Sony Middle East and Africa held its first ever Creators Convention in Dubai last week, dedicated to supporting the journey, story and creativity of content creators in the UAE. The full-day event curated specifically for content creators, took place in the Al Quoz neighborhood and was attended by over 300 photography enthusiasts and content creators from across the country. The remarkable turnaround of participants demonstrates Sony’s commitment to producing the most engaging and distinctive experiences for its audiences.

Garge Studio, the event venue, was split into three sections. The main area hosted thought-provoking panel discussions and keynote sessions by prominent industry experts from various technology and lifestyle brands, as well as well-known content creators like Mohammed Ihsan, Sarah Medina, and Amir De Leon. The conversations revolved around some key topics such as exploring the diverse types of gaming content, understanding the workings of brand partnerships and leading cultural changes, and successful tactics for content creators into engaged in brand partnerships.

Koji Sekiguchi, Marketing Director, Sony Middle East and Africa said: “The Sony Creators Convention is an exclusive platform to support the growing needs of the creator community. Through technology and innovation, we are enabling content creators convey emotion and tell great stories.

We also undersantd that conveying brand messages in a concise manner is becoming increasingly challenging, especially in this day and age where consumer preferences and content types are constantly evolving. Leveraging the equity of content creators and influencers, who are adept at capturing and retaining the audience’s attention, is a direct route to effectively reaching and impacting the audience. At Sony, our goal is to give content creators access to cutting-edge technology, learning and networking opportunities through platforms like Creators Convention.”

The other two areas were creatively set up for content creators to get access to Sony’s camera lineup and other accessories and produce aesthetically stimulating content.

A successful first edition sets the stage for Sony Middle East and Africa to organize similar events in the future in other regions in which a growing number of content creators will benefit, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Egypt, and South Africa. Participants can register on Sony Alpha Universe for all upcoming workshops and activations.

Written By Antoine Harb, Team Leader, Middle East, Kingston Technology

Data is a valuable asset for businesses, and it is crucial that it must be protected. With the influx of data, we are constantly at risk of data loss due to data breaches which results in severe consequences, including financial loss and legal implications. The costs of data breaches can be astronomical, and it is crucial that endpoint Data Loss Prevention strategy be implemented. Lost laptops and unencrypted USB drives leave both individuals and companies extremely vulnerable to information leaks. To mitigate these risks, organizations need a robust strategy in order to safeguard information and customers’ trust.

Data Audit

The first step in developing an effective data loss prevention plan is to do a thorough data audit. Organizations should identify and categorize all types of sensitive information and understand the scope of the data to protect it effectively. The audit also helps identify vulnerabilities that can be checked in time to prevent future data losses through weak networks, storage systems and employee access points, reducing the amount of data that needs protection.

Backup to Secure Data

Once sensitive data has been identified, organizations should urge their employees to back up all their information securely to protect against file corruption and accidental file deletion. This step also leaves the company less vulnerable. Encrypted USBs are another way data can be stored and transferred securely. There are several options to store and transfer critical information effectively, such as the Kingston’s IronKey Vault Privacy 80 External SSD, which is a hardware-encrypted storage.

Implement Robust Policies for Uncompromising Data Security

Another aspect of data loss prevention is to establish clear and well-defined data handling policies for maintaining data security. Businesses should establish clear guidelines on, and dictate how employees handle sensitive information, including data access, storage, transmission, and disposal.

According to Verizon’s 2022 Data Breaches Investigations Report, 74% of data breaches involved a human element. Further research by Ponemon found attacks on endpoints to be some of the most prevalent that respondents had experienced, with 81% of businesses experiencing an attack involving some form of malware, and 28% experiencing attacks involving compromised or stolen devices. It is thus imperative that employees be trained on best practices on the safe use of USB drives and be aware how much data can be lost through a small flash drive. For example, 1TB of data may comprise of roughly 250,000 photos or 500 hours of HD Video. This is the amount of data that can be lost through USBs that are unencrypted or due to employee error. It is extremely important that data be stored in encrypted drives to prevent data leakage.

Data loss through unencrypted USBs happens when the data becomes inaccessible or is permanently lost. Restricting access to sensitive data is crucial for preventing unauthorized disclosure. Implementing access controls, such as multi-factor authentication, role-based permissions, and data segmentation, in addition to implementing robust encryption mechanisms helps limit data access to authorized personnel only. This way, even if data falls in the wrong hands, it remains unusable.

The Threat landscape is continuously evolving, and organizations need to stay on top of all new hardware and software security features. Risk assessment and penetration testing should be done on a regular basis to identify weaknesses in the infrastructure or applications. Additionally, staying ahead of emerging threats allows companies to modify their DLP strategies. Companies such as Kingston Technology develop their IronKey products incorporating DLP strategies so that organizations are in a better position to mitigate data loss.

