When companies begin using cloud platforms like Microsoft 365, many of them fail to change the security settings from their default state. They may think that they should already be set at “good” security levels or may not realize the additional options they have to safeguard their account. [Read more…]
One of the trends in multiple industries, including the legal profession is to move documents and workflows to the cloud. [Read more…]
Cloud applications have gone from being a productive way to provide anywhere access to becoming a business necessity in a world where remote workers are vital to keeping operations going when business-as-usual is interrupted.
Cloud services like Microsoft 365, G Suite, and others are now where many companies station their business workflows. This means their data is also more often stored in the cloud than in on-premises equipment.
Hackers have taken notice, and the latest Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report shows that they are going after those cloud application passwords with a vengeance.
Password dumpers have now become the #1 form of malware used in data breaches. In phishing attacks, login credentials have become the information most sought after.
How can you use the cloud effectively to keep your business data available to all your workers, no matter location, and ensure it is safe? We have several tips below for good cloud security.
Safe use of cloud solutions requires a strategic approach. You can’t just rely on the cloud provider to keep your data safe, especially when hackers are trying their hardest to steal legitimate user credentials that will give them an all-access pass to your account.
Here are some good cloud security practices to keep your business data protected.
Compromised passwords are responsible for 81% of hacking related data breaches.
Users often adopt bad password habits because of all the different passwords they have to use. These risky habits include:
It’s important to set up cloud platforms, such as Microsoft 365, to require the use of strong passwords and reject passwords that don’t meet certain criteria. This should include length requirements and the need to use at least one number and one symbol.
Adding a second factor to your logins using MFA can stop 99.9% of attempted account hacks, greatly increasing the security of your cloud accounts.
MFA simply involves having a secondary step added to login where the user is sent a time-sensitive code to a pre-approved device. That code then has to be entered to complete the login. This step keeps hackers out even if they’ve compromised the password.
Hackers may not make themselves immediately known, stealing data “under the radar” after they’ve managed to get into your cloud account. One way to detect this type of compromise is to monitor cloud account access.
Tools like cloud application security brokers and endpoint device managers can help you keep tabs on access patterns to your cloud solutions. This allows you to catch any suspicious activity, like large file downloads, when they happen.
Another way to monitor who is logging into your cloud accounts is to turn on account alerts. Many of the major cloud services will have these available in the security settings.
Account alerts can let you know things like:
Some businesses will leave old employee accounts open for a while after the employee has left. They want to make sure they don’t lose any data or may just get busy and keep putting off closing it until “later.”
Leaving old accounts open leaves your account at risk. Here are the steps you should take once an employee leaves to secure your account and data:
Many users stay logged into their cloud accounts because it’s easier than continually logging in and out. They also want to make sure they receive important account alerts.
But when a mobile device that’s logged into your company cloud accounts is lost or stolen, that means a stranger has a free pass to get in and do whatever they like.
Endpoint device protection allows you to manage all your endpoints remotely (mobile devices and computers). One of the important safeguards this provides your accounts, is that you can revoke access remotely at anytime from a device. Devices can also be locked and wiped remotely, reducing the risk that a thief will be able to access your company accounts and information.
With businesses so reliant on the cloud, it’s vital that you pay attention to cloud security. ProdigyTeks can help your Chicago business put the safeguards in place that you need.
Schedule a free phone consultation today! Call 312-600-8357 or reach us online.
Technology is the lifeblood of business today, and you likely have a lot of it. But you may have accumulated software and hardware as you grew. Now, you have a hodgepodge of technologies never designed to work together. Consolidation can help.
Large corporations can afford an in-house IT team to keep track of all the hardware and software, but small- to medium-sized businesses often need help. Managing computers and mobile devices, and telephony print and fax systems can be overwhelming. Then, there’s all the software you need to secure, not to mention setting up data recovery in case of a disaster or emergency.
Consolidating your technology offers several benefits to companies of all sizes. A managed service provider can help.
#1 Increased Efficiency
If there’s a problem with your printers, phones, or Internet connection, you call your provider. When many vendors offer each of these services, you make several calls, which means waiting on the phone with a printer tech, phone company, or internet service provider (ISP).
When you connect with customer support, they can address only issues in one area of concern. The ISP isn’t going to know anything about your phone service, and the phone company knows zilch about printers. This disjointedness can waste a lot of time.
With an MSP, you need to make one call only. The support person will know and understand your entire system. They offer input based on how different technology interacts.
#2 Cost Savings
Lacking a holistic view of your technology and its interactions, you can end up wasting money. You might invest in a new feature for voice over IP, duplicating a capability you already have online.
