cyber security

🚨 Latest Cybersecurity Threats: A Horror Story in Three Acts 🚨

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👻 Act 1: The Phishing That Got Personal
That email from the “CEO” asking for urgent wire transfers? Yeah, turns out CEOs don’t email at 2 AM with “Sent from my iPhone” misspelled.

🤖 Act 2: AI-Powered Scams
Deepfake voices now sound eerily real—your boss might not actually be asking you to “buy 500 Apple gift cards immediately.” (Pro tip: Call them back before you max out your credit card.)

🔓 Act 3: The Eternal Password Problem
People are still using “123456” and “password” in 2025. Meanwhile, cybercriminals are using AI-powered brute force attacks. This is why we can’t have nice things.

💡 Moral of the Story?
Always verify unusual requests—especially financial ones.
AI scams are getting smarter—so should you.
Use a password manager, MFA, and a little common sense.

What’s the wildest cybersecurity threat you’ve seen recently? We’d love to hear from you, email enquiries@icloud9.co.uk ⬇️

hashtag#CyberSecurity
hashtag#Infosec
hashtag#StaySafeOnline

Lancaster University

PhD In Communication Systems

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After a challenging and rewarding decade in academia, I am thrilled to announce that I have been awarded a PhD in Network Communications from Lancaster University. This journey began with a three-year bachelor’s degree at Blackpool and The Fylde College, followed by a master’s degree in Cybersecurity at Lancaster University.

I am incredibly grateful for the support from my mentors, colleagues, and family throughout this journey. Thank you to everyone who has been part of this adventure—I look forward to the new opportunities and challenges that lie ahead!

Streamlining IT Infrastructure

Streamlining IT: Reducing Complexity and Costs for a More Efficient Network

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We recently completed a comprehensive network optimization and rationalization project for one of our clients, focusing on reducing complexity, enhancing security, and cutting costs. This involved a series of strategic changes, including:

  • Migrating 2 Terabytes of Data: We transferred data from large Windows network storage systems to a simplified, high-performance Network Accessible Storage (NAS), improving data access speed and management ease.
  • Decommissioning Dropbox: To reduce costs, we consolidated the client’s cloud storage by leveraging their existing Office365 OneDrive setup, eliminating the need for separate Dropbox accounts.
  • Simplifying Network Architecture: We removed the Windows Domain Controllers and transitioned to a more straightforward Workgroup network while ensuring robust security measures remained in place.
  • Reconfiguring Core Network Services: By configuring routers to handle DNS and DHCP, we streamlined network management, reducing dependency on the now-retired domain controllers.
  • Optimizing Printer Access: Printers were reconfigured to be accessible directly on the network, removing the need for network shares previously managed by the Windows Domain Controller.
  • Eliminating VMware Server: We retired the VMware server by relocating necessary virtual systems, such as the Door Security system, to spare physical computers, further simplifying the infrastructure.

These enhancements resulted in a massive reduction in both complexity and yearly operational costs, giving our client a streamlined, efficient, and easily manageable network. This transformation not only meets their current needs but is also scalable for future growth.

If you’re looking to optimize your IT environment and reduce costs, let’s explore how we can help simplify your network!

Streamlining IT
Streamlining HangerWorlds IT Infrastructure.

Latest Windows Server Project Completion for a Prominent National Coach Company! 🚌💻

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🌐 We’re thrilled to announce our latest Windows Server project completion for a prominent national Coach Company! 🚌💻

✅ Project Overview:

  • 🚀 Delivered and installed an on-premise web server and Office Server.
  • 🌟 The server features a user-friendly booking system for the general public.
  • 📅 Allows customers to explore and book a variety of holidays offered by the Coach Company.

✅ Office Server Configuration:

  • 🌐 New office server set up to assist personnel in booking holidays for clients and general office duties.
  • ☎️ Designed for both in-person and phone-based customer interactions.

✅ Hardware and Software:

✅ Client PC Upgrades:

  • 💼 Installed Acer All in One Systems for office staff.
  • 🚀 These systems are optimized for efficient client booking management.

🔥 Our Commitment: At Cloud9 Computing Ltd, we’re dedicated to providing cutting-edge IT solutions that enhance operational efficiency and customer satisfaction. This project is a testament to our expertise and commitment to excellence.

🙌 Thank You! A big thank you to our team for their hard work and to our valued client for entrusting us with this significant project.

#Cloud9Computing #ITsolutions #ServerInstallation #BusinessGrowth #Innovation

👉 Stay tuned for more updates on our projects and services and contact us if you are interested in our services!

Paper accepted by Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers

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I am really excited to announce the publication of my paper on Improving IP Geolocation by the IEEE

This study identifies a method to create fine-grained multilayer maps of the Internet’s structure, which are currently lacking. We begin with an investigation of current techniques for geolocating hosts using passive, active, and hybrid methods. This is followed by a survey of the fundamental problems that IP geolocation techniques must address. The survey points to the obvious difficulties in using Delay-Distance models and suggests that the use of Return Trip Times can lead to highly misleading results.

We therefore develop a new procedure that combines state-of-the-art methods to avoid many of the fundamental problems in Internet topology mapping, whilst creating finer-grained internet maps than those currently available. This procedure is tested on the UK infrastructure by conducting a series of tests using distributed measurement points provided by the RIPE Atlas platform.

Our results show that we can accurately geolocate routers between two endpoints to create a fine-grained map of the internet infrastructure involved in our measurements. Researchers have long recognized the scarcity of ground truth datasets where IP geolocation is a concern. As a byproduct of our new method reported in this paper, we create a validation dataset that maps hundreds of IP addresses to geo-coordinate landmarks or vantage points, which is highly desirable for IP geolocation research.

Finally, we discuss some limitations of this method, and we summarise the next steps toward accurate and complete Internet infrastructure maps.

The Paper can be found at:-

Published in: IEEE Access ( Volume: 11)

Page(s): 59935 – 59953

Date of Publication: 31 May 2023 

Electronic ISSN: 2169-3536

DOI: 10.1109/ACCESS.2023.3281333 Publisher: IEEE

Attending the North American Network Operating Group Conference

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It was a fantastic week in Los Angeles attending the NANOG 86 conference. Met a lot of great people and listened to some excellent presentations. Great experience.

Attending the North American Network Operating Group Conference
Attending the North American Network Operating Group Conference

At the National Cyber Security Conference in Newport Wales

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Newport Cyber Security Conference 2022

 

Sponsored by the NCSC to Attend the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) Cyber Conference in Newport Wales.

Chinese hacking group targeting Microsoft Exchange Servers

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The campaign has exploited recently discovered flaws in Microsoft Exchange software, stealing email and infecting computer servers with tools that let attackers take control remotely,

“Everyone running these servers needs to act now to patch them. We are concerned that there are a large number of victims,” White House spokeswoman Jennifer Psaki said .

After Microsoft released patches for the vulnerabilities on Tuesday, attacks “dramatically stepped up” on servers not yet updated with security fixes, said Krebs, who cited unnamed sources familiar with the situation

In a blog post on Tuesday, Microsoft executive Tom Burt said the company had released updates to fix the security flaws, which apply to on-premises versions of the software rather than cloud-based versions, and urged customers to apply them

Please ensure your On site Exchange Servers are fully patched or call Cloud9 for help, advice and support.

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