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Telecom News

Organizations’ cybersecurity readiness is troubling, says Cisco

By Aiste Kryzanovske March 23, 2023

According to Cisco’s first-ever Cybersecurity Readiness Index, just 15% of global organizations are rated to have the ‘Mature’ level of preparation required to be resistant to current cybersecurity hazards. The index illustrates where organizations are succeeding in cybersecurity preparedness and where deficiencies may worsen if global business and security leaders do not act. The analysis assesses a company’s ability to sustain cybersecurity resilience in the face of new threats, and includes 19 distinct solutions across five basic pillars: identity, devices, networks, application workloads and data. In a poll of 6,700 private sector cybersecurity leaders from 27 markets, participants were questioned as to which of these technologies they had installed and the current stage of deployment. Businesses were then divided into four readiness stages: beginner, formative, progressive and mature. More than half (55%) of companies polled worldwide are in the Beginner (8%) or Formative (47%) stages of cybersecurity readiness,…

News Roundup

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #49

By Aiste Kryzanovske December 9, 2022

TextNow to pay off $50,000 worth of phone bills TextNow, a mobile app that provides free cellular and WiFi-enabled phone service, said that it will start the holiday season by paying off $50,000 in phone bills owed by selected phone company customers. The company is aiming to promote consumer knowledge that they may cancel their pricey phone service subscriptions. TextNow has identified individuals who are in great need, such as single parents, veterans, students, and people impacted by job loss, sickness, injuries, or recent losses. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/yckux44v Cisco releases its annual Security Outcomes Report This week saw the release of Cisco’s annual Security Outcomes Report. 62% of the companies questioned reported having encountered a security incident that affected their business in the last two years. Ransomware occurrences, outages, and network or data breaches were the most common types of incidents. Security resilience is a top issue for 96%…

Telecom News

Pure IP now a certified Webex Calling provider

By Aiste Kryzanovske December 6, 2022

Cisco’s cloud-based phone system, Webex Calling, has certified Pure IP, a global supplier of business voice communications, as a calling provider through Cloud Connect for Webex. Now, customers have the option to enable Cloud Connect for Webex Calling using Pure IP. Pure IP’s robust worldwide voice network will be used for calls, enabling PSTN replacement services for Webex clients. A variety of complimentary services, such as Managed SBCs and legacy device integration, will also be available to customers. The Webex Calling solution from Pure IP is offered as a fully managed phone solution with round-the-clock technical support and a range of online administration tools. The solution makes use of direct connections between Pure IP’s cloud-based voice network and Webex Calling. Pure IP offers a variety of deployments through the program, including basic calling situations, large-scale Dedicated Instance migrations, and challenging, high-volume Webex Contact Center deployments. Webex Calling…

News Roundup

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #43

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 28, 2022

Cisco’s new features and capabilities for Webex CX portfolio The revamped Webex Customer Experience (CX) portfolio, which offers a fully integrated platform for collaboration, cloud contact centers, and cloud communications, has received additional features and capabilities from Cisco. The goal of Webex CX is to provide customers with intelligent, proactive, and tailored customer experience capabilities that encourage brand loyalty and adoption. The close integration of Webex Connect and Webex Contact Center to provide a linked customer experience enables a seamless omnichannel experience. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/2p9xjd2n DSTNY acquires easybell German cloud communications company easybell has been acquired by European corporate communications provider Dstny. Easybell offers Cloud PBX and VoIP communications to B2B customers. They are rapidly expanding and fiercely competitive in the German market because of their entirely digital strategy and well-distributed network of 2,000 partners. They are in a good position to handle the Dstny activities in Germany with…

News Roundup

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #40

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 7, 2022

French telecoms to reduce their energy use Orange has proposed numerous energy-saving measures in order to address the current energy crisis that is expected to strike Europe this winter. Orange has announced that it will reduce its immediate power use by 5 to 10% for one hour every day. Altice will also assess its mobile network settings and implement power consumption cutbacks based on system traffic. The telecom provider will also phase out less energy-efficient equipment and limit its use of air conditioning when feasible in its data centers. Its offices and businesses will also have tighter controls over air conditioning and lighting usage. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/2p83c9km Elon Musk decides to buy Twitter after all In the upcoming days, Elon Musk and Twitter may come to a settlement to terminate their legal dispute, paving the way for the richest man in the world to finalize his $44 billion purchase…

