Tenable Announces Cloud-Based General Availability of Predictive Prioritization in Tenable.io

Tenable, Inc., the Cyber Exposure company, has announced Predictive Prioritization is now generally available within Tenable.io - its cloud-based vulnerability management platform and a core component of the Tenable Cyber Exposure platform. Predictive Prioritization is a ground-breaking innovation for solving the vulnerability prioritization problem, enabling organizations to dramatically improve their remediation efforts by focusing on the 3 percent of vulnerabilities that are most likely to be exploited.

Attempting to prioritize vulnerabilities with CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) alone presents significant limitations. According to the National Vulnerability Database, there were 16,500 new vulnerabilities disclosed in 2018 alone, but only a small subset had a public exploit available and even fewer were actually leveraged by attackers. However, the majority of vulnerabilities scored through CVSS are rated 'high' or 'critical.' This creates an overload of high-priority vulnerabilities and one of the most difficult challenges organizations face today.

Predictive Prioritization addresses this industry-wide problem by re-prioritizing vulnerabilities based on the probability they willbe leveraged in an attack. Tenable.io now automatically displays a Vulnerability Priority Rating (VPR) that indicates the remediation priority of each flaw, along with VPR Key Drivers, which provide enhanced context into how scores are calculated. Both features are dynamic and change with the threat landscape, arming security teams with actionable insight into their true level of business risk.

"The release of Predictive Prioritization across Tenable's Cyber Exposure platform is the latest phase of our mission to redefine vulnerability management for the digital era. We're helping customers solve one of the most difficult challenges in the industry today," said Renaud Deraison, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Tenable. "Predictive Prioritization flips the advantage back to cyber defenders by telling them where they're exposed, to what extent and which vulnerabilities to focus on first. These are all critical components of an effective Cyber Exposure strategy."

This latest release follows the general availability of Predictive Prioritization in Tenable.sc (formerly SecurityCenter), making Tenable's Cyber Exposure platform the only one to provide predictive capabilities for on-premises and cloud deployments.

Qonnections Global Conference in Dallas Brings the Qlik World Together

Qlik has announced that the company is expecting a record number of attendees to be on hand for Qonnections 2019, May 13-16 at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center in Dallas, TX. The conference brings together Qlik customers, partners, influencers and data enthusiasts to help users learn and better capitalize on how to use data to innovate and transform their organizations.

What:

Qonnections 2019 focuses on providing customers and partners with the knowledge and best practices they need to lead with data, through Qlik’s end-to-end platform that blends data management and analytics to address the entire data supply chain. CEO Mike Capone will share Qlik’s strategic vision and roadmap, showcasing how Qlik is helping customers tackle their most difficult data challenges while driving the 3rd generation of BI and analytics.

Additional keynote presentations will showcase how Qlik customers are transforming with a holistic and unified, strategic approach to data and analytics through Qlik. These customers are empowering users to transform the whole organization, going from raw data to democratized insights with Qlik. Special focus will be given to how various unique aspects of Qlik’s portfolio are enabling these transformations, including: multi-cloud, self-service for data, how big data is just data, accelerating insights through augmented intelligence, and the ability to capture insights from any part of the organization. Qlik Sense®, QlikView® and Qlik Data Catalyst® trainings and certification exams will also be offered.

Lindsey Vonn, Olympic gold medalist, world-record World Cup ski winner, author and LV Foundation founder will be giving a fireside chat discussing how passion helped her overcome challenges and shaped her approach to leadership.

Data Literacy experts Alan Schwarz, Ben Jones and others will join Qlik Global Head of Data Literacy Jordan Morrow in a roundtable on the importance of data literacy, how far the movement has come since the launch of the Data Literacy Project and what leading organizations need to do to make sure they correctly empower their workforce with the data skills necessary to lead.

Customer and partner presenters will appear from companies like Genuine Parts, Lenovo, Humana, Nemours and Amerigas. The complete list can be viewed at the following link: https://www.qlikqonnections.com/sessions/2019-sessions/.

