<p>Have you ever sent a message and then regretted it right away? Now you have no choice but to wait for the message to be read by the intended recipient. We have all been there, I am sure. Fortunately, self-destructing messaging apps can help.</p><p>Using a self-destructing message app, you can send messages that automatically destruct after a short, pre-defined duration of time, making them undetectable. These apps also have a built-in system that restricts you from taking a screenshot of the message. In other words, there will be no trace of your message and no proof that it ever existed. Self-destructing messaging applications have been around since the last decade, and they are growing in popularity all the time, with new, free apps appearing all the time. It is no wonder that in a world where most communication takes place online, people are looking for ways to protect their privacy.</p><p>And the figures back it up. With over 150 million daily users, Snapchat is one of the most popular self-destructing message apps, having been launched in 2011. The self-destructive messages became popular in 2013. While many people praise these programs for their capacity to prevent message tracking, they have also been criticized for a few quarters. Some say that the widespread availability of self-destructing messaging apps has encouraged immoral online conduct like sexting, illicit crimes, and even marital affairs.</p><p>When it comes to platforms for sending self-destructive texts, there are several options. There is a variety of self-destructing messaging applications to choose from. Know your alternatives when it comes to self-destructing messages, from email to instant messaging?you will be able to discover one that suits your requirement to be completely undetectable. As a result, I conducted some research and found a few applications that are ideal for sending such messages.</p><h3 id="gmail">Gmail</h3><p><a href="https://www.google.com/gmail/">Gmail </a>now offers a confidential mode that allows you to choose an expiration date for your emailed messages. Google stores your self-destructing messages on its servers rather than sending them to a third party. This allows the organization to keep control of the data and erase it once a certain amount of time has passed.</p><p>If both the sender and the recipient use Gmail, the process is straightforward, and messages sent in confidential mode will seem like normal emails. The body text, however, will vanish when the expiration date approaches, even if the recipient will still be able to locate the email and view the subject header in their inbox.</p><h3 id="whatsapp">WhatsApp</h3><p><a href="https://www.whatsapp.com/">WhatsApp</a> recently added disappearing messages to its Android and iOS smartphone apps. You can utilize this feature in any conversation on the platform, but only the admins will be able to toggle it on or off if it is a group chat.</p><p>To activate disappearing messages, tap the contact or group name at the top of the screen and select Disappearing messages. Anything sent while the mode is activated is immediately destroyed after seven days, however, anything sent while the mode is disabled simply remains in the chat history.</p><h3 id="instagram">Instagram</h3><p><a href="https://www.instagram.com/?hl=en">Instagram</a> (for Android, iOS, and the web) has just begun rolling out a disappearing message feature for mobile devices, never one to skip out on something other applications did first. Vanish Mode is what it is called, and it will only be available if you agree to integrate your Instagram and Facebook Messenger chat accounts?if you have not seen this prompt inside the apps yet, it should emerge shortly.</p><p>Simply swipe up inside a discussion to activate Vanish Mode, and whatever you submit after that will vanish as soon as the chat is closed. Nothing posted in Vanish Mode will be there when you reopen it. To turn it off, swipe up once more.</p><h3 id="snapchat">Snapchat</h3><p><a href="https://www.snapchat.com/">Snapchat</a> (for Android and iOS) gained its name by introducing a new level of ephemerality to social media with disappearing photographs and videos. These days, the software also allows users to send instant messages.</p><p>If you send text, photographs, or videos to contact directly, those notes will automatically self-destruct after they open them. On the other hand, one can save a line of text, an image, or a video by long pressing on it, or by taking a screenshot.</p><p>You can not stop any of this from happening, so if someone wants to save something you have stated on this platform, they may easily do so. Because of this shortcoming, Snapchat is best for self-destructing messages when all parties involved are trustworthy.</p><h3 id="facebook-messenger">Facebook Messenger</h3><p>This popular chat <a href="https://www.messenger.com/">software</a> (for Android and iOS) also features a self-destructing message capability, and its biggest benefit over the other platforms on this list is its widespread availability. This is your winner if you already utilize the app to keep in touch with your contacts on a regular basis.</p><p>You must first initiate a private chat, similar to Telegram, which will encrypt your messages end-to-end. This type of chat works similarly to regular conversations, with the exception that it must be a one-to-one conversation, which means you can not communicate with more than one person at a time, and you can only access these chats on the app, not the online client.</p><h3 id="confide"><strong>Confide</strong></h3><p><a href="https://getconfide.com/">Confide</a> (for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS) has features like end-to-end encryption and the ability to exchange various forms of media that are not found in many other chat apps (including text, photos, videos, documents, and voice messages). Unlike the others on this list, this application was created particularly for sending and receiving self-destructive messages. Confide specializes in this area, therefore you may expect more thorough protection.</p><p>Instead of allowing you to select an expiration date, the software automatically deletes messages as soon as the recipient reads them. Confide disables screenshots on mobile devices while the app is open if you are concerned about receipts. If you are really worried, you will be relieved to know that the app only shows one line of a message at a time?even if someone snapped the screen with a second camera, each picture would only display a portion of the message.</p><p>You can exchange messages to other Confide users directly, but this platform also allows you to communicate with others who do not have the app. The Recipients will then receive an email with a link to download the app, after which they will be able to view your message.</p><h3 id="telegram-messenger">Telegram Messenger</h3><p>Telegram Messenger (for Android, iOS, and the web) is a free communication app that stresses security and simplicity. Telegram allows users to send and receive messages with expiration dates.</p><p>You will need to start a new chat in Secret Mode to use this function. All conversations sent through this chat are encrypted end-to-end, and you may set messages to self-destruct, with receivers unable to transmit them to other contacts. Just keep in mind that, unlike regular Telegram messages, secret chats do not sync between devices, so if you move phones or deactivate the app, they will vanish. If you are having ongoing conversations with someone but do not want traces of those conversations to remain, this approach is ideal.</p><h3 id="end-note">End Note</h3><p>Self-destructing messaging has a lot of appeal at a time when it is easy to be worried about online privacy. Self-destructing message apps create a sense of security that normal popular chat apps just cannot deliver, whether it be internal office politics, a messy divorce, or teenage gossip. Even if you have nothing to conceal, it is good downloading a self-destructing message software to have on hand in case you get any messages or photographs that you would rather disappear. Fortunately, the technology to do so is easily available online, for free, and at your service.</p>

