PUT THE LID ON ILLEGAL FILE SHARING & MUSIC DOWNLOADING FROM YOUR NETWORK! One cannot emphasize in strong enough terms, the legal risk you place yourself in by allowing kids, family members, Staff members, etc...to illegally download copyrighted files through your Internet connection. The Courts have been crystal clear on this... It is no longer tolerated, period! Fines are now averaging about $25,000 PER SONG not to mention the legal fees for defending against a Federal suit. Since you own the Internet connection, it is now assumed that it is under your control. Make no mistake, they are suing grandmothers for $250,000 because her grandson downloaded music on a visit... She lost her defense! Business fines are even heftier because, they should know better. STOP IT NOW and protect your assets from huge and unneeded legal action. If you're not sure what to look for, get help from a professional to help discover these programs.
Beyond these steps are a multitude of actions that can be taken depending upon the individual needs of your operation. Most will require outside experience to tackle. But doing at least the above essentials will get your business moving towards the goal of Technology Security.
More to come... Stay tuned.
Beyond these steps are a multitude of actions that can be taken depending upon the individual needs of your operation. Most will require outside experience to tackle. But doing at least the above essentials will get your business moving towards the goal of Technology Security.
More to come... Stay tuned.
Tech -Tools™...About Security - Take It Seriously!
Not many people give a second thought to their Tech Security (or lack of it). Yet in today's world, with new Federal Regulations in place, avoiding this subject can put everything you've worked hard for at risk!
For instance your Internet provider, knows the page you left to come to a site from, and the page you go to when you leave a site. Which pages within the site you visit and of course how long you stay on each. What you click on and much more All necessary for server upkeep.
In the hands of the wrong people, and if you don't take proper precautions, this info can allow hackers to violate your privacy, or worse, expose your bank account logins and passwords, credit card information and other personal or business data to thieves who'll use or sell it to the world.
So What Is The Solution?
As a Business Technology Consultant and Web Developer, I have seen the best and the absolute worst security in homes and Businesses. The range is amazing. Obviously, big corporations take this very seriously, but SMB's and SOHO businesses tend not to consider it as much, if at all. Yet on a percentage basis, smaller operations can lose much more, if their computers or networks get compromised and sensitive data gets exposed to the wrong people.
The answer is that there is no panacea solution to Technology Security! It always depends on how each situation is configured, the Privacy needs, employees involved, and the existing computer and network equipment that is in place. Below are a few of the first steps you can take to begin:
First Steps...
As with any endeavor, getting overwhelmed is easy, staying focused on the objective and working through the necessary steps is essential. The first step is to get an inventory of what you already have. Computers, network gear, operating systems, software used, existing Security and of course the users and their necessities to perform their work. Without this step, all else is just throwing money at the situation with no direction at all, hoping something will work... Not a good strategy!
Next a review of the findings from the survey, will reveal the good, bad and ugly. This is crucial to planning a Security road map. When this step is completed, it can usually reveal what expenses can be expected and the type of time frame that will be needed to bring you up to snuff.
Replacing antiquated network gear and old computers running outdated operating systems can be a huge step in the right direction as well. But, be prudent so as not to waste good budget dollars on superfluous things and then come up short on essentials. Let's look at the most inexpensive first...
INSURE THAT YOUR ANTIVIRUS PROGRAMS ARE CURRENT & UP TO DATE ON ALL COMPUTERS IN YOUR HOME & OFFICE Remember, AntiVirus programs are only as good as your last update! With over 6000 new Viruses and other threats discovered EACH MONTH, you just cannot operate without a tested and effective AntiVirus program. Leaving even one computer in a network with an out dated AntiVirus program will lead to an infection that can spread through the entire network. You don't want to send other offices infected files either, it looks pretty unprofessional. DO THIS NOW as a first action towards Securing your home or business.
INSTALL ALL UPDATES TO OPERATING SYSTEMS Go to Windows Update (or Apple Update if you use a MAC) and download and install them. They are absolutely necessary to plug holes that hackers have found to exploit the system and get in through. DO THIS NOW to stop clever people. If you can't get them anymore, it's time to replace the computer with a more modern one.
IF YOU DON"T HAVE A PASSWORD TO LOG INTO YOUR COMPUTER... YOU"RE CRAZY! This is the most overlooked and simplest step people can do to stop stupid people from getting into your computer. It keeps honest people honest and acts as a last line of defense against intruders. You'd be surprised how many business people think it takes too much time to log in and out. How much time is a court case, lawsuit or having to reconstruct your data going to waste...DO IT NOW!
A FIREWALL IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY Without one, you expose your computer to the outside world. Your computer's IP address is then a perfect target for hackers and casual lookers to investigate for anything valuable they might find. A business without a Firewall is a disaster waiting.
Another benefit to a good Firewall is that you can log when & where people inside your offices are browsing to on the Internet, during the workday. Maybe you don't care if they shop online, download illegal music to your office computers, etc... but the Recording Industry Assn. does. They file suit with $25,000 fines per song and believe me, they win because it was your business network, your employees and you legally had control during work hours and didn't stop it GET A FIREWALL NOW!
