Cloud load balancers distribute traffic across multiple virtual machines (VMs), containers, or servers within the cloud infrastructure. Here are some specific ways cloud load balancing can be deployed:

1. Cloud-Based Load Balancers:​

• Elastic Load Balancer (ELB) in AWS
• Azure Load Balancer in Microsoft Azure
• Google Cloud Load Balancing in Google Cloud
• These services automatically distribute incoming traffic across multiple instances in multiple regions or zones.

2. Global Load Balancing:​

• In cloud environments, load balancers can distribute traffic across multiple data centers or regions. This ensures global availability and low-latency access for users based on their geographic location.

3. Auto-Scaling Integration:​

• Cloud-based load balancers often work hand-in-hand with auto-scaling. As traffic increases, the cloud environment automatically spins up new instances, and the load balancer evenly distributes traffic among these instances.

4. Multi-Cloud and Hybrid Cloud Load Balancing:​

• Some organizations use load balancers that work across multiple cloud environments (multi-cloud) or between on-premises and cloud (hybrid cloud), ensuring seamless traffic distribution across different platforms.

Advantages of Cloud Load Balancers:​

• Scalability: As demand grows, load balancing in the cloud enables you to scale out (add more resources) without manually configuring the infrastructure.
• Flexibility: Cloud load balancers can handle a variety of traffic types (HTTP, HTTPS, TCP, etc.) and can work at both Layer 4 (transport) and Layer 7 (application) levels.
• Cost-Efficiency: Instead of investing in expensive physical load balancers, cloud load balancers are billed on a pay-as-you-go basis, making them more cost-effective.
• Resilience: They offer automatic failover and redundancy across regions or availability zones, enhancing fault tolerance.
• Security: Cloud providers often integrate security features like SSL offloading, DDoS protection, and traffic filtering at the load balancer level.

Common Cloud Load Balancing Use Cases:​

• Web Applications: Ensure smooth performance by distributing traffic across multiple cloud instances.
• Microservices: Manage and balance traffic between various containers or services.
• Global Traffic Management: Serve content from the nearest location to reduce latency for users worldwide.

Cloud Load Balancing Services by Major Providers:​

• AWS Elastic Load Balancing (ELB): Offers Application Load Balancer (Layer 7), Network Load Balancer (Layer 4), and Gateway Load Balancer.
• Azure Load Balancer: Supports both internal and public load balancing and integrates with Azure's global regions.
• Google Cloud Load Balancer: Offers regional and global load balancing, with features like SSL offloading and content-based routing.

Conclusion:​

Load balancing is essential in cloud environments for achieving high performance, redundancy, and scalability. Cloud providers make it easy to deploy and manage load balancers, allowing businesses to handle varying traffic demands efficiently while ensuring service reliability across regions or zones.

Hello community,

What's the difference between passkeys being used for authentication
vs. public-key authentication?

Hello everyone,

I hope you’re all doing well! I wanted to share a recent teaching experience related to SSL/TLS certificate verification and seek your insights on a particular point of confusion that came up in class.

During a session on secure communications, I had my students test the SSL/TLS configuration of a web server using OpenSSL. We used the following command to retrieve and display the certificate details:

openssl s_client -connect 192.168.100.30:443 -showcerts

This command successfully connected to the server and displayed the server’s certificate chain. However, one student asked about the process of verifying whether the certificate is valid and trusted, particularly regarding the role of Certificate Authorities (CAs).

To clarify, I explained that the verification process involves checking several factors, including:

1. Whether the certificate is signed by a trusted CA.
2. The certificate’s expiration date.
3. The certificate's revocation status, often checked through OCSP (Online Certificate Status Protocol).

However, I realized I could provide more depth on how to perform these checks effectively. For example, we can check the certificate expiration date using:

openssl x509 -in certificate.crt -noout -dates

I’d love to hear your suggestions on the following:

1. How can I effectively demonstrate the entire SSL/TLS verification process in class, including checking the certificate’s revocation status?
2. Are there any additional tools or techniques you recommend for teaching about certificate verification and the role of CAs in ensuring secure communications?