The Qonnections Data Discovery Zone will feature more than 35 sponsoring partners and exhibitors that will showcase their value-add solutions and services for Qlik products. Diamond sponsors include Accenture, Cognizant and SDG Group.

“We are honored to be a Diamond Sponsor in the year of our 10th anniversary partnering with Qlik and making it possible for Organizations to Lead with Data,” said Alejandro Martinez, Partner, CEO USA & Canada, SDG Group. “SDG Group is one of the Global Gartner Representative Vendors for Data & Analytics, and we believe in Data as a Transformational Asset (D.A.T.A), and support the whole Data Value Chain from Data Capture to Business Insights. SDG Group will be showcasing how customers can accelerate analytics projects with dedicated solutions and help bring innovative components to Qlik solutions.”

Qlik Hack Challenge. A highly anticipated annual event, this hackathon uncovers the very best app building skills and development talent using Qlik APIs, Qlik Core and code. This year we’re calling on developers to participate in the “There is no Planet B” challenge, where data will be provided by Qlik corporate responsibility partner the United Nations (UN) and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Qlik and the UN challenge the community to create a solution to reduce travel-related carbon dioxide emissions. Every hackathon participant will have access to Qlik Branch®, a collaborative developer workspace and community, and support from internal Qlik experts moderating the event.

Qlik Late Night Lunacy. At the Late Night Lunacy event, teams consisting of Qlik Sense and QlikView insight experts will also participate in the “There is no Planet B” challenge. For the first time, these teams will also build their world-changing solutions prior to Qonnections. At the event, teams will be able to improve their applications, ask the experts for advice and then present their solution for reduced travel-related carbon dioxide emissions.

JSA Advises Conneqt Business Solutions and Quess Corp in its Acquisition of Allsec Techn

J.Sagar Associates (JSA) advised Conneqt Business Solutions Limited (Acquirer) along with Quess Corp Limited (PAC) in its acquisition of a controlling stake in Allsec Technologies Limited from Mr. Ramamoorthy Jagadish and Mr. Adiseshan Saravanan (Promoters) and First Carlyle Ventures Mauritius (Carlyle).

The transaction is valued at approximately Rs. 271 crores and will be followed by an open offer for an additional 26 pc stake in Allsec.

Allsec is an Indian company with subsidiaries in USA and Philippines which provides business process solutions across various industry verticals.

The Acquirer will buy majority of the Promoters shares and Carlyle's shares followed by a mandatory open offer for 26 per cent shares.

JSA team comprised Partners – Vikram Raghani, Raj Ramachandran and Anand Lakra; Principal Associate – Rakki K; Senior Associates – Sindhu Nayak and Abhilash Chandran, Associates - Ami Shah and Khamir Kamdar.

Private Equity Still Votes for Commercial Real Estate in Major Cities

If the prolonged slowdown in the residential was not bad enough to begin with, major policy overhauls over the last five years – DeMo, RERA, GST, amendments in the Benami Transactions Act etc. – literally paralysed the residential segment.

While any policy change brings with it some amount of teething pains, the residential segment took a prolonged hit because it had attracted the bulk of black money in the sector. Commercial real estate was far less affected, if at all.

Residential was also far less organized than the commercial office segment. Largely driven by IT/ITeS and BFSI sectors, the commercial real estate segment has been quite transparent and predictable – the primary criteria for foreign investors’ confidence.

Commercial Vs. Residential – No Contest

Various Government-driven policies including ease of doing business in India are attracting both Indian and global companies, squarely benefiting commercial real estate. Big-bang boosters like the start-up revolution and the Make in India and Smart Cities missions have created a very lucrative environment for businesses to work and expand in India.

The demand for high-quality office spaces in India has never been higher. The residential sector, on the other hand, continues to struggle with problems that the commercial segment does not share.