Aftab Alam

Apps

What Exactly Are Self-destructive Messages? Which Apps Are The Best For Sending One?

<h3 id="agile-software-development">Agile Software Development</h3><p>The ability to produce and respond to change is referred to as agility. It is a method of coping with and eventually succeeding in, an uncertain and turbulent environment.</p><p>The Agile Manifesto's creators chose the name "Agile" to represent the adaptability and reactivity to change that was so important to their methodology.</p><p>It's all about figuring out how to grasp what's going on in the environment you're in right now, identifying the uncertainty you're facing, and figuring out how to adjust to it as you go.</p><p>Agile emphasizes keeping the process lean and producing minimum viable products (MVPs) that go through multiple iterations before being finalized. Feedback is constantly received and applied, resulting in a much more dynamic process in which everyone is working towards a common goal.</p><h3 id="site-reliability-engineering-sre">Site Reliability Engineering (SRE)</h3><p>Site reliability engineering (SRE) is an approach to IT operations based on software engineering. Software is used by SRE teams to manage systems, address problems, and automate operations duties.</p><p>SRE transfers duties that were formerly performed by operations teams, sometimes manually, to engineers or operations teams who utilize software and automation to address problems and manage production systems.<br></p><p>SRE is an important practice to employ while developing scalable and highly dependable software systems. It enables you to administer huge systems through code, which is more scalable and sustainable for system administrators who handle thousands or hundreds of thousands of machines.</p><h3 id="how-has-agile-evolved-with-the-introduction-of-sre">How Has Agile Evolved with the Introduction of SRE?</h3><p>Now that you understand what each term means on its own. You can see how the former has evolved to fit in with the latter.</p><p>Most SRE teams are made up of a combination of people with software engineering skills and operational emphasis, which implies that changing an operations organization into an SRE organization is a journey for the team and each engineer. During the transition from operations to SRE, team members learn about the other side from their counterparts to better cooperate toward a similar goal: running software with as little human contact as feasible. They'll handle events with the professionalism that their clients demand, but because the automation is handled by software, most SRE teams use agile development approaches.</p><p>When attempting to implement a specified concept such as Scrum, SRE teams rapidly find that it does not meet their working demands and abandon portions of it or quit practicing it entirely. Unplanned operations tasks make for a major portion of SRE work, therefore unplanned work might occur at any time and must be completed before anything else.</p><p>The agile methodologies have been applied, however, they need to be tweaked slightly to meet the SRE operations, does that make sense? No? Listed below are some Agile techniques that have been modified to better suit SREs. That will make things a lot clearer.</p><h3 id="retro-meetings">Retro Meetings</h3><p>Retro is one of the most important practices for every agile team because it offers a chance to talk about the working style and to consider changing how the team runs.</p><p>It is something that an SRE team would adopt. Often, retro meetings are not deemed important. But for an agile team as said is one of the most important practices. It provides an opportunity to discuss the working style and propose modifying how the team operates. That involves deciding which practices are useful to the team and which aren?t. One prerequisite for this to work is that an agile working style should not be encountered by the higher-level organization. Every small team needs the flexibility to decide which working style works for them best.</p><h3 id="standups">Standups</h3><p>Standup meetings are something the SRE?s don't like. SRE?s don't like unnecessary meetings as they would consume about 2% of the working time. But at the same time, it is important to know what other team members are doing to get a feeling about the overall direction of the team. However, doing this daily is not what an SRE would want.</p><p>So this can be practiced asynchronously, which means without a meeting. The retroes could be used to keep everybody updated about what the team is doing.<br>This is another Agile trait being evolved with the introduction of SRE.</p><h3 id="planning-meetings">Planning Meetings</h3><p>The planning meetings (in the scrum, labeled "sprint planning" or just "planning") are critical for communicating which tasks will be focused on in the next iteration. But there is a lot of unplanned work in SRE, you may think it is pointless for SRE?s. It is kind of but at the same time you need to accept that is important to ensure the team knows what the priorities are. Sometimes it may happen that the production may influence the team priorities in short terms. In that case, it's better to run planned meetings more often to be able to adjust to changed priorities quickly. That does not mean committing to a sprint goal but talking about the stories with the highest priorities.</p><h3 id="testing">Testing</h3><p>When teams create software, such software should be tested. There is no space for discussion. Although many individuals assume this, it does not reflect reality in software development or SRE teams. Many of the items that SREs create are for the purpose of automating operations duties.</p><p>When I make a change that may touch a large number of customers, I want to be confident that it will not disrupt production and cause an incident. A good test suite is the best way to build that confidence. What kind of tests are required to get this level of confidence is up to the team developing and executing the software, so you must reach an agreement with your team. In many circumstances, this will entail a set of unit tests as well as a set of end-to-end tests that run constantly to guarantee that the combination of all pieces works as planned.</p><h3 id="pair-programming">Pair Programming</h3><p>Onboarding new developers are difficult, and the onboarding process often worsens as a result of the pressures that team members are under a product that must be delivered, an event that needs additional eyes, a support issue that requires a prompt response.</p><p>In addition to onboarding, pair programming is beneficial. As previous research has shown, the team will not be considerably slower in the long run and will produce superior results. Pair programming, like testing, greatly boosts confidence in code modifications. The code unquestionably benefits. Collaborative observation and discussion with another engineer boost confidence in manual interactions with production environments and manipulation quality.</p><p>This is how Agile approaches have evolved to better suit the needs of SREs. There are other ways it has evolved, based on distinct practices and demands.</p><p><em><strong>Paraphrasing the Agile Manifesto ? ?New, more cooperative and transparent ways of working are more important than following predefined agile frameworks.?</strong></em></p>