Thank you for your insights!

1. Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)​

• If you come across: User input fields (like comments or search bars)
  • Verify for:
    • Reflected XSS: Injecting scripts in the input to see if they are executed in the user's browser.
    • Persistent XSS: Checking if scripts are stored on the server and reflected back to users.
  • Prevention: Implement input validation, output encoding, and Content Security Policy (CSP).

2. Overflow Vulnerabilities​

• If you come across: User input or data handling that may exceed allocated memory
  • Verify for:
    • Buffer Overflow: Sending oversized inputs to trigger memory corruption.
    • Integer Overflow: Providing inputs that exceed maximum integer values.
    • Heap Overflow: Manipulating dynamic memory allocation to corrupt memory.
    • Stack Overflow: Causing the call stack to exceed its limit.
  • Prevention: Use safe coding practices, input validation, and memory management techniques.

3. Data Poisoning​

• If you come across: User-modifiable data inputs
  • Verify for: Manipulating data to affect the application's behavior or outcomes.
  • Prevention: Validate inputs and implement strong data integrity checks.

4. Broken Access Control​

• If you come across: User permissions or roles within the application
  • Verify for: Accessing restricted resources or functions without proper authorization.
  • Prevention: Enforce strict role-based access control (RBAC) and regularly audit access permissions.

5. Cryptographic Failures​

• If you come across: Data stored or transmitted securely (e.g., passwords, personal data)
  • Verify for: Weak encryption algorithms or improper key management.
  • Prevention: Use strong encryption protocols and ensure proper key storage and lifecycle management.

6. Injection Flaws​

• If you come across: Input fields that interact with databases or APIs
  • Verify for:
    • SQL Injection: Manipulating SQL queries through input fields.
    • Command Injection: Executing arbitrary commands on the server.
  • Prevention: Use parameterized queries, prepared statements, and input validation.

7. Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)​

• If you come across: Forms that perform state-changing actions
  • Verify for: Unauthenticated requests being accepted by the application.
  • Prevention: Implement anti-CSRF tokens and validate the origin of requests.

8. Directory Traversal​

• If you come across: File upload or retrieval functions
  • Verify for: Accessing restricted directories using path traversal techniques.
  • Prevention: Validate and sanitize file paths and restrict access to sensitive directories.

9. Insecure Design​

• If you come across: Flaws in the application's architecture
  • Verify for: Design weaknesses that expose the application to various attacks.
  • Prevention: Follow secure design principles and perform threat modeling.

10. Security Misconfiguration​

• If you come across: Default settings in applications or services
  • Verify for: Misconfigured security settings or unused features being enabled.
  • Prevention: Regularly review and harden security configurations, and conduct security audits.

11. End-of-Life or Outdated Components​

• If you come across: Use of libraries or software that are no longer supported
  • Verify for: Known vulnerabilities associated with outdated components.
  • Prevention: Regularly update and patch software components and replace end-of-life software.

12. Identification and Authentication Failures​

• If you come across: Login or authentication mechanisms
  • Verify for: Weak password policies, account enumeration, or failure to implement multi-factor authentication.
  • Prevention: Enforce strong password policies and implement multi-factor authentication.

13. Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF)​

• If you come across: Applications making backend requests based on user input
  • Verify for: Manipulating requests to access internal services.
  • Prevention: Validate and sanitize user inputs, and restrict server-side requests.

14. Remote Code Execution (RCE)​

• If you come across: User inputs that are executed by the server
  • Verify for: Ability to execute arbitrary code on the server.
  • Prevention: Validate all inputs and use language features to limit code execution.

15. Privilege Escalation​

• If you come across: Role or permissions settings
  • Verify for: Users gaining unauthorized access to higher privilege levels.
  • Prevention: Implement the principle of least privilege and regularly review user roles.

16. Local File Inclusion (LFI) / Remote File Inclusion (RFI)​

• If you come across: File inclusion functionalities
  • Verify for: Ability to include local or remote files that could compromise the application.
  • Prevention: Validate and sanitize file paths and restrict the inclusion of sensitive files.

