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  • Six things you need to do to prepare for, prevent and minimise the damage of a cyberattack

    12 Feb, 2020

    When it comes to cybersecurity, the best defence is a good offence.

    Here are six tips that can help you mitigate the impact of an attack on you. 

     

    Cybercrime has become a global epidemic and shows no signs of slowing down. Indeed, the latest research from IBM and the Ponemon Institute found that the average cost of a data breach is $3.9 million and that it takes 279 days on average to identify and contain a breach—279 days!

    Statistically speaking, without the right people, processes, and technology in play, your networks are likely to have been compromised already—and you may not even know it. And we do mean “you.”

    As with many things in life, when it comes to cybersecurity, the best defence is a good offence. Don’t wait for the attack; take a threat-focused approach to defending yourself and find trouble before trouble finds you.

    Here are six tips that can help you better prepare, prevent, and minimise the damage from a cybersecurity attack and get back to business as soon as possible:

    1. Raise awareness. It’s important for everyone in the organisation to be savvy and alert about security issues. This means watching for phishing scams sent through email and messaging apps that appear genuine but are actually attempts to retrieve credentials or sensitive data or release malware into the system.

    2. Be ready to document everything you know and everything you do. Many countries and industries have regulations and other laws that require reporting unauthorised network access or data breaches. Documenting what happened and each remediation step is a necessary part of preparing for that reporting. It also allows you to do a post mortem and ask, “What can we do better or different in the future to minimise our risk of another breach?”

    3. Follow the 3-2-1 rule. The most significant difference between those who end up having to pay a ransom vs. those who don’t is their backups. Many companies take it for granted that their data is backed up regularly, and they learn otherwise when they need to do a restore. In the case of ransomware, it’s important to distinguish between data synchronisation in the cloud and a valid backup. In the former scenario, infected data sets can be uploaded to the cloud and can overwrite good data. With a true backup, which follows the 3-2-1 backup rule, you’ll avoid this problem. The 3-2-1 backup rule means you should have three copies of your data and store the copies on two different media, and keep one backup copy offsite.

    4. Purchase a Cyber Insurance policy. If you do experience a cyber breach, a solid Cyber insurance policy will cover your losses and costs to repair the damage.

    5. Isolate the problem. Make sure that infected devices are taken off the network and shut down whenever possible until they can be diagnosed. The longer the infected machine remains online, the more potential it has to affect others and exacerbate the situation.

    6. Lockout further damage. If personal or company identity data is stolen, immediately notify your bank or your customer’s bank, credit card companies, and credit monitoring agencies. This will limit the thieves’ ability to continue using the stolen data.

    As we continue to become more reliant on technology, cybercrime will continue to rise. Start being proactive about your cybersecurity now!

    If you would like any more information, help or advice on this matter, call Blutone on 1300 660 139, and we'll be happy to help.

     

     

  • Ransomware Scams – How to Secure Yourself

    03 Feb, 2020

    If you’re looking at this Meme thinking that “Fishing” has been misspelt and what’s Bill Lumbergh problem with fishing, then you’re not alone. Most people are unware of phishing and other Ransomware scams until it is too late and their computer is affected.

    Ransomware is a nasty piece of software distributed by Cyber Criminals that basically holds your device hostage until you pay ransom. This software will usually lock your device or files with a password and cyber criminals will demand you pay up to receive the required password to unlock your device.

    Taking these steps will ensure you protect yourself from Ransomware:

    1.      When checking email, never click on a link until you’ve looked into it. Mouse over the link and see what URL comes up and check the sender’s address if it arrives in an email.

    2.      Use an Anti-virus Security program that includes both firewall and antiphising to protect against external IT attacks.

    3.      Make sure your Operating System and all other software are up-to-date.

    Internet security is more important than ever. The only sure way to ensure 100% protection is to disconnect your Internet cable, but that’s like disconnecting someone’s life support in this day and age.

