As cyber-attacks continue to make headlines, hackers are exposing or selling customer data files in record numbers. But just like with any threat, there are actions you can take to minimize risk and ensure your business retains a positive reputation among customers.

1. Stop using the same password on repeat. Set a mandate for all staff that passwords must be unique for each user and for your workplace. That means it can’t be remotely like the one on their home PC, tablet or online banking. Passwords are hacked more than ever, so when you’re prompted for a password change, dig deep and really think about what goes into a hacker-proof password. If remembering them is a problem, consider one of the latest password management tools like Lastpass.

2. Go on a shredding spree. How much sensitive data is being dumped into the recycling bin? Valuable customer data is often taken from the bins of small businesses and quickly sold or published. It’s not just good practice to shred sensitive documents, it’s the law. Take 5 seconds to run documents through the shredder or book in the services of a secure shredding company.

3. Train staff explicitly. You can’t rely on common sense because what you think is a given might be news to someone else. It can be extremely beneficial to hold special data-safety training sessions once or twice a year as a reminder, as well as take the time to induct new staff into the way things are done.

4. Limit access to data. Just like the bank manager who guards the keys to the vault, you can limit who accesses your data. Revoke employee access as soon as they leave your business for good, and set rules around who can access what – and when. Do they need access to sensitive information while working from home? Should they be able to change the files, or only view them?

5. Keep your software updated. Possibly the most preventable hack, having outdated software can be an open invitation for cyber-criminals. They look for known weaknesses in business software and waltz right in. While the nagging pop-ups and reminders to update can feel like a selling ploy, they’re actually helping your business to stay in the safe zone. Updated software gives you protection against new viruses and hacking techniques, plus closes off those nasty weaknesses.

6. Ditch the accounting spreadsheets. Still using an Excel doc for all your number-crunching? Besides making your accountant’s job harder (and more expensive), you’re opening your business to a massive range of vulnerabilities. Even with password-protection, spreadsheets aren’t designed to safeguard your financials or those of your clients. Upgrade to a proper accounting solution with built-in customer data protections and security guarantees.

If you need assistance with your business contact us today! 719-924-5227

Sometimes computers do wacky things that ring alarm bells and make us dive for cover. Next thing you know, you’re running scans on repeat and demanding everyone come clean about their browsing habits. Fortunately, not all weird occurrences are caused by viruses – sometimes your computer is simply overloaded, overheating or in desperate need of a reboot. Here are the tell-tale signs of a malware attack:

Bizarre error messages

Look for messages popping up from nowhere that make no sense, are poorly worded or plain gibberish – especially if they’re about a program you don’t even have. Take note of anti-virus warnings too, check that the warning is from YOUR anti-virus software and looks like it should. If a message pops up that isn’t quite right, don’t click. Not even to clear or cancel the message. Close the browser or shut down the computer instead, then run a full scan, preferably with a DIFFERENT scanner than what you have installed. After all, if the bug got past what you have installed, it probably won’t be detected the second time around!

Suddenly deactivated anti-virus/malware protection

You know the best way to get past the guard? Send him for a coffee break! Certain viruses are programmed to take out the security systems first, leaving you open to infection. Most security software will warn you if your protection has stopped. If you reboot and your protections aren’t back on the job, you are more than likely under attack. Attempt to start the anti-virus manually through its control panel and you’ll know for sure.

Social media messages you didn’t send

Are your friends replying to messages you never wrote? Are you getting lots of ‘undeliverable’ messages in your inbox? Your login details might have been hacked and your account is sending out spam or scam messages. Your friends may now be tricked into giving up personal information or money. Change your email or social media password immediately, scan your computer for infections, and then advise your friends of the hack so they can steer clear!

Web browser acting up

Perhaps you’ve noticed your homepage has changed, it’s using an odd search engine or opening/redirecting unwanted sites. If your browser has gone rogue, it’s definitely a virus, usually one intended to serve you ads or steal your personal or financial details. Skip the online banking and email until your antivirus scans come up clear and everything is working normally again.

Sluggish performance

If your computer speed has dropped suddenly, boot up takes an eternity, or even moving the mouse has become a chore, it could be a sign that something is wrong. But, not necessarily a virus. Run your anti-virus scan and if that resolves it, great. If not, your computer likely needs a tune-up or repair. You may want to bring the computer in for a diagnostic.

Constant computer activity

You’re off the computer but the hard drive is going nuts, the fans are whirring, and the network lights are flashing like a disco? It’s almost like someone IS using the computer! Viruses and malware attacks use your computer resources, sometimes even more than you do. Take note of what’s normal when the computer is not infected so you can tell when something is out of the ordinary.

