Now that the year 2014 is drawing to a close, we would like to take the time to look ahead and try to predict what the coming twelve months will bring. This is something of a tradition at scip and we’ve done this in the past few years as well. The predictions are – if possible – sorted in descending priority:

Unrest in Europe and Cyber War

The economic and military conflicts in Europe will affect electronic warfare. The continuing and sometimes escalating conflicts could carry over to militaristically orchestrated or politically motivated groups in virtual spaces. Break-ins, defacements, DDoS and malware attacks could be the consequences.

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Wearables Will Establish Themselves

Small computers, worn on the body will continue to spread and become a staple of modern society. They will be more powerful, more comfortable, more affordable and nicer to look at. This will have sociological and security related consequences that will change our perception as well as our handling of our electronic data once more.

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Fitness Tracker Will Have First Impacts

Solutions such as Fitbit or Garmin will store more and more personal data, including medical content. The protection of this data will be considered important by the public. If and how the vendors of the solutions are allowed to analyze the medical data they collect will lead to discussions on all levels of society.

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Aftershocks of the Sony Hack

The repeated and extremely compromising break-in at Sony this past November will have technical, legal, financial and sociological effects. The fact that global players in the corporate world can be shaken to their core will change the public’s view on IT security. Dave Aitel, former NSA research scientist and CEO of the IT security firm Immunity, considers the hack an Act of War.

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Windows 8.1 Will Dominate

Microsoft’s youngest operating system, Windows 8.1, will be adopted by more members of the public as well as corporate entities. This will push Windows 7 off its throne. The additional features as well as the security mechanisms will have significant influence on how users deal with the solution. Existing concepts will have to be adapted to the new situation.

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More Electronics in Cars

The on-board electronics in cars will become increasingly complex. Companies like Tesla that will offer the Model X, a SUV, will make more headway in this sector. Due to this advancement, IT security in cars will be more of a topic of discussion than ever before.

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Netzneutralität Will Be Undermined

In many nations, there are first indicators that net neutrality is being undermined. Net neutrality will be increasingly adapted to economic interest. This has a direct effect on competition and the freedom of speech. Without an international accord to keep net neutrality intact, the online landscape will gradually change.

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4K Fernsehen Will Become Relevant

As an extension to current HD televisions (720p/1080p), Ultra HD models (4k2k) that can compete in the market when it comes to price will be offered. The biggest driving force behind this is the option to watch video in high resolution on portals such as YouTube, Netflix as well as on 4K Blu-ray.

About the Author

Marc Ruef has been working in information security since the late 1990s. He is well-known for his many publications and books. The last one called The Art of Penetration Testing is discussing security testing in detail. He is a lecturer at several faculties, like ETH, HWZ, HSLU and IKF. (ORCID 0000-0002-1328-6357)

Links

• http://gizmodo.com/the-sony-hacks-are-goddamn-terrifying-1668911102
• http://heise.de/-2480941
• http://uk.businessinsider.com/sony-hack-should-be-considered-an-act-of-war-2014-12
• http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/why-windows
• http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-17/ruble-extends-worst-slide-since-1998-as-russia-crisis-worsens.html
• http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/stephen-harper-at-g20-tells-vladimir-putin-to-get-out-of-ukraine-1.2836382
• http://www.cnet.com/news/4k-blu-ray-discs-arriving-in-2015-to-fight-streaming-media/
• http://www.cnet.com/news/windows-8-1-continues-to-inch-along/
• http://www.fitbit.com
• http://www.garmin.com
• http://www.mcmanislaw.com/blog/2014/Wearable-Technology-A-Perfect-Fit-For-Litigation
• http://www.sfgate.com/technology/article/Tesla-unveils-gull-wing-electric-SUV-Model-X-3263048.php
• http://youtube-global.blogspot.com/2010/07/whats-bigger-than-1080p-4k-video-comes.html
• https://help.netflix.com/en/node/13444
• https://www.scip.ch/en/?labs.20140718