Telecom News

Chinese hackers breach telecom giants around the world

By Aiste Kryzanovske July 5, 2022

Chinese government-backed hackers have attacked major telecoms businesses throughout the world in a cyber-espionage effort that has lasted at least two years and has successfully compromised at least 13 telecommunications groups. In a recent advisory, the FBI, NSA and CISA stated that hackers linked to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) had targeted and hacked major telecommunications businesses by exploiting simple and well-known network and system vulnerabilities. According to the report, Chinese espionage is often initiated with hackers surveying target networks and exploring the manufacturers, models, versions, and known vulnerabilities of routers and networking equipment using open-source scanning tools such as RouterSploit and RouterScan. The Chinese government consistently disputes charges of hacking. The statement from the American security agencies did not name the victims of the hacking, nor did it specify the extent of the damage. However, US authorities did list specific networking equipment, such as routers…

News Roundup

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #17

By Aiste Kryzanovske April 29, 2022

BT to make EE its flagship brand BT Group has announced intentions to make EE its main consumer-facing brand. This move is intended to streamline the mobile operator’s service while also propelling the company into new areas of convergence. The BT brand will be more focused on consumers who utilize standalone broadband and telephone services, while BT Sport will remain unchanged. BT will also continue to be the name for its Enterprise and Global divisions. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/bdk4ef3k NTT and Sky Perfect JSAT forma joint venture NTT and SKY Perfect JSAT have agreed to form a joint venture company to increase humanity’s use of space. The formation of the joint venture is a significant step toward the construction of the space-integrated computer network specified in the two companies’ partnership agreement of 2021. The collaboration will help to advance the global space industry and promote the achievement of a sustainable…

News Roundup

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #13

By Aiste Kryzanovske April 1, 2022

BT putting its digital voice service rollout on halt Last year, BT began rolling out Digital Voice, which is a VoIP solution that works over the company’s broadband network rather than the old analogue network, as the name implies. This service is an essential improvement, as BT points out, to replace analogue technology, which is rapidly becoming outmoded. The operator is, however, delaying the Digital Voice switchover for consumers who do not wish to switch right away. BT did not specify how long the halt will occur, nonetheless, it is confident that the switchover will take place soon. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/mt23py8u DigitalBridge enters into mobile infrastructure deal with Telenet Telenet has agreed to sell all of its mobile telecommunications towers in Belgium to DigitalBridge, a US-based real estate investment trust and a subsidiary of the DigitalBridge Group. The investment firm has agreed to pay $820 million for Telenet’s 3,322…

News Roundup

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #1

By Aiste Kryzanovske January 7, 2022

Verizon and AT&T delay 5G rollouts After initially refusing to postpone the launch of their new 5G service which had been set for January 5, 2022, AT&T and Verizon have decided to delay the rollout by two weeks. According to airline industry representatives, a last-minute draft agreement was first negotiated with AT&T and subsequently with Verizon. Aviation officials are concerned that the new technology will interfere with flight altitude-measuring equipment. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/2p8sbzc7 Amazon, Cisco and Lockheed Martin collaborate on a space mission Callisto, a tech demonstration payload, will be deployed onboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft during its unmanned Artemis I trip around the Moon, thanks to a collaboration between Cisco, Amazon and Lockheed Martin. The goal is to determine if voice and video communication technology can assist astronauts and increase their mission efficiency and situational awareness. The Callisto payload has bespoke hardware and software created by the three companies…

News Roundup

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #45

By Aiste Kryzanovske November 12, 2021

BT is opening a robotics research facility BT Labs in Suffolk, England, will open a 5,000-square-foot robotics research laboratory to create robotic solutions for telecom and civil engineering. The lab is the first of its kind in the United Kingdom. BT anticipates that academics at the new facility will collaborate with colleges and utilities to create and test technologies that will advance the pace of BT’s fiber rollout as well as the upgrading of the power and water providers’ subterranean and overhead networks. The researchers will concentrate on issues such as installing new fiber infrastructure without digging up roadways and sidewalks, providing trenchless infrastructure utilizing robotic locomotion and excavation techniques, and more. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/dm6ujvnz Cisco powers AT&T managed SASE offering AT&T is adding a new product to its worldwide, managed Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) portfolio. AT&T SASE with Cisco is an unified network and security management solution…