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Business

How The Term Agile Software Development Has Evolved with The Introduction of SRE (Site Reliability Engineering)?

<p>Software is unquestionably eating the world. As our reliance on technology grows, disciplines have emerged to ensure that improvements are implemented efficiently and that our systems are available when needed. Over the last few years, DevOps and Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) philosophies and practices have increasingly hit the mainstream.<br>To understand the distinction between DevOps and SREs. Let us first understand what this term implies individually. Only then will we be able to tell the difference.</p><h2 id="what-is-devops">What is DevOps?</h2><p>DevOps is a collection of processes, culture, and job roles, similar to SRE. The DevOps attitude is that if you produce software, you also own it. Removing this distinction makes it easier to ensure that software maintains a high level of quality from development to release and travels with speed and agility through the DevOps pipeline.</p><p>Following are the goals of DevOps :</p><ul><li>Increased frequency of deployment</li><li>To shorten the time to market</li><li>Reduced failure rate for new releases</li><li>Short turnaround time between fixes</li><li>Increase the meantime to recovery.</li></ul><h3 id="what-is-site-reliability-engineering-sre">What is Site Reliability Engineering (SRE)?</h3><p>Google coined the term, and it is often regarded as a slightly advanced version of DevOps. </p><p>Your goal as a Site Reliability Engineer is to align two distinct, and sometimes contradictory, initiatives: to have code built and released quickly, while also ensuring that the code is extremely dependable.</p><p>In other words, the SRE is concerned with opposing endeavours such as -</p><ul><li>Stability and agility</li><li>Quality and speed</li><li>Proactivity and reactivity</li><li>Pre-production and post-production</li><li>Innovation and operation.</li></ul><p>SREs accomplish this by devoting equal time to development and operations. Non-functional, operational needs such as performance, security, availability, and maintainability must be satisfied in product design and development.</p><p>They must also consider automation on a regular basis in order to optimize the software development pipeline.</p><h2 id="sre-vs-devops-is-there-any-difference">SRE vs DevOps? Is there any difference?</h2><p>Now that you understand what DevOps and SREs are all about. Let's see if there is a meaningful distinction between the two.</p><p>SRE and DevOps appear to be two sides of the same coin. SRE and DevOps both seek to narrow the gap between development and operations teams, with the same objective of decreasing the release cycle while retaining quality.</p><p>However, if you consider DevOps to be the fundamental idea, SRE may be considered the prescriptive technique of implementing that philosophy - at least, that's how Google defines it. It is further explored below using DevOps ideas.</p><h3 id="1-reducing-organisational-silos">1. Reducing Organisational Silos</h3><p>DevOps aims to make sure that different departments/software teams are not isolated from one another and that they are all working toward the same objective.</p><p>SRE facilitates this by requiring teams to take responsibility for projects. Every SRE team uses the same tools, methodologies, and codebase to support:</p><ul><li>Uniformity</li><li>Seamless collaboration</li></ul><h3 id="2-implementing-gradual-change">2. Implementing Gradual Change</h3><p>DevOps values modest, incremental change in order to achieve continuous improvement, while SRE makes this possible by allowing teams to do short, frequent updates that reduce the impact of changes on application availability and stability.</p><p>To ensure the proper deployment of code changes, SRE teams also use CI/CD technologies for change management and continuous testing.</p><h3 id="3-accepting-failure-as-normal">3. Accepting Failure As Normal</h3><p>Both SRE and DevOps view errors and failure as unavoidable occurrences. While DevOps attempts to handle runtime errors and allow teams to learn from them, SRE uses Service Level Commitments (SLx) to assure that all failures are handled.</p><p>SRE also allows for a risk budget, which allows teams to push the boundaries of failure in order to reevaluate and innovate.</p><h3 id="4-leveraging-tools-and-automation">4. Leveraging Tools and Automation</h3><p>Automation is used by both DevOps and SRE to improve processes and service delivery. Through flexible application programming interfaces, SRE allows teams to use the same tools and services (APIs). While DevOps encourages the use of automation tools, SRE guarantees that all team members have access to the most up-to-date automation tools and technologies.</p><h3 id="5-measure-everything">5. Measure Everything</h3><p>Because both DevOps and SRE support automation, you'll need to test the developed systems on a regular basis to guarantee that everything functions as it should.</p><p>DevOps collects metrics via a feedback loop. SRE, on the other hand, enforces measurement by supplying SLIs, SLOs, and SLAs for measurement. SRE monitors labour and reliability to assure constant service delivery because Ops is software-defined.</p><h3 id="conclusion">Conclusion</h3><p>They use identical tooling and development techniques. The primary distinction is that SREs have a strong and purposeful emphasis on keeping a site operational; everything that does not directly contribute to that aim in a measurable way is eliminated from their priority.</p><p>Over the years, half of all firms that have already benefited from DevOps have already adopted SRE for increased reliability. One reason for this is that SRE principles offer improved observability and control of dynamic, automation-reliant applications.</p><p>Some companies, on the other hand, have bigger DevOps teams with an SRE team functioning alongside or as a part of the team.</p><p>Finally, the purpose of both techniques is to improve the end-to-end cycle of an IT ecosystem?the application lifecycle via DevOps and the operations lifecycle via SRE.</p>

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DevOps

SRE vs DevOps? What makes Them Unique?

