Network Management, Network Security
Article | July 17, 2023
Blockchain technology has the potential to transform the way businessesoperate.As a result, it has gained tremendous momentum and is no longer the utopian dream of a few crypto enthusiasts. According to a Deloitte report that surveyed more than 1300 senior executives worldwide, 53% said blockchainin businessis a priority. Also, PwC highlights thatblockchain alone can add $407 billion to the GDP of the USA by 2030.
Blockchain is cementing its position in the market and is expected to be worth $163 billion by 2027, according to Statista. The time has come for digital businesses to harness the power of decentralization and incorporate it into their everyday processes.
You simplycan’t lose out on the business opportunities that this technology has tooffer simply because you are living under a rock. In this article, we will discuss how using blockchain for business can make a huge difference in your business process. Let’s first begin by looking at the challenges faced by traditional business models.
Challenges Traditional Business Models Face
A growing business encounters several challenges, and different problems demand different solutions. Mentioned below are some of the challenges that traditional business models often encounter.
Time-Consuming Processes
In a business operation, all processes function as separate entities. Teams often find themselves looking for, gathering, and analyzing the same data to make decisions.
As a result, the teams must rely on a lot of third-party intermediaries to runtheir business processes smoothly. This adds to the time and complexity of the processes.Use of blockchain technology can help to effectively do away with this challenge.
Lack of Security
Data security is another area of concern that can be taken care ofby storing data on the blockchain. Data that is storedin the cloud or a centralized storage facility, is vulnerable to security breaches. The traditional business ecosystem, data, and stakeholders are unprepared for the considerably more intelligent and ever-changing hackingtechniques. As a result, important and confidential data can get breached and compromised.
Payment Barriers
Payment transactions are often more complicated, time-consuming, and costly due to the diversity of currencies and parties involved. Blockchain technology promises to make processing payments and other transactions around the world faster, safer, and cheaper by getting rid of the need for mediators like correspondent banks and clearing institutions.
Payment barriers are another problem that the adoption of blockchain business models can ease.
Shoot-up Your Business Growth with Blockchain Technology
Blockchain in business is aiding the transformation of business across industries all around the globe. Blockchain is transforming supply chains, banking and financial services, healthcare, government, retail, and other industries.
Here are some statistics that demonstrate blockchain's significance in strengthening industries:
The financial sector contributes to around 30% of the market value of blockchain. (Statista)
By 2028, the value of blockchain in healthcare will be $1189.8 million. (Vantage Market Research)
By 2026, the value of blockchain in agriculture and food will be $1.48 billion. (BIS Research)
In 2022, the blockchain market in the manufacturing industry will be worth $85.64 billion. (Globe Newswire)
Accelerates Your Business Processes
Blockchain is taking a central role in the ongoing digital transformation process. In digital transformation, time is one of the most critical factors that keeps you ahead of the curve. Moreover, business operations that use a blockchain to store and transfer data provide high levels of security.
On this basis, you can create completely automated transactions in various business domains. This method is not only dependable and safe, but it is also exceedingly fast.
Improves Your Online Security
Encryption and validation are two significant advantages of mainstreaming blockchain technology. Every operation and communication that happens online will be encrypted. It protects against data alteration. Due to its distributed nature, you can verify that no one has altered even a bit by checking signatures across all nodes.
Blockchain in business will be helpful for storage, private messaging (between companies/clients or friends on social media), safer DNS, and IoT security. Blockchain use in business will enhance cybersecurity, but this transformation won’t happen overnight, it will take years before it impacts the ways in which we use the internet.
Eases Online Payments
While online transactions are safer than ever, users' data is still at risk. However, this decentralized platform can make payments transparent and tamper-proof in the financial ecosystem.
Decentralized blockchain technology protects data. Simply put, it allows you to make payments without a payment processor.
Blockchain technology protects financial transactions by removing central points of failure and minimizing errors. This helps in saving time and money. In addition, blockchain technology ensures that transactions remain unaltered and only those involvedcan see the history.
A Game-Changer in the Supply Chain & Logistics
Anything that can conceive of as a supply chain, blockchain can vastly improve its efficiency - it doesn’t matter if it’s people, numbers, data, money.”
- GinniRometty, CEO of IBM.
The integration of blockchain simplifies supply chain and logistics work. The blockchain's decentralized nature ensures maximum transparency in every transaction in the supply chain, from raw material purchase and manufacture to distribution and sale of the finished product. At a minimal cost, each transaction can be promptly and readily documented on the blockchain. There are very few risks this way, because the final buyer can track a product's origin along the whole supply chain.
