Written by Katie Conroy Designating a specific area for your home-based business can do wonders for your workday mindset. And whether you sell a product or offer a service, setting up the right office space makes your operation more efficient. Here’s how you can establish the ideal office space, whatever way you decide to do it. Consider Buying for More Office Space If you lack the necessary space for a home office, buying a new home might be in the cards. Research home prices to determine what the housing market is like in your area. Once you ensure that your budget can handle the mortgage payment, consult a trustworthy and knowledgeable real estate professional to start checking out properties. Brainstorm the must-haves you want in a new home, including ample office space. Prioritize a separate office space that you can deduct on your taxes for the best return on investment; spaces up to 300 square feet qualify as deductions. While you work with your agent to iron out the particulars of what you’re looking for in a home, zero in on what you can easily afford and start shopping for lenders; as you shop around, take a hard look at current interest rates. You should also consider issues like zoning laws and parking arrangements at your new abode. Especially if you need to store products or receive deliveries, zoning limitations could cause problems, particularly with your new neighbors. Protect Your Business (And Clients) When you’re working at home, you might not think much about security. After all, isn’t your home Wi-Fi connection more reliable and secure than the internet at your local café? But the truth is, every business owner needs a cybersecurity plan, regardless of where they work. Digital security should be a priority for your business. Especially if you handle sensitive customer data, taking steps to combat hackers and prevent viruses is vital. Investing in antivirus software is a smart first step that protects both your personal information and your business from malware. Of course, using encryption protection is another must-do to shield credit card and other client data. Get Creative with Your Space Whether you’ve just moved into a new home with more square footage or you’re working with limited space, getting creative can help. For example, creating a DIY room divider—or even tackling a renovation—can create a separate space where you can concentrate on work. Other options include building (or buying) a space-saving desk that folds away when not in use. This way, even with limited area for your office equipment, you can have a comfortable seat and a dedicated work area. Equip Your Office Appropriately Once you have enough square footage for your new workspace, it’s time to outfit your office. Think about the furniture, technology, and décor you’ll want to create a productive atmosphere for your work. Choose ergonomic furniture, such as a supportive desk chair and desk at an appropriate height. This way, you won’t be in pain after spending long hours in your home office. In addition to the right desk layout, proper posture while working on the computer can also prevent neck pain and discomfort, notes Mayo Clinic. Also think about décor that is conducive to productivity. For example, natural lighting and a bit of greenery can help boost your mood and deepen your focus. While stepping away from your home office for regular breaks is another way to refresh and remain efficient, creating a welcoming space can reduce burnout just as effectively. There’s a reason companies post motivational signage on their break room walls; it helps cut down on the stuffy corporate vibe. The same way big businesses aim to help employees feel comfortable, you should do the same at home. Make your office space a place you enjoy working, and your work will be more productive and less stressful. About Katie Conroy: Katie Conroy writes about lifestyle topics and created advicemine.com where she shares advice from her experiences, education & research.
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In cybersecurity and infosec, it’s common to assume that criminals are behind all data breaches and major security events. Bad actors are easy to blame for information leaks or account takeovers, because they’re the ones taking advantage of vulnerabilities in systems to worm their way in and cause massive damage. But how do they gain access in the first place? Most of the time, well-meaning everyday people are the real source of data insecurity.
