Halloween is a slightly strange time of year when you stop and think about it. It is the one day each year where we (in the UK at least) celebrate ghosts, ghouls, witches and other generally spooky stuff. It wasn’t always quite so commercial. Like most festivals, the history of Halloween links back to the Christian religion and specifically the eve of the feast of All Saints Day, with the less common name for Halloween being All Saints’ Eve and the celebration was a remembrance of the dead, including martyrs and saints (hallows).  
Commercialisation has morphed Halloween into an orange pumpkin carving, trick-or-treating, witch cackling, “big scare” version of what it is really all about. 

The murky world of cybersecurity and hacking is also very similar, at least in terms of public perception. If I ask you to think of a hacker and draw me a picture, I would put money on you drawing a shadowy figure in a hoody. You might use the now infamous Guy Fawkes mask made famous to the general public by the Anonymous hacking consortium – although it was actually designed and first used in the V for Vendetta comic series in the 1980s. 

Really though, whilst I’m sure some of them own hoodies, hackers aren’t typically shadowy hooded people sitting in dark rooms. The most prolific and globally troubling hackers are nation state collectives. These are teams of professionally trained cyber warriors who act on behalf of a country or government to commit cyber crime that furthers the aims of that country.  

It’s not just the countries that we in the West would commonly jump towards that are hacking on a state level, every major country has teams of people both hacking and defending – probing systems for weaknesses and trying to catch those probing their own. Something like a cyber cold war, although more luke to medium warm than cold as these teams can and will attack without there being traditional conflict or warfare playing out in the public eye. 

To give you some idea of the sort of things that happen, who carries them out, and who is targeted or affected, let’s take a look at a couple of high-profile nation state hacks; One from the West, and one from the East. 

Starting with the West, the attack that jumps front of mind for me was a virus called Stuxnet. Although never officially confirmed, Stuxnet is widely believed to have been developed by the United States and Israel in a joint operation known as “Operation Olympic Games”. The worm was designed to spread quickly around computer networks once it was introduced to a system on that network. Its target was very specific: Siemens SCADA systems. Now unless you are into industrial control systems, that will mean nothing to you, but SCADA systems are used to control industrial processes and specifically in this instance the control of centrifuges used to enrich Uranium for atomic weaponry creation. The worm was believed to have been delivered via compromised USB sticks, which were clearly picked up and plugged into at least one computer within the Iranian nuclear program as it successfully caused around one-fifth of their nuclear centrifuges to spin so fast they spun themselves apart. Clever stuff! 

Now to head East and to talk about the Lazarus Group. This is a hacking collective that work on behalf of North Korea to attack state enemies and find ways to steal money for the North Korean economy which is heavily sanctioned worldwide in general trade terms. 
The Lazarus Group were responsible for the hack of Sony Pictures in 2014 which according to Sony cost them $15 million. Other sources say the damage was more likely to have been $35m – $85m, but the reputational damage was huge.  
The Lazarus Group infiltrated Sony via phishing e-mails, which encouraged staff at the company to open an attachment which then installed malware to allow them access to the systems.  
They stole and published internal data, private e-mails, films, PlayStation content and much more. Why? As an act of revenge against Sony who were planning to publish a film called “The Interview” which portrayed North Korea and its leaders in a bad light. 

They also successfully pulled off a number of further high-profile hacks including a hack of Bangladesh Bank to attempt to steal $1 billion – getting away with $101 million before being locked out of the systems. 

So how does this impact you, your business, and your cyber security? After all, you’re not expecting to be hacked by North Korea, are you? 
Well actually, the key thing here is the lessons we can all learn in terms of cyber hygiene and good practice. All of the attacks above were essentially able to happen due to people – staff – doing something that wasn’t sensible: plugging in an unknown USB device, opening a phishing e-mail, installing unknown software. 
By training all of our staff on the basics of good cybersecurity, we can all improve our security posture and ensure that we don’t get subjected to a data breach or hack. 
 
