by zorro | May 22, 2013 | SMB Technology
Network compliance has many benefits for small to medium businesses. Companies processing credit card information may need to maintain PCI Compliance, while healthcare professionals may need to maintain HIPAA Compliance. Businesses recognize the need to secure and protect applications and their data including: customer records, employee privacy data, competitive information and trade secrets. Depending on your industry regulations there may be strict requirements and steep fines for noncompliance. The risk of cyber attacks also increases the need to maintain a compliant network. Here are some basic tips for keeping your network in compliance. Network Monitoring for Network Compliance Performing a periodic network scan can identify any unauthorized computers and/or mobile devices on your network. If your network is not secure, an unauthorized user may be connected through a wireless access or even physically, without your knowledge. In some cases this may be for malicious purposes. At a minimum, an unauthorized computer or mobile device may introduce viruses or malware to your network. Maintaining Operating System (O/S) Security Patches It is important to ensure that your O/S security patches are consistently applied. Also, security patches for office productivity tools should also be kept up to date to minimize exposure on your network. Don’t leave it to employees to accept patches. Make sure you have a system in place to ensure all O/S patches are properly applied. If you centrally manage these O/S patches, you can also save on network bandwidth, so all your employees don’t have to download these patches when available. Keep Anti Virus and Anti Malware Definitions up To Date It is equally important to keep your Anti...
by zorro | May 16, 2013 | Uncategorized
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by zorro | May 10, 2013 | SMB Technology
Cloud Computing adoption is on the rise for businesses looking to reduce capital expenditure and avoid software licensing. According to the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) Annual Trends in Cloud Computing Survey forty two percent of respondents turned to the cloud to modernize legacy IT. Forty two percent of those Business Owners and IT Executives cited Cloud Computing as simply a better option and fifty percent surveyed were moving to the cloud to cut costs. Many companies have turned to Cloud Computing without even knowing it. Through rogue IT (end user adoption without IT assistance) employees may be using cloud backup technologies for file sharing, mobile applications that connect to the cloud and other productivity tools. Here are some ways your company can make a strategic investment in Cloud Computing to extend the life of your existing IT Infrastructure. Cloud Computing for Desktop as a Service Some companies have older desktop, laptop and servers that are not able to run the latest version of office productivity applications or other desktop software. Because these systems may not have fast enough processors, inadequate memory or are lacking in an updated operating system O/S, some companies had adopted hosted or cloud versions of these productivity applications to gain access to the latest applications without having to upgrade their computers. Cloud Computing for Hosted Email Hosted email services are another way for you to gain access to the latest version of popular products like Microsoft Exchange without having to upgrade servers and pay up front license fees. By migrating to a cloud based version, you can have access to the latest updates for...
by zorro | Apr 22, 2013 | SMB Technology
Malicious Software or Malware is a serious concern to IT Security experts and business owners alike. Malware is a category of Cyber Security threats that includes Viruses, Worms,Trojans and Botnets. It is no surprise that the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) tenth annual IT Security Information Trends report placed Malware at the top of the list of security threats. CompTIA cited that eighty-five percent of Business Owners and IT Professionals have a moderate to serious concern about Malware. Why should you care? Many times Malware intrusions will go undetected. Some malware may cause your computer to run slowly. Some malware may be programmed to silently harvest privacy data from your hard drive, while other malware is programmed to destroy data on your hardware. Other malware can turn your PC into a Cyber Hacker by exploiting security holes and using your PC to attack other PCs. Costs associated with data breaches is estimated to be as high as a billion dollars each year. Moreover, the number of Malware threats are exploding. Symantec estimates there will be over 250,000 new threats (not attacks) identified on Android devices in 2012 alone. What can you do to avoid Malware? IT Security Risk Assessment The reality is you can not afford to eradicate one hundred percent of all cyber threats, so you need to have a pragmatic plan for defending yourself. Start by understanding your security risks by reviewing your core applications and data, policies and procedures, as well as, your network infrastructure. You are as vulnerable as your weakest link. IT Security Compliance To protect your applications and their data, as well as...
by zorro | Apr 8, 2013 | SMB Technology
Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery planning is about making sure your company can quickly become operational after a systems failure, natural disaster or other interruption. A holistic approach is required to get your doors open and employees productive. According to recent InformationWeek research, IT professionals polled about Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery are most concerned about protecting databases (68%), followed by email (45%), accounting data (39%) and network services (36%). It is important to separate basic data protection from business continuity planning. Most companies have some type of backup in place to provide basic data protection. When data is lost in an isolated situation, such as a hard drive failure, virus infection, or a lost device, your local or online backup provides a reactive way to rapidly restore your data. Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery provides a proactive plan to pragmatically reduce the risks of a disaster recovery scenario. Here are some important considerations: Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Risk Assessment Start by gaining an understanding of your environmental risks and exposure. For example, the geographic area your business is located in, may make you more prone to flooding, hurricane, earthquakes or fire. These variables may raise your risks. However, if you are adjacent to a hospital or fire department, you may have a lower risk of losing power during a disaster. Tailor your Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Plan to Your Company’s Needs Evaluate your core systems to determine what applications and data you need to operate. Basic services such as phone, email or order processing may put your business at risk even with the a brief outage....
