IBM is deploying its Watson supercomputer to help organizations answer this essential question: In the face of nonstop security events, potential intrusions and patches, what's the next, best action that an organization's security analyst should take?

In the latest ISMG Security Report, our editors analyze Symantec's pending purchase of Blue Coat; vulnerabilities in mobile banking apps; retailers' objections to a national data breach notification bill; and the relaunching of the IRS Get Transcript tool after a breach.

For years, organizations have been threatened by DDoS attacks on several fronts, ranging from volumetric attacks to application-level and DNS strikes. Now come ransom-based attacks. Trey Guinn of CloudFlare discusses how to respond to each type of attack.

A settlement between the Federal Trade Commission and Practice Fusion, an electronic health records system vendor, serves as a reminder that regulations other than HIPAA apply to protecting patient privacy, says attorney Adam Greene, a healthcare regulations expert.

The Retail Industry Leaders Association is battling against passage of a national data security and breach notification bill known as the Data Security Act of 2015, arguing it would unreasonably require retailers to meet some of the same security standards as banks, says Austen Jensen, a RILA vice president.

While awaiting new guidance from the HHS Office for Civil Rights, healthcare organizations can take several steps to help determine whether a ransomware attack is a reportable breach under HIPAA, says compliance attorney Betsy Hodge.

In the latest ISMG Security Report, our editors examine the top concerns of security practitioners gathered at Infosecurity Europe, NIST's planned revision of its cybersecurity framework and U.S. government efforts to make sure patients can securely access their electronic health records.

The scale of the global IT security skills crisis is well documented. But what is its direct impact on cybersecurity with the government agencies of Washington, D.C.? Dan Waddell of (ISC)² discusses the problem - and a new way to address it.

Cybercrime alert: In March, 93 percent of all phishing emails studied contained ransomware designed to forcibly encrypt PCs, says PhishMe chief operating officer Jim Hansen. In an interview, he offers insights on how to respond.

Many organizations still fail to practice smart web security, warns penetration testing expert Ilia Kolochenko, who notes that 23 percent of all websites still use SSL version 3, despite it leaving them at risk from POODLE and BEAST attacks.