Pennyrile Technologies

IT Professional

The 4 Most Important Qualities and Skills for an IT Professional

Information technology is a huge industry these days. In fact, almost every single company in existence – from one with only one or two employees to one with thousands spread across the globe – relies on accurate information and a secure network in order to thrive. Before you hire an IT professional for your company, look for the following qualities and skills to ensure the perfect match.  Problem-Solving Skills Information technology is fraught with problems. Things simply stop working, networks go offline, and hardware decides to simply stop functioning properly. However, an IT professional should be able to not only remain calm when these types of failures occur, but he or she should also be able to preemptively plan for such things to prevent any disruption to your business. Any IT professional you hire should demonstrate outstanding problem-solving skills for this reason. Otherwise, you may find yourself dealing with far more downtime than you anticipated.  Effective Communication Keep in mind that IT professionals must be able to communicate issues with other departments, and failure to do so appropriately could lead to trouble. Maintenance is just a part of information technology, and that means rebooting servers, checking network health, and more. These things should always be done outside of peak hours, but it is still important for other people or departments to be aware of when they will happen. It is also crucial that your chosen IT professional can explain complex networking issues in such a way that people in other departments can understand them.  A Love for Technology Some people have a love-hate relationship with technology, but for an IT professional, technology is life. These individuals not only appreciate everything technology has brought to the table over the last several decades, but they are also passionate about keeping up with new trends and technologies that could help your company thrive. Sometimes, a simple new technology is all it takes to help your company get a leg up on the competition, and this is far more likely when you choose an IT professional who is passionate about technology.  Self-Discipline For the most part, when you hire an IT professional (whether in-house or remotely) you will not be able to supervise around the clock. For this reason, choose an IT professional who is a self-starter and who can work on projects alone without supervision. This is the very definition of “dependable”; someone you can rely on to get the job done even if you are unable to answer questions or provide guidance. When combined with all the other qualities above, this individual should be perfectly capable of making decisions in the best interest of your company, as well.  Hiring an IT professional can seem like a daunting task, and this is especially true if your own knowledge of IT is limited. However, whether you choose to hire someone in-house or outsource your IT needs to a company you can trust, these are all important qualities that you should look for. Ultimately, they can have a tremendous impact on your company’s success. 

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Anti-Spam Laws

Understanding Managed Anti-Spam and What It Can Do for Your Business

The effects of spam on small businesses are evident, and in some cases, they can be devastating. Fortunately, there are people on your side who want to help you avoid spam and all its risks. This is done through a service called “managed anti-spam,” which greatly reduces the risk of clicking a malicious link, propagating a virus, and more.  Spam is a Leading Source of Viruses and Malicious Code These days, the criminals developing and placing things like ransomware and other types of malicious code are not just targeting big business. In fact, they increasingly go after the smaller business owners who are much less prepared to deal with these threats and who are far more likely to pay a ransom out of desperation to access their data. Spam email is a very common source for ransomware, and with every passing year, the criminals developing it seem to get smarter and smarter. They make these emails look exactly like an invoice from a client or a bill from a service provider.  How Does Managed Anti-spam Work? Managed anti-spam is designed to filter out many of the tens of trillions of spam mails sent out around the world every single year. It goes far beyond the “junk mail” filter built into most email clients and instead prevents the potentially malicious email from ever even reaching your company’s network. The goal is to prevent unwanted spam, viruses, code, and other unwanted emails from reaching a place where it can do harm – your network.  How Can You Benefit from Managed Anti-spam? The benefits associated with managed anti-spam are many.  Reduced Operating Costs/More Productivity: When your company is not constantly fending off attacks, you and your employees can get your jobs done. You can also save money on wasted time and ensure your assets are being put to their best use.  Save Storage and Bandwidth: Most companies limit email storage and bandwidth, so the more emails you have filing in during the day, the more difficult these become to manage. With managed anti-spam, the amount of bandwidth and storage you can save is astounding.  Reporting: There’s a good chance you will want to know which emails are being filtered and why, so managed anti-spam comes with reporting services that can help you see in a very detailed way exactly what you are getting for your money. You’ll be shocked at the number of emails you won’t get.  Aside from this, managed anti-spam indirectly protects your company’s most critical assets and information. Once some of this gets out into the world, there’s simply no recovering. By protecting yourself from spam before it ever reaches your network, you can better protect your company and help facilitate its success.  Most managed anti-spam is cloud based, and the good news is that it can be tailored specifically to your industry and company needs. No matter how small your company, and no matter how long it has been operating, it is absolutely critical that you take the time to protect your email accounts today.

