Cloud Security : A Review of Recent Threats and Solution Models

The most significant barrier to the wide adoption of cloud services has been attributed to perceived cloud insecurity (Smitha, Anna and Dan, 2012). In an attempt to review this subject, this paper will explore some of the major security threats to the cloud and the security models employed in tackling them. Access control violations, message integrity violations, data leakages, inability to guarantee complete data deletion, code injection, malwares and lack of expertise in cloud technology rank the major threats. The European Union invested €3m in City University London to research into the certification of Cloud security services. This and more recent developments are significant in addressing increasing public concerns regarding the confidentiality, integrity and privacy of data held in cloud environments. Some of the current cloud security models adopted in addressing cloud security threats were – Encryption of all data at storage and during transmission. The Cisco IronPort S-Series web security appliance was among security solutions to solve cloud access control issues. 2-factor Authentication with RSA SecurID and close monitoring appeared to be the most popular solutions to authentication and access control issues in the cloud. Database Active Monitoring, File Active Monitoring, URL Filters and Data Loss Prevention were solutions for detecting and preventing unauthorised data migration into and within clouds. There is yet no guarantee for a complete deletion of data by cloud providers on client requests however; FADE may be a solution (Yang et al., 2012)

Consumers’ Willingness to Pay for Food Safety in Nairobi: The Case of Fresh Vegetables

Large urban areas in developing countries represent currently the most dynamically growing markets for food products. This study investigates the willingness to pay of consumers in Nairobi for safer leafy vegetables. We survey individuals’ perceived food safety across four major market categories, while also considering the explanatory role of trust and behavioral, psychological, and socio-demographic covariates. Results show that willingness to pay is market-specific and multi-faceted, with trust and perceived risks as important drivers, while income plays only a subordinate role. We conclude that policy makers should aim to reduce asymmetric information within the value chain without raising food prices such that safer vegetables would become unaffordable for the poor.Food safety, perceived risk, willingness to pay, regression tree, urban agriculture, Crop Production/Industries, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Property Tax in Urban China

This paper examines the urban housing sector of China and proposes a property tax reform. Over the past decade, housing price in urban China has been increasing dramatically because of strong demand for self-use, investment and speculation. The booming housing market, however, has brought several challenges for further development, such as housing affordability, inequality, and possible housing bubble. One strategy is to reform the current property tax system. Specifically, this paper proposes that China significantly reduces taxes in circulation but levies property tax during possession. Doing so will increase housing affordability because of lower transaction costs, reduce speculation because of higher cost of holding, stabilize fiscal system because of more sustainable tax revenues, and improve the efficiency and fairness of the property tax system because of the implementation of “ability-to-pay” and “who use who pay” principles.Property tax; China

Old age security in transitional economies

The former communist countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA) are undertaking their second great social experiment of the century: the transition from authoritarian central planning to a market economy. One of the many problems they face during the transition is what to do with their pension systems. Their problems are more complex than countries elsewhere at the same income level for three reasons. First, the systems are mature, with high and sharply rising dependency rations. Second, pension coverage is more extensive than in most other middle-income countries, because of over industrialization and the collectivization of agriculture. Third, pension reform is being undertaken at the same time as other fundamental economic changes. The timing, sequence and political economy of pension reform are complex. The author reviews the main feature of existing EECA pension systems, identifies the major reform issues and reform options, discusses obstacles to reform, and proposes a sequence for reform. She focuses primarily on the richer, older European countries of the EECA, where pension systems have matured. Paradoxically, pensions are low in those countries, yet expenditures as a proportion of GDP are high. The main reason for this is the very lowage of retirement, which means a short contribution period and a high dependency ratio. EECA governments must bring spending promises in line with a more realistic revenue ceiling. What makes reform so difficult is that too many people have already retired. Especially during the transition, when there are few opportunities to acquire wealth and some intergenerational redistribution is needed, the retirees need a safety net whether or not they deserve one on the basis of age alone. The author's recommendations are designed to make the system more equitable and efficient for this group. Four years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, pension reform has been elusive in EECA despite the severity of the problem. The author identifies several reasons for this. First, the extent of the pension system crisis was not foreseen in the early days of the transition (except perhaps in Hungary). Indeed, some countries expanded entitlements to help induce the labor market to adjust. As the depth of the problem became clear, EECA countries have tried to formulate reform programs, but only Albania has passed legislation substantially reducing entitlements. Another reason reform has proved difficult in EECA countries is that governments have tried to reduce the scope of the public pillar without providing an alternative to assure old-age security. Failure to begin developing other pillars (based on savings and insurance principles) to meet the active generation's needs for old-age security may have doomed reform efforts from the start.Environmental Economics&Policies,Economic Theory&Research,Banks&Banking Reform,Pensions&Retirement Systems,Municipal Financial Management