<p>Ransomware is not something new. It has its own historical existence but it's the threat actors' strategies, methods, and procedures (TTPs) that have advanced to new levels of complexity in recent years. With that expansion has come an increase in the challenge of protecting networks from costly attacks like the recent DarkSide attack on the Colonial Pipeline. The FBI confirmed in a recent statement that the ransomware attack on the Colonial Pipeline network was carried out by a professional cybercriminal outfit called DarkSide. DarkSide employs a Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) model, relying on a partner program to carry out its cyber attacks. As a result, little is known about the true perpetrator of the attack at this time. Ransomware has always focused on encryption, there is a new addition with the exfiltration and threatened exposure of sensitive data in a ?double extortion? attack. Threat actors must continuously come up with new strategies to increase the effect of a successful strike. One of the most recent methods is known as "triple extortion," which adds another option to extort money from targets.</p><h3 id="what-is-triple-extortion-ransomware">What is Triple Extortion Ransomware?</h3><p>Traditionally, ransomware attacks included a single "step" in which a victim was confronted with a ransom demand in exchange for the decryption key to free their systems and data. However, since 2019, when ransomware strains like DoppelPaymer gained the capacity to simultaneously lock down computers and exfiltrate data, halting a victim's operations has merely been the first step on the extortion ladder. The fear of stolen data being exposed online has been a popular point of pressure for criminals aiming for more ransom payments, a practice known as double extortion. More than 70% of ransomware attempts now exfiltrate data, demonstrating how quickly this type of attack approach has become the standard.</p><p>Threat actors have lately introduced another layer to ransomware operations based on this tactic. This latest ransomware evolution means that a ransomware attack does not end with the initial target. Ransom demands can now be made upon a victim's clients or suppliers under triple extortion. At the same time, new pressures are added to the mix, such as DDoS assaults or direct leaks to the media.</p><p>DDoS has long been linked to only one type of extortion: Ransom Denial of Service (RDoS). This is a sort of assault in which threat actors initiate a denial-of-service (DoS) attack against a victim's network and then demand payment in Bitcoin to halt. However, like with Avaddon, combining this with ransomware is rather new. It validates the underground economy's growth by allowing threat actors to rent attack services or keep associates on the payroll for extra pressure when needed.</p><h3 id="who-can-be-affected-by-triple-extortion-ransomware">Who Can be Affected by Triple Extortion Ransomware?</h3><p>Companies and organizations that store client or customer data, as well as their own, are the most obvious targets for ransomware operations that go beyond single or double extortion. Healthcare organizations are the main targets in this regard.</p><p>As a result, the first known instance of triple extortion occurred late last year when hackers acquired access to Vastaamo, a Finnish physiotherapy provider. Threat actors have demanded money directly from the thousands of clients of Vastaamo whose records they were able to exfiltrate, rather than contacting the provider for a ransom. </p><p>Any corporation that directly or indirectly owns important data, or is connected to one, is exposed to triple extortion. Ravil's affiliates demonstrated a new type of triple extortion earlier this year when they attacked Apple after their first victim, hardware supplier Quanta, refused to pay up. Cybercriminals utilized the fear of a key supplier being hacked as leverage on their initial victim in this case. The reputational harm that such an assault may cause can be disastrous for firms in practically any industry.</p><h3 id="how-to-prevent-ransomware-attacks">How to Prevent Ransomware Attacks?</h3><p>Detection and response against ransomware attacks are at best ineffective, especially since many assaults wait until they reach the domain controller to launch. Detection-centric technologies will only have warned businesses of attacks that are already ongoing at that moment.</p><p>The best course of action is to concentrate on prevention. Taking efforts to ensure that security flaws are addressed as quickly as feasible, training the staff on security awareness, and ensuring that fundamental security measures such as least privilege and multi-factor authentication have already been implemented.</p><p>Furthermore, because the majority of security breaches begin at the endpoint, safeguarding these is a good place to start. Morphisec Guard was created to protect your organization's endpoints against file-less ransomware distribution techniques that bypass all antivirus solutions.</p><p>Guard and the rest of the Morphisec Breach Prevention Platform, when used in conjunction with Windows native security measures, hardens endpoints against attack without interfering with workers' ability to do their duties. It is time to cease reacting to threat actors and instead concentrate on preventing assaults from spreading. Only then can businesses lower the likelihood of a successful ransomware assault.</p><p>Without a question, today's problems necessitate full-spectrum solutions, but nothing will transform the threat landscape until governments throughout the world take bold action. No ransomware task force will be able to solve the problem until we are willing to confront international loopholes and capture criminals who operate with impunity from particular parts of the globe.</p>