Moreover, high-quality office space developers largely deal with prosperous multi-nationals who, apart from having deep pockets, have zero tolerance for opacity. They are also very exacting in their requirements, which naturally leads to the highest-possible product quality.

Residential developers are engaged in a B2C business largely defined by customers looking for the lowest possible prices. While reputed developers do ensure product quality regardless of their customers’ budget bandwidth, the bulk of Indian builders cut corners wherever possible to keep their projects affordable.

Another advantage that the commercial property sector enjoys is that office properties are primarily leased out rather than sold, which leaves far less scope for dodgy activities. The residential sector is primarily driven by sales. Compared to the lease yields for office spaces at 12-14% per annum, rental yields for housing are negligible 2.5-3.5% per annum in a best-case scenario.

The funding crunch that has crippled the residential sector has not seriously impacted the office sector. In fact, India’s first REIT listing and those to follow have opened up massive potential for increased liquidity infusions into Indian office spaces. Commercial real estate also remains largely unaffected by the dynamics that affect the residential segment, such as interest rate fluctuation, income tax breaks and even election sentiment.

While residential developers have had to curtail their supply pipeline to avoid exacerbating the already massive unsold housing inventory situation, REITs and the rapidly decreasing vacancy levels in Grade A office projects have prompted commercial real estate developers to increase their supply pipeline.

In the face of all this evidence, the commercial versus residential equation would appear to be a no-brainer. However, as in most matters related to real estate, it is not as simple as that. In many ways, it like trying to compare apples and oranges using the same yardstick.

An Inherently Different Asset Class

Commercial real estate is driven by leasing because this is a far more beneficial model for developers than selling them. High rental yields do not imply high sale value, because the demand for leased office spaces is much higher than for outright ownership of the same properties.

If a commercial space developer opts for outright sale, his top-line increases immediately. By leasing out the project instead, he can look forward to a very attractive bottom-line because of steadily increasing rental yields over the years.

Also, with REITs now a reality, developers can follow a predictable exit mechanism once the project is ready and operational, providing maximum returns on investment.

As per ANAROCK data, office rentals remained steady in 2018, with a marginal rise of 3% over the previous year. More importantly, however, the average vacancy levels reduced from 15.4% in 2016 to nearly 14.47% in 2018. Not surprisingly, vacancy was the least in Bangalore with mere 3.4% in 2018.

2019 will continue to see commercial real estate supply gain momentum on the back of vastly increased interest from PE players who are actively pumping in funds into this segment. As per ANAROCK data, the commercial segment saw a total PE inflow of nearly USD 2.8 bn in 2018, up from USD 2.20 bn in 2017.

In fact, if we analyse PE trends over the last few years, the commercial segment saw total PE inflows of nearly USD 7.4 bn between 2015 and 2018. In the same period, the residential sector drew just USD 2.9 bn. This clearly reflects the interest of PE players – both global and domestic.

The major differences between commercial and residential real estate in terms of performance – and indeed as investment asset classes - are quite apparent. Certainly, private equity investors are quite certain of which segment they are more comfortable with in the current Indian market scenario.

Will residential regain its numero uno position on the Indian real estate bestseller list in the future? If it does, there is certainly a long way to go before it happens. More so, it cannot happen on the basis of end-user sales alone – it can only happen if and when investors, both individual and institutional, become sufficiently interested in the Indian housing story once again.

Worldwide IT Spending to Grow 1.1 Percent in 2019: Gartner

Worldwide IT spending is projected to total $3.79 trillion in 2019, an increase of 1.1 percent from 2018, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc.

“Currency headwinds fueled by the strengthening U.S. dollar have caused us to revise our 2019 IT spending forecast down from the previous quarter,” said John-David Lovelock, research vice president at Gartner. “Through the remainder of 2019, the U.S. dollar is expected to trend stronger, while enduring tremendous volatility due to uncertain economic and political environments and trade wars.

