Month: January 2018

Cybercriminals are everywhere. Both domestically and around the world, countless hackers work day in and day out to penetrate the digital defenses of businesses just like yours, using a variety of proven, effective, and ever-evolving methods. Whether they infect your system with malware hidden in a seemingly innocuous email attachment or con an unsuspecting employee out of vital information through social engineering, the end results are the same: data loss, financial damages, lawsuits, reputational damage, bankruptcy, and worse.

Our team of certified system professionals understand how serious the modern threat of cybercrime is to businesses in your industry, which is why we’ve developed this whitepaper as a vital resource to show you how hackers think, what methods they use, and how you can stop them from victimizing your business. Without the right knowledge, tools, and technology to prevent hackers from stealing your information, your business is left prone to a major data breach.

A recently popular type of malware is the “ransomware” variety, which encrypts a victim’s files (making them unreadable) and only offers the key to recover them after a ransom has been paid. The unfortunate reality is that when it comes to your business’ vulnerability to ransomware and other types of malware, it’s not a matter of IF, it’s a matter of WHEN. There are simply too many varieties of ransomware to guarantee total safety for your business.

IT security can be a complicated and scary subject when it comes to modern cybercrime tactics such as ransomware. Most business owners cannot confidently claim that their business’ network is secure. Can you?

When it comes to ransomware, the most important consideration is email security, and often, it can be as simple as ensuring that you and your staff know what to look for.

What makes a victim a victim?

The short answer is lack of awareness. Almost no hacking attempt can be a success without the victim playing at least some role in the process, such as:

• Visiting a malware-infected, unsecured website, either via an email, inappropriate browsing habits, or otherwise.
• Opening an untrustworthy attachment in an email from a hacker that’s disguised as coming from a sender such as a business contact, employee, client, government agency, etc.
• Downloading files that include a stow-away malware program or virus.
• Conducting any of the above while logged in with administrator rights provides even greater access to the hacker that’s infecting the system.

The bottom line is that digital security begins and ends with the user. Regardless of how modern, expensive or well-recommended your security software is, one wrong move by a single employee can be all it takes to infect your system. But that’s not the only threat to your security…

Is your technology making you an easy mark?

Outdated, unsecured, and just plain faulty technology is just as likely to make you an ideal target for hackers as an unsuspecting employee is. A major part of the investment in new technology is that it comes prepared to handle all previously identified hacking threats and security loopholes. The older your technology is, the more vulnerable it is to new hacking techniques.

Here are three vital considerations you should keep in mind when evaluating your current technology:

• Patch regularly, and patch often: Did you know that the most common way cybercriminals get into a network is through loopholes in popular third-party programs? That means the computer programs you rely on to get work done every day could be leaving you vulnerable to security breaches if you fall behind on updates. That’s why patch management is such a crucial part of proper IT security, in order to help you stay ahead of the non-stop tide of oncoming digital threats.
• End of Life (EOL) is FINAL: As good as it is to run a frugal business, it’s important to keep in mind that you’re not a college student trying to make an old, beaten up laptop last until you can afford a new one. You’re running a business, with much more to invest in and much more to lose. When your software reaches EOL, it will no longer receive the vital security patches it needs to keep you safe. At that point, as much as you may like the current operating system, you have to let it go and replace it with the new, secure version.
• Legacy technology isn’t worth the risk: Legacy software is often the gap in an otherwise capable suite of digital armor. Your business may have a brand new infrastructure, top-of-the-line security technology, and fresh-out-of-the-box desktops, but in the end, your unpatched, out of date legacy web browser will be what does you in. Just as with EOL, don’t let your favorite bit of technology put you at risk.

What is malware, exactly?

It’s a word you’ve probably heard a lot. You know it’s bad, and that you have software (anti-malware) designed to help you stop it. But in the end, if you don’t really understand how the enemy operates, how can you expect to defeat it?

Malware comes in many different forms and is used by hackers in a number of different ways. It can be used to steal information, locate vulnerabilities in your IT systems for a secondary attack, or simply to cause damage. While cybercriminals continue to innovate new forms of malware and the ways they use it, there are currently three main types that you should be familiar with:

• Malicious Scripts: This type attacks when you or a member of your staff visit the wrong web page. With the right conditions (user with admin rights, an outdated browser, lack of anti-malware software), simply loading the wrong web page is enough to infect your system.
  
• Embedded Media: While this form also attacks from a web page, it is through an infected media that is embedded in the site, such as a video or audio file. If your browser media player isn’t up to date (which is extremely common among today’s users), simply playing the media file can lead to a malware infection.
  
• Infected Files: The oldest form of the three is also the simplest. By downloading and running files (media codecs, screensavers, desktop images, etc.) that they haven’t properly inspected ahead of time, or that contain a hidden malicious file, the user openly invites malware into the system.

Types of Ransomware

While there are currently three basic forms of ransomware, cybercrime methodology is constantly evolving. In order to stay effective, hackers work non-stop to find new ways to deploy ransomware; keep in mind that best practices can quickly become outdated.

• Locker ransomware: This type works by denying access to the infected device. Generally, the scheme involves posing as a member of law enforcement and claiming that the victim has been a party to illegal activity (copyright infringement, illicit photography or media, etc.).
  
• CryptoLocker ransomware: This type employs powerful encryption to lock down the victim’s files and data, even if the malware is removed It usually makes its way to the user’s device through an email attachment that they are tricked into opening.
• Crypjoker: This form emerged as recently as January 2016, specifically targeting Windows operating systems to encrypt and lock down the user’s data. As opposed to CryptoLocker, Crypjoker gets to the victim as a PDF file attached to an email.