SHARE WITH US YOUR TIPS

Hi all,

I passed the CompTIA DataSys+ on Thursday. It was a great experience!

Thank you for the great resources and support!

Tracey

Hello,

I was wondering if an Instructor Guide/Student Guide for the DataX certification will be available for purchase in the future?

Thanks!
Tracey

I passed the DataSys+ DS0-001 exam yesterday, thanks to the continuous support and encouragement from CIN and @Stephen Schneiter .

@Stephen Schneiter ,Are the vouchers still be distributed from the Network+ TTT. I still haven't received mine yet. I'm wondering if others are in the same boat?
Thanks in Advance.

CINers have you ever thought of doing a live data migration by using proxmox VE and experience its smooth operations!!

Hi there

Just out of curiosity, is anyone else getting this error message for the PBQ titled, "Core 2 PBQ: Supporting OS/App Installations Performance-based Question"

I've tried contacting CompTIA Customer Care but received the general "clear your cookies and cache" response. A few of my students have also brought this to my attention so I'm wondering if this is affecting all users.

Howdy!

We’re reaching out to hear from people who have taken the unique path of becoming an IT teacher in a U.S. high school. Whether you’re currently teaching or have taught IT in the past, we would greatly appreciate your input. Subjects in grades nine to twelve include computer hardware, networking, IT support, web development, cybersecurity, robotics, and programming.

Please take less than 20 minutes to complete our survey. As a thank you, participants will receive a $20 Amazon gift card!

Your participation will help us better understand the experiences and support needed for IT teachers, contributing to the future of IT education in U.S. high schools.

--> Complete the Survey Here

Feel free to share this survey with any other IT teachers you know - we value every voice!

Thank you,
Kelli Adam, Network+
Texas A&M University

Hi CINers ,
If anybody can help how can I get the instructor teaching aids in Testout Portal
there is only one button for reports in the enrolled Classes and courses > I cant see the other button (teaching aids).

Thank you

Join Mike Kilgore, tomorrow for an exclusive webinar on CompTIA Cloud+ to explore how this certification can elevate your students' career potential in cloud computing. Discover the comprehensive knowledge Cloud+ offers, including cloud architecture, security, and operations, and learn about the high demand and competitive salaries for cloud professionals. Don’t miss this opportunity to empower your students with the skills they need to thrive in the dynamic cloud industry!

Thursday, October 10th at 2:30 pm CST

Register Now​

​

ChatGPT’s Footer​

In a recent ChatGPT session, I noticed the footer “Don’t share sensitive info. Chats may be reviewed and used to train our models. Learn more.” Not sure if they recently added it, or if our ChatGPT friends have put that there from the beginning. Regardless, I am writing about sharing sensitive information in AI prompts today. My example is of ChatGPT but I feel this advice applies to all AI interactions.

Why You Should Keep Personal Info Out of ChatGPT, and All AI Engines​

Keep ePHI (electronic protected health information) out of AI prompts.
When using ChatGPT or any AI engine, it’s important to be careful about what information you share. You should avoid putting personal details or health information in your prompts. This helps protect your privacy and keeps sensitive data safe. ChatGPT uses the information you give it to create responses. While the company behind ChatGPT, OpenAI, says they try to keep data private, that is a beautiful plan IMO. Here’s why:

1. Your conversations might be reviewed by AI trainers to improve the system.
2. De-identified information could be used for research.
3. There’s a chance your input could appear in responses to other users.

OpenAI encrypts the data you enter, but they don’t sign special agreements to protect health information (ePHI). This means it’s best to assume anything you type into ChatGPT could potentially be seen by others.

Protecting Your Privacy When Using ChatGPT​

To use AI engines safely:

• Don’t enter any personal details like names, addresses, or phone numbers.
• Avoid sharing health information or financial data.
• Be careful not to include details that could identify you or others.
• Remember that deleting prompts later isn’t always possible for regular users.

If you’re using ChatGPT for work, especially in healthcare or finance, it’s extra important to follow these guidelines. Your company might have rules about what information can be shared with outside services.

