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March 23rd, 2021 by admin
Those who own or manage a small or medium-sized businesses might be tempted to think that the number of IT challenges should be commensurate with the size of the business. But those in the know will be quick to correct that assumption. In fact, as the list of challenges shifts and changes...
Posted in: IT Support, Managed Services, Small Businesses
December 1st, 2020 by admin
If you've researched methods of taking care of your IT needs, you've probably come across the term "managed services," "managed IT" or "managed network services." What is it - and do you need it? Managed Network Services can be generally defined as outsourcing day-to-day management responsibilities...
Posted in: IT Support, Managed Services
September 8th, 2020 by admin
Vulnerability assessment refers to the process of identifying risks and vulnerabilities in computer networks, systems, hardware, applications, and other parts of the IT ecosystem. Vulnerability assessments provide your IT team and organizational management with the information they need to analyze...
Posted in: Security, Cyber Security, Managed Services
September 1st, 2020 by admin
This article details six ways our Virginia Managed IT Services Program can save your organization money. If you're seeking a Managed IT Service provider in Virginia or southern West Virginia, please contact us to learn more! There are certain times of the business year that you might find yourself...
Posted in: Managed Services
August 8th, 2020 by admin
1. Do You Lack Common Features? Organizations everywhere have sent their employees home to work remotely amidst the pandemic. To ensure business continuity and productivity, organizations invested billions of dollars in web conferencing software and collaboration tools. If you had to invest in these...
Posted in: Managed Services, Business Tools
July 22nd, 2020 by admin
![[Infographic] Lessons Learned From the COVID-19 Crisis (and Next Steps You Should Consider)](/images-content/blog/ans-infographic-header.jpg)
The COVID-19 pandemic has turned our home and work lives upside down. Many organizations were caught off guard and unprepared for the business disruptions it caused, including the shift to a remote workforce. As a result, things like securing network operations, remote devices, and sensitive information...
Posted in: Remote Workforce, Business Advice, Cyber Security
March 30th, 2020 by admin
As a result of the Coronavirus outbreak, many organizations have their entire workforce working from home. For organizations that haven’t incorporated remote working before, getting up to speed haphazardly poses a serious security risk. Working securely from home requires policies, technology,...
Posted in: Remote Workforce, Cyber Security
February 10th, 2020 by admin
Compared to desktops and laptops, mobile devices have unique behaviors that increase their security risks to your organization. Here are the top five mobile device risks: 1. They are almost always on and usually connected to the internet. Without any user intervention, mobile devices are constantly...
Posted in: Business Advice, Mobility, Cyber Security
January 10th, 2020 by admin
Some organizations handle their cybersecurity based on an array of myths stemming from a combination of mistrust, misunderstanding, and lack of information. These myths are at the root of common errors made by organizations of all sizes when safeguarding their data and network infrastructure. Here are...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, Small Businesses
November 13th, 2019 by admin
It’s a fact: when digital is everywhere, the need for cybersecurity is also everywhere. And, as everyone’s lives become more digital, so has the acute awareness of the need for strong cybersecurity. This applies to IT professionals and private and public-sector executives alike. We’ve...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, Small Businesses
November 12th, 2019 by admin
There are more security solutions available to small and mid-sized organizations than ever before. Yet, preventable cyber-attacks continue to happen every day. A big part of the reason is simple-many organizations struggle with cybersecurity. Most IT professionals are overrun with the many tasks needed...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, IT Support
August 22nd, 2019 by admin
There’s certainly no shortage of cybersecurity solutions available to IT managers to combat cyberattacks. But to truly achieve a stronger cybersecurity position, organizations have to go beyond implementing new products and services to include efforts to secure the “human element.”...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, Managed Services, Business Tools
August 19th, 2019 by admin
Cybersecurity has never been simple. But, over the last decade, keeping up with the volume and severity of potential threats has become an overwhelming task for most organizations. Antivirus software and other traditional security solutions are effective at identifying and protecting against threats...
Posted in: Security, Cyber Security, Business Tools, Small Businesses
July 16th, 2019 by admin
Small organizations frequently underestimate the threat of cyberattacks, often believing they're not at risk. Many hold this belief because they feel they "don't have anything worth stealing.” If you’re one of them - operating under the assumption that hackers won’t bother...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, Managed Services, Small Businesses
March 22nd, 2019 by admin
For most people, cybersecurity can be a complicated and intimidating topic. Many times, it involves overcoming negative perceptions like feeling overwhelmed by all the jargon and not knowing where to even start. For that reason, addressing it often gets put on the back burner, which can cause even bigger...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, Managed Services, Small Businesses
February 19th, 2019 by admin
Any way you look at them, the numbers are pretty sobering: according to its 2019 Identity Breach Report, the cybersecurity firm, 4iQ, states that targeted attacks on small businesses by cybercriminals grew at an inordinate rate in 2018 - up nearly 425% from the previous year. Dig a little deeper and...
