To keep up with the firehose of news, we’ve decided to deliver some extra news to you on the side every Tuesday and Thursday morning. Some of it is an extension of our own reporting that didn’t make its way into a story, while others might be content we’ve bookmarked for later reading and thought of sharing with you. We’re doing a similar thing at Channel Daily News – check it out here. You can also view our previous ITWC Morning Briefing here. Today’s briefing is delivered by ITWC editorial director Alex Coop.
What you need to know right now
It’s what you need to know right now in the world of IT and tech – ’nuff said. (Often taken with a side of Hashtag Trending)
Hashtag Trending
Paypal opens up to cryptocurrencies, Netflix has a new promotional experiment, and Trump is pressuring the White House to fast-track a deal that would give a no-bid contract 5G deal to Rivada Networks. Listen to the episode in the player above or read the full transcript here!
=====
Iran and Russia Seek to Influence Election in Final Days, U.S. Officials Warn [New York Times]
Iran is behind threatening, spoofed emails sent to voters, the officials said, but there was no indication that any votes themselves had been altered. [Full story]
IT World Canada also received an emailed comment about the news from John Hultquist, senior director of analysis, FireEye’s Mandiant Threat Intelligence:
In recent years, Iranian information operations have continued to push boundaries using bold and innovative approaches. However, this incident marks a fundamental shift in our understanding of Iran’s willingness to interfere in the democratic process. While many of their operations have been focused on promoting propaganda in pursuit of Iran’s interests, this incident is clearly aimed at undermining voter confidence.
We believe the email campaign, which purported to come from the Proud Boys, was designed to play on fears of voter intimidation and stoke existing tensions. Likewise, an associated video which purported to show intrusions into election systems and other malfeasance was also intended to prey on fears that election infrastructure could be subverted and hacked.
=====
Dell Technologies World 2020 Day 1
Dell Technologies World 2020: Executive keynotes focus on 5G and living on the edge with edge computing [IT World Canada]
Like most other vendors, this year Dell Technologies has, after delaying for a few months in hopes that the COVID-19 situation would abate, resorted to turning its flagship conference, Dell Technologies World, into a virtual event. This week’s two-day event features a mix of live and pre-recorded sessions, as well as lively music performances, games – and puppies! (Seriously, there’s a puppy cam). [Full story]
Dell Technologies flexes its as-a-service muscles [Channel Daily News]
Dell Technologies is putting its as-a-service aspirations into overdrive, unveiling a new initiative called Project Apex that it says will ease the company and its partners and clients into the as-a-service world.
“Project APEX is our strategy for delivering a simple as-a-service and cloud experience to our customers and partners,” Sam Grocott, senior vice-president of Dell Technologies business units marketing, said during a webcast with reporters. “It’s the culmination of our strategy, how we are going to take our existing as-a-service business to the next level and redesign it with simplicity, ease of use and speed.” [Full story]
In case you missed it
The recent news that we maybe didn’t get to yet, or it’s the news we’ve reported on and feel is worth resurfacing. Sometimes we’ll also feature awesome stories from other publications.
Cogeco scoops up Quebec-based cable provider DERYtelecom for $405M
Cogeco Communications says it has acquired the Quebec-based cable provider DERYtelecom for CA$405 million. DERYtelecom offers internet, telephone services and TV to approximately 100,000 customers in more than 200 municipalities across Quebec.
“Our proven track record in the successful integration of regional cable businesses, having acquired five companies in the U.S. and Canada over the past five years alone, demonstrates our commitment to bring superior connectivity to regional and rural communities,” said Philippe Jetté, president and chief executive officer of Cogeco Communications. [News release]
=====
Microsoft Translator welcomes Canadian French
It might not be the purest form of the French language – that’s what people in France tell us – but Microsoft this week announced that it was releasing Canadian French as a unique language option within Microsoft Translator, allowing users to select “French (Canada)” for Canadian French for translations to or from any of the more than 70 languages available in Microsoft Translator. [News release]
=====
Micron’s uMCP5 with LPDDR5 is ready for mass production [IT World Canada]
Computer parts manufacturer Micron Technology announced that its UFS-based multi-chip package 5 (uMCP5) with embedded LPDDR5 is now ready for mass production. [Full story]
=====
Six Russian military officers indicted by U.S. grand jury for huge cyber attacks [IT World Canada]
Six members of Russia’s military intelligence unit have been accused of being behind some of the biggest known cyberattacks, including the NotPetya wiper, which caused over $1 billion in losses around the world, and malware that twice knocked out power to large parts of Ukraine. [Full story]
=====
Cisco survey: Accelerated digitization of Canadian SMBs could add $70B to country’s GDP by 2024 [IT Business Canada]
According to a new study, Canadian small businesses’ continued push into the digital realm could do wonders for Canada’s economy.
The increased digitization within Canadian small businesses can add CA$70 billion to the country’s GDP by 2024, according to the findings of a recent Cisco commissioned study conducted by IDC. [Full story]
Bookmarks of the week
A few bookmarked tweets that we think are worth sharing with you. Check out the #CyberSecurityAwarenessMonth hashtag on Twitter to follow the conversation during October.
Chinese state-sponsored malicious cyber actors are exploiting publicly known #vulnerabilities. Network defenders should take action to protect against this activity.
For a full list of CVEs & related mitigations review our latest #cybersecurity advisory: https://t.co/uP6LP80cbq pic.twitter.com/jkODldyLxk
— NSA Cyber (@NSACyber) October 20, 2020
=====
. @seattlestorm co-owner @dawntru reflects on the lack of support for women tech entrepreneurs. @GlobalWIC #Seattle #WomenInBusiness #FemaleFounders #SheSoars #TechNativeTV pic.twitter.com/gkpFjdKZX2
— TechNative (@TechNative) October 21, 2020
=====
Calling all Canadian developers: join us for the Developer Digital Meetup Tour and explore five exclusive sessions to take your skills to the next level. Save your seat today: https://t.co/dSprc67cts
— Microsoft Developer Canada (@msdevCA) October 14, 2020
=====
Today is the day! 🎉 Tune in live now for our opening #AdobeMAX keynote with @ConanOBrien. We saved you a seat. https://t.co/ryrH7hoj87
— Adobe (@Adobe) October 20, 2020
