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February 23, 2021 In IT Security Services, Managed IT Services By admin

3 Steps You Must Take to Prevent Remote Shadow IT

Shadow IT is no laughing matter, despite its overly theatrical name, as it describes the rogue technology and software being used in your business without being cleared or vetted. While it has always been a problem with in-house operations, the widespread adoption of remote work has made it even more dangerous.

Let’s examine how businesses can fight the phenomenon of shadow IT through trust management and communication.

Why is Shadow IT a Big Deal Right Now?

Considering how many people have been forced to embrace remote operations with the rise of COVID-19 making office work far more dangerous, it is no wonder that many people are improvising as they try to work in an unsure and unfamiliar way.

Unfortunately, this improvisation has led to some of them introducing unvetted software onto the devices they are doing work on without clearing it with IT. In doing so, they could easily expose your business to a hidden threat or vulnerability… all unbeknownst to you. While there are solutions available to help you minimize these risks, one of the best means of reducing the risk of shadow IT is to create a relationship between your team and your IT resource that is founded on trust.

Helping IT and Business Users Act as One

As mobile solutions have become more common over the years, the endpoint management solution has become a critical tool that enables a business to retain control over its technology, even when that technology is being used remotely. This technology can be used to accomplish various business-centric objectives:

  • Remotely locking or wiping a device
  • Installing applications and updates
  • Access to push messaging services
  • Blocking non-business essential features and applications

As a result, this technology has the capability to fulfill a variety of business needs, assuming that it is properly managed by the organization leveraging it.

How Remote Devices Need to Be Managed

There are multiple steps to properly managing remote devices used for work purposes.

  1. Take an Inventory: The first thing you’ll need to do (if you haven’t already) is compile a comprehensive list of all devices used for work purposes—company-owned and personal devices included. This will assist you in establishing who needs remote access to what resources, and where this remote access will be established.
  2. Design Access Permissions Based on Roles: Once you know who will be using what, it is important that you limit a user’s remote access to company data, just as you should in the office itself. The rule of least permissions is a good one to follow here, where information is only shared on a “need to know” basis. Of course, we’re only talking about this regarding your business’ sensitive data. You should always keep clear and open communications with your team members when it comes to business matters.
  3. Tell Your Team Why It’s Important: We all remember those rules that we had as kids that didn’t make sense to us at the time, simply because we didn’t understand the reasoning behind them. If you aren’t transparent with your team about why they have the solutions they do, they will be more likely to seek out alternatives when they encounter obstacles.

Of course, this all means that you should encourage that communication between your operational team and your IT team should take place whenever it is needed and that you have provided them with the preferred tools and training to complete their tasks appropriately.

Net Activity can help. Not only can we provide the technology your remote team needs to be productive, we’ll also help to support them as they do so with our managed IT services. To learn more about what we offer, give us a call at 216-503-5150.

 

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February 22, 2021 In Managed IT Services By Netactivity

5 Ways Your Employees are Probably Putting your Company Data at Risk

The biggest block to protecting your company’s data is employee ignorance about cybersecurity. In fact, your employees are probably compromising your data right now and aren’t even aware of it.

In case you haven’t read the reports, a statement from one of the many companies recently forced to close its doors following a cyber-attack involving one of their own employees brings the point home:

“Code Spaces will not be able to operate beyond this point. The cost of resolving this issue and the expected cost of refunding customers who have been left without the service they paid for will put Code Spaces in an irreversible position both financially and in terms of ongoing credibility.

”Root cause of the disaster? Very likely a phishing attack that one of their own team members unwittingly played a key role in. If you want even a ghost of a chance that your data remains safe and secure, you MUST be aware of the five ways your employees are probably putting your company at risk right now:

Risky Passcode Practices

A good rule of thumb is, if you can recall a password, it’s probably not safe. Require the use of a random password generator to keep weak passcodes from being the weak link in your data’s defenses. Invest in a company-wide password protection system. And wherever possible, use two-factor authentication for logins to critical sites.