Free cyber security training can be found on the National Cyber Security Centre website here: 
https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/blog-post/ncsc-cyber-security-training-for-staff-now-available  

More advanced cyber security training and testing can be arranged by numerous companies. A good starting point would be to speak to your IT service provider.  
 
Stay safe, don’t get spooked, and Happy Halloween! 

Craig Atkins runs 1-Fix Limited, an IT Support and Cyber Security consultancy in Readingspecialising in helping small businesses with all of their technology challenges, from helpdesk support, procurement, cloud, and – of course – cyber security. 
Craig can also be found on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/craigatkins1fix/  

In the current digital era, big data has become an important and valuable resource for individuals, organisations and governments. It refers to the massive volume of data collected from various sources, including: social media, online transactions, sensors etc. Although big data holds immense potential for innovation and insights, it also raises huge issues related to privacy. 

How is Big Data Collected and Used? 

With the rise of social media and eCommerce, the total volume of data generated was  64.2 zettabytes in 2020 ; it’s predicted to reach 181 zettabytes by 2025. A large part of this data consists of consumer data, and there are three types of this data: 

First Party Data: data collected directly from users by organisations. 

Second Party Data: data shared by another organisation about its customers. 

Third-Party Data: data that’s been aggregated and rented or sold by organisations that don’t have a connection to your company/users. 

The collection and usage of big data are done through various means: 

Social Media Activity: social network users, on average, spend  2-3 hours daily. This is considered to be the main supply of unstructured data in the form of video, audio, photo, texts etc. Therefore, big data tools are required to process the content shared on social media as well as gather data on user activity. This will allow companies to identify social media trends and gain insights, which can be used to make engagement decisions such as which users to target with campaigns. 

Analytics: Big data and online marketing analytics are very much intertwined, with big data providing the raw material and online marketing analytics techniques extracting insights and enabling data driven decision making in marketing strategies. The biggest eCommerce companies, such as Amazon and eBay serve millions of customers on a daily basis and generate vast amounts of data as a by-product. Thus, these companies can tailor content, offers and recommendations on websites, emails, and other marketing channels to provide a more relevant and engaging experience. This process is adopted by Spotify, which generates song and  playlist recommendations  based on user listening habits. Furthermore, the medical sector analyses large datasets of clinical data and other relevant info; hence it emphasises how big data is helping healthcare providers to identify targeted treatments for patients with complex medical conditions. 

Loyalty Programs and Codes: This is a popular way amongst retailers to build loyalty and collect vast amounts of valuable data, giving companies the scope to create buyer profiles through the analysis of this data. 

From healthcare to finance, all the way to retail, big data has transformed how industries function and has been used in the following ways: 

Personalised Recommendations: retailers use big data collected by consumers, such as: customer data, browsing history, purchase behaviour etc., to personalise their shopping experience. As a result, it allows retailers to include personalised recommendations and targeted promotions to ensure a more tailor made consumer experience. 

Analytics: businesses from different sectors analyse vast amounts of data to inform their decision making. For example, healthcare organisations analyse large volumes of data to gain valuable business insights into population health patterns, disease prevalence and treatment efficiency. Furthermore, retailers leverage big data to analyse market trends, customer preferences and competition data to gain insights into consumer demand and make informed decisions. Additionally, media companies may analyse data on user behaviour and content consumption patterns can predict the  box office performance  of upcoming movies and make investment decisions on new TV shows. 

Fraud Detection: many industries use big data analytics to detect and prevent fraud. For instance, banking institutions can analyse historical data, transaction history and behaviour patterns to take proactive measures to prevent and mitigate risks in the future. 

Privacy Risks Associated with Big Data 

However, with big data comes an inevitable threat to data security and privacy issues. 

Privacy Breaches: With the rise of personalised marketing and the collection of vast amounts of data from companies, it becomes harder to store and increases the likelihood of data breaches. This leads to leaks of important personal info. 

Surveillance: big data analytics enable extensive monitoring and surveillance capabilities which leads to concerns about mass surveillance and potential abuse of power. 

