Google's data centers are the object of great fascination, and the intrigue about these facilities is only deepened by Google's secrecy about its operations.
What's a data center?
A data center is a facility used for housing a large amount of computers that store and serve vast amounts of data. Most companies have, or use, some kind of data center. For Google, data centers are especially important.
Super-sized storage space
What Google does is not so different from what the human brain does, processing and storing ideas, words, images and all the context that weaves them together.
Let's use the Google search engine as an example. Its computers regularly "crawl" the Internet, storing a copy of every web page encountered. Then it indexes each page based on the information it contains. When you do a Google search, it looks up your search terms in their indexes and then lists the web pages that best match your search. This entire process takes place in their data centers.
Data center in action
Copies of all those web pages are stored on computers in Google's data centers. All the indexing and processing that goes into answering your searches is done on computers in these data centers. It's a big job, and they need lots of computers to do it, and lots of data centers to house those computers.
The people who work in the data-centers keep the computers up and running every minute of every day. They monitor, diagnose, fix and replace all of the data-center's machines and systems as needed, so Google can provide search results and other services around the clock to their millions of users.
A recent inquiry by the Israeli Defense-Ministry into popular social networks online, including Facebook, revealed that members of Israel's security establishment exposed classified information on the Web.
Information included photos of soldiers. Some of the photos were taken at classified sites, with secret information appearing in the background.
Following the inquiry, the Defense Ministry distributed a special document to all members of the defense establishment detailing security restrictions that apply to anyone joining a social network on the Internet.
The document, which was designated for members of the IDF, Defense Ministry, Shin Bet, and Mossad, was also acquired by Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.
The document instructs defense establishment members to refrain from revealing that they work for the security forces. In addition, no details related to the defense establishment must be exposed on the Internet, including non-classified information. The document also urges soldiers and security officials to refrain from posting photographs taken at defense establishment sites.
Meanwhile, soldiers were also ordered to refrain from posting photos of themselves in uniform, even if they were taken at home.
Notably, Facebook is popular among Shin Bet members, and particularly the VIP protection unit. Many security guards have signed up to Facebook and some even revealed their place of employment online. However, the Shin Bet warned the guards several months ago that the details they shared on the Web endanger them and provides hostile enemies with information.
In addition, security officials who hold sensitive posts have been banned from joining a social network on the Internet.
Marks and Spencer has been found in breach of data-protection-rules after the theft of a laptop containing the personal details of 26,000 employees.
The stolen laptop contained details on the pension arrangements of M&S staff.
"It is essential that before a company allows personal information to leave its premises on a laptop there are adequate security procedures in place to protect personal information, for example, password protection and encryption," said Mick Gorrill, assistant commissioner at the ICO.
Via BBC
Reports have indicated that physicians and other health officials in the U.K. may be fined for losing laptop computers.
Robert Siciliano, a widely televised and quoted personal security and identity theft expert, said the development is unsurprising in light of the associated costs of mobile computer theft, but suggested that better responses to the costly crime exist.
He pointed to MyLaptopGPS™.
Reports have indicated that physicians and other health officials in the U.K. may be fined for losing laptop computers.
