VARINDIA IT MAGAZINE

Following the government’s extended deadline for mobile phone makers to give details of their data security practices, the Ministry of Electronics and IT has given handset-makers time till next Tuesday to respond with information. While around 12 companies had met the earlier deadline of August 28 and responded, some had asked for more time.  Several companies are yet to submit their security protocols and allied information to the IT Ministry, while firms such as Apple, Samsung, Gionee and HMD have responded to the government’s call. The new deadline is till September 12.... Read More

According to a news source, being confident about its leadership position in India, Samsung may launch Galaxy Note 8 in the country, on the same day Apple is scheduled to come up with its iPhone 8 in Cupertino, California.  The news source has also revealed that Samsung has sent out invites to the outstation media without naming the event. So the speculation is rife that the invitation is for Samsung Galaxy Note 8.  In India, Samsung is among the leading brands with 43% market share in the smartphone segment. Galaxy Note 8 comes with "Bixby" intelligent assistant and is also water- and dust-resistant. It also comprises of iris scanner, infinity display, 6.3-inch Super AMOLED screen with a resolution of 1,440 x 2,960 pixels. It boasts 64-bit Exynos 8895 octa-core processor chipset with 6GB RAM and 64GB internal storage.... Read More

Avnet has acquired Dragon Innovation, expanding the global distributor's portfolio of offerings for customers as they move from design to prototype to volume production. Dragon Innovation's proven process and deep hardware experience help customers understand manufacturing costs and schedules, find factories and manage production as they scale their businesses.  "With the addition of Dragon Innovation to our connected ecosystem, Avnet further meets the needs for companies of all sizes head on – helping them launch new hardware products in an efficient and cost-effective manner that accelerates time to market," said Bill Amelio, Chief Executive Officer, Avnet. "Dragon Innovation's hardware manufacturing expertise augments Avnet's design and supply chain capabilities beyond electronic components to encompass the entire finished product. Equally important, Dragon Innovation complements our digital strategy by delivering their services through a combi...

State-owned telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has come up with voice and data plan of Rs.429, which will give prepaid users 1GB data per day for 90 days with unlimited voice calling.  The pack offers both local and STD calling to any network with daily 1GB data translating into 90 GB of data for 90 days on a pan-India basis, except the Kerala circle.... Read More

A digital currency in which encryption techniques are used to regulate the generation of units of currency and verify the transfer of funds, operating independently of a central bank. Bitcoin is a form of cryptocurrency.A million dollar question is on will bitcoin cash crash or does it have long-term potential? An expert says, he would start supporting trade with bitcoin cash despite its long-term potential being limited. It is a digital currency associated with the internet that uses cryptography, the process of converting legible information into an almost uncrackable code, to track purchases and transfers. The first cryptocurrency was bitcoin, which was created in 2009. Cryptocurrencies use decentralised technology to let users make secure payments and store money without the need to use their name or go through a bank. They run on a distributed public ledger called blockchain, which is a record of all transactions updated and held by currency holders.... Read More

Huawei has kick-started the HUAWEI CONNECT 2017 at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre. More than 20,000 ICT industry leaders and experts gathered from over 150 countries and regions to jointly explore the direction of advancements in digital technology, share new opportunities, drive industry digitization, and embark on a path to new growth. At the event, Huawei also shared its vision to build one of the five major world clouds it predicts will be created in the future.  The theme of this year's event is “Grow with the Cloud”, focussing on the practical implementation of Huawei's cloud strategy, first unveiled at the last year's event. Topics under this theme include business, technology, and ecosystem strategies in the cloud era.... Read More

Just imagine when a device is implanted in your heart to keep beating, just consider for a moment it can be hacked, if you have pacemaker. This week FDA had recalled 4,65,000 of the medical devices - the ones that help control your heart beat -- citing security vulnerabilities. That is exactly what experts are warning could happen to cardiac implants made by device maker Abbott (formerly St. Jude Medical Inc.), require a firmware update since , they are vulnerable to hacking.  Fortunately, it can be installed by a health care provider in just three minutes. The models affected include the Accent, Anthem, Accent MRI, Accent ST, Assurity, and Allure.  You need a pacemaker if your heart is pumping too quickly or slowly. In either case, your body doesn’t get enough blood. This can cause:.... Read More