By being careful about what you share, you can enjoy using AI while keeping your personal information secure. It’s always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to protecting private data online.

More​

AI ain’t so tough. See https://cybersafetynet.net/category/ai/ to help understand and use Artificial intelligence.

Hey there, CINners!

I'm running into some trouble accessing the Instructor Resources, for the Test Out Office Pro. I tried accessing them, but it 'refuses to connect'. It doesn't seem to be an internet issue.

Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance.

I have a few questions about this :

1. Who is this for?? Must you be a DBA? Just curious about crunching data?

2. How SQL heavy is this exam?

3. How deep is security covered? SQLi etc?

Thank you inquiring minds want to know

Has anyone heard if CompTIA plans to give full or partial credit for CEU renewal by passing a higher-level CompTIA data analytics certification?

Will DataSys+ give full or partial credit for CEUs for Data+?

Will DataX give full or partial credit for CEUs for DataSys+ and/or Data+?

Howdy!

We’re reaching out to hear from people who have taken the unique path of becoming an IT teacher in a U.S. high school. Whether you’re currently teaching or have taught IT in the past, we would greatly appreciate your input.

Please take less than 20 minutes to complete our survey. Your participation will help us better understand the experiences and support needed for IT teachers, contributing to the future of IT education in U.S. high schools.

Feel free to share this survey with any other IT teachers you know - we value every voice!

Thank you,
Kelli Adam, Network+
Texas A&M University

With Comptia rebranding the CASP+ exam to the SecurityX exam, (with the feedback being questionable at best, as per Login to view embedded media , Login to view embedded media , and Login to view embedded media ), and ITF being rebranded as Tech+ ( https://www.comptia.org/blog/comptia-tech-vs-comptia-itf-for-it-basics-whats-the-difference), is it time for the CompTIA A+ course to be rebranded CompTIA ITsupport+? or Support+?

I know the A+ has been around for ~30years, and has a history, but the A+ description doesn't really explain what the course does... with the other fundamentals being about Networking and Security, changing the A+ certification to be more descriptive of what the course covers, might make it more recognizable to HR recruiters and IT managers.

Just something to ponder

The CompTIA EMEACon is coming up this month in London October 21-22! I hope to see a lot of CINners at the event! It is going to be a great time!

I am very excited to present with fellow CINner @Kwabena Fred on Monday, October 21st. Fred and I will present "Certification Roadmap: Career Progression and Intersections." We will discuss the various career pathways and how certifications will cross pathways. This is going to be a fun talk!

If you would like to hear more about the new CompTIA Expert series of certifications and their implications for instructors, I will also present a session on them on Monday afternoon. Be sure to check out the session "Product Roadmap: Expert Certifications."

Are you attending? Let's Sync up!

Hello CIN Team,

Firstly, thank you Stephen and Don for a fantastic TTT series. I really enjoyed it.

I finally got my hands on the instructor resources for this new version of Network+ and I was looking at the pacing guide. I'm interested in the 5 day pacing which is what my academy is delivering courses to. I noticed that the 5 day sheet in the pacing guide has you doing 20 hour per day for 5 days I also noted that there were around 160 short labs for the learners to do which aren't part of the pacing. I thought the latest Sec+ (701) planner did a pretty good job of breaking things out into what to do in class and how to pace over 5 days. Does anyone have any recommendation on teaching over 5 days or is there a better planner in the works somewhere ?

Thanks
Rasheed

sorry because I never learn math very serious during my school time. anyone could help me ?

Suno Revolutionizes Music Creation for Analytical People Like You and Me​

Suno is an AI-powered music creation platform that offers significant potential for businesses across various industries. This innovative tool streamlines content creation, reduces costs and provides unique branding opportunities. Left-brainers can use Suno. After all, the music Suno gives you comes from your prompts.

Getting Started with Suno​

Start by creating your account.

• Visit suno.ai
• Click “Sign Up”
• Choose from Discord, Google, or Microsoft login options
• Complete the registration process
• Access your new Suno dashboard

Songs I Created​

Can you believe a left-brainer like me actually created music? My Suno screen name is Zeus Lives in California.

