Wibu-Systems Blog

How acute is the threat posed by quantum computing to existing cryptographic methods and critical systems?

The flexibility to offer licensing models tailored more closely to customers business needs and preferences is critical.

In their latest white paper, the IIC has captured the many challenges and technological hurdles that accompany the DX journey.

IP cyber theft has remained in the shadows, while media mainly covered the theft of personally identifiable information.

Subscription-based business have fared the best in weathering the near-catastrophic economic storm during the COVID-19 crisis.

Home-based workers operating beyond the safeguards of their corporate IT infrastructure are an easier target for cybercriminals.

Technology is inherently empowering. Should then access to technology be controlled and who is controlling the controllers?

Medium-long term trends that will be impacted by COVID-19 across technology, business, operations, investment, and macroeconomics.

When Freedom is more than just a theory and opens up new business growth and customer service opportunities.

Many companies and employees are seeing the advantages of a remote workforce, but what does this shift entail in the long term?

A powerful license management system is the key to stay competitive in the global market and fully monetize software.

Product piracy has reached an all-time high of 74% among German companies in the mechanical and plant engineering industry.

Exploring four key security areas to harden the shopfloor and run an efficient and profitable Industry 4.0 operation.

Our personal contribution in these trying times: a free license container that lives in the cloud to support all home office workers.

What does it take to achieve trustworthy software that produces predictable business and operational outcomes in the IIoT?

The use of 3D printing technology and the move to outsourcing are creating an environment for unintended consequences.

Exploring the main differences between protecting a desktop application and a Windows service or a server application.

During the COVID-19 crisis, our Business Continuity Plan is mitigating threats to public health and maintaining business ops.

A secure approach to cloud licensing is our contribution to the cloud technologies propelling the digital transformation.

IoT devices have long passed through the early adopter phase, but have security measures kept up the pace?

How to mitigate risks and take the necessary steps to securely and regularly perform updates that reduce cyberthreats.

2020: the pivotal year for ubiquitous connectivity and digitalization and for 20 bn. exploitable points of entry.

The U.S. government has recently taken action and passed three pieces of legislation aimed at promoting safe IoT growth.

The rise of digital twins increases the number of software vulnerabilities, risk of IP theft, and exposure of critical processes.

Software runs the world and as such should be considered critical infrastructure. A lack of software security is a national threat.

As new software based technologies, products, and applications emerge, a flexible and secure licensing platform is a must

AI research is largely focused on augmenting and improving the practice of radiology and, consequently, patient care.

With cloud licensing, users can access their software licenses wherever, whenever, and however they need them.

With the shift from hardware towards software enabled technologies, IP protection is paramount in the IIoT.

Encouraging manufacturers to ensure they ship their devices in a secure state is the key objective of the UK government.

Nearly 80% of industry professionals regard the growing interconnectedness of OT and IT as a cybersecurity challenge.

The U.S. software market grew twice as fast as the overall economy supporting 1 in every 10 jobs and will rise even further.

Embracing the shift in customer preferences led by Industry 4.0 and radically transforming the entire business strategy.

The software licensing tools must be readily adaptable to the new purchasing and delivery models of the connected age.

AI, IoT, and predictive analytics are transforming the healthcare sector and shifting the focus from products to services.

In its latest publication, the NIST addresses the many cybersecurity risks inherent in IoT device manufacturing.

What are the challenges, risks, and benefits of AI as it enhances efficiency, reliability, and effectiveness of IIoT processes?

Is the "right-to-repair" concept an essential service for customers or a violation of manufacturers' intellectual property?

Only the enhancement of Industry 4.0 cybersecurity will lay a solid foundation for future security technology developments.

A novel license-based protection solution that far surpasses the password authentication still typical of modern PACs..

Preventing embedded systems vulnerabilities related to physical access, lack of monitoring, and software updates.

The approach to software security should be flexible, adaptable, outcome-focused, risk-based, cost-effective, and repeatable.

A critical shift in focus onto digital security solutions is required for the expanding digital footprint of the healthcare landscape.