How Can You Keep Your Business Safe From Ransomware?

When developing your ransomware defense, keep these recommendations in mind:

• Make a considerable investment in a comprehensive backup data recovery solution so that you can restore your data at a moment’s notice when necessary.
• Test your backup and cybersecurity measures thoroughly and regularly; create dummy files and then delete them to see how fast they can be restored, or schedule a day to literally unplug your critical systems to find out how long it takes to get online again.
• Be sure to make the most of the available resources (both provided online and through expert IT consultants) to ensure that you’re not overlooking vulnerabilities in your IT security methodology.
• Employ email filtering, encryption, and continuity solutions to ensure that your lines of communication are secured.
• Equip your business with industry-tested security solutions like firewalls, antivirus, antimalware, and network monitors to keep your systems safe from external threats.
• Make sure your software and browsers are updated and patched on a regular basis.
• Train your employees in best practices for safe browsing and email conduct so that they don’t click the wrong link or download the wrong file.

Seems like a lot, right?

That can be a lot to handle for a business owner like yourself. You have clients to see to, employees to manage, and more on your plate every single day; should you really be expected to also oversee regular maintenance of your cybersecurity all on your own?

Of course not!

The best way to ensure that your business is kept safe is by outsourcing your cybersecurity management to a reliable and experienced Managed Services Provider like our Information Systems experts. For an easily budgeted monthly flat rate, you can enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing your business is safe from the whatever modern cybercriminals may throw at it.

When Facebook first launched back in 2006, the world was introduced to a brand-new way of communicating. Friends and family that lived hundreds and thousands of miles away from one another now could bridge the distance.

If you have been living under a rock for the last 12 years, Facebook is a social media company that allows family and friends to share pictures, life updates, and any random thought. It also makes you the star of your show, as it gives people a platform to let their voice be heard.

Fast forward to 2018, a little over ten years since the launch, and Facebook has become a household name with over 1.37 billion people logging onto the social media giant daily. However, it is also a place where third-party businesses, sites that post funny pictures and memes, sell their products or distribute news articles, and advertise to Facebook’s billions of subscribers–but not for long.

Here are a few facts that advertisers should be afraid of 42% of them report that Facebook is critical to the success of their business. Their target audience, people, ages 25-34, are the same people that make up the majority of Facebook users. This is the prime target demographic for many businesses’ marketing efforts, and they rely on Facebook to engage these critical consumers.

The California-based company has kept revenue growth throughout the years by selling more and more advertising in its news feed. However, new changes will scale back advertising and bring lesser visibility to their posts. What you will see is more posts from friends and family, especially those that have incited debates in the comments. Prioritizing what friends and family share are Facebook’s way to help people spend time on the site in a more meaningful way. In fact, last week, Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder of Facebook, said his resolution for 2018 was to “fix” the social network.

Besides the influx of advertisers popping up on Facebook, social media has come under fire in recent years for the impact it has on people’s mental health. Several studies were conducted about the effects on people who use sites such as Facebook. The Journal of Experimental Psychology revealed that using the website, even for just 10 minutes a day, had a harmful effect on our well-being.

People have become addicted to smartphones and often use them to keep up with social media. They put these sites at our fingertips 24 hours a day, no matter where we are or what we are doing. Research goes on to suggest that Facebook can make people feel isolated and sad. Even when looking at feeds from family and friends, people are comparing lives, which can lead to depression and a sense that they are not living up to what others are doing. Teenagers are particularly prone to “Facebook depression” as they try to fit in with their peers, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

However, other researchers believe the way people react to Facebook depends on their personality. If you are already plagued by anxiety or are unhappy with your life, then seeing other people having fun would more than likely deepen your feelings of inadequacy. If you are self-assured and happy with your life, then seeing the good things in a friend or family members life would make you happy, too.

While speaking with the New York Times, Zuckerberg noted if people begin to feel better while on the site, that Facebook’s business, and its users, will benefit: “I expect the time people spend on Facebook and some measures of engagement will go down…However, I also expect the time you do spend on Facebook will be more valuable…The world feels anxious and divided, and Facebook has much work to do – whether it is protecting our community from abuse and hate, defending against interference by nation states, or making sure that time spent on Facebook is time well spent.”

Facebook may care about their users’ wellbeing, but another reason for the changes stems from a growing backlash from academics and lawmakers, and pressure from regulators in the U.S. and overseas about how social media may be leaving us depressed and isolated. Facebook would certainly rather make changes under their control than be forced to make changes according to regulators. Nor do they want disappointed users to leave for different platforms.

So, just how does Facebook plan to make these changes? They will reconfigure algorithms that guess what you may be most interested in. In the early years, Facebook’s news-feed ranking system was based on three things- Affinity, Weight and Time Decay. According to Marketing Land, affinity is how close the relationship is between the user and the content or its source. Weight is what type of action was taken on the content. Time Decay is how current the content is or how recently it was posted. While those three items are still included, Facebook’s current news feed algorithm considers over 100,000 other factors as well.

While he recognizes that Facebook may never be entirely free of harmful influences, Zuckerberg says that the company currently makes “too many errors enforcing our policies and preventing the misuse of our tools.”

