Big Data will grow past its hype by 2016: Gartner

Big Data will grow past its hype towards 2016 to become “just data” once the technologies mature, and organizations learn how to deal with it, according to Gartner, Inc. While data is regularly defined by the dimensions of volume, velocity and variety, information management concerns must be much broader.

“The bottom line is that not all information requires a Big Data approach,” said Frank Buytendijk, research vice president at Gartner. “The new “Big Data way’ is not going to replace all other forms of information management. There is more room - and need - for experimentation in the area of ‘information of innovation,’ for instance with social media data, or by making processes more information-centric.”

Buytendijk said that it’s important that organizations understand that Big Data isn't the only stream of innovation in information management. The industry is in the middle of what Gartner calls 'The Nexus of Forces”, and it is in the combination mobile, social, cloud and information innovation where new opportunities arise.

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Facebook starts first servers outside US

Facebook says it has started processing data through its first server farm outside the United States, on the edge of the Arctic Circle in Sweden.

The company inaugurated servers in its new, 300,000-square foot (28,000-square meter) facility outside the city Lulea, saying it should improve the social network's performance in Europe. 

Facebook director of site operations Tom Furlong said the servers will serve a large chunk of Facebook's European users. 

Facebook is one of nine major US internet providers whose customers' usage is swept up every day by an NSA counterterror surveillance program. The secret court order that authorizes the program, named PRISM, only allows it to examine foreigners' internet usage overseas. 

Furlong said the data stored in Sweden is replicated in other locations in the US.

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8 steps CIOs should take to maximize BYOD ROI

The popularity of smartphone devices and tablets with employees is making a mark with more employees opting to use their own device at work. Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) is an employee-driven movement that is transforming enterprise workspaces today. The use of these personal smartphones and tablets by employees at workplace is challenging organizations with the risk of data security. Organizations need to strike a balance between the benefits obtained by employees using their own mobile devices and the risks of data security. 

A major driver for BYOD implementations in an organization is the increased productivity due to improved collaboration, which, in turn, results in increased employee satisfaction. The choice for the organization is to adopt BYOD right away, or get forced to adopt it over a period of time – it is not something that can be wished away and will hit every organization sooner or later. 

For enterprises looking to set out on a journey towards BYOD, the following steps need to be taken systematically for successful rollout and high level

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Most people fail to protect their smartphones against theft: Study

Ninety-two per cent of music festival goers are more likely to bring a smartphone to an event than cash or ID, but many fail to guard against loss or theft, an industry survey indicated.

Symantec, maker of Norton security software, quizzed 6,500 adults in 11 countries who have attended big music events at least twice in the last two years to gauge the role of smartphones in their festival-going experience.

"We found that mobile devices have never been more crucial to their (festival) experience," Norton's Internet safety advocate Marian Merritt told AFP in a telephone interview.

One in five said they used their devices to present their admission tickets, and one in 10 reported using their smartphone as a digital wallet to buy festival-related merchandise such as T-shirts.

However, 31 per cent admitted failing to password-protect their smartphones, even if 35 per cent have had their devices stolen, lost or misplaced -- more likely than not on public transport.

Furthermore, among those who downloaded event-specific apps, one in four reported getting deluged with spam afterwards.

Regionally, having a smartphone at a festival was most important in Australia, Brazil, China, Japan and Mexico, Merritt said, while theft was the leading cause of smartphone loss in Brazil, China and Mexico.

North Americans were least cautious when it came to taking precautions such as password protection and special apps to combat malware. Latin Americans were most prudent on that score.

"We're very curious about our customers as they migrate more and more of their behavior to the mobile world," Merritt said, but "we've got to get people to consider the possibility that their phone will be lost or stolen."

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Samsung launches Galaxy S4 variant with 16MP camera

Just a week after launching a waterproof version of its flagship Galaxy S4, Samsung has unveiled another iteration of the handset, this time with an upgraded camera. The new device, named Galaxy S4 zoom, features a 16MP rear camera with 10X optical zoom with xenon flash on the back. This new phone's camera boasts of optical image stabilization as well as 24mm wide lens and can record 1080p videos at 30fps. 

The all-new Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom has a 4.3-inch SuperAMOLED screen with 960x540p resolution with 256ppi pixel density. The device is powered by Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) with TouchWiz UI on top, and runs on a dual-core 1.5GHz processor. It has 8GB internal storage, 1.5GB RAM and supports microSD cards with capacities up to 32GB. 

