BetaNews Staff

Data is the lifeblood of artificial intelligence (AI), and the power that AI brings to the business world -- to unearth fresh insights, increase speed and efficiency, and multiply effectiveness -- flows from its ability to analyze and learn from data. The more data AI has to work with, the more reliable its results will be.

Feeding AI’s need for data means collecting it from a wide variety of sources, which has raised concerns about AI gathering, processing, and storing personal data. The fear is that the ocean of data flowing into AI engines is not properly safeguarded.

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The oil and gas sector remains a crucial pillar of the global economy, an industry that supports not only millions of jobs worldwide but also underpins essential energy provisions for homes, businesses, and transportation networks.

Yet, as digital technology continues to pervade this sector, oil and gas companies are increasingly being exposed to critical cyber threats. The industry's increasing dependence on digital systems has escalated the importance of robust cybersecurity strategies, presenting an array of unprecedented challenges.

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Recent Salesforce research shows 52 percent of consumers expect their offers to be personalized. To create these tailored offerings and drive a seamless customer experience, retailers gather vast amounts of personally identifiable information (PII) -- from addresses to purchasing history and payment information. This makes them an irresistible -- and relatively low risk -- target for cybercriminals. As a result, data breaches within retail are increasingly common, even for major retailers -- as we saw earlier this year with the JD Sports Data Breach, which exposed the PII of around 10 million people.

To help protect consumers, governing bodies are putting increased pressure on companies to comply with data protection rules -- including the UK’s upcoming Data Protection and Digital Information Bill. Consumer trust is key when it comes to retail too. So, companies unable to protect their customer data not only risk enormous fines, but significant damage to their brand reputation. So, following recent high-profile retail breaches, how can brands protect their customers’ personal data? 

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Digital transformation initiatives are keeping software developers on their toes, intensifying the need for digital platforms that unlock the vast amounts of data now available in the modern enterprise. Whether we’re talking about data that powers a project, a team, or an entire company, a data architecture that enables the agile and modular deployment of mission-critical systems and apps has become essential for keeping pace with the changing business landscape.

According to a PwC Pulse Survey, agility is a key priority for executives for 2023 -- and as such, software developers working on corporate initiatives such as websites, internal apps, data analytics, or SaaS offerings are prioritizing flexibility and scalability as they look for ways to leverage existing data stacks for building innovative, scalable platforms.

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In recent months, the buzz surrounding AI technology has grown rapidly, due in large part to the release -- and subsequent zeitgeist moment -- of ChatGPT. A chatbot fueled by language modeling AI technology that is free to the public, ChatGPT has been the subject of seemingly endless discourse regarding its implications since its launch last November.

This type of AI technology is convincing and well… intelligent. It’s almost like a contemporary iteration on the concept of a search engine -- you can type in a prompt, and within moments you’ll receive a well-articulated, seemingly accurate response pulling from sources all over the web.

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Imagine a hidden system that tracks and scores you based on every phone call you make or take. It might sound like something straight out of a Black Mirror episode and remind you of China's controversial social credit system. But surprisingly, half of the world's mobile phone users are already part of a similar system, and many of them are Europeans, who are supposed to enjoy the strongest privacy protections.

NOYB, a privacy advocacy group, has filed a lawsuit against the US company TeleSign, a Belgian telecom provider BICS, and their mutual parent Proximus. They claim these companies are unauthorizedly profiling billions of phone users to assign them a 'reputation' or 'trust' score.

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The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming how tech assets are evaluated for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) through more efficient, accurate, and predictive analyses.

M&A involves complex activities across multiple phases, requiring cohesive cooperation within a competitive timeframe. However, technologies like AI and data analytics have emerged as crucial drivers for successful M&A transactions. As Kevin Knoepp, operating partner and CTO at Trilogy Search Partners, notes, these tools significantly accelerate each step of the M&A process.

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When, where, and how we work has evolved. And in the past few years, the rise of flexible working patterns has helped improve employee wellbeing and created new opportunities to innovate. According to the Office of National Statistics, 44 percent of people in the UK work in a hybrid model -- making it almost as common as commuting to the office.