What else does the future hold for Facebook? With Zuckerberg at the helm, it is sure to be bright. When people close to him speak of his skills, it is always impressive. One of his key attributes is to keep moving forward and getting better. One PR rep for Facebook revealed that “He notices things that are broken before anybody. To say he is actively involved is an understatement.” His peers note his persistence and devotion to improving Facebook and himself. Zuckerberg “is a total inspiration in how much he cares about his work and in how hard he works,” says Chris Cox, who joined the company as a software engineer and is now chief product officer. “For all of us who work with him, it is like, Man, he is so good at improving.”

LinkedIn is the largest professional marketing site with 500 million users, and 40% of them use the platform daily. LinkedIn is still growing in popularity and remains one of the best online platforms to market your business. Here we’ll discuss some ways to optimize your LinkedIn use.

Branding

Your banner image, logo, photos and messages on LinkedIn should be consistent with those you use on other social media channels and marketing materials. Consistency is important for people to readily recognize your business. Make sure you use the same colors, fonts and messaging across all your branding for LinkedIn pages as well as other online platforms like Facebook. Consider including your phone number and URL in your banner image to make them readily available. Include a call to action, taglines, and hashtags to make reading your page, gleaning content, and reaching you easy for viewers. Promote a specialized landing page with images based on your brand to incrementally promote special events, product launches, showcase something new, or to share your company culture using photos of your team.

Your Company Description

Make sure this speaks directly to your prospects. You can always include a copy of the “About” page on your website, but, also take this opportunity to speak directly to your audience and tell your story. This might include some pain points you experienced and how you overcame them. Promote your expertise and industry focus, and how your company is different from others. Be aware that Google previews up to 156 characters of your page text, so it’s important that your description includes some keywords that best describe who you are and what you do.

Content

To get the viewership you need, it’s also important that you post updates to your page at least once a week. (Although, two or three times a week is better.) Make sure it’s content that will draw people to your page. Always be helpful and informative in your posts, and not salesy. (80% of your content should be informative with no more than 20% selling) Remember that LinkedIn is about sharing expertise, advice, and networking.

Post things that will keep people coming back to your page, like a series of 5 to 10 tips, countdowns to “top tens,” or any other topics that fit your brand. Posting a series will encourage people to come back to your next post. Plus, these posts are great ways to link back to your website to increase traffic.

Build a Following

A lot of people have difficulty with this. Try doing some cross-promotion using your other social-media pages like LinkedIn and Twitter. Add icons for these pages on your LinkedIn profile so people can find them.

Try sending out an email blast to directly invite people to follow your LinkedIn page. Also, encourage your employees to share and engage appropriate content on your page so people in their circles can find your posts as well. Even family and friends should be invited to see your content so they can share it with others.

You have the option to use sponsored content to build a following on LinkedIn. Otherwise, the best way to do this is to be consistent and invest time in building an organic following.

Engage with Your Community

Make sure that when someone comments on your page, you reply right away. Also, keep tabs on your analytics to see if what you’re posting is resonating with your audience. If not, you might need to make some changes. Invite people to respond to your content and provide their opinions and feedback. Post a question on your LinkedIn company page and see who responds. Ask what they struggle with most in your industry, and how they overcame it. People love to talk about their own experiences. Build a rapport and continue to invite others to comment. (Be sure to always answer and address their comments!) This not only increases your engagement but gives you some tips on what you need to do to better your posts. Those who engage with others tend to get better readership numbers.

Showcase Pages

These are separate and different from your company pages. They are an extension of your LinkedIn company page but allow you to promote certain products and/ or events to a specific audience. For example, a company like Adobe may create a showcase page to advertise their cloud services, or Apple their newest iPhone. Think of this as a “mini-LinkedIn page” for your company product. LinkedIn allows you to create up to 10 of them. (If you’d like to include more, contact LinkedIn Customer Support and they’ll help you with this.) They will appear on your company page under the “About Us” section.

Your showcase pages should have unique names to differentiate them from your company page. However, be sure to continue your branding throughout the different pages for consistency and brand recognition. Add a link to your product page so readers can learn more specifics. Just like anything else worthwhile, creating showcase pages takes time and commitment. You shouldn’t set them and forget them. You must follow up just like you do with your LinkedIn company page to ensure success.

To get started, go to your company page and open up the admin tools on the top right corner and this will bring up a drop-down menu you can use.

These images indicate the showcase pages you can go to.

When you click on one of the images, you’ll be taken to the showcase page.

Optimize Your Personal LinkedIn Profile

What some people forget to do is to make sure their LinkedIn profile is visible to everyone and posts are public. If not, people can’t share them and they won’t show up in Google searches. Go to “Edit Public Profile in URL” > “Edit visibility” and customize this according to your needs.

You should develop a headline that relays more than just your job title. Get creative and write a headline that really describes who you are. You can edit this in your profile section. What do you want to be known for? What’s your industry focus? Add samples of your work to promote your experience and skills. Use a professional headshot. Posting a “selfie” will tarnish your image as a professional. Finally, link your profile to your company page. This helps people find both you and your company.

The summary is where you can really impress your viewers with your experience and know-how. Be sure to use keywords you want Google to pick up so your profile will reach as many interested parties as possible. Also, link to your company website’s main page, or a page you want to highlight. Include an invitation for the types of people you want to contact you, or other calls to action such as connecting to your company website.

Make sure you keep the content of your profile up to date, including what your duties are and how you contribute to your organization. Archive information from places you’ve previously worked so people there can find you. If you get a promotion, be sure to include this as well.