In conclusion, data loss prevention strategies are paramount in today’s data-driven world. It is essential for organizations to adopt a proactive approach in identifying potential vulnerabilities, implementing preventive measures, and constantly monitoring data movement to ensure compliance with established policies. In a landscape where data breaches and cyber threats continue to pose significant risks, implementing comprehensive data loss prevention strategies is not just a best practice but a necessity.

By: Jackie Sturm, Corporate Vice President, Global Supply Chain Operations

Three years ago, Intel announced a goal to increase global annual spending with diverse suppliers to $2 billion by 2030. We are proud to announce we reached $2.2 billion in diverse supplier spending in 2022, eight years ahead of schedule. This $2.2 billion represents nearly 15 times the annual total when our supplier diversity program launched in 2015, and double our 2019 results.

Intel’s commitment to a more inclusive supply chain allows us to leverage our purchasing power to address social gaps in our pursuit of fair business practices. Included in today’s milestone are two more goals that have been met early:

• $250 million with U.S. Black-owned suppliers by end of 2023.
• $800 million annually with minority-owned suppliers globally by end of 2023.

We attribute the ability to reach our goals ahead of schedule to our processes and incentives that encourage diverse suppliers to work with us. Additionally, due to our rapid manufacturing expansion around the world in the past few years, we have had the opportunity to bring in more suppliers than ever before.

Influencing Inclusion Across the Semiconductor Ecosystem

When Intel launched its supplier diversity program, there was limited awareness among semiconductor manufacturers of the positive benefits diverse suppliers bring to the supply chain. Through several initiatives and proactive partnerships with our largest non-diverse suppliers and industry groups, Intel has led the expansion of diverse-owned suppliers across the semiconductor industry.

In 2016, we began formally inviting our manufacturing and construction suppliers to join us in building a more inclusive supply chain. We encouraged these suppliers to create their own supplier diversity programs and report their spending with diverse subcontractors working on Intel contracts by incentivizing them with supplier scorecard points, which are prerequisites for prestigious Intel supplier awards. While originally this initiative was small, today it represents 45% of our 2022 total reported diverse spending.

In 2018, Intel, along with three of our largest suppliers, led the creation of the SEMI Manufacturing Owners Diversity (MOD) Working Group to further increase awareness and opportunities. Now, this working group encompasses more than 70 corporations, diverse-owned companies, and certifying NGOs, and has established a diversity baseline for the semiconductor supply chain that didn’t exist before. Additionally, the group actively promotes the development of a SEMI standard featuring common definitions and best practices for supporting global supplier ownership diversity.

Why it Matters

Beyond the impact that our technology has on people’s lives, we strive to make a positive difference in our supply chain and in our communities. Developing a diverse semiconductor ecosystem creates
equitable opportunities for individuals from historically underserved groups and helps uplift their communities. By working with diverse-owned suppliers, we increase our resilience, and generate new value within our global supply chain and the communities in which we operate.

A diverse and inclusive supply chain also introduces greater competition and helps drive innovation. Diverse-owned suppliers have proven to bring different perspectives and innovative solutions that benefit our customers and stakeholders. For example, when larger direct suppliers could not deliver a critical component last year, a woman-owned supplier successfully filled the gap to help Intel fulfill a customer commitment.

Since launching our renewed supplier diversity and inclusion (SD&I) commitment in 2015, we have also seen the direct impact of increased competition within our supply chain. Four of the five diverse suppliers on Intel’s supplier scorecard are outperforming their competitors.

What’s Next: Maintaining Momentum

Since Intel began its focus on supplier diversity from a standing start in 2015, we have progressively exceeded our commitments, including the most recent achievement of our 2030 diverse supplier spending goal, and we are not done. For Intel, supplier diversity is not added work. It’s how we work.

For every new sourcing opportunity, our procurement teams will continue to include at least one diverse-owned company in the bidding process. For our larger contracts where there aren’t diverse supplier options at the scale or expertise required, we include diverse spending expectations in negotiations. Doing so can lead to greater commitments than anticipated. For example, the first general contractor for our Ohio project committed to 20% diverse spending, exceeding the 10% expectation outlined in our Supplier Diversity Policy. Internal diverse spending goals will continue to be included as part of Intel’s annual employee bonus structure, highlighting the importance not only in procurement but across all business units.

We continue to operate in a tough market while simultaneously pursuing our multiyear corporate transformation. As we work to establish a new goal against a renewed timeline, we will continue to focus on maintaining our progress and providing opportunities for diverse suppliers and subcontractors to help us in this transformation.