communications systems

A recent wave of cyberattacks against Google and other U.S. companies reinforced a long-evident fact: America needs to strengthen its defenses against terrorists and rogue nations capable of waging war with a keyboard.

Last month, the Internet giant announced it had been the victim of "a highly sophisticated and targeted" series of attacks resulting in the theft of intellectual property. Perhaps more worrisome was this revelation by Google: More than 30 companies from the tech, financial and chemical industries also were hit.

With just 63 employees serving a customer base from its headquarters in Richmond, Va., and remote sites in Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Memphis and Tampa, InSource Software Solutions (ISS) staff must cover a lot of terrain in terms of sales, technical support, customer care and administration. According to Dunn Dillard, ISS's executive vice president and chief financial officer, managing staff and customers remotely was a cumbersome and expensive proposition that the company needed to address.

The European Commission has introduced technical and licensing regulations to let airline passengers use their mobile handsets and smartphones during flights. "Pan-European telecom services, such as in-flight mobile telephony, needed a regulatory 'one-stop shop' to operate throughout Europe, and this is why the commission has acted," said European Union Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding.

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