If you need more content, add publications, certifications, languages you speak, honors, awards, and anything else that you think will appeal to your followers, that will set you apart from your competitors, and position you as an expert in your field. Similar to items in a professional resume that will draw the right people’s attention.

Endorsements & Recommendations

There’s a lot of confusion about the differences between these two features on LinkedIn. We’ll clarify this for you:

Endorsements provide an opportunity for you to network either online or in person. Endorsements help you affirm your experience and skills with recruiters and others. When a viewer endorses you on LinkedIn, they are confirming that you have the experience you say you do. When you showcase your “Skills” on LinkedIn, others who know you can endorse them to confirm what you’ve posted is true. Ask reliable people to endorse your skills. You can ask them via a direct message, or you can endorse their skills on LinkedIn so they’ll return the favor. Add your skills to the “Edit Profile” section.

Recommendations are different, although they fall into the same category as Endorsements because they provide social proof that you are who you say you are. This is when another LinkedIn member, such as a business partner, colleague or customer, writes a statement recognizing the good work you’ve done. You can solicit a recommendation from someone by navigating to their profile, select the “More” icon and the “Request a recommendation.” Add a note if you like. You can even request a revision of a recommendation when they come back to you. You also have the option to approve the recommendation before it’s posted to your profile.

The LinkedIn Mobile Application

The faster you respond to messages, the more opportunities and potential connections you’ll gain. This is why you should consider using LinkedIn’s mobile app on your smartphone. You can do most of what you can do on the desktop site with just a few exceptions. What’s missing are the analytics and the LinkedIn Publisher feature. You will have to download the separate applications for groups, sales navigator, and LinkedIn Learning Recruiter. It’s best to make a folder on your phone and store them here. The good news is that the LinkedIn Mobile App now allows you to upload and post videos to your profile.

Why Use LinkedIn Videos?

LinkedIn exclusively favors content that doesn’t take you outside of their application. For this reason, you should use native LinkedIn Videos rather than ones stored on other platforms. To access this feature, you’ll need to use the mobile app and follow the directions below.

If you have problems, you may need to update your LinkedIn Mobile app. Tag people, use hashtags if relevant, add posts, include talking points in your description, along with a brief overview of the video. Three minutes is an ideal for a video.

How to Use LinkedIn Videos

You can pre-record a professional video and edit it to your liking. Use videos for client testimonials or to showcase a product. Try to use videos that include closed captioning, as the videos in LinkedIn are muted by default.

Upload real-time coverage like a segment from an event you’re attending. You can post a video to share more about yourself and what you do. Upload a video biography or walk around your office and feature some of your co-workers (and be sure to tag them in your video).

Post a video with tips that you believe your viewers would be interested in. This will keep them coming back for more.

It’s best to have a plan for your video in advance so you’re sure to focus on what you want to cover. Above all, be personable but professional with your content, appearance, and demeanor.

LinkedIn Groups

Use LinkedIn Groups to find like-minded professionals, share your experiences, and learn from theirs. It’s like a virtual “coffee group” with other experts in your industry. You can post your comments, ask questions and even add photos to your group pages. Try not to sell in these groups. This will turn people off. If you can’t find a group that works for you, start your own! This is a good way to build some valuable relationships, possibly get some referrals, or turn them into prospects. Again, this an opportunity to position yourself as an expert in your field. Participating in Groups isn’t something you can set and forget. The more you invest in Groups, the more you’ll gain.

LinkedIn Analytics

You should always monitor the data you receive from Analytics and adjust your posting schedule and content accordingly. Perhaps your posts with images are getting more feedback than others, or content you post in the morning gets more attention than those in the afternoon. Taking note of these details can help you get the most from your time and investment in LinkedIn. Check in weekly to see how your posts are performing. Another way to determine if you’re getting the results you want is to “Pin” a post to the top of your page and check the analytics to see if it’s being viewed by the audience you want to target. Use Analytics to set a baseline for target performance, and set some short- and long-term goals for engagement and getting people to share your posts.

Impressions, Clicks, Interactions & Engagement

These are the main measures you’ll want to review in Analytics:

• Impressions are the number of times your LinkedIn updates are viewed by members. It doesn’t mean people read them or clicked anything on them; just that they were viewed.
• Clicks are the number of times people clicked on your content.
• Interactions are the number of times viewers liked, shared or commented on your update.
• Engagement is the number of interactions, plus the number of clicks and followers you have, divided by the number of impressions. (The percentage of people who engaged vs. the number posts they viewed.)

The Benefits of Using LinkedIn Analytics for Your Business

The key to engaging your LinkedIn audience is to know as much as you can about them. Analytics provides this detail. You can determine the age, gender, location and more about your viewers. This will help you make the adjustments you need to get the most viewership. You can view analytics from individual posts as well, so you can see how they stand up against others, and determine what made some more successful than others. Was it a Call to Action that drew followers, or a special offer for an e-Book? Or was the success due to the type of content you included? You can adjust your future posts based on the success of previous ones.

LinkedIn Analytics provides various charts and graphs so you can easily view and interpret your data and demographics.

This example page hasn’t been updated but should give you an idea of what a company analytics page might look like.

This next page highlights how you can choose what you want your graph to display.

Again, this graph is empty now but will prove very useful when it’s populated. It will show your most recent posts and how people responded to them. This will be useful for developing your future content. You can sort by which post did the best and more.

That’s it. But there’s still more. We’ll be featuring another Webinar about LinkedIn Analytics, Paid Ads and Premium Features soon. In the meantime, if you need more information about anything presented here, please contact your friendly IT services team immediately.