    Instead, be proactive, follow the steps outlined above and if you’re still unsure, give Blutone Technologies a call on 1300 660 139 and we’ll be more than happy to listen to your situation and recommend you the best solution.

    Be sure to watch this video created by the Australian Cyber Security Centre for more information on Ransomware

     

  • Five Reasons Small Businesses need a Managed Service Provider

    03 Feb, 2020

    If you are a small business, chances are that you do not have an IT department or staff. Hiring full time dedicated IT staff can be costly. So how do you monitor your network? Protect yourself from cyber-attacks and viruses? Ensure all of your software is up-to-date? Provide desktop support to your staff? Select new technology?

    In too many cases the answer is not very well or not at all. Blutone Technologies is a Managed Service Provider (MSP) that understand the IT needs of our small business clients very well. Our motto is “Run your Business, not your IT Systems”. We get that your time is best spent running and growing your business, and outsourcing your IT needs is a smart play.

    Here are 5 reasons why we believe small business should outsource the management of their IT:

      1.       Reduce Downtime

     

    Being proactive and having an MSP monitor your IT systems, allows businesses to react quickly and efficiently when problems arise. The MSP will have a team of experts on standby to assist with any IT emergency such as power failures, security breaches, data loss or other disasters that could damage accounts and cause customers to question credibility. The MSP will be familiar with your IT network and work fast to prevent the kind of damaging impact a downtime event could have on your business.

    In 2016, the Emerson study showed that unplanned outages lasted 130 minutes totalling $946,788. That is just a little over $7,200 per minute of downtime. With an MSP, downtime situations are handled immediately, and systems are restored rapidly, saving your time and reputation.

     

      2.       Save Money

     

    Many IT budgets consist of hardware costs, software and network costs, cloud solutions costs, labour and maintenance, to name a few. These resources are all vital to keep your network up and running to the best of its ability. Most of the time, smaller companies are outsourcing each of these items individually, which can start to add up. With an MSP, the team of experts will create a roadmap of service costs and needs for your business. This roadmap allows you to know all costs associated with your network and plan accordingly each month, which in turn can provide cost savings.

     

      3.       Team of Experts

     

    When you outsource to an MSP, you suddenly have a team of experts at your fingertips. These experts have a working knowledge of your business available to help troubleshoot and remediate issues that arise within your business. They are on call to answer any questions, help your company stay up to date with the latest technology trends and create solutions that ensure uptime and profitability for your business. They also can assist in specialised projects and consult with you on any other network-related tasks. For small businesses, this is another key to business success.

     

      4.       Employee Productivity

     

    As a small business, your employees are the heart and soul of your organisation. In most small companies, your most significant monthly cost is employees, so why not make sure that they have the resources they need while at work? Depending on your business, it is likely that most of your employees are using technology to do their job. If their computer is infected with a virus or suddenly crashes, they can’t work. Taking a proactive approach to having an MSP on call allows this problem to be handled fast. This also helps keep your employees happy and productive, with peace of mind knowing their issue will be taken care of swiftly and they can get back to work in no time.

     

      5.       Up To Date Technology

     

    As technology evolves, so should your business. MSPs allow your business to adapt to the latest technologies as they become available. Your team of experts keep you up to date on the latest cloud solutions, handle network security, and more. You can expect them to be in the know of the most recent and best software applications and modern programs.

    As cybercrimes continue to grow and evolve, your team of experts can provide the latest information on how to best protect yourself and your network from threats. Your experts can work with you and your employees directly on how to spot and avoid cybercrime.

     

    Why Choose Blutone as your Managed Service Provider?

     

    At Blutone, our customers are our family. It truly gives us happiness when our customers thank us for the help we provide. We want your business to grow and succeed, and we recognise that businesses today need technology to make this happen, that is why we have created this service.

    For as little as $40 per month, Blutone Technologies will be your IT Concierge and give you peace of mind knowing that we’ll take care of any IT issues that arise.

    Call us on 1300 660 139 or click here to learn about how we can help you and try us out for FREE for 30 days.

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