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Business Email Security

The Importance of Email Security for Businesses of All Sizes

Today’s businesses do a lot of their communicating via email, whether they are communicating with their clients, their vendors, or even internally with other departments. This means that there’s a lot of information moving around, and if your email is not perfectly secure, that information could fall into the wrong hands. Here’s what you need to know about email security no matter how large or small your company might be.  Lack of Security is a Huge Risk There’s a lot at stake these days. Even the companies charged with the task of determining your creditworthiness have been the victims of serious data breaches that have cost them millions of dollars. As a small business, you may not think you have that much at stake, but a data breach is a data breach no matter the size. Failing to properly secure your emails – especially those that contain customer or client data – can be a big mistake, and it could even cost you your business.  You Need Confidentiality Confidentiality is important, particularly when dealing with things like taxes, vendors, and online shopping related to your business needs. Unfortunately, there’s quite a bit of information that can be gleaned from emails alone and failing to properly secure them with the latest encryption technologies may result in the loss of that confidentiality. What’s more, should emails fall into the wrong hands, they could easily “spoof” your company email, which can be detrimental to your business.  Employees Deserve Protection If your employees utilize email at work, it is crucial that they receive some training on the best ways to protect themselves and the company. For example, they should always scan their emails for viruses, they should never open messages from senders that aren’t trusted, and they should never follow any links inside emails unless they are 100% certain of the sender’s intentions. This not only protects your business, but also your employees as they may have sensitive information on their computers that can be accessed via an email breach.  Important Email Safeguards Now that you’re aware of the dangers of failing to secure your email, take a look at some of the services that will serve your company well.  Anti-spam: This prevents spam from reaching your inbox in the first place, which is an added layer of protection for both you and your employees.  Anti-phishing: Phishing is a real concern, so make sure the security you choose blocks malicious links, attachments, and forms.  Outbound scanning: This ensures that users don’t accidentally send out a virus or reply to something malicious.  Reporting: With the right reports, you’ll learn more about the biggest threats to your company and the volume of email being processed on your network.  Encryption: This is the key for email safety and it ensures privacy, regulatory compliance, and more. Continuity: Prevent the accidental deletion of important messages and access your messages from anywhere with the right continuity service.  Archiving: Many companies need to retain email for long periods of time for compliance reasons or just general added security. Email security is a must for any company, regardless of its size – and regardless of its age. Fortunately, you can gain access to all-in-one email security suites that will protect you, your employees, your business, and your clients from breaches that can have serious negative effects. When paired with solid network design and other security features, your company will feel like Fort Knox, and you can rest comfortably knowing that you are secure. 