Digitalization places high demands on security technology and leads to far-reaching changes in production facilities.

Given the significant impact of the software industry, it is critical to create new policies that generate economic opportunity.

Whether your decision is driven by technology or market reasons, the migration to CodeMeter is smoother than you may think.

The U.S. Congress introduced legislation to address the cybersecurity concerns related to IoT devices.

Using CmDongles as oracles with an Hyperledger Blockchain in the context of 3D printing applied to a healthcare environment.

One of the most frequent questions asked in developer communities is when to use .NET framework and when to use .NET Core.

The actors behind the SecUnity Cybersecurity Roadmap agree that effective security and privacy measures require a systematic and holistic approach.

What are the collateral damages of a severe cyberattack for economy, healthcare system, water supply, electricity or transportation?

The IoT Security Standards Gap Analysis from ENISA maps existing IoT standards against requirements on security and privacy.

In this new era, subscription experiences are built around services that meet consumers’ needs better than static, out-of-the-box offerings.

It is time to create a separate engineering discipline designed to cover the specific CPS and IoT knowledge.

Secure hardware-based license dongles remain the platform of choice for the ultimate in software protection against unauthorized usage or illegal tampering.

Recent reports in the U.S. indicate that military weapons and security systems offer the same vulnerabilities found in key infrastructure

The Trustworthy System Status Model helps designers plan a system that proactively prevent damaged, disastrous or permanently lost system status.

The next frontier in DLTs is developing reliable interactions between events and data pushed into a distributed ledger and the physical world.

A never-ending discussion between law enforcement and their ability to obtain useful crime evidence and the need for personal data to be protected.

Trustworthiness is the degree of confidence that the IIoT system performs as expected in terms of safety, security, privacy, reliability, and resilience.

The report by RUSI showed that nearly half of the manufacturers and companies do not have the right tools to estimate potential cyber risk.

With modern software applications being a combination of public software libraries and custom code, software supply chain security risks are on the rise.

Endpoints are ubiquitous across the IIoT landscape and the 2018 SANS IIoT Survey reveals that IIoT endpoint security is the leading concern.

"Bricking" in software license management translates into the ability to lock down a license if an appropriate or illegal use of the software is detected.

The speed in which development teams are releasing new software is making it difficult for the security operations team to keep up.

The Dynamic Monetization model proposes to move the payment for industrial systems from upfront to the time of usage with revolutionary consequences.

Alarming insights and compelling guidelines in the 2018 BSA global survey: Software Management: Security Imperative, Business Opportunity.

With national elections soon coming up in the U.S., the mere thought of further interference with the democratic process is raising deep concerns.

Embedded software engineers of the future will have a very different skillset from their predecessors - Where does the software security skillset fit?

VDMA Product Piracy Study 2018 indicates that, while the overall scale of damage remains unchanged, damages have worsened in the last two years.

When choosing the right system software for medical devices, secure communications, multi-CdPU design, modularity and scalability are key.

Product liability in the cyberworld opens up a whole new area of litigation, as the ISV becomes also responsible of software exploitation for malicious intent.

The U.S. points to China for rampant IP theft, which they believe has significantly weakened U.S. companies’ position in the global market.

Only 3% of the executives surveyed expressed that they were not challenged by the adoption of  new technologies inherent with the IoT.

We support BSA US 2018 Policy Agenda in developing international consensus on cybersecurity best practices and leveraging innovative solutions.

Modern software monetization ensures customers use the services they pay for while taking advantage of cloud adoption and real-time analytics tools.

The best integrity protection solutions are based on cryptography and the associated use of digital signatures and authentication.

Medical device manufacturers can leverage software licensing to unlock unique business models that generate new revenue streams.

Since the IP of today’s of most medical equipment is encapsulated in embedded software, the industry is ripe for attack.

CodeMeter products are not affected by Meltdown and Spectre, even if a would-be attacker should manage to access the application memory.

Established due diligence best practices provide a roadmap to ensure a successful migration to a modern, flexible and robust licensing system.

The pay-per-use model is widely embraced by consumers, has tangible benefits for ISVs and embedded system developers, and is industry-agnostic.