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Cyber Attacks

What Is Triple Extortion Ransomware and How to Prevent It

<p>The Romans named the Red Planet after their god of war, which reflected the planet's red hue. In reality, the Romans copied the ancient Greeks, who called the planet Ares after their god of war.</p><p>Different cultures also have given the planet names based on its color, such as the Egyptians, who named it "Her Desher," which means "the red one," and ancient Chinese astronomers, who called it "the fire star."</p><p>The rust color is due to the presence of iron-rich minerals in its regolith, which is the loose dust and rock that covers its surface. Earth's soil is also a type of regolith, but one with high organic content. The iron minerals oxidize, or rust, causing the soil to appear red, according to NASA.</p><p>Mar?s is so freezing and has a very thin atmosphere, it seems unlikely for liquid water to exist on the Martian surface for an extended period of time. Recurring slope lineae may contain saline water bursts on the surface, although this evidence is debatable; some scientists suggest that the hydrogen seen from orbit in this region may instead represent briny salts. This means that, despite the fact that this desert planet is only half the size of Earth, it almost has the same amount of dry land.</p><h3 id="what-is-mars%E2%80%99-atmosphere-made-of">What is Mars? Atmosphere Made of?</h3><p>Mars' atmosphere is approximately 100 times thinner than Earth's, and it is composed of 95 percent carbon dioxide. According to a NASA fact sheet, its makeup is as follows:</p><blockquote>95.32 percent carbon dioxide</blockquote><blockquote>Nitrogen content is 2.7 percent.</blockquote><blockquote>1.6 percent argon</blockquote><blockquote>0.13 percent oxygen</blockquote><blockquote>0.08 percent carbon monoxide</blockquote><blockquote>Water, nitrogen oxide, neon, hydrogen-deuterium-oxygen, krypton, and xenon are also present in trace concentrations.</blockquote><h3 id="what-is-the-climate-like-on-mars">What is the Climate Like on Mars?</h3><p>In a nutshell, it is cold. Mars is substantially colder than Earth, owing to its greater distance from the sun. The average temperature is roughly minus 80 ? Fahrenheit (minus 60 ? Celsius), but it can range from minus 195 ? Fahrenheit (minus 125 ? Celsius) near the poles during the winter to as high as 70? Fahrenheit (20 ? Celsius) at midday near the equator.</p><p>Mars has carbon dioxide-rich atmosphere which is likewise around 100 times less dense than Earth's on average, yet it is thick enough to support weather, clouds, and winds. The density of the atmosphere varies periodically, since winter causes carbon dioxide to freeze out of the Martian air. The atmosphere was most likely substantially thicker and capable of supporting water flowing on the surface in the distant past. Because Mars lacks a global magnetic field, lighter molecules in the Martian atmosphere escaped under pressure from the solar wind over time, affecting the atmosphere. NASA's MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution) spacecraft is now investigating this mechanism.</p><h3 id="how-does-mars-compare-to-earth">How does Mars Compare to Earth?</h3><p>You would be shocked at how similar Earth and Mars are. Earth and Mars are solar system neighbors who share some characteristics, such as a rocky composition, but differ in others, like size and temperature. Although Earth and Mars are made of the same components, their proportions differ. The two planets are also assumed to have originated around the same time, albeit in very different ways. While many forms of life exist on Earth, it is unknown whether any exist on Mars.</p><h3 id="similarities-between-the-planets-mars-and-earth">Similarities Between the Planets Mars and Earth</h3><p>According to the European Space Agency, both Earth and Mars are thought to have formed roughly 4.6 billion years ago from a vast cloud of hot gases surrounding the sun. Since then, both planets have gradually cooled and solidified into the spherical shapes we observe today. Both planets have thick cores and hard crusts on the outside. Furthermore, water had a role in both of their histories.</p><p><strong>Planetary Dimensions</strong><br>According to the Center for Mars Exploration, Mars is approximately twice the size of the Moon and slightly larger than half the size of Earth. The diameter of Mars is approximately 6,786 kilometers (4,217 miles), while Earth has a diameter of around 12,756 kilometers (7,926 miles). Furthermore, Earth has a mass that is ten times bigger. Mars cooled faster than Earth after its original formation due to its much lower size and mass. Its decreased gravity also resulted in a faster loss of volatile components like water and gases.