Globe, PNP Sign MOU to Operate Text Bato Hotline for Crime Prevention

Wazzup Pilipinas!

PNP officials led by PNP Director General Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa (2nd from right) , leads the signing of a memorandum of agreement with the country’s telco providers. Globe Telecom General Counsel Atty. Froilan Castelo (2nd from right) signs on behalf of the telco operator.

Globe Telecom signed a memorandum of agreement with the Philippine National Police to operate Text 2286 (Bato), a SMS hotline providing an access for the public to directly report incidents to PNP Director General Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa.

Aside from ensuring inbound and outbound SMS accessibility for Text Bato, Globe is also providing an interactive platform for the hotline that would immediately address police concerns. “Globe is aware that the availability of an affordable and accessible communications system is an effective tool in crime prevention. We hope that a system integrator for Text Bato will significantly enhance the PNP’s readiness to address the public’s police concerns and thus improve the peace and order situation in the country in general,” Globe General Counsel Atty. Froilan Castelo said.

The MOU provides that in addition to providing an alignment of the integrator and vendor of the SMS platform that provides the hotline for the PNP, Globe will also extend support in disseminating information on the Text Bato hotline to increase public awareness.

Fortifying Wireless Security Key To A Robust Network

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Most organizations think they have their security taken care of but ironically, CIOs today are not accounting for how their network is actually accessed. A single user may be logged on through multiple devices: a phone, a tablet, and a laptop. There could also be myriads of devices on the network that IT doesn’t even know about.

According to Fortinet, the global leader in high-performance cybersecurity solutions, this disconnect is driven by Shadow IT - the result of unbridled use of unapproved devices and services on the network. Shadow IT includes consumer or enterprise applications in the cloud, such as file sharing apps, social media, and collaboration tools. There is often no corporate policy or decision to allow this, and most of the time it is unknown by anyone on their IT team.

“The fact is, about 90 percent of employees and guests are connecting to their network wirelessly and yet wireless APs are often less secure than the wired perimeter. The proliferation of devices and applications is posing serious challenges for organizations that need to ensure the protection of their entire network and guard against advanced cyber security threats,” said Jeff Castillo, Country Manager, Fortinet Philippines. “It is critical that a security solution map users to devices and control access accordingly and accurately.”

Gartner Group predicts that 33 billion endpoints will be connected by 2020, of which the majority of these devices will be wireless. As more and more wireless devices enter the workplace, companies are striving to maintain the security of their wireless networks.

“When it comes to devices in the workplace, one often thinks of smart phones, laptops, and tablets. But today’s wireless endpoints comprise more than those traditional devices. Organizations may also deploy wireless IP cameras, location-based beacons, and other small devices which often are not capable of supporting traditional security solutions. So this means companies have more and more vulnerabilities to protect for the foreseeable future,” said Castillo.

The growing number of small devices that are not able to support security is one challenge. But even traditional wireless devices – smart phones, laptops, tablets – can create security gaps due to the number of mobile applications they run, both for personal and professional use. Contact management apps, games, shopping websites, and even legitimate online news outlets may be infected with malware without the user’s knowledge. This can, in turn, affect the enterprise network as a whole. Users sharing their log-in credentials with guests, or not changing their passwords regularly can also lead to security gaps.

Securing business communications, personal information, financial transactions, and mobile devices involves much more than network access control. It also requires actively scanning for malware, preventing access to malicious websites, end-point integrity checking, and controlling application usage. Protecting Access Points (AP) is paramount to a sound wireless security strategy, and to securely extend physical coverage for users. Today’s APs not only need to support high density environments, but also support security features like Application Visibility & Control (AVC), Wireless IPS (wIPS), and Rogue monitoring —all without the loss of performance.

“Companies need a fabric with deeply integrated security systems that share information across all areas, including wired, wireless, VPN, and cloud environments. When the integration is coupled with machine learning capabilities, the system can flag abnormalities more accurately and more rapidly, and coordinate responses between different security deployments. All of this contributes to better response time for organizations in mitigating threats,” said Castillo.

Debunking Outsourcing Myths

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Outsourcing is an emerging strategy used by many organizations today to keep their business operations efficient and profitable.

Outsourcing allows companies to assign certain business operations to outsourcing firms rather than accomplishing it internally, thereby, reducing manpower expenses and other operational costs without sacrificing operational efficiencies.

However, despite its obvious benefits, there are still some companies that do not yet fully appreciate the advantages outsourcing brings to a business. In fact, they often look at the practice as an added expense rather than an opportunity to cut costs.

Prople, Inc., one of the leading business outsourcing companies in the country, lists some misconceptions about outsourcing and what are the truths behind these myths.

1.    Outsourcing can only reduce costs

Truth be told, outsourcing primarily reduces costs.  However, this is only one of its many benefits. Outsourcing also helps increase productivity because the personnel assigned to the task is usually highly trained for the job. This means that less or no training is needed for the task to be done. In the long run, it increases efficiency and productivity because it allows companies to focus on their core business instead of spending time, effort, resources and manpower on these processes.

2.    It saves money but the quality of the services are at risk

When a job is outsourced, it is assigned to a group of people with the prerequisite skills set. This means that the people working on the job are experts who know what needs to be done, thus, reducing the chances of poor work quality.

3.    Less management control over the specific task and results

Even if the job is outsourced, it doesn’t mean that clients have no control of the output or the outsourced staff. It is a standard among BPO firms to guarantee timely and specific deliverables ensuring that the integrity of the output is maintained and that the staff assigned perform at excellent levels at all times. Companies that outsource usually interface regularly to make sure that the quality of the work is sustained.

4.    SMEs cannot benefit from outsourcing

While outsourcing seems to be done mostly by large companies, what many don’t realize is that small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) can benefit better from outsourcing. Hiring people will mean that resources are allocated for salaries, benefits, and other mandatory government payments. Outsourcing takes away the need to pay the required salaries as the fees paid to an outsourcing firm are based on a specific set of deliverables. Once the task is completed, the costs discontinue.

5.    Outsourcing causes loss of jobs

BPOs cut down the workloads of an enterprise by accepting minor tasks, like for payroll and tax services among others. Instead of hiring people to work on these, a company may open other positions that will help them focus more on their business core. Furthermore, outsourcing opens up employment opportunities for people who prefer working on a per project basis.

Prople Inc. was established to assist local enterprises of any size. As one of the leading business processes outsourcing companies, it delivers proven, best-in-class methodologies and solutions to ensure their customers’ business stability and progress.

It is staffed by value-driven employees, such as accountants, auditors, project managers, business analysts, engineers and IT professionals, who are rich in adequate professional experiences that may help companies realize true benefits of outsourcing.

Overall, it aims to produce practical outputs including increase of efficiency, immediate start on new projects, control of capital costs, reduction of labor costs, maintaining the focus on the business core and preventing risks that threaten the success of enterprises, and these are what Prople, Inc. desires to provide.

For a complete list of Prople, Inc.’s services, kindly visit its website at https://www.propleinc.com/.