Cybercrime will cost up to $6 trillion by 2021 - nearly half of today’s US GDP and more profitable than the global trade of all major illegal drugs combined.

The next generation of software monetization is about enabling business models that provide additional opportunity for monetization to drive growth.

Do we all share a common understanding of IIoT terms? Most likely not, and that’s why the IIC continues to update its IIoT Vocabulary Report.

Will this legislation remedy the market failure that has occurred and encourage device manufacturers to compete on the security of their IoT products?

Unlike the often used obfuscation approach, Blurry Box cryptography offers software protection that is completely based on publicly available methods.

A cloud-based licensing and software protection service with private Blockchain to address non-repudiable logging is under investigation.

Modern usage-based licensing is trending in the software monetization market as customers gain say in how they want to consume their software.

In today’s age of the IoT, true offline computers are a relic of a bygone age. Go for proxy strategies or securely controlled outbound connections.

Software issues can have a dramatic impact on industrial processes, bringing an entire production line to a halt and affecting bottom-line profits.

To demonstrate the validity and strength of Blurry Box, its novel encryption mechanism, Wibu-Systems has launched a global hackers' contest.

Under the cloud of increasing cybersecurity threats, it is clear that a security by design approach is a necessity for any embedded system.

Most content is created, stored, and transmitted digitally. Left unprotected, it can be distributed electronically to millions of people in just seconds.

Fritz Stephan structured a scalable licensing model where they can remotely activate features on-demand and create new post-sales revenues.

The system should not require secrecy and it must not be a problem if it falls into enemy hands: This is the exact principle Blurry Box applies.

The Smart Factory is driven by real-time interactions of people, machines, assets, systems, and things that collectively enable self-governed processes.

Endpoints have many vulnerabilities susceptible to malicious errors that can can be exposed from the deployment to the development environment.

End users are comfortable in using an e-commerce system to buy licenses online and receive them automatically in the form of an activation code.

When manufacturers tell consumers that their equipment is secure, it’s critical that they take the necessary steps to make sure that’s true.

In the wake of the ongoing IoT security concerns, security by design is a concept that intelligent device manufacturers are taking into consideration.

Every enslaved IoT device grants adversaries carte blanche access that can be utilized to parasitically entwine malware into networks and microcosms.

While Industrie 4.0 enables the enormous potential of smart factories, it also brings with it new threats and challenges in the form of product piracy.

The migration to the CodeMeter licensing, protection and security platform from another vendor can be straightforward and relatively painless.

An attack to an Industrial Internet of Things system typically starts with an attack on one or more endpoints. And endpoints are everywhere in the IIoT. 

The ability for an end user to easily borrow a license when necessary is an essential requirement of a software license management system.

The trustworthiness of IIoT systems depends upon trust in all of the system elements, how they are integrated, and how they interact with each other.

Helping CEOs and business managers allocate the resources for education, risk assessment, and planning ahead for an explosion of connected systems.

The terms IIoT and Disruption are becoming more closely aligned. Disruption in business models, licensing and IP protection, and interoperability.

A survey run by Genpact reveals that despite the enormous upside presented by the IIoT, executives are cautious of the obstacles that lie ahead.

Whether you are a total believer or not, it looks like the shift from perpetual software licensing to software subscription models is here to stay.

Many ISVs continue to build their monetization layers in-house, but total cost of ownership and business agility are lower with a commercial solution.

The software driven economy will dramatically impact health, the environment, global commerce and international relations. What are the risks?

Wibu-Systems joins TCG and demonstrates IP protection and flexible licensing applied to TPM connected devices at the SAE World Congress.

Internet of Things, industrial controls and encryption were found to be the top three most common phrases used in RSA Conference speaking submissions.

Lean machines, connected to cloud intelligence, introduce a decentralized architecture that will change forever our industrial world.

Five critical strategies to help intelligent device manufacturers gauge cyber security risks, develop security controls, and monetize IoT effectively.

The new challenges presented by connected devices are causing developers to go back to basics and even rethink the term security and what it means in the IoT.