</p><p><strong>Water and the Atmosphere</strong><br>Mars has a very thin atmosphere that is primarily composed of carbon dioxide. The average atmospheric pressure is 7 millibars, compared to Earth's 1,013 millibars. Temperatures on Mars are substantially colder since there is not much atmosphere to buffer it from heat loss. The average temperature in the mid-latitudes is minus 50? Celsius, according to NASA Quest (minus 58? Fahrenheit). It can get down to minus 60 ? Celsius (minus 76 ? Fahrenheit) at night, while it can get up to 0 ? Celsius during the day (32 ? Fahrenheit).</p><p>Although water may have once existed on Mars's surface, it vanished long ago for unexplained reasons. In comparison, the Earth's surface is made up of two-thirds water.</p><p><strong>Mars is stable, but Earth is dynamic</strong><br>The Earth?s outer crust is constantly moving. It is made up of plates that move laterally. Mars, on the other hand, appears to be stable, however, there appears to be some underground magma flow. As a result, its geologic state differs greatly from that of Earth. Greater stability on Mars preserves far ancient features, some of which date back four billion years.</p><h3 id="was-mars-once-habitable">Was Mars once habitable?</h3><p>According to new findings from a long-lived Red Planet rover, Mars may have been capable of hosting microbial life for hundreds of millions of years in the past.</p><p>NASA's Opportunity rover discovered evidence that harmless, nearly neutral-pH water flowed on Mars 4 billion years ago.</p><p>These findings, published in the journal Science, add to the recent work of NASA's larger, newer Curiosity rover, which uncovered a possibly livable lake and groundwater system in a separate Martian location 3.7 billion years ago.</p><p>"These [beneficial] water conditions existed for a long time," said Ray Arvidson, the new study's primary author and Opportunity deputy principal investigator.</p><p>Arvidson, head of the Earth and Planetary Remote Sensing Laboratory at Washington University in St. Louis, said that primitive organisms may have been able to thrive on Mars for long periods during a period when life was gaining a foothold on Earth.</p><p>"It would not come as a surprise," "Perhaps not globally; yet, livable situations may have occurred here and there regionally. And it might not have been for the entire time. We have no idea."</p><p>As a result, researchers are beginning to gain a clearer understanding of the Martian surface's habitability window, according to Arvidson. It appears that window was open for hundreds of millions of years in the distant past ? on and off, perhaps, and here and there.</p><p>Liquid water is not capable of surviving for lengthy periods of time on the surface of modern-day Mars, whose atmosphere is only 1% as thick as Earth's. If lakes and river systems were stable for long periods of time, the atmosphere was likely thicker long ago, according to Arvidson.</p><h3 id="some-interesting-facts-about-mars">Some Interesting Facts About Mars</h3><ul><li>The Red planet is the 4th planet from the Sun and the last of the terrestrial planets, located around 227,940,000 kilometers from the Sun.</li><li>Mars, the Roman god of war, inspired the planet's name. The ancient Greeks referred to it as Ares, their god of war.</li><li>Mars and Earth have fairly comparable landmasses. Mars has only 15% of the volume and 10% of the mass of Earth, But still Mars has a similar landmass because water covers roughly 70% of Earth's surface. The surface gravity of Mars is approximately 37% that of Earth. This means that on Mars, you could theoretically jump three times higher than you could on Earth.</li><li>16 out of the total 39 Mars missions have been completed successfully.</li><li>Mars fragments have been discovered on Earth. It is thought that trace amounts of the Martian atmosphere were found in meteorites ejected by the planet. These meteorites then orbited the solar system for millions of years alongside other particles and solar debris before smashing to the ground.</li><li>Olympus Mons, the tallest mountain in the solar system is on Mars. Olympus Mons is a 21-kilometer-high, 600-kilometer-diameter shield volcano that arose billions of years ago.</li><li>Mars orbits the Sun every 687 Earth days, with an orbit radius of 227,840,000 km.</li><li>Seasons on Mars are similar to those on Earth, except they endure twice as long. This is due to the axial tilt of Mars of approximately 25.19 degrees, which is similar to the axial tilt of the Earth (22.5 degrees).</li></ul><p>The Red Planet is riddled with mysteries. One cannot be certain whether or not life existed on Mars. Some studies claim it did, while others claim it did not. But we do know that Mars is the most habitable planet after Earth. A number of space missions are planned for the next decade to advance our understanding of Mars, including if it has the potential for extraterrestrial life and whether it is a suitable planet for colonization. Maybe then we will know for sure if there is life on Mars. Until then, keep yourself immersed in the mysteries of Mars.</p>