Consolidating your technology with a single provider can also streamline costs. The first thing an MSP will do is to map out how your technology works together. Armed with an understanding of business needs and goals, they’ll make recommendations. You may be able to cut back on services in one area with a simple upgrade in another. Perhaps you’re paying for software licenses you no longer need. Plus, the MSP identifies opportunities for cost savings gained from bundling services.
The MSP typically charges a monthly, consolidated fee. Instead of managing several bills for every technology, you pay a single, consistent fee, which also makes budgeting much easier.
#3 Business Agility
If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that business needs to be nimble. Yet your ability to react can be slower working with many different vendors. Simplifying your processes can streamline your response times.
An MSP will take a proactive approach to oversee your technology needs. They want you to avoid disruptions in the first place. Partner with an MSP to keep technology current, security up to date, and systems upgraded. This frees up what IT staff you have on-site to do more business- and revenue-generating work.
#4 Supportive Partner
Individual vendors focus on selling you their particular services or systems. The overall interplay of your technology isn’t their primary concern. Yet ensuring all your technology interacts effectively and efficiently is what the MSP does best.
Working with an MSP you gain a business partner that cares about your success. The MSP’s job is to determine whether:
An MSP offers a single point of contact. That contact will understand your entire setup and how it works together. The MSP will help you make better purchasing decisions. Plus, as a true business partner, an MSP supports your agility and success. Find out more about what we can do for you today!
Is there one thing we can count on now with COVID-19? The situation can change in an instant. You may have been confident in your business continuity plans in the past, but the pandemic has shaken us all up. It’s a solid reminder to review our plans to get back to business quickly and seamlessly.
A good business continuity plan ensures maintained operations before and during unexpected disruptions. Generally, decision-makers strategize in advance to ride out:
These could impact a system or network or prevent you from accessing your location to get to your computers and important data.
Now, we also know that we should prepare for the effects of an international health pandemic!
Such business-centric planning considers all necessary elements of staying on track. You’ll look at physical premises and staffing, and hardware and software requirements.
Preparing for the Unexpected
A business continuity plan tries to anticipate the worst that could happen. The problem is that we can never know what the next bad thing might be.
You may not ever need to use your plan, but taking a “these things happen to other businesses” point of view could leave you in a serious lurch.
The COVID-19 crisis has also made things real for many businesses. Governments required organizations across industries, regardless of size, to migrate to remote work. Companies with business continuity plans in place responded with greater agility, whereas others were left scrambling.
Now, many countries are beginning to slowly reopen for business. Sure, there are constraints, but the idea is to get the global economy up and running. While you’re adapting, take some time to revise your business continuity plan.
It’s better to get your decision-makers around a table (or in a virtual meeting) now, while things are calmer. Most people think more clearly when not in the midst of a crisis. So, be proactive. Plan now for the worst. You can weigh up options at leisure, pursuing many different what-ifs to determine the best plan of attack.
Look back at what worked and what didn’t during the COVID-19-related disruptions. This review can provide real insight into opportunities, and you’ll be even better prepared in the future.
Planning with an MSP Partner
Business continuity plans lay out how the business will move forward amidst disruption. Work with a managed services provider (MSP) to ensure your planning is comprehensive. Our IT experts can help enable remote work, set up data protection, and develop a backup setup.
Send us a message at help@prodigyteks.com. Put a business continuity plan in place, and be more confident you’re ready for whatever happens next.
Today, businesses are embracing digital technology to enable productivity anywhere, at any time. Yet ensuring accountability is a stumbling block to widespread acceptance of remote work.
Recently, COVID-19 has forced many businesses to transition quickly to working from home. Even bosses concerned about lack of control over absent employees had to make the change. Former opponents to remote work may have discovered the benefits of this approach. Employees certainly may have enjoyed the opportunity and want to keep doing it.
The good news is that technology and products are even better today for managing remote teams.
Top Tools for Remote Work Accountability
Overall, employers need to trust their people. This is true whether they’re working on-site or from home. Still, for some supervisors, trust is easier with remote monitoring abilities.
Joint calendars are a common starting point. Microsoft 365, Google’s G Suite, and other tools allow staff to share calendars. People can still schedule personal appointments and keep those private, but the joint professional calendar lets everyone on a team stay in the know. Managers can go online to track sales meetings, client presentations, or team sessions.
Project management software is another way to see what co-workers are doing. Teamwork, Basecamp, and Trello offer a central location to see a project come together. Employees can access secure software from any location to share files and interact. Individuals can set deadlines and create tasks to improve accountability and responsibility-sharing.