Reduces Operational Cost
Blockchain-based smart contracts are a boon. Businesses can make and receive online payments through some set guidelines. Brokers, escrow agents, and other intermediaries are excluded through smart contracts. Smart contracts are self-executing programs that safeguard the interests ofall parties. These contracts use unbreakable cryptographic code and automatically implement contract terms.
Lastly, smart contracts keep track of all consumer, worker, and stakeholder activities. Many global corporations use smart contracts to perform essential HR and administrative tasks.
What Does Blockchain Mean for Entrepreneurs?
Blockchain technology is so much more than just a technology used for cryptocurrencies. For a commoner, whenever we talk about blockchain, the first thing they think of is bitcoin or cryptocurrency. However, for businesses and entrepreneurs, blockchain is more than just a cryptocurrency. Let's take a look at the ways in which blockchain technology can empower business leaders.
Case Study
Blockchaintechnology is being rapidly usedin the logistics industry.The main advantages include higher confidence in the system due to greater transparency, improved product traceability, and cost savings by eliminating manual and paper-based administration.
One such example Tradelens, a blockchain-powered open and neutral supply chain network, is one example. It was founded by IBM and Maersk and has expanded to 150 members, including some of the world's largest logistics companies, including CMA CGM, MSC, ONE, and Hapag-Lloyd. In 2020, it claims to have made businesses 15% more efficient by letting them get rid of legacy data systems, manual document processing, and limited visibility. By 2050, it claims to have made them 15% more efficient.
Final Thought
Blockchain technology is theinevitable future, and its use is no longer restricted to crypto transactions. In the coming years, blockchain development solutions will be used ineCommerce marketplace, peer-to-peer financial transactions, content distribution, healthcare data exchanges, supply chain, and customer services.
Blockchain applications are no more the pie-in-the-sky dreams of early adopters. This technology has the potential to revolutionize practically every sector and solve your company's greatest challenges. Smart and strategic use of new technologies, can make your company more secure, transparent, and ready for whatever comes next.
FAQ
What Is the Impact of BlockchainTechnology on Business Models?
Blockchain implementations can minimize transaction costs such as negotiation and search expenses and eliminate intermediary costs. This means that by 2022, blockchain technology is expectedto cut costs in the financial sector by$15–$20.
What Is the Size of theBlockchainMarket?
The global blockchain market was valued at $1.57 billion in 2018 and is expected to more than triple to 163 billion USD by 2027.
What Does BlockchainMean for Business?
A blockchain is a digital record of who owns what, and it is constantly updated. The time, date, dollar amount, and participants in a transaction are encrypted into a "block" that is connected to other blocks to create a chain.
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Data Center Networking
Article | July 5, 2023
The RAN (Radio Access Network) architecture for mobile networks includes a remote radio unit (RRU) located at the top of a cell tower, which communicates with a baseband unit (BBU) at the base of the tower. The hardware and communication interfaces are owned by a specific vendor, and its software-driven functionality is tightly coupled within the hardware.
Traditionally, this has worked well for mobile network operators (MNOs). However, there are several drawbacks to consider – for instance, upgrading or changing the wireless network demands physical hardware replacements throughout the network, which is cost-inefficient, labor-intensive, and time-consuming. Furthermore, the equipment and interfaces that connect the hardware are owned by the vendors that originally supplied them, which locks MNOs into existing relationships with them.
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5G
Article | May 18, 2023
Wi-Fi and the Internet have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. Because of the importance and convenience of a business Wi-Fi network, it is now a must-have service for most businesses. Unfortunately, numerous small-to-medium-sized businesses lack the resources and cyber skills required to appropriately secure their networks. This can be a major issue because an unsecured network exposes the company to attacks from hackers looking to steal valuable company information or customer data.
How Can Businesses and IT Leaders Strengthen Their Wi-Fi Security?
A data breach can cripple your business. It not only undermines consumer trust, but data breaches cost an average of $4.24 million. Fortunately, improving your Wi-Fi security is not difficult. To safeguard your company's wireless Internet connection, follow the steps outlined below.
Use Up-To-Date Wi-Fi Encryption
You should upgrade your hardware if it can only support WEP or WPA encryption. The Wi-Fi Alliance strongly encourages the widespread use of WPA2. Cutting-edge encryption has been demonstrated to be protected against even the most persistent attackers when correctly implemented. If you run an enterprise environment, you should take advantage of the extra security provided by specific digital certificates.