Former Kerala IAS officer Alphons Kannanthanam has been appointed as minister of state in the ministry of electronics and IT. In a major cabinet reshuffle, the Narendra Modi government elevated four junior ministers to the Cabinet rank and inducted nine new faces. The new inductions include four former civil servants with the 1979 batch, Kerala cadre officer being one of them.  The 65 year old Kannanthanam is a former DDA commissioner and popularly known as Delhi’s Demolition man for his activist stance that led to removal of around 15,000 illegal buildings in the national capital.... Read More

Micro Focus has announced the finalization of its merger with Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s (HPE) software business to create the seventh-largest pure-play enterprise software company in the world. This merger brings together two leaders in the software industry to form a new, combined company uniquely positioned to help customers maximize existing software investments and embrace innovation in a world of Hybrid IT. Following merger, Chris Hsu, formerly COO of HPE and Executive Vice-President and General Manager of HPE Software, was appointed CEO of Micro Focus. “Today marks a significant milestone for Micro Focus, and I am honoured to be leading this team,” said Chris Hsu, Chief Executive Officer of Micro Focus. “We are bringing together a powerful combination of technology and talent uniquely positioned to drive customer-centred innovation at enterprise scale – enabling organizations to maximize the RoI of existing software investments while embracing the new hybrid model fo...

Mobile technologies being one of the most preferred channels of interactions has taken the world by storm, unlocking diversified avenues. It has revolutionized the way people and businesses interact with each other. Given the unparalleled advancement of mobile technologies, both public and private sectors have realized its impact on the society. To build a multichannel approach, governments have adopted the m-Governance model with a vision to extend support and augment its performance for a digitally enabled society. m-Governance enables governments to improve their services and strengthen their connect with people, using mobile or wireless technologies. The boundary-breaking potential of this model has created a digital nervous system for governments and given them the power to service citizens 24*7. Governments have been successful in creating seamless integration across multiple departments and making services available on different mobile platforms.... Read More

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at VMworld has announced a composable platform for VMware Cloud Foundation, based on HPE Synergy. This solution will enable IT organizations to simplify their transformation to a hybrid IT infrastructure, deploy infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and private clouds in minutes and lower virtual machine (VM) costs compared to public clouds and traditional server racks.  Today, IT is under pressure to respond to line of business and developer initiatives with cloud speed, optimize their right mix of IT, including on-premises, hosted and public cloud, all while lowering capital and operational expenditures (CapEx and OpEx). The combination of HPE Synergy with VMware Cloud Foundation will enable customers to:... Read More

“Young consumers across the Asia-Pacific region are now the core drivers for new communications’ services and will have a big impact on operators’ business,” according to Zhou Jianjun, Vice-President of Huawei’s Carrier Business Group. Speaking on "Emerging Markets, New Opportunities" at the Asia-Pacific Emerging Markets Summit in Bangkok, Thailand, Zhou pointed out that young consumers account for more than half of Asia’s fast- growing population and have grown up as mobile phone and computer users with high expectations of technology.  Huawei sees three key areas where these young consumers are driving demand for improved digital services that will have a major impact on telcos – development of new ICT policies, creation of industry ecosystems, and demand for new business solutions.... Read More

Shri Rajiv Gauba, IAS (Jharkhand cadre-1982 batch) today took over as Secretary to the Government of India in the Ministry of Home Affairs.  Shri Gauba joined the Ministry of Home Affairs as Officer on Special Duty on June 27, 2017 and took charge as the Union Home Secretary upon the superannuation of Shri Rajiv Mehrishi.  Prior to this, Shri Gauba was Secretary in the Ministry of Urban Development. He has wide-ranging experience in senior positions in the Central and State Governments and in international organisations. Hailing from Punjab, the 1959 born Shri Gauba is a Physics graduate.... Read More

Technology is all about convergence and connectivity, which could enable multiple innovative applications that will change the way we live, communicate and conduct business, creating a connected world in the future and secondly, in the era of smart computing, connected homes, virtual work environments, connected cities then enterprises, with real-time social media integration, a new range of ICT-enabled services such as smart lighting, mobile working solutions, and smart governance could reach a market potential of $731.79 billion by 2020. The digitization of content including the outbound business operational model has been completely changed, creating a new era of BI framework.(Business Integration Framework..(I will say it is Business Intelligent Framework).This is the out comming model which simulates how media companies think about, the end to end workflow based solution model including Content Preparation/Creation, Production, Marketing, Distribution ,Monetization and m...