3rd Party Data Sharing: Big data often involves the sharing of data with 3rd parties such as advertisers, marketers or data brokers. This may occur without individuals' knowledge/consent and leads to a loss of control over personal info. 

How to Mitigate Privacy Risks 

Addressing these privacy issues requires a multifaceted approach that involves legislation, industry practices and individual awareness. Here are the methods that each key stakeholder can implement to minimise privacy risks: 

Governments: governments can encourage organisations to adopt “Privacy by Design” principles. Here, organisations are required to integrate privacy considerations into the design and development of systems and processes from the outset. This includes: incorporating privacy controls, anonymising data and implementing strong security measures. Also, governments can work together to establish international frameworks to facilitate cross border data protection. 

Organisations: implementing more robust data security measures will ensure that organisations better safeguard personal data from unauthorised access; this could involve encryption and regular security audits. Furthermore, organisations should stay updated on the best practices for data protection and respond promptly to emerging data threats. 

Individuals: individuals should look to read and understand the privacy policies of the platforms that they use and evaluate whether it’s safe to continue sharing their data. In addition, individuals should regularly review and adjust privacy settings on social media platforms and evaluate whether the requested access to their data is necessary for the app’s functionality. 

In today’s digital era, the emergence of big data has brought tremendous opportunities for innovation and progress. However, it raises significant concerns regarding privacy. As organisations and governments harness the power of big data to drive decision making, it becomes increasingly important to address the issues surrounding privacy. Hence, a  speaker  who is proficient in the world of big data can help your organisation to better understand the complexities surrounding it. 

With Elon Musk’s $44 million acquisition of Twitter causing quite the stir, many platforms have tried to capitalise on the fleeing crowds from the platform. Companies such as Bluesky and Mastodon have all tried to become the new Twitter and, while they showed early signs of competition, they couldn’t handle the sheer power and size of Twitter. However, there’s a new kid on the block with a huge amount of force behind them. 

Threads was released on Thursday and had an instant impact. 10 million users in the first day, #Threads was number one trending on Twitter, its name was plastered all over the news and it even had some big celebrities and businesses making the jump such as Shakira, Gordon Ramsey and Netflix. As well as all the controversy around Twitter, another reason that could be attributed to these outcomes could very easily be the ease of the sign-up process. As Threads is part of the Meta ecosystem, and is connected to Instagram, it automatically detects your Instagram account and migrates your information over. It has also deemed itself as a brand-safe environment for advertisers. 

So, what’s the catch? Well, Meta have always had a bit of an issue with how they handle user data, and it is fair to say that Threads certainly collects more than enough data from its users. You can find out what data an app will collect from you by visiting the specific app page on the Apple App Store. If I were to add screenshots in this blog of the list of data that Threads collects, it would be 10 images long, and all of this data is used in a closed source algorithm. Although Twitter is no saint either, it certainly doesn’t collect anywhere near as much data as Threads, according to the Apple App Store. Furthermore, Meta has a track record of following suit when it comes to new features, which often don’t quite live-up to the original. The two main examples of this are Stories, inspired by Snapchat, and Reels, inspired by TikTok. With the addition of Threads, Meta has now completed the trifecta by creating an alternative to Twitter, so is it third time’s the charm? Obviously, Elon Musk, owner of Twitter, hasn’t taken it too lightly and has opened court proceedings with Meta accusing them of stealing Twitter’s IP by hiring ex-Twitter employees who still have access to Twitter’s trade secrets and confidential information. However, as of right now, it is unclear as to how far this could go. 

The overarching question remains - should you and your business sign up to Threads? Although the jury is still out on whether Threads will surpass Twitter, it is beneficial to sign up to this new platform so that you can reap the benefits of becoming an early adopter. You will also be able to closely follow the platforms journey to see how it evolves to potentially benefit you and your business. Plus, it will create a new audience segment, with a blend of Meta ecosystem users and Twitter defectors, which could be a perfect audience for your business to target. With its link to Instagram making Threads quick and easy to set up, what’s holding you back?