Space Mission

Exploring The Red Planet: Facts and Findings

More than a half-trillion dollars are at stake as a result of the digital revolution. The vast and fast-growing advances of the internet and over-the-top (OTT) video platforms are transforming television and filmed entertainment, mainly traditional TV broadcasts.

How Are OTT Platforms Changing The Landscape of The Media & Entertainment Industry?

<div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="background-color: rgb(249 249 252/var(--tw-bg-opacity)); color: rgb(14, 16, 26); font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; font-size: 12pt;">More than a half-trillion dollars are at stake as a result of the digital revolution. The vast and fast-growing advances of the internet and over-the-top (OTT) video platforms are transforming television and filmed entertainment, mainly traditional TV broadcasts.&nbsp;</span><br></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">OTT television, which generates around $25 billion in yearly revenue worldwide and is mostly driven by a handful of large US-based global firms such as Netflix, Amazon, and Google's YouTube, is at the heart of this transformation. The US will continue to be the world's largest OTT market, increasing at a 10.3 percent CAGR from $14.5 billion to $23.7 billion during the next five years, up to 2023.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><h4 style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">How is OTT Changing the Principles of Content Creation and Distribution?</span></b></h4><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">Space shifting, place shifting, and time-shifting are three revolutionary changes in video content creation and streaming.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><h5 style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">Space Shifting</span></b></h5><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">The most significant change in the video value chain is facilities-based distribution such as cable and satellite, which are no longer the sole way for consumers to receive content. The music business serves as a good example. Walmart, the world's largest retailer, sells over 60,000 music tracks in its physical stores. Digital music subscription services, such as Spotify and iTunes, on the other hand, have infinite "shelf space" and may make up to 30 million tunes available to subscribers.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">OTT has had a similar influence in the media/entertainment industry. Content makers and aggregators are no longer constrained by the restricted distribution "bandwidth" available on a fixed (though vast) number of TV channels supplied over the air or by cable, fibre, or satellite transponders. The distribution of content is no longer a zero-sum game. The internet has abolished the restriction of shelf space in all marketplaces. Almost any video maker or storyteller—basically, anyone with a high-speed mobile or internet connection—now has access to billions of potential viewers.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><h5 style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">Place Shifting</span></b></h5><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">The expansion of mobile and streaming access as well as portable media devices with ever-larger and higher-definition displays has given customers more control over what they watch (planned programmes vs streaming video) and when and where they view it (at home or on the go). Reports suggest that US adults spent around 20 hours per week watching content in 2022, with virtually all of the growth coming from viewing that is not tied to traditional facilities-based TV.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><h5 style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">Time Shifting</span></b></h5><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">Nonlinear or time-shifted viewing, whether linked or untethered to traditional facilities-based delivery, now accounts for nearly a quarter of all viewing hours. Because nonlinear viewing supports some material types better than others, time-shifting has altered what people watch and how they watch it. Certain types of entertainment, such as serialised dramas, encourage bulk viewing (also known as binge-watching) because it is simpler to keep track of several characters and narrative threads. Furthermore, some viewers prefer watching shorter content rather watching content that takes months to complete.