Working Outside A Secured Network

It’s great that your team loves to collaborate. Just make sure it’s done in a secure network. E-mail-sharing and file-sharing over a non-secured network can lead to leaks. Train your team to share sensitive messages

only within a secure company network. Even better, invest in encryption and collaboration tools that keep your data extra-safe while in transit. After all, great teams need to collaborate. Just make sure it’s getting done without putting your data at risk.

 E-mail Naïveté

Most people are aware by now that clicking on unknown links in an e-mail can lead to trouble. Yet clever hackers are sending ever more appealing e-mails that trick the unwary into clicking. Insist that no attachments from unknown sources are to be opened. And require that users on your network look up unknown links before blindly clicking on them.

Unattended Devices

Walking away from an open laptop in a coffee shop is a recipe for disaster. Yet even at the office, stepping away from a workstation can expose sensitive data to snoops. Insist that wherever your team works, they maintain complete visual control over any screen showing confidential company data.

Malicious Acts

You may find it hard to believe, but employees leaking critical data on purpose happens all the time. It may be for a personal venture –or a personal vendetta against your company. Regardless of the cause, it’s always a risk. And you may not see it coming. Safeguard all data coming into or going out from your company. And always change access codes whenever someone leaves your employ –willingly or unwillingly.

So…how can you protect your business from employee error?

The thing about cyber security is that it’s a lot more complicated than most people are willing to admit. Today’s digital landscape is fraught with hazards, a thousand little mistakes to be made at every step, resulting in a million workarounds for cyber criminals to use. Even the most tech-savvy among us probably don’t know everything about cyber security, and very few have as much knowledge as the hackers on the other end of the equation. When you consider the uncertainty and potential miseducation of your employees, many of whom probably know next to nothing about cyber security, you might start to feel a little panicked.

The battle against digital threats can seem like an endless slog – a war that the good guys seem to be losing – but luckily, when it comes to the security of your business, there are ways to batten down the hatches without dropping a ton of cash. For instance, start with your biggest vulnerability: your team. When a new employee joins your organization, they should go through a thorough cyber security training. Their welcome forms should include comprehensive rules about security policies, from using strong passwords to how they should respond to potential phishing attempts. Deviating from these policies should come with serious consequences.

As for your existing employees, train them up! We can help you build a robust education program to get every single member of your organization up to speed on the most imminent cyber security threats. But even then, cyber security isn’t a one-and-done kind of thing; it requires constant vigilance, regular updates on the latest trends and a consistent overall commitment to protecting your livelihood. Without training and follow-up, even the most powerful of cyber security barriers are basically tissue paper, so put some thought into your team in addition to your protections, and you can drastically increase the safety of the business you’ve worked so hard to build.

Don’t Fight This Battle Alone

Protecting company data in today’s fluid and fast-changing business environment is tough work. If you don’t have a robust protection plan in place, your critical data IS at risk. Get started with our guide to securing your digital landscape “Bringing Shadow IT Into the Light.” Download it here.

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February 18, 2021 In Managed IT Services, Office 365 By admin

Power BI helps you make better business decisions

People have always been intrigued by what the future holds. But while seers use crystal balls and tarot cards to get a glimpse of what’s to come, business leaders shouldn’t have to base their business forecasts on pseudoscience. Instead, they should use a scientific tool that collects and analyzes data to do reliable predictive forecasting, such as Microsoft’s Power BI.

Power BI is a separate Microsoft product on its own, but if you have a Microsoft 365 Enterprise E5 subscription, then you can avail of Power BI for Microsoft 365. Both versions use a variety of statistical techniques, such as modeling and data mining, to analyze current and previous information to make accurate predictions. Power BI also provides users with the ability to generate reports, interactive charts, and 3D visualizations of business performance.

What’s more, Power BI’s built-in predictive forecasting models can automatically detect data seasonality, allowing users to immediately see the annual, regular, and predictable changes in data. It also enables users to see how results are affected by certain parameters. All they have to do is set parameters such as the time or the confidence interval according to their preferred configuration, and the software will analyze data accordingly. Simply put, users can perform advanced forecasting without the complexity that usually accompanies these kinds of processes.

Power BI’s predictive forecasting can also help fill in gaps with data. Power View, an interactive data exploration and presentation tool, fills in missing values from a data set before carrying out a forecast for a more accurate result.

