Jun 14, 2021 | SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, Technology News
As the last year has shown us, we don’t know exactly what the future holds. However, with manmade and natural disasters like cyber attacks and power failures from storms, it’s a matter of when, not if, your company is faced with a situation that could threaten its operations. Read on to learn more about protecting your business with a business continuity plan. Building a Comprehensive Business Continuity Plan In its broadest sense, a business continuity plan is a proactive strategy to keep your business up and running during and after a disaster. That disaster could be a storm causing a power outage, or a ransomware attack like the ones affecting major companies in recent years. These can cause costly downtime that can hurt your company’s revenue and reputation. While data protection is part of the business continuity framework, business continuity plans go beyond to consider the relationships between people, processes and technology. A solid plan will take into consideration individual departments and their operations as well as how these departments work with the others. Risk management means evaluating likely threats, and the impact they’ll have on your business. Important Questions to Ask Your Technology Advisor Developing a business continuity plan starts with asking questions about each department. What are their functions, and who carries out which functions? What processes do they use to carry out these functions, and what data and applications do they use in these processes? What are the mission-critical functions, and what infrastructure is needed? Then, consider how the departments work together, including the IT and security teams. Consider looking at your...
Jun 7, 2021 | SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, Technology News
No question about it, cloud computing is here to stay. Considering migrating to the cloud is just the beginning, however. Three models to consider–IaaS, PaaS and SaaS–offer varying levels of shared responsibility between provider and customer. Read on to learn more about the three models, and to get an idea which is the best for your business. Cloud Service Models–Benefits and Responsibilities Infrastructure as a Service, or IaaS, requires the cloud service provider to establish the network and its connections. With this model, a company can have their provider maintain and operate the infrastructure; the client will still need to keep their operating system current, configure their platform to meet requirements, and control how information is handled and stored. A company using IaaS will have more flexibility, but will need more technical and security expertise and assistance. Moreover, the company needs to take on administrative roles for system level security. The Platform as a Service (PaaS) model provides hosting and tools on which applications can be developed, and the provider is responsible for furnishing a user interface. The client is responsible for controlling administrative access to certain portions of computing resources, and also oversight of applications built on the platform. Also, the client needs to keep the platform current with operating system patches, and implement a cloud security strategy to protect their applications. If a company chooses Software as a Service (SaaS), they will have more responsibility for maintaining user security and may take on some administrative roles for the application. While the provider handles the infrastructure, keeps the software applications up to date and provides hardware and software...
May 17, 2021 | SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, Technology News
Late last year, as well as more recently, two major cyber attacks occurred–one at SolarWinds via their software platform in December of 2020, and one at Colonial Pipeline just this month. These attacks are even more serious than one performed by a lone attacker, and signal how vulnerable networks can be. Not only do businesses need to use tools to protect their own computer networks, but to share information with other companies. Read on to learn how your company can protect itself against cyber attacks. Recent Cyber Attacks a Wake-up Call Last December, IT management company SolarWinds was attacked by hackers who inserted malicious code in what seemed a normal software update. What’s ironic is that the very platform used to monitor threats, was the one targeted. The bad code allowed the perpetrators to hack numerous government agencies and private companies, possibly stealing untold amounts of data. The company’s platform was used in this sophisticated attack, and the software update was downloaded by some 300,000 users. Through the download, the perpetrator was able to penetrate deep into companies’ and agencies’ networks. More recently, Colonial Pipeline was targeted in a potential attack on electrical supply to the East Coast via the gas pipeline. While investigations are still underway in each incident, foreign state actors are thought to be responsible. Both these attacks show how vulnerable companies can be. Could there have been a way to prevent the attacks, to see them coming? In spite of all the precautions companies take to shield their networks, cyberattacks seem almost inevitable. Ways to Protect Your Company Against Ransomware Of...
May 10, 2021 | SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, Technology News
Cyber threats are nothing new. We’ve been hearing of their prevalence and their aggressiveness for a long time. For example, ransomware is an attack designed to block access to your computer unless you pay a sum of money as a ransom. In recent years, ransom payouts have greatly increased. Read on to learn more about current and emerging cyber threats and how to guard your network from them. Cyber Threats to Watch Out For Cybercriminals find various ways to get into company’s computer networks, often by tricking users into giving confidential information. Social engineering schemes, also known as “phishing” attacks, seek to trick users into clicking a link or into believing the email is from their supervisor. Malware and viruses then have a way to enter networks and steal confidential information as well as infect an entire network. Attackers are using some of the very same emerging technologies–artificial intelligence and machine learning, for instance–to find ways into networks and to evade detection when doing so. This can result in costly downtime for the organization, costly ransom requests and more. How, then, can these attacks be prevented? Defending Your Network Against Ransomware Attacks One common attack is ransomware. Ransomware can get into your system by social engineering (“phishing”), including dangerous attachments. This malware can encrypt or lock your computers, making data and applications inaccessible. To get data and applications back can be costly, with an average payout of $13,000, according to CompTIA. Having current anti-virus and anti-malware definitions along with operating system patches is just a start. Your company can also do real-time backups to the...
Apr 15, 2021 | SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, Technology News
Small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) look to get more from their technology spending. The cloud, or Internet-based computing, is an effective way to allocate your technology spend, with its flexible and cost-effective self-service model. Read on to learn more about the benefits of cloud computing for SMBs. What the Cloud Can do for Your Business In short, cloud computing is an internet-based model for delivering computing resources. According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), important aspects of cloud computing include broad network access, resource pooling, and rapid elasticity. Broad network access means that there is connectivity between servers and storage (“backend” infrastructure) and laptops or smartphones (“frontend” clients). The access can extend to a wide range of frontend devices including smart phones, lap-tops, and desktop computers. This enables workers to access applications and other office productivity tools via the internet so they can work wherever they are. Why the Cloud is Cost Effective Resource pooling involves a provider serving a number of clients while the service appears infinite and immediately available. Rapid elasticity, perhaps one of the most important traits of cloud computing, allows clients to use more resources (or less) as needed–for busy times of year, or special projects, for instance. This means only pay for what’s used. What’s more, measured service facilitates SMBs tracking usage and not buying more resources than they need. Companies can have the provider maintain and operate infrastructure, transforming capital expense to operating expense. Cloud Service Platforms and Models As already mentioned, rapid elasticity is a reason many companies decide to adopt the cloud. According...
Apr 8, 2021 | SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, SMB Technology, Technology News
With working from home more and more common, companies benefit from their workers collaborating and communicating easily with each other. One solution to consider is Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS)–an integrated, Internet-based platform that helps workers access videoconferencing, chat, file sharing and more. Remote work is potentially easier and more efficient. Read on to learn more about this cloud-based technology. The Benefits of Unified Communications for Remote Work The tools workers need to be efficient and productive are inherently part of this cloud-based solution. With Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS), all that is needed to access the integrated system is an Internet connection. Workers can then use video conferencing tools like Teams, Webex and Zoom, can share files via email, and can even access customer information almost instantly to quickly serve clients. Voice mails are converted to emails, making it easy to access messages anywhere. The consistent reliability of UCaaS is provided by redundancy, with data in numerous data centers; if one goes offline, others can provide failover to keep communication running smoothly. Considerations for Unified Communications in Remote Work When looking for a provider for this cloud platform, security protocol is one primary concern. What security features do they have to protect your critical communications and conversations? Is the data encrypted in transit and at rest? How many users can be accommodated? Another thing to ask about is whether the provider offers training in the different tools that UCaaS provides. You might also need to train your workers in collaboration skills like clear verbal and written communication; managing time, projects and deadlines;...
