russia

Are you ready for a foreign cyber attack?

Judi Hasson — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 12:32:59 -0400

The Internet attacks on Georgia by the Russians as their ground troops swept into that country are a clear signal of the danger that the U.S. computer systems could face. U.S. security experts say China and Russia could pose a serious cyber threat, with a recent Department of Defense report concluding that China views cyber war as part of the first strike.

The question is whether the U.S. is prepared. U.S. officials told a Senate committee earlier this year that the federal government and private sector are, in fact, not ready for cyber attacks. General James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, last year said China is carrying out widespread reconnaissance of America's networks while Scott Borg, director of the independent U.S. Cyber Consequences Unit, has said the U.S. is ready for physical attacks, but not from computer systems.

For more on this threat:
- check out this CIO-Today article

Get hip to IT alignment

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 06:59:58 -0400

IT alignment will save you money if you know what you are doing. But plenty of CIOs don't have a clue what IT alignment really is. Once they get it, they will understand that they can use this technique to strategically build business value. Here's how to make it work:

Develop a written list of the company's strategic business goals.
Plan to redeploy IT.
Audit a completed project.
Get other C-level executives on board to use IT as a strategic catalyst.

For more on using IT alignment:
- See this CIO Magazine article

For more tech stories from the Fierce CIO network:
> Firewire gets faster but not fast enough. Article
> Layoff watch: Symantec. Article
> In Russia, BlackBerry eats you. Article

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> Russia: No. 1 in malware. Article
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And Finally... How many CIOs does it take to screw in a lightbulb? Article

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Tue, 19 Feb 2008 06:59:50 -0500

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U.S. ranked as world's No. 1 tech user

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 06:59:59 -0500

A new study finds that the United States, Sweden and Japan are the leading countries using technologies such as networks, cell phones and computers to increase social and economic prosperity. The study, called the Connectivity Scorecard, was created by London Business School professor Leonard Waverman. It measures countries based on 30 indicators, including usage of communications technology and how much money was invested in those technologies. The study said that the top-ranking United States had a 7 out of 10 rating, hurt by weak usage of broadband networks. It also looked at developing countries where Russia topped the list, far ahead of China and India.

For more on the U.S., and other tech scores:
- See this Red Orbit article

Global IT spending expected to drop in '08

Mon, 10 Dec 2007 06:59:59 -0500

Global IT spending is expected to slow down in 2008, according to a new report from research firm IDC. The report says that total worldwide IT spending will grow from 5.5 percent to 6 percent, down from 6.9 percent in 2007. And there are plenty of reasons for the slowdown, including open development and using just about everything as a service. "In 2008, the era of experimentation will end as industry leaders get serious about transforming their products and services to take advantage of--and meet the challenges posed by--these new technologies and business models," said Frank Gens, IDC's senior vice president of research.

The IDC report suggests that software companies will focus more heavily on developing markets, redoubling their efforts in the so-called "BRIC" nations (Brazil, Russia, India and China), as well as nine other emerging areas with nascent tech economies. Another change coming down the road is the adoption of online delivery models for applications. That market is one of the sectors expected to grow substantially, the report says. So if you are expecting the status quo, hold that thought. Every CIO should stay alert for change because it's in the wind.

For more on the temperature of the global IT market:
- Check out this CIOUpdate Article

Sun's Schwartz targets emerging markets

Tue, 04 Sep 2007 06:59:59 -0400

Sun Microsystems CEO Jonathan Schwartz was in Brazil last week confirming his belief that the emerging markets of Brazil, Russia, India and China deserve to be directly on his radar. While in the land of the Samba, Schwartz credited Brazil with encouraging Sun to open up Java. "The open source effort was driven by a country," he said, noting that the Brazilian government would not consider buying any technology that was not open-source. IT spending in these countries is growing by double digits in 2007: 12.5 percent in Brazil; 16 percent in China; 18.7 percent in Russia; and 21 percent in India, according to an IDC report. By 2050, these emerging markets will account for 44 percent of the global GDP. Schwartz said that the market is no longer defined and driven by technology firms but, rather, by the masses.

For more on these new market trends:
- read the article at Internetnews.com

Sourcing innovation globally

Sun, 15 Apr 2007 20:01:39 -0400

When it comes to sourcing innovation, CIOs have several choices, including putting the entire creative burden on the internal team and buying technology from the outside. A third option, however, is more promising. By going global, CIOs have access to some of today's most innovate IT thinking. Find these new thinkers by establishing close relationships with the venture capital community, because VCs invest money in what they believe are good bets in the technology arena. If you can't do it internally, consider turning to an external source, such as the IBM Venture Capital Group. By doing that, you'll gain access to creative business models and technologies. Great countries to explore include China, Israel, Russia and India.

Read more about sourcing innovation globally:
- read the article at Optimize

ALSO:
- read this on what innovation is really all about
- and this about innovation equaling success for CIOs

Russia prepares for cyber crime wave

Wed, 13 Dec 2006 19:01:35 -0500

Russian tech leaders are bracing for what may be a new era of cyber terrorism, with hackers aiming to take down the country's technology infrastructure. The scariest fact is that Russia's own leaders don't believe that they're very well equipped to deal with such attacks, despite describing the threat as the "most important problem" to deal with in the future. As one Russian computing expert says, the country's security level at this point is just "average."

For more on Russia's impending cyber security issues:
- read the article at CIO magazine

India losing its outsourcing luster?

Mon, 11 Dec 2006 19:01:37 -0500

India, is starting to lose its luster as an outsourcing post, thanks to a severe talent shortage and increasing competition for skilled IT professionals. That's why more than a few outsourcers are now looking elsewhere--including Vietnam, Russia and Mexico--for operation centers. Increasing salary levels are prompting the big outsourcing players to expand their horizons within India as well--moving away from the tech hub formerly known as Bangalore.

For more on the outsourcing issues in play:
- read the report at BusinessWeek

Related Article: How outsourcing impacts defense systems. Article