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VoIP Importance

5 Reasons why VoIP Will Still Be Important in 2020

Thanks to the rise of smartphone technology, landlines are all but obsolete – at least in the consumer sector. For businesses, landlines are still very much necessary, but standard copper wires have all been replaced with VoIP service for a few very important reasons. Below are the five reasons why VoIP will still lead the pack for business phone service through 2020.  #1 – International Communication is on the Rise Communication with people in other countries is what helps companies grow. Now more than ever, global markets are the very basis of success. Unfortunately, with a traditional landline, making regular hours-long calls to Europe to discuss business plans can lead to bills of thousands of dollars or more – things that small businesses just can’t afford. VoIP is internet-based, so international calls are far more affordable.  #2 – It’s More Affordable in Every Way Imagine opening a brick-and-mortar location and needing 10 phones installed. Traditionally, this would mean 10 jacks and 10 lines, and this may cost thousands of dollars just to initiate – not to mention the labor costs associated with actually installing the physical hardware. With VoIP, all you need is your phones and a modem. That’s it. Everything else is easy to set up and there’s no incredibly high upfront charge. Even the monthly/quarterly service is cheaper than standard landlines, too.  #3 – VoIP Is Awesome for Conference Calling While it’s true you can conference call on a landline, VoIP is the much better choice. Copper lines have serious limitations so conferencing capabilities are fairly slim. With VoIP, you can include as many people on your call as your internet speed will allow, and with so many improvements being made to VoIP with very passing year, it’s no wonder that people continue to ditch their standard providers and go with VoIP instead.  #4 – The Software is Awesome With landline service, you depend almost entirely on the phone hardware to transfer calls, access voicemails, and perform everyday tasks. VoIP takes this to the next level with on-screen features that you can use to make all your calls far simpler. You can initiate calls right from your computer, listen to your voicemails all at once even when you’re away from your desk, and much more.  #5 – The Scalability Can’t Be Beat As your business grows, adding more landlines can be cumbersome and expensive to say the least. What’s more, you’ll have to wait for an installer to hook up the jack before you can even start using the service. With VoIP, you can add lines yourself in some cases, and when you can’t, all it takes is a phone call to your provider. You can add 10 lines or remove 10 lines to help keep your phone plan in line with your business needs – there is no limit to the scalability.  If you are still using traditional landlines for your business, now is the time to look into making the switch to VoIP. It’s cheaper, it’s better in almost every single way, and it provides you with access to features you simply cannot get with your standard phone service.   

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data redundancy

What is Data Redundancy and Why Is It Important to Your Business

Many business owners who are unfamiliar with IT tend to believe that backup and disaster recovery plans and data redundancy are one and the same thing. This is not at all the case, even though both disaster recovery and data redundancy play critical roles in your company’s success. Understanding the differences between the two will help you make better business continuity decisions in the long run.  Redundancy vs. Recovery Backup and disaster recovery plans, also known as BDR plans, are crucial for the success of your business. These plans line out how your company will react in the event that you experience a loss of data due to hardware failure, natural disaster, cyberattack, or any other event. If you look at a BDR plan like a wagon wheel, then data redundancy is one of the spokes that keeps it all together. To put this in perspective, if you have an offsite data backup, that is considered a recovery plan, and the redundancy comes into play when you reinforce that backup by keeping more than one copy for extra protection.  Why Offsite Redundancy is Critical Imagine for a second what would happen if your company experienced data loss. You will not only lose your customers’ (and your company’s) data, but you will also lose time and money attempting to recover that data to keep your business functional. In many cases where businesses experience an unexpected data loss, they find themselves unable to carry on operations for several days, and in some cases, especially for newer, smaller businesses, this can result in serious issues that may even lead to failure. Having a backup offsite is a critical part of any Disaster Recovery Plan. Offsite backups help protect against natural disasters, such as earthquakes, fires, and floods. They also help protect against security breaches, cyber attacks, or recovering from ransomware. Redundancy and Customer Satisfaction The most important part of being successful in any business venture involves keeping your customers satisfied with the products and services you offer them. If you cannot deliver on your promises because of data loss, then your customer service capabilities simply do not exist. For a small business, or one that is just getting off the ground, this could be a serious hit to their reputation and one that they may not be able to recover from. If you must admit to your customers that their information has been compromised in some way, they will lose the most important thing in any customer/client-business relationship – trust. Once it’s gone, it’s difficult to get back.  How to Put Together a Data Redundancy Plan While you can certainly create your own redundant data backups, managing and monitoring these backups takes a great deal of time and resources that many business owners just don’t have. The best and most popular way to protect data is to hire an outside company to provide your managed backup and disaster recovery plan, which includes redundancy for your company’s safety and success. Professionals will monitor your data around the clock, and should something go wrong, they will immediately resolve it, thereby saving you countless dollars and perhaps even saving your business’s reputation along the way.  No matter how small your business might be, and even if you’re just getting started, if you rely on data for your success, then redundancy should be at the top of your priority list alongside backup and disaster recovery. By keeping multiple copies of your data backups in more than one place, you can easily recover that data in the event of an emergency without downtime, without loss of trust, and without spending a small fortune.