A study of data from 2016 and 2017 indicated that 92% of security data incidents and 84% of confirmed data breaches were unintentional or inadvertent. Accidental data loss continues to plague IT teams, especially as more organizations are rapidly moving to the cloud. While it’s important to prioritize action against outside threats, make sure to include a strategy to minimize the damage from accidental breaches as well. This list of five common sources of accidental data leaks will help you identify the problems that could be lurking in your systems, apps, and platforms. Use these examples to prepare tighter security controls and keep internal problems from becoming major issues across your entire organization. #1: Exposing secrets in code repositories like GitHub In January 2020, a security researcher found Canadian telecom company Rogers Communications had exposed passwords, private keys, and source code in two public accounts on GitHub. As the investigation into the Rogers breach went on, the researcher found five more public folders on GitHub containing Rogers customer data, including personally identifiable information (PII) like phone numbers. This kind of thing happens all the time, like in the case of German automaker Daimler leaking Mercedes-Benz’s source code for smart car components through an unsecured GitLab server in May and Scotiabank exposing source code and private login keys to backend systems in GitHub in September 2019. Businesses looking for a secrets detection solution for GitHub should consider Nightfall Radar for GitHub. It’s a fast and easy way to prevent data loss in the platform and avoid problems like exposing sensitive data in code repos, with automated scanning and customizable alerts and reporting to help you take control of your company’s data. #2: Leaking data from misconfigured buckets in AWS S3 Like GitHub, AWS S3 can be a source of accidental data insecurity. All it takes is one improperly configured bucket in the cloud server to expose huge amounts of data. AWS S3 is different from GitHub in one big way here: GitHub repos allow users to set sharing permissions right away, with “public” set as the default choice. In today’s usage, AWS buckets are private by default. This means user error is behind most major AWS data leaks, when data is exposed in these public buckets. Outpost 24 cloud security director Sergio Lourerio, spoke to Computer Weekly in a January 2020 interview on the rising danger of data leakage through public AWS S3 buckets. He pointed to the nature of us all working in the early days of cloud infrastructure security allowing for the prevalence of opportunistic attacks on publicly accessible AWS S3 data buckets. “You’d be amazed to see the data you can find there just by scanning low-hanging data in cloud infrastructures,” Lourerio said. “And it only takes a couple of API calls to do it. With a lot of data being migrated to the cloud for use cases like data mining, and lack of knowledge of security best practices on [Microsoft] Azure and AWS, it is very simple to get something wrong.” Earlier this year, UK-based document printing production company Doxzoo had a major cloud security breach thanks to a server misconfiguration that exposed an AWS S3 bucket with over 270,000 records and 34 gigabytes of data. The data included print jobs for several high-profile clients such as the U.S. and UK military branches and Fortune 500 companies — leaving PII like passport scans and PCI data at risk for anyone to see or steal. Even worse, the exposure wasn’t reported to Doxzoo until four days after the misconfiguration was found via a routine scanning project. Massive amounts of business-critical data was up for grabs to anyone who had the URL to the public AWS S3 bucket. User error among developers and infosec professionals can lead to some of the most egregious security events. The cloud isn’t the only source to blame, however. Sometimes negligence can be an IT team’s worst enemy. #3: Compromising millions of records through expired security certificates The 2017 Equifax breach is one of the worst data leaks in history, with over 143 million records exposed containing PII like names, addresses, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, and driver license numbers. These records were stolen by hackers who exposed a vulnerability in Apache Struts, a common open source web server. The unpatched server allowed the attackers to gain access to Equifax’s systems for over two months. By exposing the one entry point from an expired security certificate, hackers created the perfect environment to keep coming back to the data rich Equifax servers — sending more than 9,000 queries on the databases and downloading data on 265 separate occasions. This breach mirrors some similarities of leaks in GitHub and AWS S3, primarily in how Equifax’s response was very slow and inadequate to calm their customers’ fear and worry of having their data exposed. Equifax missed the data exfiltration events happening right under its nose for 19 months, and it took another two months for them to update the expired certificate. Only after the update happened did the company notice suspicious web traffic. Equifax’s former chief information officer David Webb admitted in a U.S. congressional investigation report, “Had the company taken action to address its observable security issues prior to this cyberattack, the data breach could have been prevented.” A strong security posture starts by securing