60mins Day 3 - 2 PM (2014)

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Show dates: 12-16 October 2014, Dubai World Trade Centre

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AT GITEX TECHNOLOGY WEEK

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Exhibition hours: 10am -6pm

HID holds key with Mobile Access HID Global Regional Sales Director of Identity and Access Management Nat Pisupati believes the “new kid on the block” of Identity Assurance is poised to take off in the Middle East.

HID is using GITEX to flaunt its newly released Mobile Access solution, an app that allows Bluetooth Smart and NFCenabled Smartphones to open doors and gates with secure identity management.

The company’s patented ‘Twist 4 CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

Logicom partners with Autodesk Logicom, the regional distributor of technology solutions and services, has signed a distribution agreement with Autodesk, naming Logicom as the official distributor of Autodesk products in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, Iraq and Pakistan.

As of November 1st, Logicom will distribute Autodesk product lines including AutoCAD, Base, ID&V, Media & Entertainment, Simulation, Civil Infrastructure, Process & Power, Building, Product Design & Manufacturing, Education and Advanced MEP. 4 CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

WHAT’S INSIDE Seagate unveils SMB storage portfolio

DSG rolls out smart employee app to 40 govt entities

TRA launches new version of the UAEPedia

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HID...

and Go’ gesture technology also allows users to open doors from a distance.

Mobile Access is used with the company’s mobile-enabled iCLASS SE and multiCLASS SE readers, and includes access to the HID Secure Identity Services portal for managing users.

“These days people can lose cards, but try harder not to lose their phones,” Pisupati says. “Our app addresses key access issues, and is a leader in converging unlocking and authentication technologies.”

The app is powered by Seos technology, which aims to turn mobile devices into trusted credentials, and enabled Mobile ID’s to be delivered and revoked

with end-to-end encryption.

“In the future we see ourselves branching out into other apps,” Pisupati says. “A key advantage of our app is that we don’t depend on mobile network providers; the app can be downloaded from our own portal which saves a lot of headaches.”

Pisupati says the company’s strategy has evolved from being product-focused – around the time of their first presence at GITEX seven years ago – to an end-to-end solutions-focused one. He also believes the company’s acquisitions of LaserCard and Fargo has put the company in a formidable position to tackle the Identity Assurance market.

Seagate unveils SMB storage portfolio

Empowering SMEs in the Middle East with more flexible IT storage capabilities, Seagate has unveiled a new portfolio of Networked Attached Storage (NAS) solutions that are easy for businesses to set up and manage without dedicated IT staff. The new portfolio includes five products perfectly suited for the home office or small businesses with up to 50 employees, and is the biggest product launch the company has ever mounted in the business NAS space.

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The Seagate NAS and Seagate NAS Pro lines set the standard for ease-of-use by introducing a new intuitive operating system, NAS OS 4, together with hardware specifically designed for small businesses. The latest products come in a range of storage capacities from 2TB to 30TB. “We understand that today’s small businesses can benefit from a storage solution that is easy to manage and provides 24/7 secure access to the information that drives their businesses,” said Scott Horn, vice president of global marketing at Seagate. “From the individual contractor to the fifty-employee office, Seagate has the right product to match the needs of any size of small- to medium-sized business.”

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Logicom...

Logicom’s Director of Distribution, Michael Papaeracleous, said: “This agreement is solid evidence of our efforts for expanding Logicom’s operations into verticals – a goal we have been passionately working towards for some time now.

The Autodesk name requires no introduction and we are delighted to be associated with a software-industry leader of such impact in all the verticals it covers.

Our intention is, clearly, to complement our existing offerings across our wide partner-network with great products and, in turn, add value to their business. Our collaboration with Autodesk is about just that.”

DSG rolls out smart employee app to 40 govt entities Dubai Smart Government Department (DSG) has implemented the second phase of the “smart employee” app on smart phones and tablets for Dubai government employees. This comes as part of implementing the initiative of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to shift to smart government and smart city.

The development of the ‘smart employee’ app continues to express DSG’s vision of making Dubai the smartest city. It is also in implementation of its strategy to reduce cost and save time; as evidenced by the positive response from government employees who tested the app during Gitex 2014.

With the testing phase over, the

smart employee app is now available for download to all Dubai government employees on the Android store with the Apple store to follow.

Commenting on the launch of the app, H.E. Ahmad Bin Humaidan, DSG Director General, said: “We are inspired by the vision of our prudent leadership led by HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and the directives of HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, to be among the major smart governments in line with ‘Dubai Government Towards 2021’ initiative and the vision of our department of becoming among the finest smart governments in the world.

eHDF shares BCM survey results eHosting DataFort (eHDF) has revealed the results of the third Middle East Business Continuity Management Survey across the Middle East.

Conducted in partnership with Continuity and Resilience (CORE), the Business Continuity Institute (BCI) and DNV GL Business Assurance, the survey will help raise the visibility of IT disaster recovery (IT DR) and business continuity management (BCM) preparedness among corporates

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and organizations in the Middle East.

The 2014 survey reveals that 26% of the respondents do not have a dedicated BCM team as compared to 2012 where nearly 63% of the respondents confirmed their organizations did not have a dedicated IT Disaster Recovery or BCM team, and that Business Continuity Management was being driven by Information Security Unit, Quality Management, IT and Operational and Overall Risk teams.