A review of High Performance Computing foundations for scientists

The increase of existing computational capabilities has made simulation emerge as a third discipline of Science, lying midway between experimental and purely theoretical branches [1, 2]. Simulation enables the evaluation of quantities which otherwise would not be accessible, helps to improve experiments and provides new insights on systems which are analysed [3-6]. Knowing the fundamentals of computation can be very useful for scientists, for it can help them to improve the performance of their theoretical models and simulations. This review includes some technical essentials that can be useful to this end, and it is devised as a complement for researchers whose education is focused on scientific issues and not on technological respects. In this document we attempt to discuss the fundamentals of High Performance Computing (HPC) [7] in a way which is easy to understand without much previous background. We sketch the way standard computers and supercomputers work, as well as discuss distributed computing and discuss essential aspects to take into account when running scientific calculations in computers.Comment: 33 page

The private sector in water in 2009

A critical survey of the impact on public water of water multinationals, local private companies, and water-consuming multinationals

Mortgage Finance Market and Housing Affordability in Urban Areas in Rwanda: A Case of Kigali City

Rapid urbanization in Rwanda has considerably increased housing demand and the need for a dependable mortgage market. Unfortunately, the capacity of most people to afford to own homes from their own incomes is still a challenge as mortgages products are available at outrageous conditions making mortgage finance unaffordable. For better market readjustment, the effects or mortgage market factors on housing affordability in any locality should be properly evaluated. The objective of this study is to determine how mortgage finance market affects the affordability of housing in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda. To attain this objective, data was obtained from primary and secondary sources and analyzed using applicable statistical techniques. The research findings revealed that the adopted loan amortization schedule (even total payment), the risks caused by the absence of secondary mortgage market, and the dominance of short-term financial institutions reduced mortgage finance affordability and therefore only 15% of Kigali City households could afford housing from 2006 to 2016. It is noted that, this said affordability is only purchase affordability without repayment affordability. The study also highlights that, if (i) the secondary mortgage market is properly developed to reduce the risks that caused the high interest rate, (ii) flexibility on loan amortization is adapted, and (iii) long-term financial institutions participate in the market with favorable legal framework, the mortgage finance market can contribute a lot in alleviating the issue of housing affordability in Kigali City

Remote Data Auditing in a Cloud Computing Environment

In the current paradigms of information technology, cloud computing is the most essential kind of computer service. It satisfies the need for high-volume customers, flexible computing capabilities for a range of applications like as database archiving and business analytics, and the requirement for extra computer resources to provide a financial value for cloud providers. The purpose of this investigation is to assess the viability of doing data audits remotely inside a cloud computing setting. There includes discussion of the theory behind cloud computing and distributed storage systems, as well as the method of remote data auditing. In this research, it is mentioned to safeguard the data that is outsourced and stored in cloud servers. There are four different techniques of remote data auditing procedures that are presented here for distributed cloud services. There are several difficulties associated with data audit methods; however, these difficulties may be overcome by using a variety of techniques, such as the Boneh-Lynn-Shacham signature or the automated blocker protocol. In addition to that, other difficulties associated with distributed-based remote data auditing solutions are discussed. In addition, a variety of approaches might be researched further for further examination in order to find answers to these impending problems

Federal Policy Priorities for an Equitable COVID-19 Relief and Recovery

While Congress has taken some important initial steps, the relief packages so far have not done enough to address the challenges facing the one in three people living in or near poverty in the US. This brief outlines a number of specific policy recommendations for Congress to include in the next relief package to meet the needs of all people while building a bridge to a more equitable and climate-safe future