With the prompt “A synthesizer-driven song to go with scuba diving video in the Caribbean. Slow, mysterious and refreshing. Mix in water sounds,” I created at two instrumentals, Vacation (Time to Turn Off Your Phone) at https://suno.com/song/cac22c27-fd70-4ec8-a5fc-92c7003ee78c and Dive In (You Know You Want to be Here) at https://suno.com/song/365ee095-78bf-4068-8a15-bf45e69a9d93.

With the prompt “A bright and slow techno pop song about viewing aurora borealis alone at midnight. Spatial, mysterious and galactic,” I created two instrumentals, Bright Midnight Lights, at https://suno.com/song/a0e3d033-1aa3-4ab4-9d72-1a98439accb6 and Midnight Lights at My Piano, at https://suno.com/song/1532f546-36c8-4acc-b433-71e2520df0fc.

With the prompt, “A loud, powerful rock n roll song about racing classic cars and one of the drivers crashes. Dual guitars. Strong male singer. Loud guitar solo,” I created two rockers. The first one is Thunder Road (Feel it in My Bones) at https://suno.com/song/5563e8e0-8728-465e-a859-2a5030d87bb6 and Twisted Metal Again on Thunder Road, at https://suno.com/song/5413eebf-f5cd-4f71-b640-279a21d5a653.

Why Two at a Time?​

Suno receives your prompt and generates two songs. Although you get 50 credits per day, each prompt creates two songs at 5 credits each. Let me save you the math. Five prompts per day gets you 10 songs per day.

Creating Your First 5 Songs​

• Click “Create” on the dashboard
• Enter a description for your desired song
• Toggle “Instrumental” if lyrics aren’t needed
• Click “Create” to generate two song versions
• Provide feedback using thumbs up/down icons
• Repeat four more times

You Can Maximize Suno to Meet Your Tastes​

Customizing Music Style​

• Include specific genre keywords in your description (e.g., “upbeat corporate pop”)
• Experiment with style combinations (e.g., “modern jazz fusion for product launch”)
• Utilize Suno’s extensive style list to align with your brand identity

Tailoring Vocal Characteristics​

• Describe desired voice traits in your prompt (e.g., “professional male voice for company anthem”)
• Use descriptive terms like “authoritative,” “friendly,” or “energetic” to match your brand voice
• Adjust prompts based on results to fine-tune the output

Business Applications​

• Marketing and Advertising: Create custom jingles or background music for commercials and social media content
• Brand Identity: Develop a unique sonic brand with consistent musical themes across all touchpoints
• Content Creation: Generate background music for corporate videos, podcasts, or presentations
• Event Planning: Produce custom music for corporate events, product launches, or trade shows
• Customer Experience: Create on-hold music or in-store playlists that align with your brand

Cost-Effective Solution​

• Free tier: Up to 10 songs per day
• Paid subscriptions: Increased daily song limits for higher volume needs

Best Practices for Business Users​

• Consistency: Develop a “musical style guide” to ensure all Suno-generated content aligns with your brand
• Experimentation: Test different prompts and styles to find the perfect fit for your business needs
• Feedback Loop: Regularly gather input from team members and customers to refine your music strategy
• Legal Considerations: Understand Suno’s licensing terms to ensure proper usage in commercial applications
• Integration: Incorporate Suno-generated music into your existing content creation workflow

By leveraging Suno’s AI-driven music creation capabilities, you can enhance your brand presence, streamline content production, and create unique customer experiences. As with any new technology, the key to success lies in strategic implementation and continuous optimization to align with your specific business goals.

More​

AI ain’t so tough. See https://cybersafetynet.net/category/ai/ to help understand and use Artificial intelligence.

One challenge we face as instructors is bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and real-world IT skills. For example, students might excel in simulations but struggle with hands-on troubleshooting in real environments. How do you address this skills gap in your courses? I’ve incorporated more real-world scenarios into labs, but I’m curious about other techniques.