This demonstrates an increased focus on BCM investments.

However, in terms of maturity of BCM and IT DR readiness, there is still a long way to go as 56% of respondents rated their organization’s IT DR readiness as average or below average and 64% of the respondents rated their BCM readiness as average or below average.

There are other statistics indicating that a shift is already underway in the way corporations look at BCM. The survey reflects that 27% of the respondents invest anywhere between US$100,000 to US$250,000 to implement and sustain their BCM program, 22% invest between US$250,000 to US$1 million and large organizations in the banking, oil and gas, telecoms, government and e-commerce

sectors accounted for 11 per cent to have set aside BCM budgets of more than US$1 million.

Lack of a robust business continuity plan can result in financial loss that may have a negative impact on bottom line profits of an organization. 30% of the respondents who have indicated the financial impact of disruptions as per their Business Impact Analysis (BIA) estimate that a two-day disruption could set the organization back by US$3 million and more.

Yasser Zeineldin, CEO of eHosting DataFort, said, “The results are indicative of how the industry and business environment is evolving.

Everything is driven by technology and it is imperative that organizations look closely at what is ‘crucial data’ and how it can be safeguarded in the instance of downtime caused

either by a natural disaster or simply because of an IT outage.” “eHDF has been at the forefront of stressing on the importance of Disaster Recovery and BCM, and this year’s survey shows that our efforts have reaped dividends. The increase in the number of organizations, both large corporations and aSMEs, investing in disaster recovery and making contingency plans by adopting business continuity management programs look encouraging. We have seen a significant uptake for Disaster recovery services and have implemented high end DR projects for a number of organisations over the last year.”

The results from the survey show that 47% of BCM budgets in the region are being spent on IT disaster recovery infrastructure, seats,

software and licensing. This can be further reduced by working with specialized service providers who can implement IT disaster recovery at a fraction of the cost of doing it in-house. In fact, 30% of the survey respondents have indicated that they plan to outsource the enhancement of IT DR plans to specialist external service providers.

“eHDF has been at the forefront of stressing on the importance of Disaster Recovery and BCM, and this year’s survey shows that our efforts have reaped dividends.”

Yasser Zeineldin, CEO of eHosting DataFort

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TRA launches new version of the UAEPedia

The UAE’s Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) reveals the updated UAEPedia at GITEX Technology Week 2014, which is now available in English in addition to Arabic. Showcased at the official TRA GITEX stand in Sheikh Saeed Hall (S1 A12), the new UAEPedia is designed as a collaborative information base on the UAE, from the UAE, to the world. The new website builds upon the well-known Wiki open-source model, allowing controlled collaboration across the public and private sectors to contribute and enrich the content.

A range of new and innovative

offerings both in terms of content development and user functionality include mobile apps for Android and iOS devices, augmented reality covering a wide variety of UAE monuments, interactive maps with directions, location-linked QRcodes, smart browsing, UAE timeline and Instagram-like photo albums where users can upload and share their own photos or videos.

“TRA is delighted to unveil the outcome of the extensive UAEPedia Stage II project at the region’s most anticipated technology event, GITEX 2014. The new UAEPedia website and mobile app are a reflection of

the ICT advances in the nation’s experience, while allowing a closer look into the capabilities of TRA and the constant evolution of the UAE into a smart nation,” said H.E. Mohamed Nasser Al Ghanim, TRA Director General. “UAEPedia is not simply the country’s encyclopedia; it is a unique UAE resource by the people, for the people, which will be available open to the world, in both Arabic and English. With diverse features and advanced functionalities, UAEPedia is an extension of the UAE national pride, to treasure our history and anticipate the bright future,” he added.

The new website is the result of a TRA technical exercise titled ‘UAEPedia Stage II Project’ and aims to promote UAEPedia website to be viewed as a national knowledge collaboration platform, enabling UAE institutions, businesses and the public to pool resources and share knowledge of the UAE. Public, semipublic and private sector entities will be given authorization to include their own pages, sections and subsections in collaboration with ‘The UAEPedia Editorial Committee’ – an official body responsible for maintenance of the website. With smart collaboration being the key strategic differentiator, growth will be seen in UAEPedia’s content, service, acceptance and long-term use.

The website will feature multiple segments to enhance the user’s experience including: ‘UAETube’ - a video streaming platform comprised of handpicked selections of video content, uploaded and shared by users; ‘UAECinema’ - an archive for videos and documentaries relating to the UAE including cinematic films produced by UAE producers; ‘UAECalendar’ – a calendar that notifies users of the UAE’s key dates in history; ‘UAEMap’ –a locationsensitive interactive map of the UAE highlighting places featured in articles and events listed in UAEPedia as well as being a map, providing directions as well as links to informative articles and ‘UAEQuote’ – a portal displaying quotes by UAE’s greatest individuals, selected by the UAEPedia curators.

Chairman Dominic De Sousa, CEO Nadeem Hood, COO Gina O Hara, Publishing Director Rajashree R Kumar, Group Editor Jeevan Thankappan Editors Annie Bricker, Janees Reghelini, James Dartnell Circulation Manager Rajeesh M, Production Manager James Tharian, Senior Designer Glenn Roxas, Analou Balbero, Designers John Magno, Neha Kalvani, Digital Services Manager Tristan Troy Magma Web Coordinator Jarris Pedroso, Photographers Jay Colina, Anas Cherur

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