your systems wherever you find a vulnerable point. The next step is to critical examine the entities you do business with — third and fourth party exposure can be just as devastating in a data breach. #4: Leaving the door open with unsecured third and fourth party vendors An organization that is doing everything right by controlling data exfiltration in the cloud with DLP, securing AWS S3 buckets, and maintaining current certificates on their website can still be at risk of data exposure through unsecured third and fourth party vendors. Damage control is hard enough when it’s just one source to deal with. But when you have to investigate and remediate a data breach that results from vendors and other business partners, there’s a lot more work to do. Companies can accidentally leak as much as 92% of their data via URLs, cookies, or improperly configured storage. This exposure on its own is a major security problem. When you add third and fourth party vendors and services on these websites, that means the leaked information could be exposed to any of those services embedded into a compromised page. Third and forth party vendors provide essential services for the parent company, like expedited checkout portals with payment processors. Third party vendors often rely on fourth party services just as the parent company relies on outside help to maximize operations — on average, 40% of services on a website is powered by fourth parties. This is what happened in one of Target’s worst data breach events. In December 2013, a data breach leaked over 70 million Target customer records. Scammers found their way in by stealing credentials of a Target HVAC contractor. It sounds like a long and winding road to get from a third party vendor who never touches the main company’s network, but all it takes to pull off a heist like this is for one small exposure. With all these avenues covered — code repos, website containers, other vendors — you may think your security job is done. You must take on email security for your employees, as this is a much easier fix to a problem that can do severe damage. #5: Giving up on security standards with lax email policies Email scams are the oldest trick in the cybercrime book. As some of us are still falling for phishing scams from Nigerian princes, many more well-meaning people fail at email security every day, just from inadequate email security practices. Poor password hygiene for email accounts (using “password” for your login credentials), not using multi-factor authentication when signing into accounts, or a lack of employee training and clear policies are contributing factors to the rapid rise in business email compromise (BEC). According to the FBI, losses from BEC attacks total over $26 billion. More scammers are using COVID-19 to make their way into inboxes and systems. Even with tougher regulations in place like the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), which carries heavy penalties for noncompliance, BEC is still a major threat to any organization. Email users should take the extra security steps to ensure their accounts are safe. It’s hard to fight back against thieves, cybercriminals, and scammers — especially when your own people can do most of the damage right there inside the organization. Work with your teams to determine where security vulnerabilities exist within your networks, platforms, and systems, and train everyone on best practices for securing their own logins and access points. It could also help to back up all your hard work with a DLP solution like Nightfall that catches data you may have missed even before it can leave your network. About Nightfall Nightfall is the industry’s first cloud-native DLP platform that discovers, classifies, and protects data via machine learning. Nightfall is designed to work with popular SaaS applications like Slack and GitHub as well as IaaS platforms like AWS. You can schedule a demo with us below to see the Nightfall platform in action. This article is originally posted on Nightfall.ai What Is An Algorithm?
An algorithm is a set of step-by-step procedures, or a set of rules to follow, for completing a specific task or solving a particular problem. Algorithms are all around us. The recipe for baking a cake, the method we use to solve a long division problem, and the process of doing laundry are all examples of an algorithm. Here’s what baking a cake might look like, written out as a list of instructions, just like an algorithm:
Types of Algorithms Algorithms are classified based on the concepts that they use to accomplish a task. While there are many types of algorithms, the most fundamental types of computer science algorithms are:
Example of an Algorithm Solving a Rubik’s Cube There are a number of different algorithms, from simple to very complicated, that exist for solving a Rubik’s cube. Below is just one simple algorithm. First, let’s specify a notation to use (similar to picking a programming language). Each of the six faces of a Rubik’s cube can be represented by the first letter of their name:
Step 1: The Cross
Sorting Algorithms A sorting algorithm is an algorithm that puts elements of a list in a certain order, usually in numerical or lexicographical order. Sorting is often an important first step in algorithms that solves more complex problems. There are a large number of sorting algorithms, each with their own benefits and costs. Below, we will focus on some of the more famous sorting algorithms.
