What are they? Phishing scams are cyberattacks that target an organization’s employees to get them to give away confidential business information via e-mail, over-the-phone, through text, or even through physical mail letters. Phishing scams usually attempt to gain confidential information by impersonating a trustworthy company or organization. Cybercriminals also use phishing tactics to access a business’s computer network to install malware or viruses such as ransomware or trojans that can lock the essential files on…

After the introduction of credit and debit cards a few decades ago, transactions today have become increasingly cashless. Now, there is a new cashless payment method called mobile payments. Some of the most popular mobile payment methods are Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay, as they can all be carried digitally in their respective smartphones. Many businesses have already set up their POS systems to accept mobile payments to keep up with today’s trend…

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, an increasing amount of people and organizations have now transitioned to working (online) from home. People are now using computers to attend school, meetings, or handle business affairs online. Despite our transition to an online lifestyle, the road to it has indeed been a difficult journey for most. Regardless of whether you are the most tech-savvy or the least, it is always a good idea…

Importance of Backing up Business Data Aside from protecting business data from cyberattacks, another significant measure to take with data is to back it up. This is in case of an unexpected situation, such as a power blackout or computer malfunction, which might result in data corruption or data loss. For example, if all the business data is saved onto one computer, and that single computer goes down or the hard drive is destroyed, then…

What should I use for my business: anti-malware or anti-virus? To answer this question, we must first establish the difference between a virus and malware. Virus vs. MalwareA virus is a piece of code that is capable of copying itself in order to do damage to your computer. Viruses can corrupt your computer system, and can destroy your data and files. Viruses are often unnoticed even on an infected computer, as they bury themselves deep…

Adware, Spyware, Spam, Worms, and More Adware – This kind of software is used for marketing purposes, and is a generic software application in which advertisements are displayed while running other software applications. Adware can be downloaded to your computer while you’re browsing websites or when you’re installing other software. Spyware – This kind of software collects information from you (like your browsing habits or your phone number), and sends it to a remote site…

Six Easy Steps to Secure Business Wi-Fi: 1. Change Default Admin Information –Most Wi-Fi devices are not ready for secure data usage right out of the box. Default settings of admin logins are very easy to hack, which then exposes every computer or other devices in the network to hackers. An often overlooked detail in a network’s initial settings that needs to be changed is the service set identifier (SSID). SSID is just a fancy…

PCI DSS Compliance – Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) is a set of security standards designed to ensure that ALL companies that accept, process, store or transmit credit card information maintain a secure environment. PCI Cost – For most small businesses, they are categorized as level 4 merchants, and PCI compliance costs can be as low as $10/month. The cost is also associated with business type, hardware, software, and other factors. PCI…

Technology, social media, and transactions over the internet play key roles in how most organizations conduct business and reach out to prospective customers today. These modes of business also serve as gateways to cyberattacks. Irrespective of what or who initiates the hacking, cyberattacks are likely to occur and can cause moderate to severe losses for organizations both large and small. As part of good risk management, organizations must decide which risks to avoid, accept, control,…

Importance of Virtual Private Network (VPN) Many small businesses have reported data breaches and cyberattacks which have resulted in huge financial losses. To better protect the business’s network and data, it is recommended that small businesses use a virtual private network (VPN) for accessing the internet. A VPN refers to a group of interconnected computers that share the same network over another primary network, like the internet. These connected computers are on a virtual version…