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July 21st, 2009

Last July 4th and 5th, a massive denial-of-service attack was launched against several government and commercial websites in the United States and South Korea. According to security researchers, the attacks were the work of malware that infected PCs and routed traffic to government and commercial sites during the July 4 weekend in an attempt to take them down with the flood of simultaneous requests hitting them.

Among those affected were the U.S. Department of Treasury, the Secret Service, the Federal Trade Commission, and several others. The attacks, which hit South Korean sites a few days later on July the 7th, are widely believed to have been carried out by an updated version of the MyDoom worm which gained infamy when it first hit Windows machines last 2004. The motive for the attack is not yet known. In the meantime, users are advised to scan their machines and update their operating systems to protect against known vulnerabilities. Contact us to learn more about protecting your business from a similar attack.

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Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
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July 21st, 2009

Excited about Windows 7 but unsure if you want to replace your existing Vista installation? Worried about potential compatibility and driver problems with the Windows 7 beta or release candidate? Why not install both on the same machine? Microsoft has posted an interesting article on how to have both Vista and the upcoming Windows 7 Beta or Release Candidate on the same machine by dual booting from one operating system to the other.

Be sure to check out the system requirements for Windows 7 ensure your system is up to the challenge. Generally speaking, if your system can handle Vista then it will likely have no problem with Windows 7; however, you’ll need ample space on your hard drive to have both running. Check out the article at Microsoft’s Technet website. Not sure how (or why) to do it? Contact us – we can help!

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Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
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July 14th, 2009

Surprise, surprise! According to Forrester Research, an analyst firm, small businesses buy and use software differently than their larger brethren. More than 2,200 IT executives and technology decision-makers in North America and Europe were polled, and the findings show that:

  • small businesses are more likely to purchase software than build their own
  • they are wary of open source software because of security and support issues
  • interest in SaaS is growing but total cost of ownership is a concern
  • they are more optimistic than big businesses and will allocate a greater portion of their IT spend on software

These conclusions come from the recent Forrester Research report The State Of SMB Software: 2009 and data from Forrester’s Enterprise and SMB Software Survey “Enterprise Versus SMB: Who Influences Your Software Purchasing Decisions?” and “Software Budget Outlook And Preferred Purchasing Channels By Company Size: 2008 To 2009”. You can purchase the research at Forrester’s website or go to bMighty to read a summary. Do you agree with the findings? Let us know – we’re interested in what you think.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
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July 14th, 2009

New research from security firm Secunia reveals that the average PC user has over a dozen insecure applications on his or her computer. They found that the typical user installs over 80 applications on his or her desktop, and around 15% are vulnerable to attack due to failure to patch the applications in a timely manner. Vendors normally release updates or patches to fix known vulnerabilities in their applications. This is an acute problem for software which connects to the Internet, especially if it hosts sensitive or private data. Only 2% of users make it a point regularly update their applications. For businesses, the problem could be greater with the need to manage multiple PCs. Protect your network today by letting us implement software patch management tools to manage and automate this process for you.

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Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
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June 22nd, 2009

As if the scare from the Swine Flu virus were not enough, some opportunistic and malicious hackers have started spreading a computer virus with emails of the same name. Otherwise also known as the Navia.a virus, it seems to have surfaced during the height of the Avian Flu scare. However, the computer virus may have started spreading again. Initial reports from Japan say that the country’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) posted on its website that a suspicious Japanese-language email message purportedly coming from them has been circulating with an attached file called “information on swine flu”. The email, originating from senders in the “@yahoo.co.jp” domain, seemed to be sent to random Internet users, the institute said. Users, as always, are advised to avoid opening attachments from suspicious-looking emails to prevent infecting their PCs with malware.While we can’t protect you from the real swine flu virus, we can help you protect your PCs from its new malicious online cousin. Contact us today to find out how.

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Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
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June 22nd, 2009

Cyber-Ark Software, a security solutions company, recently released a survey showing that as much as 35 percent of people within an organization (that’s one out of three) admit to accessing corporate information without authorization. Furthermore, an alarming 74 percent claim they could circumvent the controls currently in place to prevent that access. The study polled over 400 IT administrators at the Infosecurity Europe 2009 and RSA USA 2009 conferences. While certainly a cause for concern, this is not surprising. Because of their technical knowledge and access to sensitive corporate information, internal IT staff are capable of circumventing internal policies and controls. If this is a cause for concern within your organization, don’t delay in giving us a call. We can help you secure your information and computing assets today.

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June 22nd, 2009

What are the key technology lessons that small and mid-sized businesses can learn from large enterprises?

Be proactive. Be prepared. Take security concerns seriously. Always watch for ways to cut costs.

That just might sum up the advice that enterprise-grade IT shops would give smaller businesses about how to avoid costly IT mistakes.

But what are some specific technology lessons that smaller fry can learn from the big fish? We asked the experts, and here’s a partial list:

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June 22nd, 2009

Rumors abound that we may soon see Microsoft’s Office suite on mobile devices. Some people are speculating that it may even be made available to the (gasp!) Apple iPhone. What is sure is the ubiquitous office productivity suite is making its way online, onto to the Internet cloud, and one day may even be provided free with an advertising supported model.

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June 22nd, 2009

With the continuous proliferation of data and its increasing importance to business, it has become critical to implement measures to safeguard it. One such measure is to make sure you have a data protection, backup, and recovery system in place. The threat of data loss from hardware failure, malware, or disaster is very real. A little proactive effort will go a long way in ensuring the integrity and continuous availability of your critical company data. Talk to your IT consultant to find out more.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
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June 22nd, 2009

moneySmall businesses will get a helping hand with some key expenses under President Obama’s $787 billion stimulus plan, signed into law on February 17. Around $282 billion of the bill is devoted to tax cuts, including breaks for small businesses. Some of the highlights include:

  • Small businesses will be able to more quickly deduct the cost of investments in plants and equipment from their taxable income.
  • Small businesses will be allowed to recover alternative minimum tax (AMT) and research and development (R&D) credits faster.
  • Small businesses will be allowed to write off up to $250,000 of capital expenditures in the year of acquisition.

As a result, 2009 might be a good time to consider upgrading your technology. Your financial advisor can help you determine if any of these tax cuts apply to you.

More information;

A Breakdown of the stimulus package:
http://online.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/STIMULUS_FINAL_0217.html

Small Business Association information on stimulus bill:
http://www.sba.gov/recovery/index.html

Regularly updated stimulus page at Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/public/page/stimulus-package.html

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
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