Where Algorithms are Used in Computer Science? Algorithms are used in every part of computer science. They form the field's backbone. In computer science, an algorithm gives the computer a specific set of instructions, which allows the computer to do everything, be it running a calculator or running a rocket. Computer programs are, at their core, algorithms written in programming languages that the computer can understand. Computer algorithms play a big role in how social media works: which posts show up, which ads are seen, and so on. These decisions are all made by algorithms. Google’s programmers use algorithms to optimize searches, predict what users are going to type, and more. In problem-solving, a big part of computer programming is knowing how to formulate an algorithm. Why are Algorithms Important to Understand? Algorithmic thinking, or the ability to define clear steps to solve a problem, is crucial in many different fields. Even if we’re not conscious of it, we use algorithms and algorithmic thinking all the time. Algorithmic thinking allows students to break down problems and conceptualize solutions in terms of discrete steps. Being able to understand and implement an algorithm requires students to practice structured thinking and reasoning abilities. This article originally appeared on junilearning.com Coding Toys for Younger Kids For kids 10 and under, there are many games and toys that help them understand the building blocks of computer programming. For example, Bitsbox delivers a physical box to your home every month containing a kit of projects, and then your young child can login to Bitsbox’s online platform to program their own version of these projects. The apps are selected based on difficulty and interests - they offer anything from interactive birthday cards to Tetris-like games. The apps can then be easily shared onto phones and tablets. The Osmo is an iPad-based programming game system that incorporates physical blocks to write code. Using a set of magnetic blocks, your child controls Awbie, a cute character who must navigate the different levels of the Osmo universe. The physical blocks must be connected together logically so that Awbie can move on screen, using commands like “move,” “turn,” and “repeat.” The Osmo is ideal for kids as young as five years old because they don’t need typing skills to learn the basics of programming logic and to practice their critical thinking skills. After your child has mastered Awbie, they can move onto Osmo’s other products like Coding Jam, which uses a similar block system to generate digital music, and Coding Duo, a more advanced version of Coding Awbie with multiple players. Cubetto is a completely screenless coding toy for kids 6 and under. Cubetto is a wooden robot that is programmed by placing colored blocks onto its surface, which instructs it where to move. The Cubetto is placed on top of different maps, mazes, and books. For example, in one challenge Cubetto must navigate around a big urban city. In another, he is in ancient Egypt, learning about pyramids, hieroglyphics, and the Sphinx. This is a great toy that encourages active play and critical thinking without any screens. Coding Games for Older Kids For older kids who love robots, the Anki Cozmo is a palm-sized robot, built with facial recognition, self-maneuvering capabilities, and an “emotion engine” to respond to real-world situations. It comes with a Code Lab app for users to program the Cozmo’s movements and responses to different environments. Code Lab is built on Scratch, a visual programming language. For example, you can use Code Lab to program Cozmo to move around and write his name, or to approach a human and Cozmo recognizes his or her face. There is even a more extensive software development kit to tap into the Cozmo’s computer vision capabilities and third party integrations (like with Google Assistant and Android). Kids can also play games with Cozmo like Memory Match and Keepaway. If your child is interested in building hardware, the Kano might be the best toy for them. With the Kano, you follow a storybook to build a simple computer. The kit comes with a power supply, Raspberry Pi (the chip that powers the computer), keyboard, SD card, and optionally a microphone and an HD touchscreen. Once built, the touchscreen version allows you to program your own art, games and music. The coding starts with a block-based environment, but for more advanced students, there are projects available in Python and Javascript programming languages. Many kids this age love Minecraft, an open-ended game where users can build their own worlds and experiences using the resources they acquire. Building in Minecraft is very Lego-like, where the pieces are varied and fit together in infinite combinations. Given the nature of Minecraft, “modding” the game is extremely popular, where you create new items, resources, and functionality by programming extensions to Minecraft’s code. The most popular mods, for example, add new animals, crops, and furniture pieces to the game; allow you to monitor and control your inventory more efficiently; and even introduce magic and wand-making into the game. While modding Minecraft was not designed for beginning programmers, there are sites dedicated for helping kids learn how to mod with online tutorials like LearnToMod and books like Coding with Minecraft. Online Coding Games and Platforms There are also many online-based games and platform for students to start learning programming. CodeCombat offers a series of online levels in settings like the Kithgard Dungeon and the Backwoods Forest. Students gain points by completing challenges so that they can advance to the next level and buy power-ups. CodeMonkey is another online game where the student moves through a series of challenges in tracks like Coding Adventure and Coding Chatbots. The main language they focus on is CoffeeScript. For students who want to take a more rigorous course, Khan Academy offers self-paced courses in HTML, CSS, and Javascript, focusing on website and game development. These courses include online videos, written explanations, and coding exercises. This article originally appeared on junilearning.com.