At the same time, these new freedoms have ushered in new priorities for security teams. Securing the enterprise is now more complex because the perimeter has become blurred. To address this, focus must be put on securing endpoints, such as PCs and printers -- the "ground zero" for most attacks. New cybersecurity strategies are needed to prevent, detect, and contain cyber-threats, but also enhance remote PC management to mitigate the risks associated with lost or stolen devices.

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Infrastructure is becoming more vulnerable to cyber threats. Therefore, everyone from tech enthusiasts to real estate professionals must pay attention to how blockchain and proptech advancements change the game to keep stakeholders, business owners and tenants safe and sound.

Blockchain is a part of the proptech umbrella, but it encompasses so much -- and blockchain enhances it all.

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In the Internet of Things (IoT) era, putting your business at the forefront of your consumers is the most fool-proof way of improving your business branding. One of the core business digitalization trends that have catapulted many companies, especially during the pandemic, is the use of websites.

With the internet's help, consumers can access these websites and make research, transactions, and purchases seamlessly, without going from application to application. But how are these websites set up, and what features does web hosting have that make it more attractive for businesses as years go by?

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When you think of a search engine, you probably associate to Google or Bing. Those are great for navigating the public web. But they are not going to let you locate an email exchange from nine years ago or find a footnote reference in millions of office files. For that, you need a different product category, enterprise search.

With enterprise search, one or more concurrent search threads can instantly search terabytes of organizational data, including over 25 different full-text and metadata search options and the display of retrieved items with highlighted hits. Sounds cut-and-dried, does it not? But scratch a bit deeper, and you’ll find some myths about enterprise search that are quite at odds with its reality. While some myths are relatively inconsequential, others can have effects that you need to be aware of in terms of the reach of enterprise search.

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AI has been in the news over the past several months, but not everyone is welcoming it excitedly. Many renowned tech personalities have expressed their concerns over the risks associated with it and there are valid fears about artificial intelligence doing more harm than good. For example, there have been reports of AI helping cybercriminals produce less detectable malware.

It is reassuring to know that cybersecurity is among the early adopters in harnessing the benefits of artificial intelligence. Cybersecurity firms have been developing ways to integrate AI into their detection, mitigation, and prevention capabilities. Next gen security information and event management (SIEM), in particular, is gaining traction as organizations try to keep up with the growing aggressiveness and complexity of cyber threats.

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The rise of the e-commerce industry has brought immense convenience and opportunities for businesses and consumers alike. However, this growth has been met with an increase in fraudulent activity, causing significant financial losses for companies. Merchant losses related to online payment fraud are expected to exceed $343 billion by 2027. To combat this persistent threat, the e-commerce industry can harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and robotic process automation (RPA) to help mitigate these losses, prepare for new fraud attempts and ensure that the customer experience remains intact. 

Utilizing AI-enabled, automated financial operations (FinOps) solutions allows for continuous real-time transaction monitoring. These technologies can effectively bolster security measures by enabling vendors to monitor transactions in real-time, compare them to historical data and safeguard against fraudulent activities by identifying suspicious activity that deviates from normal behavior. Moreover, the adaptive nature of AI empowers it to continually learn and adapt to emerging dishonest tactics, making it an indispensable asset in the relentless battle against illicit activities.

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Amidst the ever-evolving post-COVID-19 era, the tech industry has been met with unprecedented challenges such as budget constraints, mass layoffs, and the urgent need for adaptability. In the face of these uncertainties, tech companies can draw valuable insights from numerous retailers who demonstrated remarkable resilience during the pandemic. How did these retailers triumph amidst one of the most challenging periods in recent history? In this article, we explore key takeaways that hold immense potential to benefit the tech industry in the current economic landscape.

Retailers have demonstrated unwavering dedication to improving customer service, cultivating loyalty, and fostering trust, resulting in strong and enduring customer relationships. Tech companies can adopt a similar approach to enhance their customer service efforts, aiming for frictionless user experiences and delivering personalized recommendations. Embracing innovative channels like chatbots, virtual assistants, and social media platforms enables real-time support and fosters immediate engagement, nurturing long-lasting connections with customers.

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Businesses must embrace a digital future for multiple reasons: to avoid falling behind competitors, to strengthen security and cut down on security breaches, and to remove the reliance on legacy software.

We know it is important, but where do you start with approaching digital transformation? In this handy guide, we explain and break down digital transformation, as well as offer tips to success with going digital and unlocking future success.

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