3 “Techie” Reasons You Can Be Thankful This Season

1 .  Cyber Thieves Keep A-Knockin’ But They Can’t Come In. A study presented at the International Conference on Dependable Systems and Networks showed that small business networks are attacked every 39 seconds by some type of hacker or malicious software. Thankfully, having the proper firewall and office network security tools can prevent even the most determined cyber hacker from getting his hands on your network. Are your systems covered?

 
2.  Downtime Should Be A Thing Of The Past. Thanks to monitoring and maintenance tools that are openly available, any reputable computer company can now actually notice when things go awry and prevent your computers from having issues. Hot fixes, patches and security updates are generally items that, when maintained on a regular basis, keep a network healthy and up and running. If, for some reason, your network still has some kind of downtime, cloud-based remote management tools allow your IT professional to access your system from anywhere, getting you up and running more quickly than ever before.

3.  If Disaster Strikes, You Can Be Back Up & Running In Minutes Instead Of Days. In addition to lost data, many businesses’ operations would be completely down for days or weeks if a major disaster like fire, flood or theft ever occurred. Here’s where Backup & Disaster Recovery solutions (BDR) can help you feel very thankful indeed. Most of today’s BDR solutions include a “virtualization” component, which means an exact “picture” of your server and computers is taken throughout the day and stored elsewhere. If you ever need to get back up and running, your IT company simply restores that image…and you’re back in business.

Here’s what you’ll receive with your FREE Network & Security Assessment:

• Check your firewall’s security settings to make sure you are protected from the latest hacker attacks, worms and viruses.

• Scan and remove spyware that is secretly stealing your company’s bandwidth, jeopardizing the speed of your computer system, and embezzling confidential information about you, your employees, and your business.

• Check your network’s back-up system to ensure it is working properly and accurately backing up all of the critical files and information you never want to lose.

• Verify that you have the most up-to-date security patches installed properly; miss one critical update and you’re a “sitting duck”.

• Diagnose slow, unstable PCs.

• Perform a quick network “tune-up” to make programs and files load faster.

Want to feel thankful instead of frustrated with your computers? Call us before November 30 for a FREE
Problem Prevention Network Assessment (a $497 value) that will help eliminate problems on your network and give you peace of mind. Give us a call today at 305-600-5459 or request your audit online at: http://www.virtualitmanagers.com/free-network-analysis-and-security-assessment/ to get started.

How Fast Could Your Business Be Back Up And Running After A Natural Disaster, Server Crash, Virus Attack Or Other Data-Erasing Catastrophe (2017)?

5 Easy Things You Should Do To Protect Your Business Now

Let’s face it: no one likes to think about bad things happening to them, much less plan for them. But, we want to give you a quick “brush-up” on some simple things you can (and should!) be doing to protect your business.

1. Review Your Business Insurance Carefully. Most businesses carry some type of general liability insurance that would pay them if their building and the things in it were damaged. However, many businesses do not have enough coverage to replace all the computer equipment and devices, desks, art, supplies and other things they’ve accumulated over the years that are housed in their office. Make sure you review your policy every year and keep in mind new additions and assets you’ve accumulated during that year.

2. Consider Cloud Computing. One of the biggest advantages of cloud computing is that your data and assets are stored off-site in a highly secure, high-availability data center, with failover and redundancy built in. That means that if your building were destroyed and you had to evacuate, or if your server melted down due to an unexpected hardware failure, everything you’ve worked so hard to create over the years is safe and not a sitting duck in your unsecured closet or server room.

3. Secure Your Data. Making sure that your data is protected from theft is a never-ending battle you don’t want to lose. Companies that get hacked and expose sensitive client and employee data can face severe penalties, lawsuits and massive loss of credibility in the marketplace. Make sure you never have to send an e-mail to your customers explaining the bad news that a hacker accessed their info through you. Further, if you keep any sensitive information (even passwords to portals containing sensitive information) on portable laptops, phones and other devices, make sure you have a way of controlling and safeguarding that information.

4. Write A Simple Disaster Recovery Plan. The key word here is “simple.” If your plan gets too complicated or difficult, you won’t do it. But at a minimum, think of the disaster that is most likely to happen and that would have a severe and negative impact on your company’s survival.

5. Review Your Employee Internet Policy. With so many people “addicted” to Facebook and Twitter, it’s important that your employees know where the line is in what they can and can’t post online. We also recommend content-filtering software to block content and web sites you don’t want employees visiting during work hours.

Call us during this month and we’ll give you a Disaster Recovery Business Assessment for FREE (a $497 value)!

Claim your FREE Disaster Recovery Assessment and get answers to these critical questions:

• How fast could you realistically be back up and running in the event of any natural or human disaster?

• What backup, security and business continuity systems do you currently have in place, and are they sufficient?

• Is all of your critical data being backed up, every day?

• What are the largest threats to the security and integrity of your critical business data?

• Do you know what steps and costs would be involved to rebuild your server and recover your data if you had to?

Claim Your Audit Now:

1.  http://virtualitmanagers.com/disaster-recovery-and-business-continuity-planning/

2.  Call: 786-488-2760

Why Your Company Needs An Internet Use Policy

With computers and Internet access such an integral part of every business, and the Internet filled with everything from gambling to x-rated websites, it is critical that every business has an Internet Use Policy in place. This policy can help prevent your employees from accidentally or intentionally causing harm to your company or your company’s reputation. While you don’t want to give your employees the idea that they are living in George Orwell’s 1984, you want them to have a clear understanding of practices that are and are not appropriate during work hours. It is necessary for companies to create an Internet policy that everyone can live with.

Why Have An Internet Use Policy?

The purpose of a business is to make money. In order to accomplish this, the company has to have productive employees. The Internet can be a time drain and often prevent employees from being as productive as they should be. With such a wide range of information available on the Internet, it is necessary to clarify the company’s expectations of its employees regarding Internet access. With a strong policy in place, the employee, as well as the employer, will find Internet use less confusing and frustrating.

Another important reason to have a strong Internet Use Policy is to save your company from unnecessary lawsuits. Unless you have a clear policy on what is and is not acceptable on the Internet in your company, you can risk having an unfair dismissal lawsuit on your hands when an employee is abusing the company’s Internet.

What Elements Should Your Internet Usage Policy Contain?

When planning your Internet Use Policy, it should contain certain key elements such as:

• The company Internet is for company business only and to be used only during company business hours
• All work done on company computers during business hours, including all emails, is company property and can be accessed by the employer at any time.
• Establish what type of computer use is unacceptable such as accessing personal social media accounts, personal email, pornographic websites, etc.
• Employees must refrain from accessing websites, creating, or forwarding email that promotes any type of discrimination such as racial or sexual discrimination, or that is defamatory or harmful towards another person or group.
• Employees are not allowed to gain access to or attempt to access other employee’s computers, employee stored information, or any information unauthorized by the company.

In addition to the guidelines above, inform your employees that whatever is done by the company, for the company, and on the company computers should remain confidential and within the confines of the company. In addition, let employees know that when they access unapproved sites, they risk infecting the company computer system with viruses that could possibly shut down the entire company network.

Having an Internet use policy in place helps to eliminate any confusion and possible abuse that could prevent a company from functioning productively. A solid Internet use policy help to make the work environment more pleasant and more conducive to getting the necessary work done in order to have a successful business. Creating a safe and productive environment is important for any business, and one way to ensure that is to implement an Internet use policy.

Click here to learn how Virtual IT Managers, Inc. can help you benefit from an Internet Use Policy with our Technology Consulting Services in Miami, FL and surrounding cities.