2013

| 18 |

You never know who’s watching

MacBook and iMac owners: you could be on candid camera.

In a story first reported in the Washington Post, a group of researchers at Johns Hopkins University published a paper in which they disabled the MacBook’s webcam LED, meaning it can turn on without users even realizing it’s on. The researchers in the University’s Department of Computer Science were able to bypass the hardware interlock between camera sensor and the LED light. Worrisomely, the attack didn’t require administratorlevel privileges or physical access to the laptop. As of now, it only affects MacBooks and iMacs that were made before 2008, with iSight cameras built in.

There are at least two fixes for this problem: Apple’s Gatekeeper could be updated to deny untrusted applications access to the camera, and the researchers have designed a solution for the operating system that would disallow the hacking instructions from being sent to the camera. Alternatively, a low-tech solution: root out a Band-Aid and physically cover up your camera.

How much your stolen credit card is worth

Dell SecureWorks recently examined the underground hacking economy. In a post published on their Security and Compliance blog, Dell SecureWorks looked at the going rate for stolen credit card details.

Stolen details for Visa and MasterCard (US) go for $4, while an American Express goes for $7. Canadian Visa and Master Cards went for $7 to $8, and an American Express card from Canada went for $12. The prices are so low in part because it appears that there is an abundance of stolen credit card details available on the black market. Hackers are having to cut prices in order to sell them before the credit cards expire or financial institutions terminate the cards.

Additionally, as credit card numbers and the corresponding CVV code (the three or four-digit code on your card) are sometimes not enough, hackers are also selling cardholders’ dates of birth and even possibly their social security numbers.

The Canadian Channel Standard

o to et se os lo c cl

& s& bs ub p pu

S RESTO

R

e ve tiiv ut cu ec xe e ex

ES SUI T

S

e he th ot to st ns miin 2 2m

WAY ENS E U Q

Q

dhin s be nly ting e o e as ft m e le nw ay!

Howntowocks aw d l wb A fe

THE

SURPRISING DOWNTOWN OTTAWA HOTEL YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED.

377 O'CONNOR STREET, OTTAWA, ONTARIO

1-800-465-7275 WWW.VICTORIAPARK.COM

Really,

ReallyBig Hotel Suites.

The moment.You know it.

It happens any time you stay at a new hotel, right after you swipe your room key. The moment before you open the door. Will the room be big, or small? Light, or dark?

Nice, or not?

and feature real bedrooms, real kitchens and real living rooms. And they don’t cost any more than those of our competitors. Really, why would you stay any place else?

Here’s what you’ll find the moment you open your door at Albert at Bay—space, and lots of it. Our suites are the biggest in Ottawa

DOWNTOWN OTTAWA

435 ALBERT STREET

613.238.8858

RESERVATIONS 800.267.6644 ALBERTATBAY.COM

THE ITSY, BITSY, TEENIE, WEENIE, P-208 WIRELESS SCAN-TINI Small scanner. Big features.

Powered by a single-USB or the optional Wi-Fi and battery unit, the imageFORMULA P-208 Scan-tini scans documents, business cards, and even photos at 8 pages per minute.

Combine the P-208 with the Wi-Fi unit to wirelessly scan directly to your smart phone, tablet or desktop PC. Canon's CaptureOnTouch Mobile app allows for scanning directly to your iPhone®, iPad® or Android® device. This free app is available for both iOS and Android devices.

For more information or to request a demo, please visit

www.canon.ca/contactus

Canon is a registered trademark of Canon Inc. imageFORMULAis a trademark of Canon Inc. © 2013 Canon Canada Inc.

WITH ONE ACCESSORY YOU GET UNLIMITED HOTSPOTS.