| June 2009 In this issue
√ Are You
Doomed? |
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."
-- Arthur C. Clarke
For Laughs
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Are you Doomed if your Office
Computer Tech Quits? By Kim Komando Reprinted with permission from the Microsoft Small Business Center
But just how much anguish, time and money would an unanticipated departure cause your company's operations? |
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Taking the Risk Out of Managing Your
Network
If the servers are running, e-mails are accessible and customers aren't complaining about identity theft -- companies logically assume that their security measures, however informal, are working. This false sense of security is exactly what hackers and identity thieves prey on. The truth of the matter is that networks of all sizes are vulnerable to attacks and security threats 24/7/365. Spyware, worms and viruses don't discriminate. If there is a way into your network, they will find it and you may, or may not, know about it. Although the short-term impact to your business is obvious, the long-term impact is what really keeps us up at night. Security breaches and other malicious attacks not only take down the network and compromise your company's data and your customers' privacy, they can ruin your company's reputation. With competition around every corner, and new laws mandating the disclosure of data theft to affected consumers, news like this travels fast. So what should you do? Depending on the level of IT support you have on hand, you may try to safeguard your network by deploying highly publicized software upgrades and security patches. If you have a bit more technical sophistication, you may even install a firewall to protect drive-by prowlers and wireless network spies. That's good, but it is not good enough. You must take comprehensive steps to proactively manage your network day-in and day-out. Especially when it comes to managing security risks and network vulnerabilities. |
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Ever heard a
small-business owner say "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"? This simple
old saying depicts the mentality of thousands of SMBs when it comes to
preventing security breaches and assessing vulnerabilities within their
networks.Get the Big Picture
Assessing your information technology
You are certainly familiar with the Rube Goldberg machine – the delightfully convoluted set of processes required to accomplish a simple task. In the day to day interactions of information technologies, Goldberg is often hard at work. It only takes a tiny disagreement between software codes or a mismatch of operating systems for the marble wobbling down the chute to end up on the floor.
Ideally, you should be evaluating your IT investment initiatives in the context of a comprehensive business strategy that ensures maximum returns and facilitates that all-important "alignment" of IT and business requirements. But the real world too often delivers unrestrained marbles.
It's indicative of the problem that many businesses face as they try to maintain an accurate picture of their assets.