Galaxy S4 zoom will be available in two variants, one that is compatible with 4G and the other that works on 3G networks. Other features of the connectivity suites of this smartphone are 2G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, infrared port and microUSB 2.0. This handset has a 2,330mAh battery and features a 1.9MP front camera. At 208gram, it is heavier that the likes of Samsung Galaxy Note II and Nokia Lumia 920. 

Key specs: 

Display: 4.3-inch SuperAMOLED screen with 960x540p resolution with 256ppi pixel density;

Operating system: Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) topped with TouchWiz UI;

Processor & RAM: Dual-core 1.5GHz processor with 1.5GB RAM;

Camera: 16MP rear camera with 10x optical zoom, xenon flash and 1.9MP front camera;

Connectivity: 2G, 3G, optional 4G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, infrared, microUSB 2.0;

Battery: 2,330mAh; and

Weight: 208gram 

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Nintendo showcases Super Mario 3D, other games at E3

 It's all about the games for Nintendo. 

Instead of a typical flashy presentation at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the Japanese gaming giant opted to showcase several games for its Wii U system during a brief presentation at its booth on the show floor of the gaming industry's annual trade show. 

"Today is different," Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime told those gathered inside the behemoth white structure. "It's the reason you're gathered here inside of our booth - standing instead of sitting - because it was our decision to minimize the time from when we said 'good morning' and you getting to play the game." 

Nintendo showed off the cartoony strategy game Pikmin 3, anti-gravity racer Mario Kart 8, 2D platformer Donkey Kong Country Returns: Tropical Freeze, 3D platformer Super Mario 3D World, slick action sequel Bayonetta 2 and a speedier rendition of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker for the Wii U. For gamers who couldn't make it to E3, the titles will be on display at more than 100 Best Buy stores in North America this week. 

The company also flaunted - but didn't allow attendees to play - a new installment in the fighting series Super Smash Bros. The new edition will feature such characters as Mario, Mega Man and the female yoga trainer from Wii Fit. 

The company has struggled since November with the launch of the Wii U, which features an innovative tablet-like controller yet graphics on par with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo said it sold just 3.45 million units by the end of March, well below the company's expectations. 

"We feel very good about this E3, and that's because consumers buy hardware to play games, and we're got a fantastic lineup of games that we're showcasing," Fils-Aime said after the event. 

During showy Monday presentations, competitors Microsoft and Sony hyped their respective next-generation consoles. Microsoft touted new games for the Xbox One, which it said will cost $499, while Sony unveiled its boxy $399 console, the PlayStation 4. Both consoles feature richer graphics and deeper social networking capabilities.

"Our competition is going to do what best serves their needs," said Fils-Aime. "We're a different type of company, utilizing our first-party titles to drive our install base. We've done that very effectively for over 30 years. We're a video game company. We make great games. That's what we focus on."

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‘UK banks fear cyberattacks more than euro crisis‘

Worries over hacking and other cyberattacks has pushed aside the euro zone crisis as the top risk for Britain's banks and they must do more to protect themselves, a senior Bank of England official said. 

Global cybercrime in the financial sector has become a more pressing worry, underlined by a series of cases this year. 

US prosecutors last month laid out details of a crime ring they say stole $45 million from two Middle Eastern banks by hacking into credit card processing firms and withdrawing money from cash machines in 27 countries. 

Andrew Haldane, the BoE's director of financial stability, met with five of Britain's top banks six months ago and four told him that a cyberattack was their biggest threat. 

It was surprising the fifth bank did not have this risk on their list but it does now, Haldane told parliament's Treasury Select Committee. 

"You can see why the financial sector would be a particularly good target for someone wanting to wreak havoc through the cyberroute," he added. 

"Understanding and management of this risk was still at a somewhat early stage," Haldane said. 

Earlier meetings with bank chiefs had pointed to the "usual suspects" of the euro zone crisis or a slump in the economy at the top risk, Haldane said. 

The focus on credit, market and liquidity risk over the past five years may have distracted attention from operational, and in particular cyberrisks, at banks or in infrastructure like payment systems, Haldane said. 

Haldane was being quizzed by lawmakers on his reappointment to the BoE's Financial Policy Committee (FPC) 

"I hope we can do more on this at the FPC as part of wider government initiatives," Haldane said.

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