“In 2019, technology product managers will have to get more strategic with their portfolio mix by balancing products and services that will post growth in 2019 with those larger markets that will trend flat to down,” said Mr. Lovelock. “Successful product managers in 2020 will have had a long-term view to the changes made in 2019.”

The data center systems segment will experience the largest decline in 2019 with a decrease of 2.8 percent (see Table 1). This is mainly due to expected lower average selling prices (ASPs) in the server market driven by adjustments in the pattern of expected component costs.

The shift of enterprise IT spending from traditional (noncloud) offerings to new, cloud-based alternatives is continuing to drive growth in the enterprise software market. In 2019, the market is forecast to reach $427 billion, up 7.1 percent from $399 billion in 2018. The largest cloud shift has so far occurred in application software. However, Gartner expects increased growth for the infrastructure software segment in the near-term, particularly in integration platform as a service (iPaaS) and application platform as a service (aPaaS).

“The choices CIOs make about technology investments are essential to the success of digital business. Disruptive emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), will reshape business models as well as the economics of public- and private-sector enterprises. AI is having a major effect on IT spending, although its role is often misunderstood,” said Mr. Lovelock. “AI is not a product, it is really a set of techniques or a computer engineering discipline. As such, AI is being embedded in many existing products and services, as well as being central to new development efforts in every industry. Gartner’s AI business value forecast predicts that organizations will receive $1.9 trillion worth of benefit from the use of AI this year alone.”

More detailed analysis on the outlook for the IT industry is available in the complimentary webinar “IT Spending Forecast, 1Q19 Update: AI — Use it, Build it or Sell it.”

Gartner’s IT spending forecast methodology relies heavily on rigorous analysis of sales by thousands of vendors across the entire range of IT products and services. Gartner uses primary research techniques, complemented by secondary research sources, to build a comprehensive database of market size data on which to base its forecast.

The Gartner quarterly IT spending forecast delivers a unique perspective on IT spending across the hardware, software, IT services and telecommunications segments. These reports help Gartner clients understand market opportunities and challenges. The most recent IT spending forecast research is available to Gartner clients in “Gartner Market Databook, 1Q19 Update.” This quarterly IT Spending Forecast page includes links to the latest IT spending reports, webinars, blog posts and press releases.

Mr. Lovelock will provide further analysis on the key drivers of the IT market at the Gartner Tech Growth & Innovation Conference taking place June 3-5 in San Diego, CA and June 12-13 in London. The conference is the premier event for technology providers to learn about the latest trends and tools, innovation predictions, positioning and thought leadership.

Financial Cybercrime and Identity Theft in India are Increasing in 2019: FIS PACE Report

Key facts:

* 2019 FIS PACE study finds that financial frauds' share of victims has doubled to 37 percent of respondents year-over-year

* Half of all consumers aged 27-37 experienced fraud during last year

* 96 percent of consumers who were victimized during last year had switched to mobile apps

A new research released today from FIS (NYSE: FIS), a global leader in financial services technology, found that financial fraud has grown substantially since last year, with the share of victims doubling to 37 percent of respondents, and all age segments falling victim to fraudsters. Age group of 27 to 37 has been most impacted by financial fraud than other age groups.
FIS' fifth annual PACE report highlights that Indians have embraced digital transactions, but they are yet to learn the do's and don'ts of sharing personal information, as social engineering and phishing emails are rampant.

There is a dramatic correlation in India between booming adoption of mobile apps, digital payments and increasing rate of financial fraud. 96 percent of Indian consumers who were victimized by financial fraud during the last year had switched to a mobile app and digital payments, from cash as mode of payment, significantly impacting the country's efforts towards financial integration.

"In the current digital banking landscape, it is imperative that the banks enhance investments in security, fraud prevention and customer education. Just as importantly, it can also enhance trustworthiness, which is currently consumers' top priority while banking. Customers' trust in their banks is not just a feeling or an emotion but an objective decision based on a number of expectations. However, banks can earn customers' trust if they focus on safe and secure transactions, fraud prevention and privacy of personal information," said Ramaswamy Venkatachalam, Managing Director, FIS, India.

