Versa Networks
December 12, 2018
SD-WAN continues its rapid growth, as enterprises look to simplify WAN infrastructure and provide new services that help them compete in today’s software-driven environment. Software and automation are the leading technologies that will drive IT and networking systems to support business-critical operations and strategic initiatives. While enterprises have been the primary benefactors of SD-WAN, the trend is moving toward the consumption of networking and security as managed services. In fact, IDC predicts SD-WAN managed services will soon out-pace do-it-yourself (DIY) SD-WAN, and grow to $5.4 billion by 2022. This follows a similar direction that enterprises have taken, moving from internally…
Principal Security Architect
December 5, 2018
Universal Plug-n-Play – (UPnP) is a suite of protocols that enables a device to discover other devices on a network, configure itself to operate in the network, and advertise its services. This allows a device to locate routers, printers and other resources on a network. UPnP runs on UDP port 1900 and communicates using SOAP messages over HTTP. The actual configuration and management interface are implemented using a SOAP-based HTTP service running over a dynamically allocated TCP port. The UPnP protocol allows management of aspects of a device’s operation to extend support by the protocol implementation on the device and its…
Versa Networks
November 26, 2018
Versa Networks, innovator of the Secure Cloud IP software platform, is changing the game once again by teaming up with APN networking partners to provide Secure Software-Defined WAN (SD-WAN) solutions tailored for Amazon Web Services. This solution offering will further secure and optimize the migration of enterprise on-premises workloads and applications to AWS. Versa has aligned with service provider and system integration partners that have achieved AWS Networking Competency status and who are an AWS Partner Network (APN) Partner supporting AWS Direct Connect.Versa APN operator alliances include Verizon, Comcast, Centurylink and Zayo, with Zayo initiating the first package offered in…
Versa Networks
November 13, 2018
Capital One offers financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients. The company needed to modernize their branch and infrastructure for retail banking operations. They wanted to ensure their branch-to-branch and internal branch connectivity, including guest WiFi services, were reliable and secure. Guest WiFi availability had evolved from simply allowing customers to browse the web and social media, to becoming a business-critical service that needed to be secure, reliable and always available. The bank required a complete digital transformation solution offering technology that would reflect how their customers interact with bank services. Branch offices and cafes are…
Versa Networks
October 30, 2018
Sensor, telematics and actuator technologies are developing at an unprecedented rate. This trend is due, in large part, to the exponential growth of IoT, and increased sensor accuracy, reduced size, cost and the ability to detect and measure things that weren’t previously possible. In fact, sensor technology has become so advanced, IoT devices already far outnumber users, with billions of IoT devices already deployed, and billions of new sensors expected to be deployed each year. In our quest to make connected things perform more efficiently and with more enhanced features, we have to make them, and the connectivity ecosystem, smarter. Actually, to enable…
Versa Networks
October 25, 2018
The recent surge in cryptomining is providing cyber criminals with more vectors to attack, at the expense of legitimate users. This year has seen a huge increase in the deployment of numerous malwares, with cryptominers as primary or secondary payloads. Cryptominers are becoming easy targets, that allow attackers to go a step further to disguise themselves as the miner in the form of a flash update. Palo Alto Networks reported a list of collected samples, some dating back to August 2018[1]. The author further adds that installers from the Adobe website were legitimate, and the malicious ones were mostly Windows…
Versa Networks
October 18, 2018
Telecom carriers are uniformly seeking ways to broaden their connectivity services for enterprise customers. One motivation is to offset MPLS revenues, which are essentially flat and are expected to decline over the next few years. Broadband and wireless connectivity services are growing fast, with no sign of abating, but revenue from vanilla broadband is much less profitable than MPLS. This scenario is where value-added gateway services may be the key to future revenue growth. Managed service providers already moving in this direction are beginning to reap the benefits. According to research by Catherine Hammond with Analyses Mason, operators now see…
Versa Networks
October 10, 2018
Everyone in IT is keenly aware that the cloud and SaaS are a double-edged sword. On one side, many benefits ensue, like offloading high CapEx and lowering OpEx, and divesting of complex and bloated hardware-based infrastructure. The more challenging side lies in the ever-growing cloud applications that employees in every department are using, many of which are unknown to IT. Cloud and SaaS apps are growing so fast that IT has a difficult time keeping up with the demand. In fact, according to Goldman Sachs, the cloud computing and platform market was just over $10 billion in 2013, and is…
Principal Security Architect
October 5, 2018
Lateral Movement Definition: Lateral movement is a technique used by cyber attackers to infiltrate and move through a network with the intent of obtaining secure data. The Cause The term “Lateral Movement” has been around for a little over four years and was in the news when ransomware like WannaCry and APT’s like APT28 and APT29 used lateral movement techniques. Most often an attacker may not have direct access to a machine or resource on the internal network, which the attacker considers a prized trophy. The prized trophy may be the domain controller, a machine hosting confidential information, or the…
Versa Networks
October 4, 2018
Ransomware is a form of malicious software that latches onto a system and encrypts the files within it, making them inaccessible to the user. The attackers behind this malicious activity typically demand payment in terms of currency (crypto or cash) in return for the keys to decrypt the files. A recent ransomware which has become viral since January 2018 is named GandCrab. This ransomware is believed to be distributed as a Ransomware-as-a-Service [2,3]. GandCrab initially differentiated from other ransomware by demanding a ransom in DASH [7] cryptocurrency. The developers behind GandCrab have been continuously updating and releasing improved versions, with…