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Ransomware

Everything You Need to Know about Preventing and Overcoming Ransomware

Surveys have shown that 71% of all ransomware attacks are aimed at small to medium businesses (SMBs) and that in each event, businesses lose an average of about $2500. Because of this big payday, cyber criminals show no signs of slowing down, so it is up to you to protect yourself. Below, you can learn more about ransomware, how to prevent it, and what you should do if you are a victim.  What is Ransomware? Ransomware is a form of malware, much like a computer virus, that makes its way into your systems and essentially holds your data hostage until you pay the criminal a sum of money they determine. The most common entry point for ransomware is infected email or phishing. According to Statista.com, 54% of all the ransomware attacks in 2020 were delivered in this manner, and others were delivered via online ads or through unsecured websites. For a small business, ransomware can be devastating, so most business owners simply pay the ransom instead of working to rid their systems of the malware, and this drives the criminals to continue finding new ways to infect other companies.  How to Prevent Ransomware Because so many ransomware attacks originate in email attachments and links, the absolute best way for you to keep your business safe is to educate yourself and your employees on basic email safety. For example, you should always check the sender’s address and make sure you recognize it before you click a link or open an attachment. If you receive an email from a bank or other service provider that addresses you as “Customer” or your by your email address rather than your first and last name, do not click any link or download any attachment.  Other things you can do involve utilizing security software and a strong antivirus program, keeping both of these up to date, keeping redundant backups of all your data, and using cloud-based services wherever possible since you can simply bypass ransomware and roll back your data to a different point in time.  What to Do if You are a Victim If you find yourself the victim of a ransomware attack, the first thing you should keep in mind is that you should never pay the ransom. Not only does this only encourage criminals to continue attacking small businesses, but there is never any guarantee that you will regain access to your data even after you pay. It isn’t uncommon for cyber criminals to demand multiple payments in succession from business owners who appear desperate to gain access to their data. The best course of action is to contact a professional right away. They can not only help you restore your data to get past the ransomware, but they can also do a network security check and offer solutions for common issues to prevent future attacks.  Ransomware is still a serious problem in today’s day and age despite advanced technology and incredibly secure antivirus programs. For the most part, though, avoiding ransomware is about being diligent and making certain that you always use best practices for email, web browsing, and more.   

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network security assessment

Can a Network Security Assessment Benefit Your Company?

Data breaches occur almost every single day around the world, and not even major companies like Equifax and Capital One are immune to them. If you are concerned about your business becoming the next victim of a hacker’s determination to gain access to personal information, a network security assessment could be just what you need. Here are some of the benefits you can expect.  You Can Find Potential Security Holes Even if you have a firewall running alongside some of the best antivirus software imaginable, there are still security holes that you may not have covered. Failing to use email security technology, for example, leaves your company vulnerable to ransomware, which is especially common among small to medium businesses. Trying to find these holes yourself can be impossible, especially if you don’t have expertise in information technology and security. A network security assessment is always a great idea for these reasons.  It Enhances Cloud Security The cloud is the place to be in today’s digital age. It’s far more difficult for cybercriminals to access data in the cloud than data on a server or hard drive, and the cloud is also the perfect location for copies of your backups to promote redundancy as well as business continuity. Not all cloud platforms are the same, and the way your company accesses the cloud may be leaving you open to attack. A network security assessment will help you enhance your cloud security and keep your information even safer.  You Can Lower Your Operating Costs In many cases, a professional network security assessment can even help you lower operating and capital costs by removing unnecessary and redundant equipment or programs. Essentially, you may be able to combine some functionalities and save money on programs you just don’t need. You can also lower your operating costs by reducing the likelihood of an attack that could lead to a data breach or even ransomware, which can leave you unable to access data at all until you can restore it.  You Can Make Sure You Have the Security You Need Unless you have a full IT team on board or you’re using a managed IT service already, there’s no real way for you to know whether your security actually lines up with the architecture of your network. No two networks are exactly the same, and for this reason, no two networks have the exact same security needs. By allowing a professional team to run a network security assessment, you can figure out the best ways to be certain that the security level and type you have is right for your network.  The main benefit of a network security assessment is the ability to find serious holes that could ultimately cost you your business altogether. No one is immune from attacks, and if some of the world’s biggest companies can become targets, smaller ones can, too. The best thing you can do to protect yourself is to schedule a network security assessment right away and make any necessary changes to protect your network and data.

