http://www.gadgetsmagazine.com.ph JULY 2019 69
CYBER
SECURITY
Cybersecurity firm launches
Safe Kids feature to protect kids online
Sophos acquires Rook Security to provide
managed detection and response
Sophos, a network and endpoint security firm,
announces that it has acquired Rook Security,
a company that offers managed detection and
response (MDR) services.
Rook Security provides a 24/7 team of cyberthreat
hunters and incident response experts who
monitor, hunt for, analyze and respond to security
incidents for businesses of all sizes. The privately-
owned company was founded in 2008 and is
headquartered in Indianapolis, USA.
Sophos is creating re-sellable MDR services by
combining Rook Security’s threat detection,
investigation and response capabilities with its
recently acquired DarkBytes technology platform.
As a channel-first, channel-best security provider,
Sophos will deliver the new MDR services through
its network of approximately 47,000 channel
partners worldwide.
“Cybercriminals are relentlessly trying to exploit
organizations with techniques ranging from
tried-and-true phishing emails to the more recent
trend of ‘hacker pen-testing’ to find weaknesses
in their surface area. As a result, businesses need
24/7 monitoring and management of what is
happening on their network, yet many of them
do not have the expertise, can’t keep up or don’t
have the security teams in-house to optimally
configure and manage security around-the-clock,”
said Joe Levy, chief technology officer at Sophos.
“With MDR, Sophos’ channel partners will be
able to provide businesses of all sizes with expert
services that continuously detect, hunt for and
respond to security incidents.”
In addition, Sophos plans to align its synchronized
security technology and product portfolio with
Rook Security’s 24/7 services for MDR customers.
Rook Security experts will also be able to review
these customer security postures to ensure
optimal policy configurations for Sophos products
across estates.
“Rook Security provides managed detection
and response services to detect and eliminate
cyber threats. Through threat hunting and
data analytics, Rook Security’s experts rapidly
detect and mitigate active attacks,” said J.J.
Thompson, founder and CEO, Rook Security.
“We are excited to bring our experts and service
delivery innovation to Sophos, a global leader in
next-generation cybersecurity. Together, we can
implement faster, more effective threat detection
and response capabilities to better protect
businesses.”
A few years ago, tech giant Google predicted that
the world will be mobile first, meaning the young
generation would have their first digital exposure
on mobile devices instead of computers.
A report from cybersecurity firm Kaspersky
gathered from May 2018 to May 2019 states that
“kids are now fast moving toward the use of mobile
devices for their online activities instead of using
computers.” While some parents and guardians
have been working hard to limit their children’s
screen time, it cannot be helped that some of them
have grown attached to their devices. They are
digital natives, after all, who have no idea what a
world is like without the internet.
Constant exposure to the internet without adult
supervision can expose them to various types
of threats like cyberbullying or even sexual
harassment.
Kaspersky provided data from IndexMundi that
says about 33.39% of the country’s population
currently make up the 0-14 age group while
19.16% comprise the 15-25 age bracket.
Aside from limiting screen time, parents can also
install safety apps such as the Kaspersky Safe
Kids, a feature in Kaspersky Total Security (KTS).
With this module, parents can now manage
the child’s screen time, view the child’s location
using a GPS tracker with a real-time online map,
know the child’s device battery level so they
can be warned to recharge the device, monitor
their public and Facebook activity, and block
access to adult websites and content for most
platforms.
Kaspersky is making this feature easily accessible
to parents with the pricing of PHP 2,764 (one
device for one year), PHP 3,801 (one device for
two years) and PHP 3,455 (three devices for one
year). Parents can also purchase the KTS from the
on-demand subscription service through telco
company Smart where a single license costs PHP
30 for seven days (Text KTS30 to 8933) and PHP
120 for 30 days (Text KTS120 to 8933).
TIPS FROM EXPERTS AT KASPERSKY
TO PROTECT CHILDREN ONLINE:
- Talk regularly. Be involved in children’s
online activities from an early age so
this is the established norm. Encourage
communication so you can both learn from
each other and to help build mutual trust. - Set boundaries. Ensure that children
know what is acceptable and what
is not. Also, make them aware of the
consequences of going somewhere that
they shouldn’t or using tech when they
shouldn’t be. This should be reviewed as a
child gets older. - Use available resources. Understand
that there’s a lot of help as you raise digital
children. Use the resources provided by
some companies or organizations such as
parental control software as well as tips
and techniques to better manage kids who
use digital devices