Get started with Power BI for Microsoft 365 predictive forecasting by doing the following:

  1. Upload a workbook with a Power View time series line chart to Power BI for Microsoft 365.
  2. Open the file in Power BI.
  3. Click on the forecast arrow or drag the forecast dot in the line chart to make the forecasting parameters appear in the Analytics pane at the right of your report. To get your desired forecast or projection, configure the following parameters:
    • Forecast length – This lets you look as far into the future as you wish, be it in days, months, or years.
    • Confidence interval – This parameter allows you to indicate the probability of how close predicted values will be to the actual numbers. For instance, you can set the parameter at 80% to be certain that next year’s actual sales figures will be 80% within the range of your forecast. The higher the confidence interval, the closer the prediction is to the actual results.
    • Ignore last – Outliers in data sets can distort averages and forecasts. For instance, you want to look into sales for the past 12 months, but you know that the data of every month goes through adjustments before being locked in. With this parameter, you can take out data from the most recent month if the numbers haven’t been adjusted yet.
    • Seasonality – A data set is said to exhibit seasonality when a pattern can be discerned from the data values over cycles of time. If you anticipate seasonality in a particular workbook, you can specify the pattern to occur monthly, quarterly, or yearly.

Predictive forecasting, if used properly, can immensely help with the overall strategic planning, market penetration, and operations of your business.

Looking to learn more about Microsoft 365 and its features? Call Net Activity today for a chat.

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February 15, 2021 In Managed IT Services By admin

Are your Windows 10 Updates Taking too Long? Here’s what You Need to Do

Windows 10 users are well aware that installing updates can take a long time. We hear users complaining about it all the time. Why are Windows 10 updates so slow, and what can users do to speed things up? Here’s our take.

Windows 10 updates take a while to complete because Microsoft is constantly adding larger files and features to the operating system. The biggest updates, released in the spring and fall of every year, take upwards of four hours to install if there are no unexpected glitches. The process takes even longer if you have a fragmented or nearly full hard drive.

In addition to the large files and numerous features included in Windows 10 updates, internet speed can significantly affect installation times. This is especially true if your office network is overburdened by multiple people downloading the update at the same time.

However, if you still experience slow speed even when there aren’t simultaneous downloads, then it’s likely that there is a problem that is preventing the installation from running smoothly.

When you experience slow updates, try the following:

Free up storage space and defragment your hard drive

Windows 10 updates often take up a lot of hard drive space, so you need to make room for them to speed up the installation. This means deleting old files and uninstalling software you no longer need.

You’ll also want to defragment your hard drive, a process that organizes how data is stored on your hard drive so it can create, open, and save files faster. Defragmenting a drive is as easy as pressing the Windows button and typing Defragment and Optimize Drives. From there, just select the hard drive, click Analyze, and if the drive is more than 10% fragmented, press Optimize.

Run Windows Update Troubleshooter

If faulty software components are causing installation problems, Windows Update Troubleshooter may be able to fix the issue and decrease download and install times. Simply press the Windows button and type Troubleshoot Settings. That will open a new window with an option for Windows Update.

Disable startup software

Before your update begins, you should also disable third-party applications that might cause disruptions. To do this, press and hold Ctrl + Shift + Escape to access the Task Manager. In the window that opens, click the tab labeled Startup. This will show you all the apps that have permission to open themselves when you log in to Windows 10. Right-click any apps that aren’t important and select Disable (don’t disable Microsoft tasks) to speed up the update installation process.

Optimize your network

Sometimes, a faster connection is all you need. Consider upgrading to a fiber optic connection or purchasing more bandwidth from your internet service provider. It’s also a good idea to use bandwidth management tools to make sure sufficient network resources are reserved for things like Windows 10 updates, rather than bandwidth hogs like Microsoft Teams or YouTube.

Schedule updates for low-traffic periods

Massive updates with long installation times are unavoidable sometimes. So instead of installing them during the day, schedule them for after-hours when your computers and office network aren’t in use. Go to Settings > Update & Security and specify when you prefer updates to be installed.

If you need help with any of the tips above, we’re always here to help. Call us today to discuss your Microsoft needs!

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