Coffee Briefings are timely deliveries of the latest ITWC headlines, interviews, and podcasts. Today’s Coffee Briefing is delivered by IT World Canada’s editorial team!
Missed last week’s Coffee Briefing? We’ve got you covered.
What’s new this week
IBM Canada gets new president
IBM Canada yesterday announced the appointment of Dave McCann as its new president, in addition to his current role as the managing partner of IBM Consulting Canada. A thirteen-year veteran of IBM, McCann will be managing IBM Global Business Services Consulting Business in Canada in his new role.
Former president and general manager of IBM Canada, Claude Guay has now taken a global role as the managing partner, Global Ventures, Ecosystem and Acquisitions for IBM Consulting.
TD launches new mobile app to help simplify the investing experience for Canadians
TD Direct Investing yesterday announced it has launched TD Easy Trade, a new investing and stock-trading mobile app with low trading fees, and featuring how-to education videos, aimed at helping new and experienced investors, with all budgets, get started on their investing journey.
The company says TD Easy Trade offers self-directed investors the following:
- 50 free stock trades per Easy Trade client, per calendar year ($9.99 per trade after)
- Free trades on all 38 TD ETFs, including individual TD ETFs and TD One-Click ETF portfolios
- U.S. dollar accounts helping clients avoid currency conversion costs when buying/selling U.S. stocks
- Real-time quotes and market data
- Ability to create and manage a watchlist of trending stocks
- Built-in educational videos and resources
- Ability to build investment plans that align with your goals
- Support from a team of licensed investment representatives
Trulioo adds first chief product officer to its C-suite
Vancouver-based global identity verification company Trulioo has announced the appointment of Michael Ramsbacker as its first chief product officer. A veteran product management leader, Ramsbacker has over 20 years of experience in the strategic execution of product strategies, particularly in the B2B technology industry. Trulioo says Ramsbacker will oversee the launch of new digital identity verification solutions via Trulioo GlobalGateway, a global network of identity data and services. He will focus on developing intelligent workflow systems to maximize verification rates while optimizing user experience. Additionally, product plans include the development of security features that factor in different biometric modalities, and fraud signals that will help in the continuous evaluation of an identity’s trust and safety score.
Web Hosting Canada launches its .ca domain backordering platform
Web Hosting Canada (WHC) yesterday announced the launch of its .ca domain name backordering platform, which will allow Canadians to register valuable .ca domain names the second they expire and before they become available to the general public, through a process called TBR (To Be Released).
“With over 3 million active .CA domain registrations, finding an available Canadian domain name for your business is becoming more challenging,” explains Emil Falcon, WHC’s founder and chief executive officer. ”Before today, .CA domains did not have a single platform that could be used to confidently secure expiring domains. Our new Backordering platform aims to change that.”
The tool can be used to bid on domains that drop every Wednesday at 2PM EST. Entry bids start at $20, which includes the cost of a one-year domain registration. Customers aren’t charged any fees unless they win the domain, so there’s no risk involved in participating in a drop, according to WHC.
Quebec’s OSF digital acquires U.S.-based commerce strategy consultancy FitForCommerce
Quebec-based digital transformation services provider OSF Digital last week announced it has acquired New Jersey-based global commerce strategy consultancy FitForCommerce to operate as its commerce strategy consulting arm. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The integrated OSF and FitForCommerce team will offer clients end-to-end digital transformation, from strategy and business planning to technology road mapping, through to implementation and ongoing support.
Mastercard advances B2B payments in Canada with new partnerships
Mastercard last week announced new partnerships with BMO and Moneris Solutions Corporation to bring Mastercard Track Business Payment Service to Canadian business customers in early 2022. One of the first open-loop commercial solutions to do so globally and a first of its kind in Canada, this Mastercard solution automates and enhances the execution and management of business-to-business (B2B) payments and the exchange of payments-related data between buyers and suppliers. It offers supply chain finance solutions and provides greater control over payments to overcome inefficiencies in the current ecosystem, explains Mastercard.
More to explore
Bug in Safari can leak browsing activity, user identity, says report
A bug in the Safari 15 browser lets any website track a user’s internet activity and possibly reveal their identity, according to researchers at FingerprintJS.
Firms using open source have duty to act fast when bugs are found: Apache
Businesses using open source software need to understand what components are in their applications and be prepared to act quickly when vulnerabilities are discovered
Russia says REvil gang arrested, infrastructure ‘liquidated’
The REvil ransomware gang may have suffered a fatal blow, if reports from Russia are accurate.
Greentec becomes first e-waste processor in Canada to receive R2v3 certification
Greentec yesterday announced that it has become the first electronic waste processor in Canada to receive the R2v3 certification — the latest upgrade in standards set for the electronics industry by the not-for-profit organization Sustainable Electronics Recycling International (SERI).
Channel Bytes January 14, 2022 – new switches; partner hunting; class action; and more
Staying informed is a constant challenge. There’s so much to do, and so little time. But we have you covered. Grab a coffee and take five while you nibble on these tidbits.
Microsoft making Cloud for Retail generally available
Microsoft has announced that its Cloud for Retail will be generally available starting Feb. 1, 2022. The public preview of the cloud has been available since March 31, 2021.
The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) has announced it has opened registration for the Spring 2022 info session of the Guided ROM Minecraft, an online game-based learning program designed to support curriculum expectations from the Coding strand of the Ontario Mathematics Curriculum.
Canadian government contracts AI mapping company to help plan rural area networks
Toronto AI mapping company Ecopia has won an open-bidding contract with the Canadian government to provide 3D maps for network deployment planning.
Improve your employee experiences by modernizing your endpoint management
A commitment to modernizing your digital estate can improve employee satisfaction while enabling workforce resiliency. Introducing – Microsoft Endpoint Analytics.
Tableau Canada helping companies see and truly understand their data
Tableau is bringing a cloud-based analytics experience closer to home for Canadian businesses with the opening of its brand new data pod in Montreal.
ITWC Podcasts
Listen to the latest episode of Hashtag Trending
Meta’s VR division is under investigation, Russia fines Google, again, and Microsoft is making an effort to invest in sustainable technology.
Listen to the latest episode of Cyber Security Today
This episode reports on the discovery of a new backdoor, attacks continue against QNAP devices, and a scam on a digital city.
