SecTor (Security Education Conference Toronto) has created an awards competition for the Canadian IT security industry. Canadian-based IT professionals, developers and independent software and hardware vendors are encouraged to enter the competition by downloading and completing the submission form before Aug. 15.
The Canadian Information Security Awards Competition includes three categories: best non-commercial product, best commercial product and best overall security solution that helps detect and protect systems from threats. The non-commercial product must be free.
The first awards ceremony will take place at the third annual SecTor conference in downtown Toronto this October. The two-day event will include a keynote by Michael Barrett, chief information security officer at PayPal. Presentations and workshops on developing, managing and defending corporate networks will also take place. Other conference highlights include a Lockpick Village, an Enterprise Demo Lab, Microsoft ForeFront Hands On labs, a Hardware Hacking Village and an “elite” selection of vendors.
EMC supports old PowerPC Macs with new Retrospect release
Small and medium-sized businesses equipped with older Apple Inc. machines can now run Retrospect software for backup and recovery. The recent release of Retrospect 8.1 from EMC Corp. supports PowerPC-based Macs and increases performance on Intel-based Mac machines up to 15 per cent over version 8.0 and up to 35 per cent over version 6.1, according to EMC.
Changes made to Retrospect’s user interface for the 8.0 release are further enhanced in 8.1, which is available as a free upgrade for 8.0 users and those who purchased 6.1 on or after Jan. 14, 2008.
Features include: multiple simultaneous backup, restore and copy capabilities; D2D2D and D2D2T backups; certified AES-256 encryption; advanced network client support and wake-on-LAN; backup of physical and virtual Windows Server 2003/2008 and Windows XP/Vista clients including those running within VMware Fusion and Parallels.
Telus alert keys send signals for emergency help
A new GPS-based emergency alert system from Telus Corp. promises to offer employees working alone or in small groups – and their employers – some peace of mind. The Telus Alert and Assist system allows workers to transmit a signal to their employers when they need help using an alert key connected via Bluetooth to a BlackBerry smartphone.
The alert notifications are sent over the Telus 3G network to employers through a secure Web application that lets employers know where the employee is located and if the employee becomes motionless after two minutes. The alerts can also take the form of a text or e-mail to a pre-selected list of contracts. The system will also prompt the employee to check in at regular intervals.
Telus Alert and Assist is targeted to emergency services such as police and fire, as well as home health care, social services, construction, real estate, delivery, maintenance and repair and the energy sector.
Lexmark announces a new option for RFID printing
Owners of Lexmark International Inc.’s T654 monochrome laser printer now have the option of upgrading to an RFID-enabled device. Designed as an add-on accessory for the T654, Lexmark’s new RFID Ultra High Frequency (UHF) option has an estimated street price of $3,099.
Top benefits, according to Lexmark, include printing of RFID label media up to 20 ppm in RFID mode, the ability to place RFID tags horizontally or vertically on the print media and media support ranging from 5 x 7 to 8.5 x 14-inches.
The technology targets manufacturing and health-care industries. Both the standalone RFID USF option and Lexmark’s fully configured RFID solution are available through Lexmark RFID-certified channel partners.
