ATECH MSP Blog

“Open sesame!” If only the passwords that were required of us every day could be so simple, right? But no, this simply enables cybercriminals. So, for the sake of our accounts and their security, we have to use multiple, complex passwords that meet assorted best practices.

However, passwords can sometimes be too secure. As in, preventing us from accessing our resources ourselves, because we can’t remember which password we used (or what it was).

With any luck, hearing that Microsoft is calling it quits on two of its most popular operating systems is old news. After all, Microsoft has been reminding Windows 7 users that January 14 is their end of support date, and that they really need to upgrade… but about 25 percent of Windows 7 users haven’t.

With the big day just over a week away, a lot of people are scouring websites for the right gift. While frantic online shopping like this has become a holiday tradition in its own right, there is no reason to spoil the season by having your identity stolen online. That’s why we wanted to quickly review a few safeguards to keep in mind while online shopping.

To keep your business’ network and infrastructure secure, you need to adhere to solid password practices. That includes not using the same password across different sites, using password managers when possible, and choosing passwords that are unique, but memorable. One of the most useful technologies used to secure accounts is two-factor authentication (2FA). Let’s take a look at how to incorporate 2FA into your security strategy.

Employees are without a doubt the most unpredictable resource within your business. Nothing can be more catastrophic to data security than a careless or untrained worker. Enforcing safe practices and policies doesn’t have to feel like a chore, if training is handled properly. In fact, employees typically become eager to learn how to avoid the latest and greatest cyber-related threats. These threats plague not just our work lives, but our everyday lives as well. Today, we will discuss what you and your employees should be aware of in today’s connected world. 

Ever since it started to be looked on as a reliable computing option for businesses, cloud computing has been exceedingly popular. Businesses and individuals use cloud computing platforms for their infrastructure needs, their application deployment, their file sharing and storage, and for redundancy to protect their business, but have you ever wondered how the cloud platforms themselves are kept up to date? Today, we will look into it. 

I’m sure you’re familiar with those neat images that can look like multiple things at once - there’s the one with two faces that is somehow also a vase, the rabbit that is also a duck, and many other examples. Sometimes, our technology can seem to be the same way - take IT security and IT compliance. While these two considerations are definitely related, as they both contribute to risk mitigation, they are not the same thing.

We spend a lot of time on this blog discussing cybersecurity. Understanding the effects of full-scale cybersecurity attacks is useful, but will only motivate a person or business to do things that will work to keep their network secure. The problem is that when it comes to public computing resources, there isn’t enough being done. 

It isn’t exactly news that businesses of all sizes need to be concerned about cyberthreats - especially since, as time passes, these threats have become more serious and insidious. Up until this point, there have been tried-and-true methods that businesses could leverage to stop these threats, but hackers are very clever when it comes to their attacks. What can a business do?

The way a business handles its network security typically defines what kind of problems come from their use of information systems. As a result, cybersecurity has become a major part of any forward-thinking organization’s IT strategy and has become a multi-hundred-billion dollar a year industry. Of course, it wasn’t always such a huge problem. The history of cybersecurity doesn’t go back very far, but since it has such a major impact, we thought it would be interesting to go back a couple decades and look at the brief history of the practice. 

When over 16 million people are scammed out of over $16 billion, there’s likely some type of problem that needs to be addressed. Famous con artist, Frank Abagnale, the man immortalized in Steven Spielberg’s Catch Me If You Can, a movie that was based off his own memoir, has been working as a security consultant with the Federal Bureau of Investigation for over 45 years. In that time, he has become an expert in cybersecurity and fraud prevention.

Threats to data security are seemingly everywhere. Some companies spend millions of dollars a year on data security, but it only takes one unwitting user to tear down their huge investment. In fact, 2018 saw over 446.5 million records compromised, even if the number of data breaches dropped by almost 25 percent. Today, we will look at the biggest breaches that have happened from the beginning of May.

Working in conjunction with the Ponemon Institute, IBM Security completed a report tracking trends in 2018’s data breaches. As you might imagine, much of the data contained in this report could be seen as troubling to a business.

Phishing attacks are more commonplace than you might think. Whether it’s scamming someone into sending payments to fund who knows what or simply spreading malware or viruses, these phishing attacks are a part of doing business; therefore, it’s important that you take measures to avoid some of the most clever tricks in the book. Let’s examine some of them.

Whether or not you’re familiar with computers, there are a few terms that are thrown around commonly enough that chances are good that you know them. One such term is “firewall.” Unfortunately, there are often misconceptions as to what these terms refer to or what they do. Firewalls are a prime example, as many believe that a firewall is the only security they need.

Huawei has found itself in an... interesting spot lately. Despite being the top telecom supplier in the world and second in phone manufacturing, many countries have banned the use of the Chinese company’s networking equipment. This is primarily due to the close ties Huawei has with China’s government, and the potential spying Huawei could do.

Habits are hard to break - but there are some habits that simply have to be broken if your business is going to be secure. Many of these habits may have been developed by your employees, which means that it is important that you recognize them.

Malware is a commonality in today’s computing environment, though businesses do everything in their power to avoid encountering it. Some people have difficulty identifying threats, which makes for a dangerous situation whenever they actually have to handle them. We’ve put together a malware guide that will help your employees identify the most common types of threats out there, as well as how to respond to them.

Florida’s Atlantic coast is a destination for millions of visitors each year. One visitor is costing a coastal city a pretty penny. Riviera Beach, a small city just north of West Palm Beach, has been hit with a major ransomware attack. Today, we’ll tell you how it came to be that the small beach city would make dubious history by paying what is the largest ransomware payout in the short history of these attacks.

When was the last time you thought seriously about upgrading your business’s technology solutions--particularly its software? We know that administering patches and updates can be challenging for some businesses to maintain, but with the right support, it’s more manageable and certainly more secure. Unfortunately, after a certain period of time passes, Microsoft stops supporting certain outdated solutions, rendering them dangerous and obsolete.