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><h4 style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">How OTT Is Changing the Media Industry</span></b></h4><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">The rising popularity of OTT media platforms has also made it the preferred choice for OTT broadcasters to offer their content to a specific audience. The use of mobile phones and smart TV gadgets has increased tremendously as internet penetration has risen globally, and internet subscriptions have become more inexpensive. According to a recent estimate, worldwide mobile data traffic will exceed 77 exabytes per month by 2022, up from 28 exabytes in 2019—a threefold growth in three years. The adoption rate of smart TVs has also increased from 11.5 percent in 2013 to 32 percent in 2019. These figures climbed to around 50% in some countries in 2021.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">1. The OTT Platform Helps in the Formation of Direct Connections with Users</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">Broadcasters have traditionally relied primarily on cable and DTH systems to provide their programming to end viewers. The introduction of OTT media streaming has made it quicker and easier for broadcasters to directly exhibit their content to end consumers, eliminating the need for any middlemen in the process. The finest part is that it allows them to establish a direct interaction with the OTT platform's users. It also assists them in developing a strong brand image and improving brand recall. Furthermore, broadcasters may gain precise information about their users and how they interact with their programming. This will assist them in creating what the target audience wants rather than simply imposing it onto them.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">2. OTT Gives Viewers a Consistent Viewing Experience</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">OTT services have long sought to make it easier for viewers to stream and watch content. It gives individuals the necessary freedom to select and view the information they want at their leisure. A unified watching experience across numerous devices and platforms is essential for OTT platform owners looking to establish a loyal following and audience base. Broadcasters must also reconsider their strategies for engaging multi-screen viewers.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">3. It has multiple Monetization Options</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">One of the most admirable aspects of OTT platforms is that they provide broadcasters and content creators with different revenue opportunities to capitalize on their skill and hard work. Some of the most frequent monetization approaches are subscription videos on demand, transactional video on demand, advertising videos on demand, third-party ad integrations, and so on. The subscription monetization model and the advertisement monetization option are the most dominant in the industry.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">4. Becoming a First-Choice Option for Top Advertisers</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">You may be surprised that the overall ad spend for OTT platforms in 2020 was nearly USD 990 million. As OTT platforms gain popularity among audiences, advertisers seek to promote more on these platforms in order to receive quality traffic and a relevant audience. This improves their marketing ROI and leads to increased conversion rates. Advertisers now have greater freedom to promote their products and services depending on customer actions and interests.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">5. OTT is Changing the Game</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">The most crucial reason broadcasters are transitioning to OTT platforms today is because it is the future and will soon rule the media and entertainment business. If you are a broadcaster or a content provider, you should understand how critical it is to ride this wave if you do not want to become unimportant in the long term. Viewership of OTT solutions is continually increasing, and you must not miss this excellent opportunity to showcase your services to the end viewers immediately.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">&nbsp;</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; line-height: normal; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, serif; color: rgb(14, 16, 26);">In today's environment, everyone is placing a large bet on the usage of OTT technology to provide content. Traditional media outlets and broadcasters are finding new methods to enter the OTT arena and make their content available online via Over-the-Top platforms. The OTT entertainment environment has become much more competitive. To thrive in this competitive environment, you will need to develop a solid strategy. OTT video platform behemoths have already found a technique to keep their 'Original' material enthralling their audiences.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt; line-height: 15.6933px; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p></div>

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