Encrypt Wi-Fi Router Administration Pages
Taking your Wi-Fi security a step further needs the use of a Wi-Fi digital certificate to secure your admin login pages. Self-signed certificates that come pre-installed on a few routers are untrusted, easy to copy, and prone to Man-In-The-Middle (MITM) attacks. TLS certificates from reputable certificate authorities can ensure that all of your Wi-Fi connectivity is safe and confidential. If your router's quick start guide does not contain digital certificates, you can obtain information on the manufacturer's support page.
Consider Restricting MAC addresses
Smaller network managers can lock down MAC addresses for more control. Wireless routers and access points use MAC (Media Access Control) address filtering to block attacks. Every WiFi-enabled device has a unique MAC or physical address and a list of connected devices. You can manually enter addresses to define network access, but hackers can fake MAC addresses.
Use Always-On SSL
You must utilize HTTPS across your website and apply it to Wi-Fi. Accessing an account on an encrypted page and subsequently interacting with the site through unencrypted pages exposes the user to session-side jacking.
Create a Guest AP with Tighter Security
Not all businesses must enable guests or customers to connect to their networks, but some companies do offer guests access by providing them with guest login credentials. If your company falls into this category, set up a dedicated guest AP that is isolated from the rest of the company network.
You can set up a second AP on your router and utilize a firewall to limit access from that AP to certain services that you want your visitors to be able to access.
Closing Lines
Nowadays, having an internet connection is critical for organizations, as is keeping it secure from hackers. Moreover, when conducting business, it is crucial to keep critical information and customer data secure.
Otherwise, you risk compromising your company's image. So, if you want to maintain your Wi-Fi network security and keep your business working effectively, you must adhere to a few fundamental principles.
Finally, you are on the path to make your Wi-Fi network safer and more robust by following all of these techniques at once or step by step.
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Data Center Networking
Article | August 10, 2022
There was a time when network security meant having servers on-site. A firewall would protect company data whenever internet traffic entered and exited the network. But, what about today? Modern businesses do not strictly function on-premise.
With the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of people working off-site part-time or full-time increased enormously – and suddenly. This change compelled cybersecurity professionals to reconsider their security measures. Their online privacy solutions had to ensure that their most precious asset — their data — was secure regardless of where workers accessed it.
Even when restrictions are lifted, businesses continue to use remote teams. As a result, more and more of a company's critical data and services are being housed in the cloud. These two criteria indicate that the need to examine network security on a regular basis is here to stay.
The good news is that a VPN, or virtual private network, is one of the most simple and widely accessible network security solutions for remote worker internet access.
Do VPNs Provide Reliable Business Security?
A virtual private network is a kind of Internet security service that enables users to connect to the internet as if they were on a private network. VPNs utilize encryption to provide a secure connection across vulnerable Internet infrastructure.
VPNs are one method for protecting business data and controlling user access to that data. The VPNs safeguard data as users interact with applications and websites through the Internet, and they can conceal specific resources. They are typically used for access control, although alternative identity and access management (IAM) systems can also assist with user access management.
VPN Encryption Enhances Network Security
Data is encrypted so that only authorized parties can view it. Anyone who manages to intercept it, whether a hacker, a fraudster, or another bad actor, is out of luck.
Imagine an employee is working from a coffeehouse, shared workspace, hotel, or airport and has access to your company's business-grade VPN. (Please keep in mind that business-or enterprise-grade VPNs are not the same as free VPN services.) The employee can create an encrypted connection between both the user's device and your VPN by using a VPN client installed on their preferred device and a public Wi-Fi network. This device, as well as any others that connect to your VPN, will establish encryption keys on both sides of the network connection. These keys will then encrypt and decrypt the information being exchanged.
The data of the person working at the coffeehouse is secured by the VPN after they create an encrypted VPN connection by utilizing the coffeehouse's Wi-Fi as a hotspot with a VPN client. Even if cybercriminals get access to the network of that coffeehouse, your employees and their data are secure within the VPN tunnel.
Closing Lines
Network security requires a VPN service from a trustworthy VPN provider. Our next-generation VPN enables enterprises to fully protect their assets in a dynamic, cost-effective, and scalable manner. A VPN solution enables you to connect private networks, devices, and servers quickly and simply to create a secure, virtualized, modern internet.
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