You can have top-notch security in place but there is still one danger: social engineering. It’s the old kid on the block, but most of us have never heard of it. Perhaps the more familiar term is ‘con’: the art of manipulating people to take certain actions or divulge private information. Social engineers are a special type of hacker who skip the hassle of writing code and go straight to the weakest link in your security defenses – your employees. This is one security threat that can not be fully mitigated through technology, only training! A phone call, a cheap disguise or casual email may be all it takes to gain access, despite having solid tech protections in place. Here are just a few examples of how social engineers work:

Email: Pretending to be a co-worker or customer who ‘just quickly’ needs a certain piece of information. It could be a shipping address, login, contact or personal detail that they pretend they already know, but simply don’t have in front of them. The email may even tell you where to get the data from. The hacker may also create a sense of urgency or indicate a fear that they’ll get in trouble without this information. Your employee is naturally inclined to help and quickly sends a reply.

A great current example of this is a fake email from the boss instructing an assistant to wire money to a certain account number. The assistant may be wary of bothering the boss or maybe just too busy to confirm the request, so they just do it.

Phone: Posing as IT support, government official or customer, the hacker quickly manipulates your employee into changing a password or giving out information. These attacks are harder to identify and the hacker can be very persuasive, even using background sound effects like a crying baby or call-center noise to trigger empathy or trust. To avoid this scam, you need to make sure that your employees stick to a protocol of authenticating the person on the other end of the line when giving out sensitive information no matter what!

Anecdotally, we recently were able to reset a customer’s AOL password simply because the customer on the other end of the line was very distressed sounding. The AOL rep got their manager on the line who overrode the requirements to verify identity first. We were doing this honestly, but an attacker could very well take advantage of this weakness to take over your AOL account!

In person: A delivery man uniform gets past most people without question, as does a repairman. The social engineer can quickly then move into sensitive areas of your business. Once inside, they essentially become invisible, free to install network listening devices, read a Post-it note with a password on it, or tamper with your business in other ways. I have seen this one first hand. I have been able to walk right past receptionists wearing my work uniform with no questions asked!

It’s impossible to predict when and where (or how) a social engineer will strike. The above attacks aren’t particularly sophisticated, but they are extremely effective. Your staff has been trained to be helpful, but this can also be a weakness. So what can you do to protect your business? First, recognize that not all of your employees have the same level of interaction with people, the front desk clerk taking calls all day would be at higher risk than the factory worker, for example. We recommend cyber-security training for each level of risk identified, focusing on responding to the types of scenarios they might find themselves in. Social engineering is too dangerous to take lightly, and far too common for comfort.

Wi-Fi has forever changed the way we live, work and play. We can surf the internet on the couch or by the pool, look up a recipe in an instant, and even connect our lights to voice control. It’s no wonder it was accepted with open arms, but is your Wi-Fi as good as it needs to be?

15 years after Wi-Fi first made its way into homes with those mysterious rabbit-eared boxes, it’s evolved into a juggernaut of speed and accessibility that we can’t do without. Think about how many wireless devices your home has – the average home has at least 10 devices connected wirelessly to the internet, many have more.

While older devices are typically happy with a small slice of your internet, newer devices like 4kTVs and media streaming simply can’t function without a fast connection. Add in a game console, tablet, a few smartphones and a laptop or two, and your Wi-Fi is suddenly stretched beyond full capacity and struggling to keep up. Yet, most people don’t know how fast their Wi-Fi is, or if it’s working right– they only know how many bars they’ve got. Unfortunately, counting bars can add up to one big headache.

Here’s why your WiFi may be letting you down:

Bars measure the wrong thing: While it’s great to know you’ve got a ‘strong’ signal, it would be even better if you could have a ‘fast and available’ signal. The internet could actually be down and you’d still have full bars because it’s really only measuring how close to the Wi-Fi router you are. That proximity measure doesn’t take into account how many devices are fighting for the same bandwidth or whether there’s any left for you. We can ensure your Wi-Fi isn’t just available, it’s up to the task.

Wi-Fi goes sideways too: While your neighbor’s Wi-Fi can reach the back of their property, it can also go a similar distance sideways into your house. This extra ‘noise’ can disrupt and slow down your own Wi-Fi. In dense areas, your Wi-Fi is basically getting lost in a swirling field of signals, all using the same channel and frequency. It’s a digital crowd which can seriously slow your speeds. We can fix this by changing your Wi-Fi channel to one with less cross-talk.

Everyone uses the default settings: Most home Wi-Fi uses a 2.4ghz frequency by default. While it makes a plug & play router easy to set up, it does mean you’re not getting the speeds you could be. Switching to the 5ghz frequency means your Wi-Fi is separated from the neighborhood cross-talk. The 5ghz band is also considerably faster, which is a bonus but it has its drawbacks too. We can help you upgrade to a newer 5Ghz-capable router that can provide both frequency bands and automatically switch your device to the best one.