Posted in: Compliance, Business Advice, Cyber Security, Small Businesses
January 22nd, 2019 by admin
Why Security Testing is Important Each day, organizations of every size are being attacked from a multitude of angles and from all parts of the world. Many believe their network is safe because they have basic defenses, like a firewall and anti-virus software, in place. At the same time, very few have...
Posted in: Security, Business Advice, Business Tools
December 14th, 2018 by admin
Cybersecurity is the practice of protecting systems, networks, and programs from attacks; typically referred to as “cyberattacks.” The goal of a cyberattack is usually to access, remove or destroy sensitive information, extort money, or interrupt business operations. Cybersecurity is sometimes...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, Managed Services
November 19th, 2018 by admin
Hiring a managed security service provider (MSSP) to manage your cybersecurity (sometimes also called Security-as-a-Service or SaaS) is a sound business move for organizations that have: limited IT resources, lack internal security expertise, struggle to hire security talent, or simply need to implement...
Posted in: Security, Cyber Security, Managed Services
October 26th, 2018 by admin
News of cyberattacks continue to dominate the headlines; and there’s no reprieve in sight. Despite this fact, many IT professionals still struggle to get their message across during conversations with non-technical company leaders at the executive level. But for small and mid-sized organizations,...
Posted in: Cyber Security, Business Tools, Small Businesses
September 20th, 2018 by admin
The key to effectively minimizing cybersecurity threats and their impact on your organization is achieving and maintaining the right security level. For most small to mid-size organizations, figuring out what the right security level actually is, can seem like a daunting task. With so many security...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, Business Tools
August 16th, 2018 by admin
For Small and Mid-Sized Organizations Implementing a managed security program can provide your organization with a variety of benefits, but the primary advantage is to transfer the management and expense of an in-house cybersecurity team to a third-party that has the right technology, expertise, and...
Posted in: Security, Cyber Security, Managed Services, Small Businesses
July 12th, 2018 by admin
I recently came across a PowerPoint presentation entitled, “SIEM for Beginners: Everything You Wanted to Know, But Were Afraid to Ask.*” I want to share it here (in a re-formatted version), because it’s one of the best explanations I’ve come across on the subject. You don’t...
Posted in: Security, Cyber Security, Managed Services
June 12th, 2018 by admin
Patch management is the process for identifying, acquiring, installing, and verifying patches for products and systems. Patches correct security and functionality problems in operating systems, application software and firmware. Although patches can serve other functions such as adding new features...
Posted in: Cyber Security, Managed Services, Business Tools
May 10th, 2018 by admin
Unless you’ve been living under a rock somewhere, it’s hard to miss the almost daily stream of media reports about cyberattacks and data breaches. Government agencies, healthcare providers, financial institutions, corporations, and, yes, most definitely, small businesses - are all under...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, Business Tools, Small Businesses
April 28th, 2018 by admin
Today, security is everyone’s job—from consumers, to system administrators, to executives. If you’re doing business, you need to elevate the priority of security across your organization. Over the years, cybercriminals have gotten a lot more advanced and, because cybercrime is such...
Posted in: Security, Cyber Security, Managed Services, Small Businesses
April 3rd, 2018 by admin
When you shop online, watch YouTube, post on social media, and check your email, keep this one important thing in mind: when you don’t pay with cash, you pay with your personal information. A quote posted back in 2010 by an unhappy MetaFilter user sums it up nicely: “If you’re not...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security
March 22nd, 2018 by admin
Small businesses are in the crosshairs of an increasingly complex and sophisticated array of cybersecurity threats. Although major hacks of large corporations are now regularly headlining the news, small businesses are actually being attacked more regularly - and with increasing frequency. In fact,...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, Small Businesses
March 6th, 2018 by admin
Authentication is the process of confirming that an individual is who he or she claims to be. It can involve providing information - like a username and password. Users can authenticate with an ATM card and PIN, a device that can generate or receive a code that can be used to log in, or a biometric...
Posted in: Security, Business Advice
February 21st, 2018 by admin
As good as many of our IT solutions have become at thwarting security threats, some incidents can’t be 100% prevented by the technology. The threats from social engineering are one of them. Within the realm of IT security, social engineering is the art of manipulating people so they unknowingly...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security, IT Support
February 7th, 2018 by admin
Organizations of all sizes need to worry about what their employees are doing with company computer equipment and internet connections. It's no longer just a matter of the cost of extra network bandwidth or tracking wasted time that should be spent on job duties. Organizations are now facing a growing...
Posted in: Compliance, Security, Business Advice, Cyber Security
January 26th, 2018 by admin
A strong defense is critical to fighting the battle against cybercrime. But having a plan to deal with a cyber incident - should one occur - is equally as important. Why? Because when it comes to preventing a cyber-attack, there is no such thing as guaranteed protection. That’s right, there is...
Posted in: Business Advice, Cyber Security
January 15th, 2018 by admin
There is a dangerous misperception that often comes up, regardless of which regulatory standard we talk about (PCI, HIPAA, etc.). The misperception is that compliance equals security. Sometimes organizations think they’re the same thing; sometimes they get so consumed by complicated regulations...
Posted in: Compliance, Cyber Security