The world is evolving incredibly fast with the help of various technological advancements. Both our homes and our offices are becoming more efficient than ever before. Previously, screens of all shapes and sizes were dominating the marketplace, but now, we’re seeing voice start to take over with many companies building and/or enhancing their own voice interfaces.

Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen the following:

• Google’s Assistant
• Microsoft’s Cortana
• Apple’s Siri

However, nothing’s been quite as dominant and groundbreaking as Amazon’s Alexa, an intelligent personal assistant built into the company’s hardware on tens of millions of devices. Alexa is rapidly growing in popularity – finding its way into the living rooms and kitchens of many users around the world. Why? Alexa is the most convenient way to stay organized.

Whether you’re looking to add an item to your to-do list, check the weather, set an alarm or listen to a podcast, the intelligent personal assistant can do it all with a simple voice command. Alexa can currently be found waiting to be voice activated for your convenience within these devices:

• Amazon Echo
• Amazon Tap
• Echo Dot
• Echo Show
• Fire TV
• Fire Tablets

Alexa has seen a ton of success in living rooms and kitchens. In fact, it’s seen enough success that they’re bringing it into the world of business! Imagine operating your office with simple voice commands – from starting your conference call to scheduling and booking the boardroom to turning off the lights in the office after hours – it’s all happening sooner than you’d think.

Alexa for Business: Giving You Back the Precious Time You Spend Handling Tedious Tasks During the Workday…

We all know how much time is spent handling tedious tasks at work. You’re bogged down with managing your calendar, ordering office supplies, dialing into various meetings, and searching for important information to get projects done. It all adds up quickly. Alexa has partnered with various companies to bring you the ultimate playbook for the workplace, including:

• Polycom
• WeWork
• Capital One
• Concur
• Splunk
• Cisco
• Salesforce
• And more

These partnerships make Alexa for Business possible. How does it work? Alexa for Business gathers information about the devices, user accounts, and employees within your company. When asked a question, this information is used to formulate the appropriate response or perform the requested action.

Alexa for Business is extremely innovative and helpful for anyone looking to streamline their workday while:

• Simplifying conference calls and/or meetings: You can rest assured knowing your conference calls and/or meetings will be smooth sailing! Alexa will get your meeting started, act as an audio conferencing device, or even control equipment for you.
• Staying focused on important tasks: You no longer have to worry about time-consuming day-to-day things like managing your schedule, creating to-do lists or setting reminders. Alexa handles all of this for you.
• Keeping the office running smoothly: You will be able to order new supplies, notify your IT department of issues, find an open meeting room, and more with a simple voice command. Alexa keeps your entire office operating at peak performance.
• Providing a more personalized experience for customers: You can provide a more personalized experience for your customers by allowing them to play music, ask questions about products, and even receive support as needed.
• Maintaining security through proper provisioning: You don’t need to worry about security threats as it’s simple to properly provision and manage devices. You can specify device locations, enabling skills that can be used, and more.

Alexa for Business makes it easy to manage enabled devices, enroll users, and assign skills whenever necessary. You can even use the skills kit and associated APIs to build your own custom voice skills for your company. For example, you can build a skill that lets users notify the right person when the printer stops working or ink needs to be restocked.

What Does Alexa for Business Cost?

The great news: Alexa for Business is available as a pay-as-you-go service with no up-front fees or long-term commitments! You pay based on the number of shared devices registered and the number of users enrolled in your account. What’s the difference? Shared devices are enabled devices within shared spaces, such as lobbies or conference rooms.

Users enrolled, on the other hand, refers to personal devices registered to user’s personal accounts. Both shared devices and users enrolled are quite affordable, too! You’ll pay $7 per month, per shared device and $3 per month, per user enrolled. If you’re ready to get started, all you need is an enabled device and an AWS account.

Already have an enabled device and an AWS account? Perfect! Sign into the console, go to “Alexa for Business” and click “Business Productivity” to get yourself and your device setup on the platform.

Alexa for Business is going to quickly change the way businesses around the world function – allowing for greater efficiency, streamlined workflow, and a ton of time saved throughout the day. Call (469) 635-5500 or email us at {email} to find out more.

{company} is your trusted source for all things information technology related. We are the preferred IT support company in {city}.

LinkedIn is the most popular business and employment-focused social networking site around. Whether you’re happily employed at a fantastic company or you’re still searching for your dream job, it’s simply a must-join site for your professional future.

LinkedIn users not only have the ability to connect with people in an effort to grow their networks, but users can also connect with companies through the following feature. When you follow companies, you’re able to see:

• Status updates and important news
• People who work for the company
• Available positions waiting to be filled
• And much more

As you can imagine, this is handy if you’re looking to fill your sales pipeline or find a new job. Prior to connecting with companies, it’s important to consider that there are more than 300 million people worldwide using the social networking site, which means you need to put your best foot forward! If you’re starting a brand new profile, remember the first few lines are the most important – name, title, and most recent positions.

Those first few lines will show up in any search, so you want them to be accurate and informative while giving you a good first impression. Your photo will also show up in any search, so you want to make sure you’re using an updated, clear shot. Another great tip before you start connecting with companies: customize your URL! How do you do this? That’s simple:

1. Click the “me” icon at the top of your homepage
2. Click view profile
3. Click edit your public profile and URL on the right rail
4. Under edit, public profile URL in the right rail, click the edit icon

When you first join, you’ll have a very long, impersonal URL. This is the time to change it to something more personal and professional. Aim for http://linkedin.com/in/firstnamelastname. If that’s not available, include something like a middle initial or even something alluding to your industry or expertise. This is great for searchability.