Your house is too big: WiFi radios are limited in transmission power by the FCC. As such, even the fanciest most powerful router can only reach so far. Likewise, even if your super-powerful router can broadcast to the edges of your property, your device may not be strong enough to send a signal back. Sometimes people’s solution to this is to purchase another router (setting up two networks which are cumbersome at best), or adding an off-the-shelf repeater (which isn’t a great solution either). Instead of going down that patch of a segmented unstable network, there are systems for sale that actually allow you to have a seamless single network through your home. These types of networks are called ‘Mesh’ networks, and when implemented properly they can GREATLY increase the coverage and performance of your network.

Priority isn’t set: While not Wi-Fi specific, we can also set up “Quality of Service” if your router supports it or supply you with one that does. This allows things like Netflix and Skype calls to always take priority and remain uninterrupted over less important tasks like downloads. You’ll be able to watch movies without those awful buffering jumps and video chat without freezing.

If your hard drive is going bad, chances are strange things are happening and you’re a little panicked. It’s where you put your digital memories, your household files and maybe that thesis you’ve been working on for months. As far as you’re concerned, that hard drive IS the computer and failure is not an option. Perhaps it was overheated, knocked around or came from the factory with a flaw.

Sorry to say, but eventually all hard drives will fail, even external hard drives and USB flash drives. So how do you know if it’s definitely the drive and what should you do?

Start by watching for these signs:

Your computer slowing down: Because most hard drives contain moving parts, the slower it gets, the slower your computer gets. It’s a bit like a record player, with spinning plates and a needle whipping from side to side. Your hard drive may eventually take longer to spin up and longer to retrieve files, which will have an impact on everything from booting up to playing games.

Blue screen of death: A classic Windows error, this is when your computer locks up to only show a blue screen with an error code, which while it does mean something specific has gone wrong, can always be translated loosely to ‘nope, not today’. The more often your computer does this, the more severe the problem is.

Not booting up: During the initial bootup stage, your computer is loading a program stored on the hard drive – it’s your operating system. If some of the files have a problem or can’t be found, Windows won’t boot. Errors vary, but the outcome is the same.

Corrupted files: Sometimes a file won’t open because the computer says it is corrupted. Some essential pieces of the file are missing, and unlike a book where a missing page is only inconvenient, it’s a deal breaker for computer files.

Noises: You’re familiar with the normal noises your computer makes, but as the hard drive fails the noises can change. You might hear clicking, grinding or even a sci-fi phaser noise. Noises will get louder or speed up during heavy file access.

What do you do?

Whenever something is clearly wrong, the key is to stop and turn your computer off. Continued use or attempts to start the computer can result in more data loss. Even if you don’t have a backup yet, turn it off now because the large task of backing up can cause extra strain on an already delicate hard drive. It’s tempting to hurry and try to get a quick copy of your files, but in these cases, it’s not about time – it’s about the extra spinning, scratching, warping and electrical charge, all dissolving your precious data with each access.

Is this preventable?

In short, no. Like I said earlier, all hard drives eventually fail. BUT, you can do a few things to help prolong the life of your hard drive.

–Keep your computer cool. Heat is the #1 killer of electronics. So, keep the computer dusted out and the vents clear to allow adequate airflow to the components in question.

–Minimize mechanical shock to your computer. Like I described earlier, a mechanical hard drive is like a very fast and delicate record player. Like a record, it will skip and potentially damage the disk if it gets bumped. So, if you are using a desktop, take care not to kick it or knock over the tower. If it is a laptop, make sure to handle the computer gently and turn it off or put it to sleep when carrying it around.

-Don’t fill it up. The more packed full a hard drive is, the more it has to work to read and write information and perform maintenance on itself. We always recommend keeping a hard drive at least 20% free. If you find yourself bumping up against that limit, it is time to upgrade to a larger drive.

-Keep an eye on it. The mysterious inner-workings of a hard drive may be invisible to the end user, but that doesn’t mean you have to stay in the dark! There are many free software solutions available for home users to monitor the health of their hard drives and be alerted to an issue before it becomes a problem. The one we recommend for home users is Crystal Disk Info available HERE. After installation, go to the ‘Function’ menu and select the ‘resident’ and ‘startup’ options to keep the program running in the background and monitoring your hard drive continuously. If you want to go one step further, there is a paid-for residentially licensed version of the software we use in our shop called HD Sentinel available HERE.

-Have a backup of everything important to you. Eventually, your hard drive will fail, and even though you have taken all precautions reasonable, you may lose some data. All a backup really is is a second copy of your data for when the original copy disappears. Local backups, cloud backups, image backups, etc…there is enough here for a whole separate article. For now, just remember the only way to completely prevent data loss is to have another copy!