I feel really positive about how I’ve ended the last couple of weeks post-vacation. I’ve gotten to enjoy late Upstate summers spending loads of time in our backyard outdoor oasis with my wife watching the fur-kids play.  I’m finishing this week’s post doing just that with a cup of coffee. Side note – I got stung by yellowjackets about 15 minutes after I closed my laptop this weekend, so this post is a bit delayed.

My Projects

Leadership: Most of my last two weeks have been spent in meetings and catching up from being on vacation. I started to feel overwhelmed as I was pushing off “actual work” and administrative tasks, but I decided to use this as an opportunity to use some “tactical delegation.” I have a bad habit of loving the get my hands dirty, but that leaves me in the precarious position of balancing “real work” with leading my team and maintaining relationships with my colleagues. The latter typically suffers because of that. Not only does delegation preserve precious time for higher value things, but it also allows me the opportunity to build relationships and coach my team in both soft and technical skills. I find this more rewarding and it leaves me with a net positive in energy at the end of the day. Unfortunately, I still have to process a buttload of invoices until we find a better way to do our AP.

Intune: My team has been working to build our BYOD environment in Intune so we can leverage some cost savings. The initial work of setting up our device profiles is complete, but we’ve been struggling with the Microsoft Tunnel setup.

Shortcuts: I’ve been working on some iOS shortcuts to help me build these posts.  The initial shortcut will grab the page title and link, then create an email from it.  I can then type my draft thoughts into the email and send it to myself. This made for a housekeeping nightmare, so I’m testing out dropping the links directly into a note in Apple Notes. Both shortcuts appear to work much better on my iPhone, but they also function on one of my MacBooks. I think I’m 80% complete here.

HomePod: I’ve also picked up a HomePod Mini to become my HomeKit hub. I’ve been using Homebridge to bring MyQ, SmartThings, LG, and the various other smart devices I’ve collected into one panel. Adding the HomePod should allow me to set up automations as well as manage my devices remotely. So far the HomePod is working as expected with the added bonus of being a great little speaker. I use it mainly in the office, but it’s seen the backyard a couple of times to play my Apple Music playlist.

Reading

New Cisco platform deploys AI to take VPN decision-making off your plate – EVERYONE hates VPNs, but EVERYONE still uses VPNs.  Cisco Multicloud Defense would take the decision-making process out of the user’s hands and automatically tunnel the traffic that needs to be. I’m not sure this is truly AI as you can currently do this with AnyConnect OnDemand rules.

Apple issues third mobile OS update after zero-click spyware campaign | CyberScoop (From Risky Business #714) – I have been impressed by how quickly these patches can be deployed with Apple’s new deployment method.

Cyberattack causes multiple hospitals to shut emergency rooms and divert ambulances (From RiskyBiz News 8/7) – Ransomware attacks against critical infrastructure should be treated like a terrorist attack.

Satellites Are Rife With Basic Security Flaws (From Risky Business #714) – No surprises here as this is IoT for space.

Tenable CEO accuses Microsoft of negligence in addressing security flaw (From Risky Business #714) – Is Microsoft backsliding into the same shenanigans they pulled in the 2000s?

The Linux Community Is Circumventing Red Hat’s Controversial New Strategy – I’m glad to see some of the more popular Red Hat-based distros have gotten around the death of CentOS.  

If your iPhone or iPad is too old, you won’t get these new iOS 17 or iPadOS 17 features – The Mac Security Blog – Nothing here that is going to make you run out and buy a new phone.

If your Mac is too old, you won’t get these new macOS Sonoma features – The Mac Security Blog – Same story for a second time.

Practical Protection: Who Watches the Watchers?  | Practical365 – Paul linked two ideas from last week’s Risky Business podcast to give us some hints on preventing breaches in a Microsoft environment.

Exchange Online Enforces Sender DMARC Policy | Practical365 – Microsoft is sending a big message by honoring DMARC policies across the board. I highly recommend you verify your SPF, enable DKIM signing for all approved senders, and create a DMARC policy so recipients reject any spoofed email sent using your domain. I also recommend you setup a DMARC block-all policy for any domains that you own but do not use.

Microsoft resolves vulnerability following criticism from Tenable CEO – I have to agree with the Tenable CEO on this one. Microsoft has gone back to a culture of secrecy, denial, and stalling in all of its platforms. This is unacceptable for an organization profiting off a considerable number of businesses depending on their security.

DIY Scientists and Institutions Are Racing to Replicate the Room-Temperature Superconductor – Didn’t we do this song and dance years ago only to disturb was a farce?

Scientists Control Human DNA with Electricity in ‘Leap Forward’, Study Reports – Ok this is cool. Maybe a wearable DNA editor is in our future?

The Mystery of Chernobyl‘s Post-Invasion Radiation Spikes | WIRED – Add radiation detectors to the never-ending list of hackable IoT devices.

What Doctors Wish You Knew About HIPAA and Data Security | WIRED – Your health data is only covered by HIPPA in a healthcare provider system. Apple Health, Fitbit, etc. are not covered at all. Read the fine print.

NASA regains contact with Voyager 2 after it went dark for two weeks | Engadget – Voyager 2 amazes me. 45 years old and still on mission!

How to see the Perseid meteor shower this weekend, 2023’s best – Eyes to the skies this weekend!