Is handing over a free trial license still a valid marketing strategy or does it offer another avenue for hackers to gain illegal access to the program forever?

Next year will be the one where IoT security takes centre stage – and the winners will be the vendors who can help deliver secure connected services.

IDC recently released their annual top 10 software licensing and pricing predictions for 2016. One surprising note was that there was no mention of license security.

Not surprisingly, inexperience, interoperability and security were at the top of the list of challenges mentioned by 678 developers polled in the study State of IoT.

As a member of the Infineon Security Partner Network, we have worked closely with Infineon to secure devices and systems in various applications.

The Industrial Internet Consortium held an interesting TweetChat where 6 questions received enthusiastic responses by many leading security experts.

The SD Association recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of the microSD™ Card. With their thought leadership initiative, they share interesting facts.

The IP gained during the development of an ISV’s flagship software product most likely represents an investment in hundreds of man hours.

Just a few days ago, it was unthinkable for an iPhone to be infected with a virus, or for the App Store to spread viruses through their apps.

The disturbing software piracy statistics released by BSA | The Software Alliance in their Global Software Survey are sure to put a dent into any ISVs bottom line.

The Deloitte Centre paints an interesting picture of the healthcare and life science sectors that are being shaped by the many emerging innovations.

It has been several years since Ashton introduced the concept of the Internet of Things, and now the IoT is ubiquitous and represents enormous change.

IIC recently released their Industrial Internet Reference Architecture, which serves to initiate a process of evaluation and industrial transformation.

By monetizing the software on their devices, IoT vendors will be able to increase and drive recurring revenue streams, creating billions of dollars.

A recent report released by the Economist Intelligence Unit highlighted some of the emerging economic issues expected to shape global business.

Attackers see, in the growing promise of our tech-connected world, opportunities to steal or cause major disruption or destruction.

An effective way to safeguard embedded systems is to protect the running program code against tampering and implement secure boot.

If you have decided to integrate a 3rd party licensing solution, you’ve made the right choice. But now which 3rd party solution should you choose?

With today’s cloud or virtual solutions, there are many available license management options to evaluate and even more questions to consider.

The emerging IoT lags massively behind conventional computers in terms of cyber security with manufacturers failing to implement security practices.

ISVs are turning to 3rd party licensing security experts for help in developing a secure licensing strategy that meets their needs for today and their future.

Medical devices are increasingly reliant on software; securing it from tampering has become a critical consideration in the development process.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has released an in-depth report, which includes a list of recommendations on how to secure IoT devices.

While end users are reaping the economic benefits of virtualization, ISVs are challenged to create licensing schemes for virtual environments.

Software for embedded systems is based more and more on open system platforms, which are however vulnerable to attacks from hackers.

The Security Research Labs demonstrated how they could perpetrate an attack on USB devices by reprogramming the firmware with malicious code.

The intuitive GUI of WebDepot helps your customers track their license usage and gain a better understanding of license allocation requirements.

Each cloud-based approach has its security strengths and vulnerabilities, and requires a strong user authentication and data encryption strategy.

For every PC in the world there are hundreds of embedded systems, interconnected over various communication channels, like WiFi, Bluetooth and RFID.

A never ending controversy between the rights of software publishers to get paid for their efforts and users to use the software they legally purchased.

We define software monetization as the capability to effectively maximize your software revenue by meeting marketing demands. What does it mean for me?

If your software isn't secure nothing else matters. How do we prevent malicious attacks like piracy, cracking, theft, reverse engineering, and tampering.

An international group of researchers has cracked a portion of the RSA encryption algorithm. Should users of CodeMeter be concerned?

If you're an ISV, your customers can be anywhere. They might be companies you know. Or they might be someone who needs to earn your trust.

Some people believe that embedded systems are immune to piracy because the software has to be tied to a specific piece of equipment. What is the truth?

Hackers are out there. You can't take for granted it won't happen to you. What's amazing is how often the bad guys get in because someone left the door unlocked.

Anytime you add a 3rd party component into your overall product stack, you need to be thoughtful. Copy protection software is no different.