Business-based internal messaging software also keeps everyone on the same page. These communication tools typically provide one-on-one messaging and group chat. It’s easy to send a quick note asking someone for a status update, or just check-in. Some tools also allow individual and team audio calls as well as video conferencing. Top contenders are Slack, WhatsApp, Skype for Business, or the Facebook and Google Hangout work chat apps.
Go big enabling collaboration among employees with cloud-based office software. Microsoft 365 and G Suite enable many users to go online and work on the same things at the same time. This solution also lets managers easily view shared documents and verify progress. It’s even possible to invite clients or other external partners to view folders. For security reasons, you may want to limit their access to “view only.”
Securing Remote Work
Security is another point of friction for businesses allowing remote work, but the technology is keeping pace there also. Even so, you’ll want to educate employees about cybersecurity best practices. Requiring antivirus and malware upgrades, limiting external sharing and enabling multifactor access will help make remote work viable, reliable, safe, and secure.
Need help installing or implementing remote work tools? A managed service provider can help. Or, our IT experts can put in place the administrative controls you need to help secure work from home. Let us provide the IT help you need. Contact us today at 312-600-8357!
Online meetings are the new norm for many, but that doesn’t mean people magically know how to enjoy a trouble-free online conference experience. These tips can power more successful meetings.
Many businesses today are working from home with a reliance on Skype, Microsoft Teams, Google Hangouts, Zoom, or GoToMeeting. But even with these platforms offering voice or video capabilities, there can be tech problems. These tips can minimize trouble and enhance business collaboration.
1. Go Wired
Connecting to Wi-Fi offers flexibility and mobility. Yet when it comes to an online meeting, prefer a wired connection. Enjoy a more reliable meeting connection by plugging your laptop or desktop into the internet router using a network cable.
If you need to use a mobile device and can’t connect via cable, reduce Wi-Fi obstacles. Call in from as close to the wireless access point as you can. Wi-Fi signals are a form of radio wave, which means they can be hindered by:
So, that important meeting is not the one you join from a cement-bricked basement, not when your Wi-Fi router is in an upstairs bedroom and your neighbors are all relying on Wi-Fi signals, too.
2. Prioritize Your Meeting
When you have a scheduled meeting, announce it to the rest of the household. Ask kids not to get on Xbox or stream movies at the same time as you connect to your meeting. See if you can’t persuade your partner, who is also working from home, not to download large files or new software at the same time as your meeting.
Program your devices to back up at times that won’t compete with your work hours. In the office, your IT team scheduled updates or security patches outside of business hours. Now that you’re doing it all at home, be smart about when you do upgrades. Depending on your home internet speed, trying to do too many things at once can cause trouble for everyone.
3. Test Connections Before the Meeting
You may feel that all you’re doing is meeting online right now. Why would you need to test audio and video each time? Well, every time you unplug a device such as a microphone or a headset the settings will return to the default. That means the next time you connect you aren’t set up the way you want to be. You were expecting to listen in using your USB headphones, but the last time you unplugged them your computer switched back to the next available audio input (e.g. your monitor or built-in laptop speakers).
By checking the connection first, you also make sure you have the most up-to-date platform software. You don’t want to be late to a call because your device has decided it needs to re-install Skype right at that moment.
4. Use the Right Equipment
Headsets and external microphones limit the ambient noise. You’ll hear better. Plus, it will make your contributions easier to hear, too.
Muting your microphone when you’re not talking also helps – it reduces the noise pollution. Problems can arise when your mic picks up other people talking through your speakers. This precaution also saves you from apologizing when your dog barks ferociously at the FedEx delivery person.
5. Pick the Best Setting
Plan the best place to take that online meeting. The closer you are to your wireless access point, the better your connection.
Plus, you want to avoid high-traffic areas, as you’re more likely to be distracted. A child or furry colleague could make an unplanned appearance.
Select an area with a simple background, too. Sitting in front of a window may seem like a good idea, but it makes your face darker and more difficult to see on the video. Ideally, you want to be in a well-lit room with a plain wall as your background.
6. Take Full Advantage of Online Meeting Features
You may have done conference calls in the past. Everyone called in, spoke when necessary, and that was that. But much of the top business collaboration software offers added features:
Online meetings are efficient and cost-effective. With the current health crisis forcing many of us to adapt to connecting virtually, implementing these ideas can help.
Need help setting up your online meeting platform or deciding on the solution that’s right for you? We can help. Contact us today at 312-600-8357!