UNSW creates future with launch of 'unique' quantum computing company and in a bid to launch 10-qubit forerunner to a silicon-based quantum computer. Australia’s first hardware quantum computing company, Silicon Quantum Computing Pty Ltd, has been launched to advance the development and commercialisation of UNSW Sydney’s world-leading quantum computing technology. The rest of the world is watching, government and industry leaders have been told, as UNSW ramps up commercial efforts to build the silicon-based quantum computer. It will drive the development and commercialisation of a 10-qubit quantum integrated circuit prototype in silicon by 2022 as the forerunner to a silicon based quantum computer.  UNSW Professor Andrea Morello and Silicon Quantum Computing director Professor Michelle Simmons describe the operation of a cryogenic dilution refrigerator to the Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science Arthur Sinodinos at the UNSW quantum computing laboratory.... ...

In order to promote GST and assist in various procedures involved, Masters India has entered into collaboration with BSNL to provide a set of veritable solutions for GST compliance. These solutions are exclusively crafted for BSNL users – both landline and mobile, available on a pan-India level.  The solutions are ready-to-use with ease in registrations. BSNL users can register themselves using their respective account numbers in the given website (www.bsnlgst.mastersindia.co). Post which, they can straightaway file returns without the hassle of waiting in a queue. The solutions can be divided into three categories:  · Basic Plan (free of cost, comes with 2,000 invoices) · Plus Plan (Rs.1,999, comes with 6,000 invoices alongside other benefits) · Pro Plan (for enterprises) .... Read More

Motorola has extended its Moto G family with Moto G⁵S and G⁵S Plus. Moto G⁵S Moto G⁵S flaunts an all-metal unibody design crafted from a single piece of high-grade aluminium, making it stronger than ever. It comes with great battery life, rapid charging with TurboPower charging for up to 5 hours of battery life in just 15 minutes. It features a high-resolution 16MP camera with phase detection autofocus (PDAF). It also brings stunning 1080p entertainment to life on a vibrant 13.2cm (5.2”) Full HD display. And backed by a 1.4GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon Octa-core processor. Moto G⁵S also features the latest Moto Experiences like Night Display and Quick Reply. Moto G⁵S Plus Moto G5S Plus features such as dual 13MP + 13MP rear cameras that let do more, combined with special photo enhancement software, Selective focus mode, beautiful blurred background effect and many more which until now, were reserved for premium phones. Moto G⁵S Plus boast an 8MP wide-angle front camer...

Apple and Accenture have entered into a strategic partnership to help businesses transform how their people engage with customers through innovative business solutions for iOS. The partnership will take full advantage of the power, simplicity and security of iOS, the leading enterprise mobility platform, and Accenture’s capabilities as a leader in industry and digital transformation to help companies unlock new revenue streams, increase productivity, improve customer experience and reduce costs. Apple’s CEO Tim Cook said, “Both Apple and Accenture are leaders in building incredible user experiences and together we can continue to truly modernize how businesses work through amazing solutions that take advantage of the incredible capabilities of Apple’s technologies.” Read More

To address the transformation journey of enterprises to adopt digital, showcase advanced solutions to overcome the new challenges and elevate IT to the next level, Dell EMC is organizing their annual flagship event – Dell-EMC CIO Forum 2017 on 8th September in Mumbai, followed by an outreach in four cities (Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Bangalore). These events across four cities will host four tracks with 35 sessions for tech enthusiasts. The 8th edition of Dell EMC Forum also marks the one year anniversary of Dell and EMC coming together in a successful merger. With an overarching theme of “REALIZE Transformation”, the daylong event in Mumbai will entail four tracks, namely Digital Transformation, IT Transformation, Modernizing IT and Cloud. The forum will be all- encompassing across customers of Dell EMC under the commercial and enterprise segments. The event is geared towards sharing the company vision, learning for the attending executives/practitioners and immense netw...

Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) has signed an agreement with Accenture to set up a co-innovation centre that will help BIAL create an airport of the future at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (BLR Airport). The centre will incubate and develop digital solutions using future-ready technologies to provide more engaging passenger experience.  BIAL has embarked on an ambitious journey to create a digitized and intuitive destination airport for travellers. Accenture will help define a digital roadmap for BIAL and develop tailor- made solutions using a combination of digital technologies, including Internet of Things, advanced analytics, artificial intelligence, robotics, augmented and virtual reality, in addition to social and mobile platforms.... Read More