Next, write your summary. LinkedIn’s summary section is fantastic for showing off your personality and skills. You can include high-resolution photos, videos, and infographics as needed. Or you can keep it simple with text only – just be sure to stand out. Think of the summary section as your elevator pitch and keep it interesting.

Once you’ve set up your profile, you’re ready to start connecting with companies! So what’s the best way to get started? If you know the niche you want to work or find leads in, look for companies using the search engine. You can either search for a company name directly or use keywords having to do with your niche. Once you’ve found what you’re looking for, click “follow company” to connect.

You’ve Connected with a Few Companies… What Next?

First and foremost, connect with us! Our team is your trusted source for the latest information when it comes to business technology. We have extensive expertise and knowledge of the small to mid-size market; and we’re always sharing tons of great news, tips, and more. What’s next? Well, after you’ve connected with us and a few companies of your choice, follow these tips:

• Start interacting with recent posts: Make sure you’re liking and commenting on posts, especially if you have some good insight to share on the topic. Always ensure you’re using proper spelling and grammar, of course!
• Check out the leadership team: You should be able to find those who work for the company, including CEOs and Presidents, on the right side of the company page. Feel free to send invitations to connect.
• Keep on the lookout for positions: If you’re looking for a job, make sure you keep an eye out for opportunities. If you’re looking to provide services, positions available can give you an opening to offer your services instead of hiring a full-time person.

LinkedIn groups are also useful for finding companies. Just search for groups relevant to the industry you’re looking for a job or leads in. You’ll easily find members of groups that are working at relevant companies.

What About Connecting with the Competition?

If you’re connecting with companies for the purpose of building your sales pipeline, should you connect with the competition? This can be a great tactic to help you gain a better understanding of your target market. How so? Once you’re connected, you’re able to view who they’re connected with – from prospects to clients.

Aside from being able to keep an eye on their prospects and clients, you’re also able to get a great view of their marketing strategies, including:

• The content they’re sharing
• The webinars they’re hosting
• The events they’re holding
• And much more

Keep in mind that you’re giving your competitor’s access to all of the same information. For some, it’s worth the risk, especially if you’re able to form a partnership of sorts – trading leads back and forth when they’re not suited to you.

 

The recent announcement of the vulnerabilities found in the Intel, ARM, and AMD processors has sparked a new phishing campaign and not the good kind of fishing with bait and largemouth bass. Although, these hackers are using a particular kind of bait.

While Meltdown and Spectre require access to your system, hackers have various ways to gain access. Already hackers are using phishing emails to trick users into giving them access. They send out an email claiming to contain a patch for Meltdown or Spectre. Instead, the email installs malware on your system. This malware gives the hacker access to your system, allowing them to exploit the bugs and take the unprotected data.

Be wary of social engineering scams like phishing emails. Hackers are all too eager to take advantage of problems like this, and unfortunately, some people are so eager to fix the problem that they might not realize that the “patch” they just clicked on is now allowing a hacker to steal all their data.

WHAT IS PHISHING?

Phishing is a hacking technique that “fishes” for victims by sending them deceptive emails. The “ph” replaces the “f” in homage to the first hackers, the “phone phreaks” from the 1960’s and 1970’s. Virtually anyone on the internet has seen a phishing attack. Phishing attacks are mass emails that request confidential information or credentials under pretenses, link to malicious websites or include malware as an attachment.

Many phishing sites look just like the sites that they are impersonating. Often, the only difference in many spoofed sites is slight, and easily missed the difference in the URLs. Visitors can easily be manipulated into disclosing confidential information or credentials to the hacker if they can be induced to click the link. Even blacklisted phishing sites can often get by standard filters through the technique of time-bombing the URLs. Then the URL will lead to an innocent URL initially to get past the filters but then redirect to a malicious site.

Although malware is harder to get past filters, recently discovered and zero-day malware stands an excellent chance of getting through standard filters and being clicked on, especially if malware hides in a non-executable file such as a PDF or Office document. This is how many of the recent ransomware attacks were pulled off.

Now with Meltdown and Spectre looming over us, the average person is more susceptible to “quick fixes” and solutions to this issue.

Despite the lack of personalization, an astonishing 20% of recipients will click on basically anything that makes it to their inbox.

SPEAR PHISHING

Spear phishing is an enhanced version of phishing that aims at specific employees of the targeted organization. The goal is usually to gain unauthorized access to networks, data, and applications. In contrast to the mass emailing of a phishing attack, which might see hundreds of attack messages sent out to random recipients within the space of a couple of hours, spear phishing is methodical and focused on a single recipient. Often the initial email will contain no URL or attachment. Instead, it will simply try to invoke the recipient into thinking that the sender is who they say they are. Only later on will the hacker request confidential credentials or information, or send a booby-trapped URL or attachment.

The additional customization and targeting of a spear phishing email, along with the lack of easily recognized blacklisted URLs or malware customization results in click-rates more than 50%!

Potentially every Intel processor sold in the last 10 years could have a critical security vulnerability that puts users at severe risk.

It’s often these days that poor IT security comes down to something like human error, and lack of awareness on the users’ part. It’s less often that there’s a widespread design flaw discovered in the technology itself, which is exactly what happened with Intel this week.

