IT Support & Security
At the office where I work, we do not have any on-site IT support. Instead we have a contract with an IT company (a 2 man show) that sends someone to us when we have a problem.
Today was such a case and so the administrator came in to have a look at my MS Outlook which I was having trouble with.
While working on the issue, he used Windows remote desktop to access his computer and double check some information.
After having solved the problem he left, and when I sat down to work, I noticed I was still logged in to his remote desktop with access not only to all his software and tools but he had also opened up his management software where he keeps track of his clients and all their data, both security related and financial.
Of course we are all human and we make mistakes sometimes, but for someone in the business of IT administration and support, which entails security as well, this is quite a bad example.
About an hour later, he came back in to check and see if had left his remote desktop open. I reassured him that I had closed it after he left, I did not tell him that I had browsed briefly through his applications and open files, but we did joke about it, and little did he know...
I’ll have one of those please
According to an article at nextenergynews.com, scientists working for the Air Force Research Laboratory, have developed betavoltaic batteries that can last up to 30 years. If these batteries are safe and make it to market shelves then this could be the biggest technological step since the invention of the computer, in my opinion. I think I am not the only one who is of the opinion that battery technology has lagged far behind the multitude of consumer products and gadgets. This Achilles heel may at last be gone.
The breakthrough betavoltaic power cells are constructed from semiconductors and use radioisotopes as the energy source. As the radioactive material decays it emits beta particles that transform into electric power capable of fueling an electrical device like a laptop for years.