The other interesting findings of the report are as follows:

Mobile apps drive engagement and innovation

Banks can no longer treat branches as their only channel to provide personalized service and engage customers. Mobile apps now serve as the digital 'face' for many banks, and a record 41 percent of bank interactions are now performed via mobile device. Mobile has become the default banking channel across all age groups. Looking ahead, Indian consumers want banks to invest in password-free and biometric-based banking, voice banking and wallets. 9 in 10 Indian consumers are interested in social media engagement from their PFIs.

Mobile Payments Are Now Mainstream

While cash and cards are still the preferred way to pay, mobile payments are rapidly gaining traction, especially among Gen Yers (18-26) who are a prime audience for banking providers. In fact, India is far ahead of the U.S., U.K. and Germany in mobile payment adoption. Convenience and a user-friendly interface, coupled with rapidly improving, low cost mobile data connectivity and merchant acceptance, are driving the growth of mobile payments. Mobile wallets that offer cash back and other incentives, are also spurring adoption. UPI 2.0 is also a boon for merchants, as it supports the use of an overdraft account and the verification of invoices prior to payments, moving mobile payments squarely into the Small and Medium Enterprise segment.

Public Sector Banks Leap Ahead in Customer Satisfaction

Customers of top 50 global banks and private sector banks are less satisfied than they were in 2018. However, public sector banks, traditionally seen as slow to react - saw their proportion of 'extremely satisfied' customers climb considerably, rocketing from the worst-performing category to the best. It's clear that innovation is no longer restricted to a certain set of banks. About 28 percent of young Gen Yers (18-26) and 35 percent of older consumers (53+) are not satisfied with their banks.

About FIS

FIS is a global leader in financial services technology, with a focus on retail and institutional banking, payments, asset and wealth management, risk and compliance, and outsourcing solutions. Through the depth and breadth of our solutions portfolio, global capabilities and domain expertise, FIS serves more than 20,000 clients in over 130 countries. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, FIS employs more than 47,000 people worldwide and holds leadership positions in payment processing, financial software and banking solutions. Providing software, services and outsourcing of the technology that empowers the financial world, FIS is a Fortune 500 company and is a member of Standard & Poor's 500 Index. For more information about FIS, visit https://www.fisglobal.com.

Fortis Hospitals Conducts Robotic Cancer Surgery Workshop to Train Surgeons on Advanced Surgical Modalities

Fortis Hospitals conducts a workshop on Head & Neck Robotic Onco-surgery, MASOCON-2019 to impart best of knowledge and understanding around advanced surgical modalities of treatment in the oncology vertical for surgeons. Around 150 surgeons took part in the workshop headed by Dr. Sandeep Nayak, Consultant- Surgical Oncology, Fortis Hospitals, Bangalore and a few thousand watched it online worldwide.

The workshop transmitted live specialized surgeries called Robotic Assisted Breast-Axillo Insufflated Thyroidectomy (RABIT) & Robotic Minimally Invasive Neck Dissection (R-MIND) for oral cancer, which is newly devised surgeries by Dr. Sandeep Nayak. These are being demonstrated for the first time in the world in this workshop.

The theme of the workshop was ‘Old Territory, New Approach’ which focused on robotic surgery for oral cancer, throat cancer and thyroid surgeries which are some of the most common cancers in India. These procedures were included in the workshop since they have benefitted many patients and needs to percolate well in the medical fraternity.

Dr. Sandeep Nayak said “With the rapid development in technology we have better and advanced equipment available to doctors. The doctors need to learn to use these to the best advantage of the patients. Robotic-assisted surgeries have extensively helped doctors in enhancing the capabilities for performing surgeries with more precision and a magnified view. Through this workshop, we wanted to train the surgeons on newer treatment methods using robotics in the field of head and neck oncology which would be of great help to them in their field.”