The Register published an article this week detailing how every Intel processor produced over the course of the last decade is affected by a design flaw that would allow malicious programs to access and read what should otherwise be protected areas of a device’s kernel memory. Kernel memory is dedicated to essential core components of an operating system and how they interact with the hardware.

What does this mean for Intel users? This flaw could allow cybercriminals to access valuable and sensitive information like passwords. It’s possible that something as simple as JavaScript on a webpage, or cloud-hosted malware could penetrate the most interior levels of an Intel-based device.

Even worse, a foundational flaw like this can’t be patched with a simple, everyday update – the problem is in the hardware, which means it needs an OS-level overwrite for every single operating system (Windows, Linux, and macOS).

In a statement released January 3^rd, Intel claimed that this flaw isn’t necessarily unique to their processors.

“Recent reports that these exploits are caused by a “bug” or a “flaw” and are unique to Intel products are incorrect. Based on the analysis to date, many types of computing devices — with many different vendors’ processors and operating systems — are susceptible to these exploits.”

According to Intel CEO Brian Krzanich, Intel was informed about the security flaw by Google a few months ago. Although the extent of this flaw isn’t fully known to the public right now, it appears that developers are working hard to patch systems over the course of the next few weeks.

That said, the patching process won’t be easy, given that it will involve severing kernel memory from user processes. In a nutshell, that means users will face major performance lags, anywhere from 5 – 30%, depending on the specifics of the device.

The fix works by moving the kernel to a totally separate address space, making it nonexistent — and therefore, inaccessible — to a running process. Unfortunately, this separation process takes a lot of time to perform, as it forces the processor to dump cached data and reload from memory every time it switches between two separate addresses. The end result is an increase in the kernel’s overhead and a slower computer.

While it may not be noticeable for the average user on their home PC, this kind of lag will likely affect businesses using enterprise-grade cloud configurations the most. Be sure to keep an eye on this developing issue in order to ensure your Intel-based devices are properly patched.

As always, the best way to stay aware of threats like this, as well as protect against them, is to work with an expert partner. Our team of cybersecurity professionals will help you stay ahead of exposed vulnerabilities like these so that you can remain safe and focus on the work your business does.

We’ve all heard the words “net neutrality” bouncing around for the past few months. Many of us have no idea what this term means, even though we benefit from them every day. Here is what you need to know about this important topic.

When you go on the internet you are first brought to your home page of your chosen search engine. For some people this home page is Bing, for others, Yahoo, for still others it is Google. From this starting point, you can go anywhere. If you are looking for a particular site, all you must do is type the address in and away you go. If you are looking for certain information, but don’t know exactly where to find it, all you must do is type in what you want to know more about and your search engine will bring you all results about that topic. Your internet service provider can’t decide which results to give you, so you end up being able to see all results available on the web. With the ending of net neutrality, this internet as we know it may come to an end.

What is Net Neutrality?

The phrase “net neutrality” basically means that all websites on the internet are treated the same by your internet service provider. They can’t discriminate against sites based on popularity, type, or any other factor. Meaning if you have CenturyLink as a provider, they are not allowed to block any sites from you or allowed to slow down services to certain sites. All websites get the same treatment across the board, regardless of their content or popularity.

For example, my internet service provider loads YouTube at the same speed that it loads Netflix. It doesn’t discriminate against the site in any way.

How does this affect me?

This is important because if internet service providers can change the way their service is provided to different sites this could mean your monthly billing would be set up similarly to a cable TV package. Certain packages could charge more for certain sites based on popularity (i.e. Facebook, Instagram, Snap Chat, YouTube).

Another possibility is packages could be set up based on the type of website. For example, one Internet service company in Portugal has packages for social media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, messenger, Tumblr, Pinterest, Snap Chat, and Twitter), for video (YouTube, Netflix), for music (Pandora, Sound Cloud) for email and cloud services (Gmail, google drive, yahoo, Hotmail, drop box), and for messaging (skype, kik, video messaging, and other internet based texting services). Each of these packages costs €4.99 or about $5.91.

This means that if I, an average internet user, wanted to access all the websites that I typically do every month I would have to pay for each of these packages because I use websites from all of them on a regular basis.

Why is This Only Now Becoming an Issue?

The Federal Communications Commission are the ones responsible for pushing the vote, which is set for December 14^th of this year. Thus, the media is covering more and more of the story closer to the vote. It is very possible that the media would never have covered the story if it weren’t for the huge public outcry over the issue. A group of 28 senators headed by Senator Maggie Hanssen has written the FCC a letter asking for them to delay the vote until they can properly examine the document and gain a full understanding of the vote.

Who Benefits?

The short answer is internet service providers such as Comcast, Verizon, and CenturyLink stand to gain the most because under the new rules they would be permitted to charge their customers more for different internet packages.

What Other Countries Don’t Have Net Neutrality?

Many countries lack net neutrality. One example is Portugal. Their model could be like what would happen here in the U.S., with different packages and extra data costing more. If you want social media, it would cost a fee. If you want video streaming, that would cost another fee. This could happen with every type of application or website and end up costing quite a bit if you use multiple types of sites. Other countries without net neutrality include China, Turkey, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Iran, Syria, Kazakhstan, Sudan, Egypt, Venezuela, Ukraine, Ethiopia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. The degree of restriction varies from country to country. Some places, like China, have government blocks on many popular websites such as YouTube, Gmail, Instagram, Pinterest, and more. China also has a very extensive government presence on what websites are not blocked to monitor public opinion current events. There are also many more countries that have partial net neutrality, or very minor regulations on their internet, Such as India.

