New E-mail Rules Apply, Energy Efficiency and Security Needs Are on the Rise

A new survey from MarketingSherpa, Inc. demonstrates the changing view individuals now have about what is deemed unsolicited e-mail. Elsewhere, American Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) is releasing a new quad-core processor designed to be extremely energy efficient. Lastly, the Hannaford Bros. security breach provides some interesting takeaways on credit card data theft.

Focal Points:

• Marketing gurus MarketingSherpa have declared that many individuals are unsure what happens when users click the "report spam" buttons in their e-mail readers. Reportedly, 56 percent believe that it is appropriate to click the button when e-mail is uninteresting to them, and that 50 percent consider too frequent e-mails from trusted companies to be spam. Additionally, 56 percent believe that clicking the "report spam" button will filter all e-mail from the sender and 47 percent believe that performing the action will unsubscribe them from e-mail lists. The company goes on to say that spam costs corporations $612 annually per employee, and that only one-fifth of teenagers use e-mail regularly for communications. Younger users prefer instant messaging to e-mail at a rate of 75 percent, while the inverse is true for adults.
• The upcoming AMD Phenom X4 9100e quad-core line of processors is designed for users desiring high levels of performance while also wanting cool and quiet PCs. The processors feature AMD CoolCore technology which can automatically regulate which parts of the chip are needed and turn off those that are not, while Independent Dynamic Core Technology can automatically control core frequency to reduce energy consumption. AMD's Multi-Point Thermal Control can reduce processor speed and heat when temperature limits are reached to deter overheating. The new Phenom processor can operate at a maximum of 65 watts.
• Hannaford Bros. released new details on a major credit card breach that has affected all of its nearly 300 supermarket stores operated in the Northeastern part of the United States. According to new details, a hacker injected malware onto servers that has captured credit card data from checkout counter machines and transferred the information to international servers at the time of purchase. This is despite the supermarket's PCI Data Security Standard compliance rating. The sophistication of the attack suggests that the security breach may have originated from an internal source, though it remains unclear exactly where and how the infection began. A traditional security flaw related to mis-configuration and/or out-of-date antivirus signatures would not typically result in such a widespread or targeted design.

Experton Group believes employees and consumers are increasingly overwhelmed with new information that requires their review. This requires that corporations use marketing-oriented e-mail in a sparing and highly pertinent manner to achieve the desired interactive results. IT and marketing executives should understand how behaviors and attitudes towards e-mail marketing are changing, and look to adjust their communications to better serve the needs of their targeted audience. In addition to working with marketing firms that understand these changing requirements, surveys regarding how customers wish to receive communications from enterprises are advisable.

AMD's latest quad-core offering helps to solidify AMD's place as a viable manufacturer of high-end PC processors that can meet the energy efficient needs of the future.

Despite some recent financial and vendor setbacks of late, IT executives should continue to view AMD as a top-tier player along with Intel, Corp., and should not hesitate to deploy AMD-based solutions in the data center or the client desktop.

Lastly, the Hannaford Bros. security breach points out two very meaningful security elements.

First, corporations still have significant amounts of work required to ensure that only a limited number of the most trusted personnel should have ongoing access to systems containing sensitive data. Control mechanisms to monitor and enforce these policies are often not in place, and corporations that give out access to users typically fail to remove those rights when appropriate. Secondly, many compliance programs only evaluate a narrow portion of a corporation's security envelope, and a holistic review of employee access, operations, and technology is required on an ongoing basis to ensure enterprise security.