Every business has a lot of documents that they need to keep in perpetuity. They also choose to keep many that they may not need, just so they have the information to serve their customers better. Traditionally, this meant manila file folders with a bunch of papers representing all the information and contracts that a particular customer has. This could be a little as one file cabinet, but for some organizations, a warehouse is needed. Technology now allows an organization to safely store all of their documents in a secure data center.
Standing desks and other options like it have exploded in popularity, particularly as a more health-conscious approach to work. However, as these options often cost a pretty penny to implement, it is worth asking the question: do the benefits of a standing desk outweigh the costs of implementing one?
When you picture cybercrime, what goes through your mind? Do you see a hacker in a dark hoodie sitting in the corner of a room with lines of code furiously buzzing across the computer screen? If so, we have some news for you; cybercrime is anything but this perception. Let’s examine organized cybercrime and why it’s important for your business to take its growth into a full-blown industry seriously.
Outsourced IT services are a very popular option for modern businesses, with options ranging from fully managed services to the traditional break/fix approach. However, when weighing these options, it is only natural that price plays a heavy part in the considerations. While we won’t go into any precise pricing, we do want to discuss some overarching trends concerning the two options and their associated costs to prove that managed services are, in fact, the better option for modern businesses.
On Tuesday, Apple quietly launched a Personal Safety User Guide to help “anyone concerned about or who has suffered technology-enabled abuse, stalking, or harassment.” Consumers may use the guide to learn about their choices for eliminating someone’s access to the shared data, as well as personal safety features available throughout the Apple ecosystem. Most importantly, it includes a page titled “Stay safe with AirTag and other Find My accessories”. It comes at a time when an increasing number of people have come out to say they have been stalked using the devices.
Giving Timur Yunosov, a Russian cybersecurity researcher with a predilection for exploiting weaknesses in payment gadgets, access to my Apple iPhone may have been a mistake. Yunosov was emptying my already depleted bank account, pushing it into overdraft, within minutes of providing it to him, by just touching the locked device onto a terminal.
You want to make smart decisions for your business, but it’s not always so simple. Small businesses have a lot of options for their workstation needs, so what is the budget-minded company to do? Chromebooks offer a cost-effective way to get the computing equipment you need while keeping hardware costs low.
The snow was heavy on the ground in Moscow as disguised members of Russia’s formidable security agency. The FSB prepared to knock down the doors of one of the 25 residences they would attack that day. Their target was REvil, a clandestine group of hackers who claimed to have taken more than $100 million (£74 million) every year through “ransomware” assaults before mysteriously disappearing. As members of the gang were brought away in handcuffs, FSB agents grabbed crypto-wallets carrying unimaginable amounts of digital cash such as bitcoin. Others utilized money-counting devices to tally dozens of stacks of $100 notes. REvil’s hackers had perfected extortion by grabbing control of enterprise computer systems and demanding cash to unlock them. The consequences of this increasingly widespread crime range from geopolitical tensions between Russia and the West to the United Kingdom’s impending lack of Hula Hoops, Skips, and Nik Naks. KP Snacks wrote to store owners this week to warn them of supply concerns until “the end of March at the earliest” because it “cannot securely process orders or send items.” KP – and admirers of its savory snacks – has become the latest victims of a ransomware attack, which the firm was still combating as of Friday afternoon. Several phone calls to the firm were answered. When the CEO of a business like KP receives the dreaded ransom note, no matter what time of day it is, their first contact may be to US cybersecurity FSB firm Mandiant. “The normal scenario is that they don’t see it coming and then they have a terrible impact,” says Dr. Jamie Collier, Mandiant’s senior threat intelligence consultant. He claims that the centrality of computer systems in firm supply chains gives hackers great influence if they overcome their defenses. “It gives these groups a lot more leverage and allows them to demand far bigger extortion money than they would have in the past.” While Mandiant’s employees strive to repair or minimize the damage, the victims engage in discussions with the hackers, who frequently act as if they are establishing a real commercial agreement. Dr. Collier describes threat groups as “extremely friendly.” “You’ll see them hire English speakers who can handle it [negotiations], almost like customer service, where you can make contact and connect professionally.” He claims that hackers will even walk CEOs through the process of purchasing and transferring the bitcoin used for ransom payments. Depending on the sophistication of the assault, the damage caused by a protracted outage, and if companies like Mandiant can repair it, there may be no alternative but to pay. In addition to operational inconvenience, organizations face regulatory fines and significant harm to their reputations if data is disclosed. Many now have cyber insurance that allows them to let the insurer make for the price, although at the expense of fueling criticism and potentially fueling further assaults. The DarkSide ransomware group — allegedly linked to REvil – shut down petroleum supplier Colonial Pipeline in May 2021. As gas stations ran out of fuel and American drivers panicked, the corporation had no choice but to pay $4.4 million (£3.3 million). Even coughing up didn’t work in the instance of Travelex. The consequences of Covid-19 on tourism may have been the most significant element in Travelex’s demise in August 2020, although residual harm […]
Being proactive can save a lot of headaches. Outside of maybe your car, nowhere is this more evident than with your business’ technology. Businesses that fail to stay ahead of their technology problems see a lot more inefficiency and costly downtime than organizations that stay on top of their technology. If your business doesn’t have a proactive maintenance platform in place, you are just prolonging the inevitable.
The Microsoft Surface Duo arrives at an odd moment. A large number of professionals are now working from home on a long-term basis. The concept of constantly being online and working is sadly prevalent throughout several businesses.