Conclusion

The internet is hands-down humanity’s best invention. What makes it great is that all content and information is treated equally. It is the only source in the world that allows you to access any information from anywhere at any time. The ending of net neutrality would end the open internet as we know it. To mar the best invention humanity has ever created with more regulation and pay-for-services would be a great detriment to society.

Ransomware is now a household name, and there’s no going back. Even though cybercriminals have been using ransomware for years now, it wasn’t until the global WannaCry attack that awareness reached critical mass.

Doctors and nurses went to work as usual last May in the UK’s Central Manchester University Hospital, but when they went to turn on their computers, all computer systems began crashing. Messages began to pop up on their computer screens demanding $300 in Bitcoin in exchange for restored access – the WannaCry ransomware had struck.

Targeted Manchester hospitals claimed that no patient info was compromised, but they did have to suspend services. The BBC reported that other hospitals in London, Nottingham, Hertfordshire, and Blackburn had also been attacked and that some phone systems went down for a period of time. Doctors and nurses were forced to use pens and paper to keep track of patient information. Once medical organizations across the UK had realized what was happening, some of them disconnected from servers at the National Health Service to try and avoid being attacked.

Exploiting Microsoft’s Operating System

This is just one of the many stories that have unfolded over the last year when large organizations were targeted with one of the largest ransomware attacks in history, named “WannaCry”. Though experts did not know this at the time, WannaCry is a ransomware cryptoworm developed by North Korea and aimed at Microsoft operating systems.

Though it seems unbelievable, there have now been more than 100 attacks like this across 150 countries just this past year. Most anti-virus software makers have scrambled to get ahead of these attacks. Once Microsoft’s experts had found that the attacks took advantage of a Windows vulnerability, they quickly released patches for computers running all versions of the operating system, including older versions such as Windows XP, Windows Server 2003 and Windows 8.

Kurt Baumgartner, at the security firm Kaspersky Lab, explained how effective and how quickly WannaCry ransomware can strike.

“Affected machines have six hours to pay up and every few hours the ransom goes up,” said Baumgartner. “Most folks that have paid up appear to have paid the initial $300 in the first few hours.”

Other experts in the field of Cyber Security found evidence that these attacks were made using a variation of the malware called, “Wanna Decryptor”. This program is a Trojan virus that utilizes AES-128 encryption to make all files inaccessible to users.

Though many of the ransomware attacks were launched against the UK, Russia, Taiwan, and Ukraine, global firms like FedEx have come under assault as well. Officials from Europol said that the attacks were of an “unprecedented level and require international investigation.”

Meanwhile, China reported a massive attack against PetroChina that took some time to resolve; as a result, customers were forced to pay cash at all PetroChina gas stations until the ransom had been paid.

Spain also reported an attack against Telefónica, a large telecom organization. Their experts were able to determine that the attacks were spread through a vulnerability called “EternalBlue.” Their IT department quickly created a patch to prevent the bug from spreading.

Controlled Folder Access For Windows 10

All of these attacks were launched against Windows-based systems, leaving IT security experts at Microsoft to take quick action to develop and release patches and other tools to stop cybercriminals. The fall updates to Windows 10 included many new improvements aimed at providing a much higher level of protection. One of these, known as Windows 10 FCU, has proven especially useful. Also known as Controlled Folder Access, this update protects files and folders from ransomware attacks using a simple methodology.

The exploit is based on the fact that most Windows programs have access to all files and folders on a computer system, which made it much too easy for hackers to gain access to those files and wreak havoc. Unrestricted access to files and folders might be convenient for users, but it opens the door to virus and ransomware attacks.

Customizing Your Operating System

Though many users are not aware, Windows gives you the ability to greatly customize your operating system, including the capability to take action to protect your data from hackers. Using Controlled Folder Access, you can modify access to your important data, so that these files are given an extra layer of protection. If any program tries to modify files that have been placed in the “protected folder”, they will be blocked. This feature is found in Windows Defender.

Follow these steps to enable Controlled Folder Access on your computer:

1. Type Windows Defender in your start menu. This opens the Windows Defender Security System.
2. Navigate to the left panel and find Virus and Threat Protection. If it isn’t listed there on the left, then type “virus and threat protection” in the settings search box at the top left.
3. Click on Virus and Threat Protection Settings. This may appear in a new dialog box or on the right side of the Virus and Threat Protection page.
4. Scroll down and find “Controlled Folder Access”. Toggle the button to “On”. This enables the Controlled Folder Access feature.

Granting manual access to programs

The most significant drawback to using this feature is that some of your favorite apps or programs may be blocked. The solution is simple: Manually grant access for these programs. Just below the toggle button, you’ll find a link called, “Allow an app through Controlled folder access”. Click on that and a new dialog box appears. Now click the “Plus” sign out beside “Add an allowed app”.

The familiar “Open a File” window on your computer will automatically open, giving you the ability to click on whatever file, folder or program you would like to exclude. Navigate to the EXE file and then click on “Open”. You have successfully added this program to your exclusions list.

This works for all your favorite programs like Photoshop, Dragon Naturally Speaking, and Quickbooks. Please note that Windows has its own list of “safe” programs that are already included, so there’s no need to grant manual access to programs like Excel and Publisher.

For more information about the latest IT security threats and how to protect you and your business against them, get in touch with our team of cyber security experts.