December 17, 2021
Security: Nightmare Before Christmas: What To Know About the Log4j Vulnerability
MSN News
The list of potential victims encompasses nearly a third of all web servers in the world, according to cybersecurity firm Cybereason. Twitter, Amazon, Microsoft, Apple, IBM, Oracle, Cisco, Google, and one of the world's most popular video games, Minecraft count themselves among the slew of tech and industry giants running the popular software code that U.S. officials estimate have left hundreds of millions of devices exposed.

By Friday, more than 3,700,000 hacking attempts had been made to exploit the vulnerability, according to leading cybersecurity firm Checkpoint, with more than 46% conducted by known malicious groups. Read more
Healthcare IT: From Costs to Consolidation, Execs Predict Digital Health Trends in 2022
MobiHealthNews
In 2021, the digital health industry has seen an explosion of funding, the rise of virtual care initially spurred by COVID-19 and a healthcare system still struggling under the weight of the pandemic.

As we wrap up the year, MobiHealthNews asked digital health executives and other leaders what they expect from the industry in 2022. This is the third installment of the series; check out their thoughts on telehealth's momentum in 2021 and how the influx of funding has affected the space this year. Read More
Homeland Security: Immediate Steps to Strengthen Critical Infrastructure Against Potential Cyberattacks
Homeland Security Today
In light of persistent and ongoing cyber threats, CISA urges critical infrastructure owners and operators to take immediate steps to strengthen their computer network defenses against potential cyberattacks. CISA has released CISA Insights: Preparing For and Mitigating Potential Cyber Threats to provide critical infrastructure leaders with steps to proactively strengthen their organization’s operational resiliency against sophisticated threat actors, including nation-states and their proxies.

CISA encourages leadership at all organizations—and critical infrastructure owners and operators in particular—to review the CISA Insights and adopt a heightened state of awareness. Read More
Transportation: U.S. FAA Warns of Potential Interference From New 5G Technology
CNBC
The Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday it had issued a special information bulletin alerting manufacturers, operators and pilots that action may be needed to address potential interference with sensitive aircraft electronics caused by new 5G telecommunications technology.

The FAA has been in discussion with the Federal Communications Commission about its air safety concerns over the plan to begin using some new spectrum for 5G wireless networks starting Dec. 5. Read More
Human Resources: 7 Staffing Trends To Watch in 2022
HR Dive
Ten million. That's the number of workers United States businesses need to fill job openings. Yet, only 8.4 million people are seeking work, according to the most recent data. Everyone thought pandemic benefits ending would send workers back to the market. Then we thought a pay increase would be the panacea. Yes, there was a small bump. But now what? As we roll into 2022, here are the staffing trends we're watching that could influence these figures.

There are several hypotheses among economic pundits about where all the workers have gone. Many have become remote workers once they figured out how to work from home. In fact, a new World Economic Forum report says 84% of employers plan to expand remote working. Read More
Business & Technology: Cross-Functional Teams: The New IT Imperative
CIO
Cross-functional teams that blend IT and business professionals are nothing new, but now they have become almost a mandate.

At Sun Life, such teams are referred to as “agile teams,’’ and CIO Laura Money believes they are “much more productive and can make things happen faster.” Not only that, but because these teams include consumers of the service being developed, “we notice we get a lot more impact and more value for the client when teams work that way,” she says.

The pandemic provided a reality check that the world needed to become more digital and that meant tech and business strategies needed to merge, she says, resulting in increased reliance on cross-functional teams. Read More