The immediate impact of COVID-19 has been swift and crippling to the economy.
With 41 states and Washington, D.C., having already issued shelter-in-place orders, governors of states in the Midwest and the South have dug in their heels, refusing to issue statewide orders for fear of devastating their economies. The dilemma facing leaders is the paradox of taking measures to contain the virus as a way to sustain the economy. If, as Dr. Anthony Fauci has urged, the federal government imposes a nationwide stay-at-home order to prevent further spread of the coronavirus, the pause will have an immediate effect on the economy. And if Dr. Fauci’s and other health experts’ advice is dismissed, we will likely see thousands more cases of COVID-19. This will only prolong the economic fallout caused by the virus, a point Bill Gates argued in The Washington Post. “Until the case numbers start to go down across America — which could take 10 weeks or more — no one can continue business as usual or relax the shutdown. Any confusion about this point will only extend the economic pain, raise the odds that the virus will return, and cause more deaths,” Gates wrote on March 31, 2020. https://www.annuity.org/financial-literacy/covid-19-financial-guide/ https://www.annuity.org/annuities Image by Виктория Бородинова from Pixabay Is Coding a Fad?
In short, no. Coding is a field that is growing and changing quickly; there is a world of opportunity for young students looking to get involved in the tech world. Opponents to this position might argue that today’s popular languages, like Python, won’t be used ten or fifteen years down the line. So what’s the use in learning these programming languages? While it is true that programming will continue to advance, it is important to remember that there is so much more to learning a coding language like Python than memorizing syntax and applications. When we teach coding, we teach concepts beyond one particular language. Students gain knowledge about how computers process and “think” about a given problem, regardless of which language they are learning. They gain important intuition about fundamental concepts, like basic control structures (e.g. loops and conditional statements) and algorithms, that will undoubtedly be useful in our highly technological future. Below are 8 of the many reasons why coding for kids is not just another trendy or silly fad. 1. Our world is growing more technological In the 21st century, we have seen enormous developments in the technology industry. The world is moving in a direction that is both fast-paced and information-centered. Data is quickly becoming one of the most valuable resources in the global economy, and individuals with digital literacy are becoming more valued in the labor market. With all of this in mind, it’s hard to ignore the massive role that fields like data science and software engineering, both largely centered around coding, are going to have. Figures estimate seemingly outrageous numbers - an estimated fifty billion smart devices are projected to be in use by 2020 - illustrating the abundance of technology in our lives. With such statistics in our near futures, it is clear to see that industries are changing. The internet is a hub of information, applications, e-commerce, social networking, and communication platforms, all of which are designed to increase efficiency, performance, and convenience. As industries become digitized, new jobs are simultaneously emerging. Coding is an asset that will only continue to grow as we move forward as an increasingly connected society. 2. It teaches kids to strategize for unique solutions Computer science is a highly useful tool beyond its direct applications. As there is rarely one right answer to a given problem, computer science encourages students to create solutions that are unique. For computer scientists, this means that coders have a great amount of leeway to create their own intuitive solutions. Teaching kids how to code pushes young students to actually learn, not just memorize facts and regurgitate them. It challenges students to critically think about a problem, what they want to accomplish, and how to get it done. There are plenty of kid-friendly coding languages, such as Scratch, that give young students the opportunity to build unique projects using coding techniques. Scratch also allows coders to share their projects with the world. This connectivity can inspire new and aspiring coders to learn from their peers and guide them through more complicated projects and concepts. This collaborative environment also allows students to work together and learn from one another. Encouraging kids to utilize these programs not only teaches them useful skills for computer science, but it also allows them to exercise their creativity. 