WIRELESS SECURITY IS ESSENTIAL! If you're not sure, get it checked out now. We've all read and heard about the 40 million credit cards stolen from bank ATM machines. The wireless network connections were insecure and allowed hackers to sit and grab the signal out of the air. A 15 year old knows how with a little free software off the Internet. Business records, Patient records are all at potential risk without securing the wireless connections in your home or offices. DO IT NOW! New laws put you squarely responsible for not having adequate Wireless Security to secure legally protected data.
In the hands of the wrong people, and if you don't take proper precautions, this info can allow hackers to violate your privacy, or worse, expose your bank account logins and passwords, credit card information and other personal or business data to thieves who'll use or sell it to the world.
So What Is The Solution?
As a Business Technology Consultant and Web Developer, I have seen the best and the absolute worst security in homes and Businesses. The range is amazing. Obviously, big corporations take this very seriously, but SMB's and SOHO businesses tend not to consider it as much, if at all. Yet on a percentage basis, smaller operations can lose much more, if their computers or networks get compromised and sensitive data gets exposed to the wrong people.
The answer is that there is no panacea solution to Technology Security! It always depends on how each situation is configured, the Privacy needs, employees involved, and the existing computer and network equipment that is in place. Below are a few of the first steps you can take to begin:
First Steps...
As with any endeavor, getting overwhelmed is easy, staying focused on the objective and working through the necessary steps is essential. The first step is to get an inventory of what you already have. Computers, network gear, operating systems, software used, existing Security and of course the users and their necessities to perform their work. Without this step, all else is just throwing money at the situation with no direction at all, hoping something will work... Not a good strategy!
Next a review of the findings from the survey, will reveal the good, bad and ugly. This is crucial to planning a Security road map. When this step is completed, it can usually reveal what expenses can be expected and the type of time frame that will be needed to bring you up to snuff.
Replacing antiquated network gear and old computers running outdated operating systems can be a huge step in the right direction as well. But, be prudent so as not to waste good budget dollars on superfluous things and then come up short on essentials. Let's look at the most inexpensive first...
INSURE THAT YOUR ANTIVIRUS PROGRAMS ARE CURRENT & UP TO DATE ON ALL COMPUTERS IN YOUR HOME & OFFICE Remember, AntiVirus programs are only as good as your last update! With over 6000 new Viruses and other threats discovered EACH MONTH, you just cannot operate without a tested and effective AntiVirus program. Leaving even one computer in a network with an out dated AntiVirus program will lead to an infection that can spread through the entire network. You don't want to send other offices infected files either, it looks pretty unprofessional. DO THIS NOW as a first action towards Securing your home or business.
INSTALL ALL UPDATES TO OPERATING SYSTEMS Go to Windows Update (or Apple Update if you use a MAC) and download and install them. They are absolutely necessary to plug holes that hackers have found to exploit the system and get in through. DO THIS NOW to stop clever people. If you can't get them anymore, it's time to replace the computer with a more modern one.
IF YOU DON"T HAVE A PASSWORD TO LOG INTO YOUR COMPUTER... YOU"RE CRAZY! This is the most overlooked and simplest step people can do to stop stupid people from getting into your computer. It keeps honest people honest and acts as a last line of defense against intruders. You'd be surprised how many business people think it takes too much time to log in and out. How much time is a court case, lawsuit or having to reconstruct your data going to waste...DO IT NOW!
A FIREWALL IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY Without one, you expose your computer to the outside world. Your computer's IP address is then a perfect target for hackers and casual lookers to investigate for anything valuable they might find. A business without a Firewall is a disaster waiting.
Another benefit to a good Firewall is that you can log when & where people inside your offices are browsing to on the Internet, during the workday. Maybe you don't care if they shop online, download illegal music to your office computers, etc... but the Recording Industry Assn. does. They file suit with $25,000 fines per song and believe me, they win because it was your business network, your employees and you legally had control during work hours and didn't stop it GET A FIREWALL NOW!
WIRELESS SECURITY IS ESSENTIAL! If you're not sure, get it checked out now. We've all read and heard about the 40 million credit cards stolen from bank ATM machines. The wireless network connections were insecure and allowed hackers to sit and grab the signal out of the air. A 15 year old knows how with a little free software off the Internet. Business records, Patient records are all at potential risk without securing the wireless connections in your home or offices. DO IT NOW! New laws put you squarely responsible for not having adequate Wireless Security to secure legally protected data.
No matter where you go on the Internet, people know more about you than you think. For example, this is your info:
Your IP Address is:
You're using the following Operating System & Browser:
Not rocket science, a 13 year old has access to your info. All servers collect even more info that you don't even realize.
Tech - Tools™ ©2010 D. Merritt BrainBoxUSA.com All Rights Reserved
Another issue is "War Driving"; a term that has long historical roots, but has taken on a new meaning. The process is fairly straight forward, you download & install free wireless network detection software from the Internet, grab your laptop and go for a drive. Any wireless network will pop up in the software and even tell if it's secured or not. Here's the rub, if an unscrupulous person was going to commit a crime over the Internet, they'll want to use your wireless network to do it instead of theirs. This way, when the "Karl Malden hat" guys show up from the FBI, they'll come to your home & office instead of theirs! No trace to them will be found, and you'll end up burning time & money trying to explain to the government why the crime was committed through your connection! SECURE IT NOW!