Author: Nick Farrell

Exclusive Networks snaps up Consigas

Posted on December 20, 2023 by - News

Exclusive Networks has acquired global cybersecurity services provider Consigas to enhance its global services capabilities.

Consigas former CEO Lars Meyer will spearhead Exclusive Networks’ Palo Alto education services business to expand its role in the cybersecurity education sector.

The acquisition will amplify Exclusive Networks’ global service offerings, extending Consigas’ services skills and digital tools across regions through Exclusive Networks’ extensive partner network.

Consigas, headquartered in Europe and founded in 2013, holds the titles of Certified Professional Service Provider (CPSP) and Global Authorised Training Partner (ATP) for Palo Alto Networks.

Ingentive grabs Software Solved by the assets

Posted on December 20, 2023 by - News

Ingentive has acquired the business and critical assets of UK digital transformation specialist Software Solved.

The company wanted Software Solved because of its expertise in pro code and big data solutions, primarily using Microsoft technology.

CEO Andrea Bright said the deal combines Ingentive’s strengths in low code, modern work, security, AI, and cloud capabilities with Software Solved’s specialised pro code, big data, and AI expertise.

Bright said the plan was to build a broad digital transformation business, and we needed the ability to do substantial DevOps projects in-house.

AI is going to make cash for the Channel

Posted on December 19, 2023 by - News

Generative AI is going to be a growing channel opportunity according to a survey of chief technology officers.

The Dynatrace survey found that customers see AI as positive and expect it to help them improve efficiencies, but there are concerns over technology management.

This means channel partners comfortable with AI can support customers who want the technology.

Dynatrace vice-president of worldwide partner sales Michael Allen said the channel has already seen that the hype cycle triggered by the release of ChatGPT late last year has generated significant interest in AI over the past 12 months.

Valimail’s 2024 security predictions

Posted on December 19, 2023 by - News

Valimail CEO and co-founder  Garcia-Tobar (pictured) said he expects a dramatic escalation in AI-fuelled disinformation and sophisticated cyber threats next year.

He said that with disinformation spreading rapidly due to advanced AI tools, email authentication will become critical to safeguard against false narratives. The election season will likely see intensified information attacks, highlighting the need for stringent verification of digital communications.

“As cyber threats grow more sophisticated with AI advancements, robust authentication will emerge as a key defence necessary to discern real interactions from AI-generated deceptions. This evolving cyber landscape underscores the urgency of adapting security strategies to outpace these emerging challenges,” he warned.

Cognizant acquires ServiceNow Elite channel partner Thirdera

Posted on December 18, 2023 by - News

Global IT services provider Cognizant is snapping up ServiceNow Elite channel partner Thirdera as part of a cunning plan to build one of the largest and most credentialed ServiceNow partners.

The acquisition is slated to close by January.

Cognizant wants to mix its team of 1,500 people focused on ServiceNow with 940 people from Thirdera into its ServiceNow business group, which Jason Wojahn, CEO and co-founder of Thirdera will run.

“We built Thirdera as the largest global pure-play partner to help customers achieve more value with ServiceNow,” he said. “And as we continue to explore the ‘third era,’ this digital transformation across the enterprise and across industries, it just became clearer and clearer to us that we needed more reach. We needed more scale,” Wojahn said.

Lenovo Channel EMEA Vice President makes his 2024 predictions

Posted on December 18, 2023 by - News

Lenovo Channel EMEA Vice President Ralf Jordan has been looking ahead to 2024 and sees the cloud changing the face of corporate reselling.

Jordan said that hybrid and multi-cloud are the twin engines that are driving the modernisation of IT across every sector, including a disruption of the channel landscape.

“In 2023, the work of a traditional corporate reseller that buys, enhances and sells products still exists but alongside new, evolving ways to work. Cloud service providers are increasingly taking over some of the capacity, as business requirements that historically were done in a data centre are moving to the cloud,” he said.

Jordan said that customers enjoy the benefits of cloud infrastructure but realise that adopting a one-size-fits-all approach carries risks, including the possibility that more agile competitors might leave them behind.

“There is no doubt that the multi-cloud trend will continue, moving from the large enterprise market where it began into the small and medium business space,” he said.

Illumio turns the Ignition.

Posted on December 15, 2023 by - News

Security outfit Illumio is announcing its first UK and Ireland distribution deal with Ignition.

The US-based vendor has seen growth in UK&I in the last few years and wants to double its regional investment.

Illumio VP Adrian Crawley said his company had a channel-first vendor strategy, especially in the UK and Ireland.

“In the current complex hybrid environment, many organisations have focused on replacing VPNs and figuring out the identity to connect people. However, they are realising they also need to contain potential breaches and ransomware attacks, which continue to rise despite security investments,” Crawley said.

UK about to face a catastrophic ransomware attack

Posted on December 15, 2023 by - News

Hacker typing on a laptop

The Joint Committee on National Security Strategy (JCNSS) has warned that the UK is “A hostage to fortune: ransomware and UK national security.”

