Slack preps for IPO, Google's quarterly report, false information threats | TECH(feed)

HEY EVERYONE, WELCOME BACK TO TECH FEED. I’M JULIET BEAUCHAMP AND TODAY’S WE’RE TALKING SECURITY AND TECH COMPANY EARNINGS. STICK AROUND.

AS ANTICIPATED, SLACK IS THE LATEST TECH START-UP GOING PUBLIC AFTER FILING EARLIER THIS WEEK. THE COMPANY WILL GO PUBLIC IN A DIRECT LISTING, WHICH WILL ALLOW SHAREHOLDERS TO SELL THEIR STOCK AS SOON AS SLACK GOES PUBLIC. IT ALSO MEANS SLACK WILL TRADE WITHOUT RAISING MONEY BEFOREHAND. AS WE REPORTED LAST WEEK, SLACK HAS DOUBLED ITS REVENUE IN THE PAST YEAR AND COLLABORATION SOFTWARE SPENDING IS ONLY EXPECTED TO RISE AS DEMAND INCREASES.

AND IT’S ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER TECH GIANT QUARTERLY REPORT. OR AT LEAST THAT’S WHAT IT SEEMS LIKE. GOOGLE’S PARENT COMPANY, ALPHABET, REPORTED THIRTY-NINE POINT TWENTY-SEVEN BILLION DOLLARS IN REVENUE LAST QUARTER, A TWENTY-TWO PERCENT GROWTH. AD REVENUE ACROSS PROPERTIES SUCH AS SEARCH AND YOUTUBE ACCOUNTED FOR AROUND TWENTY-SEVEN BILLION DOLLARS ALONE. AND PEOPLE ARE CLICKING ON THOSE ADS--ALPHABET REPORTED A SIXTY-SIX PERCENT INCREASE IN AD CLICKS. HOWEVER, COSTS AT ALPHABET CONTINUE TO RISE AS THE COMPANY INVESTS IN YOUTUBE CONTENT, PLANS TO EXPAND DATA CENTERS AND CONTINUES TO PAY SMARTPHONE MANUFACTURERS BILLIONS TO ENSURE GOOGLE IS THE DEFAULT SEARCH ENGINE.

SECURITY IS A TOP CONCERN FOR DATA MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONALS ACCORDING TO A RECENT REPORT. A FOUR FIVE ONE RESEARCH SURVEY REVEALED THAT TWO-THIRDS OF ITS RESPONDENTS SAID SECURITY IS THEIR NUMBER ONE CHALLENGE WHEN IT COMES TO MANAGING THEIR COMPANY’S DATA. FAILURE TO PROPERLY CONFIGURE DATABASES CAN RESULT IN A BREACH, WHICH IN TURN MAY CAUSE FINANCIAL OR REPUTATIONAL DAMAGE. ONE HUNDRED FIFTY REPRESENTATIVES FROM VARIOUS INDUSTRIES WHO UNDERSTAND HOW THEIR ORGANIZATIONS HANDLE DATA PARTOOK IN THE SURVEY.

AND DATA PROFESSIONALS AREN’T THE ONLY PEOPLE WITH SECURITY ON THE MIND …. THE BULLETIN OF ATOMIC SCIENTISTS WARNS OF INSECURE IoT DEVICES AND INFRASTRUCTURE AS A THREAT TO HUMANITY. WE DON’T WANT TO SCARE YOU THOUGH--WHILE ABUSE OF A NATION’S IoT INFRASTRUCTURE IS A CONCERN, AN ATTACK ON SOMETHING LIKE AN ENERGY GRID WOULD BE NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE. WHAT WORRIES THE BULLETIN OF ATOMIC SCIENTISTS MORE IS INFORMATION WARFARE THAT UNDERMINES PUBLIC TRUST. THE BULLETIN SAYS QUOTE “CYBER-ENABLED INFORMATION WARFARE IS A THREAT TO THE COMMON GOOD.” THE BULLETIN OF ATOMIC SCIENTISTS IS THE ORGANIZATION BEHIND THE DOOMSDAY CLOCK, WHICH HAS SERVED TO REMIND PEOPLE OF THE THREAT OF TECHNOLOGY SINCE THE COLD WAR.

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