3. It teaches students to not give up Most coders will advise, while there is plenty of room for creativity in coding, there is also plenty of room for error. Learning to code teaches students how not to give up on their solutions, but rather to debug their code, even when repeated error messages appear. Coders tease out solutions by using their understanding of computational thinking (see point 6) to isolate any errors and achieve the goal at hand. That code can always be improved upon motivates coding students to go back and better their solutions, an incredibly valuable skill set to have in general. Code also instills resilience, yet another invaluable tool in the workplace. While programming can feel tedious, frustrating, and difficult at times, the process of problem solving inherently makes for better coders and better students. 4. It can be applied to almost everything that students are learning Computer science is expanding into every corner of the world, with applications for anything one can imagine and automated services that are permeating thousands of business models worldwide. On top of that, programming incorporates many mathematical concepts, and it can complement the concepts students are learning in their math classes. Coding also promotes problem-solving, an important skill for any student. Beyond math, students can use code to support other interests they may have. With coding, young professionals’ career options extend across industries. By teaching kids how to code, students will find the confidence and tools to explore aspects of software engineering, data analysis, video game development, and mobile app development - in just about any industry that they know and love. 5. It is challenging and collaborative Coding challenges young students to explore new fields. Computer science is a collaborative field, allowing individuals to work together to complement one another’s skill sets, and write code that is efficient and intuitive. Students can and often do learn to code in a group setting, so that they can discuss their ideas and learn from each other’s successes. Learning to code encourages students to work together when they reach a roadblock. It promotes collaboration via idea exchange and allows students’ to compare and contrast solutions. Teaching kids about computer programming can be a catalyst for inspiring teamwork and leadership among students. 6. It teaches students about computational thinking Whichever languages a student decides to pursue - Python, Java, or any of the long list of popular coding languages today - will help them develop computational thinking. This means that students will learn how to effectively break down problems into manageable parts, observe patterns in data, identify how these patterns are generated, and develop the step-by-step instructions for solving those problems. Computational thinking and digital literacy are arguably the most important aspect to learning to code at any age due to the huge technological shift in nearly every industry on the global market (see point 1). Establishing a foundation in computational thinking will pave the way for future success in and outside CS related fields. All students can benefit from understanding computational thinking, as it applies to the technological aspects of daily life. 7. It’s good for the brain Like any good challenge, coding is an excellent way to strengthen young, developing brains. It encourages students to combine their knowledge of computational learning and out-of-the-box thinking to strategize unique solutions. Multiple studies support the hypothesis that learning to code has real, long term benefits on young children. Researchers have found that individuals who code tend to have reduced odds of getting neurodegenerative diseases in older age. Coders also tend to do better in cognitive tasks, because coding activates areas of the brain that are associated with memory, attention, and logic. Learning to code at an early age supports neural connections in these regions, leading to high performance in other fields, as well. 8. It’s fun! While we may be slightly biased, computer science is an educational way to bring fun into your children’s lives! Computer science is one of the few fields of study in which students can see the immediate outcome of their work as they build out their projects - by running their code, they get instant, live feedback. Programs like Scratch and Repl.it utilize software that is kid-friendly and permits students to visualize their projects as they come to life! They can build code that creates a videogame or a website and share their work with friends. Developing kids’ proficiency with computer science now will lead to a future generation of coders who have the skill set to advance our world. This article originally appeared on junilearning.com
The Value of Hiring Local Workers Overseas from INS Global
Texting is one of the newer ways that bad guys use to get your personal information or money. This infographic provides great information on how to avoid text scams.
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