A big zero day vulnerability in Cisco routers. Stack Overflow lays off 28 per cent of its staff due to ChatGPT competition. Could Android be a Windows rival? The world’s largest PC manufacturer thinks it might. And Gartner says that CIOs have to lead the way in managing the machine-human interface.
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These and more top tech stories on Hashtag Trending
I’m your host Jim Love, CIO of IT World Canada and Tech News Day in the US.
Cisco has issued a warning about a critical zero-day vulnerability in its IOS XE software that allows unauthorized individuals to take over devices. This flaw, labeled CVE-2023-20198, has received a maximum severity rating of 10 from Cisco. The company stated, “This vulnerability allows a remote, unauthenticated attacker to create an account on an affected system with privilege level 15 access.” The attacker can then use this account to control the system. Cisco advises that any device running IOS XE with the HTTP or HTTPS Server feature enabled is at risk. As a temporary measure, Cisco strongly recommends disabling this feature on all internet-facing systems. The company is actively working on a software fix. Additionally, Cisco’s Talos team has identified two clusters of malicious activity related to this vulnerability, with the first reported incident occurring on September 28.
For more on this story and to keep up to date on cybersecurity, follow my colleague Howard Solomon at itworldcanada.com or on technewsday.com or check out his podcast Cybersecurity Today.
Sources: The Register
Stack Overflow, once the go-to platform for developers seeking coding assistance, is grappling with challenges posed by generative AI tools like ChatGPT. These chatbots can provide real-time code corrections, optimization tips, and line-by-line explanations, often outpacing the utility of older forum posts. As a result, Stack Overflow’s relevance has been questioned. CEO Prashanth Chandrasekar recently revealed that the company is laying off 28 per cent of its workforce. While the company is striving for profitability and product innovation, it’s also developing “Overflow AI” to compete directly with ChatGPT. Interestingly, much of ChatGPT’s coding knowledge is derived from platforms like Stack Overflow. OpenAI is considering web crawler controls for ChatGPT, allowing sites to opt out of data scraping. Stack Overflow aims to charge AI companies for data access, emphasizing the importance of fresh, progressing knowledge for chatbot training.
Sources: Arstechnica
Lenovo is set to launch a range of enterprise-focused devices powered by the Esper Foundation, a custom Android operating system. The first device to feature this OS will be the Lenovo ThinkCentre M70a, an all-in-one desktop PC. More devices, including the Lenovo ThinkCentre M70q, M90n-1 IoT, and ThinkEdge SE30 v2, are expected by the end of 2023. Esper Foundation, based on Android 11, offers customizable branding, peripheral compatibility, and extended support. When questioned about choosing Android over Chrome OS, Johanny Payero, Lenovo’s director of global advanced solutions marketing and strategy, highlighted the unique opportunity for device management on Android OS running on x86 platforms. This move by Lenovo suggests a potential shift in the enterprise market, positioning Android as a significant rival to Windows and possibly overshadowing Google’s ChromeOS.
Sources: Techradar
Nvidia, a tech giant valued at over $1 trillion, is choosing to support remote work rather than joining the return-to-office movement. Despite its success and demand for its high-powered chips by major companies like Amazon, Meta, and Google, Nvidia is not pressuring its 26,000 global employees to return to physical offices. In May 2020, Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, expressed his comfort with employees working from home indefinitely. The company now offers luxurious office spaces for collaboration but leaves the choice of work location to its employees. Beau Davidson, vice president of employee experience, emphasized the flexibility this offers for balancing personal and work obligations. This approach contrasts with companies like Amazon, which has been more insistent on office returns. Nvidia’s stance could give it an edge in attracting talent, especially as some surveys suggest a significant portion of executives might quit if forced back to the office full-time.
Sources: Fortune
A Gartner study revealed that 70 per cent of CIOs view generative AI as revolutionary, with 55 per cent planning to deploy it within two years. By 2025, Gartner predicts that Generative AI will partner with over 90 per cent of companies’ workforces.
Generative AI is reshaping human-machine interactions, and Chief Information Officers (CIOs) are uniquely positioned to guide organizations in harnessing its potential. This insight was shared by Gartner analysts in an article that I published today at itworldcanada.com.
Occasionally they make me do more than the podcast and prove that I can do other forms of journalism.
Sources: IT World Canada
That’s the top tech news stories for today. For more fast reads on top stories, check us out at TechNewsDay.com or ITWorldCanada.com on the homepage.
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I’m your host, Jim Love – have a Wonderful Wednesday.
