The increasing regulatory and cybersecurity compliance requirements for information technology have made it difficult for organizations to do business with government agencies. The federal government has been particularly focused on cybersecurity for nearly 20 years, and many contracts now explicitly require specific cybersecurity practices. Some of this language is vague, while other contracts are more…
Category Archives: Business Tips
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The Growing Importance of Cybersecurity Compliance for Government Contractors
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Regulatory Compliance Could Be Affecting your Business: Are you Prepared?
Federal, state, and local regulations are constantly changing and are affecting business technology in significant ways. In the world of increased digital information, data leaks, and evolving threats to data, regulatory bodies have placed a microscope on business practices and information technology. Noncompliance with industry regulations can result in significant fines, loss of contracts, tarnished…
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Cyberattackers Attempt to Poison Entire Town (and other February 2021 IT threats)
Cyberattacks keep CEOs, governments and IT professionals up at night. But the latest attack in Florida is especially hard to swallow. Hackers (Briefly) Poison Water Supply Remotely A worst-case scenario cyberattack was nearly executed earlier this month when a hacker gained access to a small Florida town’s water supply system and increased the lye concentration…
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Keeping Your Business Safe in the Post-Pandemic World of Cybercrime
Before 2020, many companies took a cybersecurity posture equivalent to buying a car with great brakes, headlights and wiper blades, but no seatbelts or airbags. Most small businesses were focused almost exclusively on preventing cyberattacks. Antivirus and anti-malware programs blocked dangerous software from being executed. Password policies ensured that old, hacked passwords weren’t used on…
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What is Cyber Insurance, and Why Does My SMB Need It?
What is Cyber Insurance? A cyber insurance policy covers damage to you and/or damage to your clients and vendors from a cyberattack on your business. Although each policy is different, covered costs can include business interruption, data recovery, investigative services, legal fees, and the costs of providing legally required notifications and credit monitoring services to…
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Three Questions for Your Line-of-Business Software Provider
If you run a business, there’s a good chance that you are using a line-of-business (LOB) application – software built specifically for businesses in your industry to get things done. If you’re in a big industry, it’s probably made by a billion-dollar software company. If there are only a few thousand companies like yours in…
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For Most Employees, Culture Drives Productivity
When COVID-19 hit in March, there was a lot of fast movement by IT teams to get employees working productively from home. Most people felt like the following few weeks would be a very challenging time. But then weeks out of the office started to look more like months and then quarters, and the focus…
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Two Situations Where Delaying Hardware Purchases Makes Sense
It’s been a year of uncertainty. Nobody knows when schools will fully open. Nobody knows when offices will open. Nobody knows when they’ll go to an arena, if there will be another stimulus, or who will be president in six months. It’s natural in these situations for businesses to minimize expenses so they can stay…
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A Growing Concern: Planning for Success and Succession
Many businesses have spent the last several months worried about their short- and long-term survival due to the economic shutdown. After organizations deal with the immediate needs of working remotely and revenue preservation, however, it’s a great time to address some of the other events that can quickly turn profitable companies upside down. This month,…
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Knowledge Management’s New Importance
If you don’t have great processes to gather and store important information across your entire company, remote workers are really going to hurt your bottom line. Here’s how. One of your employees picks up a ringing phone (at home, of course; we’re still in the age of COVID-19). The person on the other end identifies…