The report into the UK readiness for a cyber-attack on critical national infrastructure says the Home Office have no significant plans for a bad ransomware attack which the JCNSS considers the UK to be at high risk.

The report warns that such an attack would likely cause “severe disruption” to the delivery of core government services, including healthcare and child protection. It has the potential to “bring the country to a standstill.”

It points out that there have been numerous cybersecurity compromises in the public realm of late, including on several police forces and St Helens council.

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) describes critical national infrastructure (CNI) as national assets essential for society’s functioning, including energy supply, water supply, transportation, health and telecommunications.

UK is not ready to legislate on AI yet

Posted on December 14, 2023 by - News

Digital secretary Michelle Donelan says UK government will not legislate on artificial intelligence (AI) but wants to develop a “pro-innovation” framework.

Donelan appeared before the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee to answer MPs’ questions about the UK’s current approach to fostering and regulating the development of AI.

The committee published an interim report on the UK’s developing AI governance arrangements at the end of August, which warned there is a danger the UK will be “left behind” by legislation being developed elsewhere, specifically the European Union’s (EU) AI Act.

The report identified 12 challenge areas for AI legislation related to various competition, accountability and social issues associated with AI’s operation, including bias, privacy, misrepresentation, data access, computing power, and open source.

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CMA and Unilever row might send a warning to greenwashers

Posted on December 14, 2023 by - News

Nearly every company claims to be sustainable and environmentally friendly, but regulators are getting snarky when companies overegg the pudding.

Unilever, the multinational consumer goods company behind well-known brands like Dove soap and Hellmann’s mayonnaise, is under investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) over allegations that it may be exaggerating the environmental friendliness of some of its products.

The CMA said it is cracking down on companies suspected of engaging in “corporate greenwashing” as customers want to make more sustainable choices.

The CMA’s primary concern is that Unilever may be misleading consumers with vague and broad statements regarding the environmental attributes of products. The watchdog points to the use of language and imagery on packaging that could potentially overstate the eco-friendliness of these products.

Surprise management moves at RingCentral

Posted on December 13, 2023 by - News

The founder and former CEO of RingCentral, Vlad Shmunis, is returning to the company following the surprising exit of Tarek Robbiati.

RingCentral had announced that Tarek Robbiati would become the new chief in August 2023.

In a statement, the company said that Robbiati’s resignation was not due to any disagreement with the company or the Board of Directors or any matter related to the company’s operations, policies or practices.

Rob Theis, RingCentral’s lead independent director, said: “RingCentral’s strategic product vision and operations are closely aligned and linked. We have concluded that it is best to have one executive oversee all aspects of the business organisation.

Rackspace releases new product for partners

Posted on December 13, 2023 by - News

Cloudy Rackspace has launched its SDDC (Software Defined Data Centre) Enterprise and Business for SAP with VMware virtualised computing, storage, network, and cloud management products for its channel partners.

The multi-tenant VMware solutions enable business-critical SAP and SAP HANA (High-Performance Analytic Appliance) environments with a fully integrated hardware and software stack for private clouds. The enterprise-ready grade solution and SAP-certified pre-configuration based on Dell VxRail is a turnkey experience that enables innovation.

Arrow improves cloud management platform.

Posted on December 12, 2023 by - News

Arrow Electronics has added functionality to its cloud management platform to support more everything-as-a-service (XaaS) options.

Extra services include more hybrid and multi-load monitoring options under the bonnet of its ArrowSphere platform.

The company said that its partners are increasingly offering multi-cloud support to customers to ensure they can meet the demands of users operating across various flavours of public and private cloud.

Arrow added updates that focus on sustainability, cost optimisation and security. Adding the GreenOps, FinOps, and SecOps dashboards allows partners to increase the visibility of key areas of concern for customers.

TD SYNNEX trains partners on net zero

Posted on December 12, 2023 by - News

TD SYNNEX has opened its Net Zero Academy, a three-day course to train partners on assessing their carbon impact and creating a plan to move their business towards net zero.

The first two days are classroom-based at TD SYNNEX’s offices in Basingstoke and a further day of home or office-based learning and assessment.

The course has been accredited by the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) and delivered by specialist consultancy Arete Zero Carbon.

TD SYNNEX business unit director Sophia Haywood-Atkinson said sustainability commitments recognised by industry standards have become “increasingly important” as customers are looking much harder at the commitment of their suppliers.

Ekco snaps up Bluecube

Posted on December 11, 2023 by - News

Irish Ekco has acquired UK cybersecurity firm Bluecube and effectively doubled its UK presence.

This is Ekco’s fourth acquisition in the last year and augments Ekco’s service portfolio for UK clients with security offerings and improved critical recovery abilities, strengthening Ekco’s incident response capacities amid rising threats.

This acquisition aligns with Ekco’s global expansion strategy, which it says is fuelled by organic growth and European acquisitions, and new US offices.