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hardware-as-a-service

5 Important Benefits of Hardware as a Service

If you’ve spent much time reading up about the latest in technology, then you have likely learned quite a bit about the benefits of Software as a Service, or SaaS. If you are a business owner, you may even utilize SaaS each day to keep operations smooth and seamless. Hardware as a Service, or HaaS, is also beneficial for many business owners in many ways. Here are five of the most important benefits.  #1 – It Can Save You Money If your business is small and just getting off the ground, the idea of spending tens of thousands of dollars on network equipment can seem impossible. Fortunately, managed service providers (MSPs) offer HaaS to help you get the equipment you need without spending much at all. Instead of a massive investment, you can make a single (and affordable) payment that does not cut into your cashflow significantly and allows you to keep cash on hand for other things.  #2 – You Won’t Have to Worry about Obsolete Technology Though buying your own equipment outright means you don’t have to deal with payments, once that technology becomes obsolete – which is anywhere from three to five years in today’s digital world – you will be out that money and forced to consider buying all new equipment. When you choose HaaS instead, you will never experience business hiccups due to outdated technology because your MSP will work hard to ensure that your equipment adequately handles your business operations.  #3 – Your MSP Will Even Handle Maintenance Most small business owners aren’t sure about what goes into hardware maintenance. Perhaps they can keep a computer updated, but what about the software they use or even the programs responsible for backing up their data? These things require maintenance, but when you choose HaaS, you can rest comfortably in the knowledge that your MSP will stay on top of things for you.  #4 – It Will Grow with Your Business Like most business owners, your goal is more than likely growth and success. If you choose to supply your own hardware, you will need to purchase more computers, servers, and other pieces of equipment as your company grows, and this can quickly become incredibly expensive. HaaS is designed to be completely scalable, so when you need access to more hardware, your MSP will provide it to you. This works in reverse, as well; if you need to scale things down, it is also possible.  #5 – You Don’t Have to Worry about Security Keeping data secure can be a nightmare. While most people focus on making sure their software is up to date and all the security holes have been properly patched, they tend to overlook their hardware. Perhaps your old backup solution worked well for you until a specific point, but now that you must store even more data, your old solution is no longer as secure as it should be. In this case, the MSP will help you obtain the equipment you need to protect your backups and keep things running smoothly.  As you can see, HaaS is incredibly beneficial, especially for small businesses without the funding to buy brand-new equipment and pay for a team of IT professionals to maintain it. Managed service providers exist to do this kind of work on your behalf, which allows you to worry less about your network and data and more about running your business.

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Outsource IT Support

Why You Should Never be Scared to Outsource IT

Whether you’re a first-time small business owner or you’ve been at it for a while and grown into the medium-size business status, outsourcing anything can be scary when you think of everything that could go wrong. But many businesses now outsource IT and are experiencing many of its’ benefits. Below, you can learn more about some of the common fears and why they shouldn’t be fears at all. What Are Outsourced IT Services? Before we talk about some of the common fears of outsourcing IT, you may wonder what it is? Outsourced IT services are when you hire an outside company to handle your IT needs. A third-party managed service provider (MSP) can cover everything from the security of your network and devices to the implementation of new hardware and software, cybersecurity implementation, backups, and more. The Language Barrier will be Too Difficult to Overcome One of the most common issues that arises when business owners start to think about outsourcing IT is the potential for a significant language barrier that can make communication incredibly difficult. All too often, if you’re located in the USA, your IT tasks could be outsourced as far as India, which could create such a barrier. However, with the rise of technology and with more people finding the benefits in working remotely, these days, you can outsource within the American border – or even perhaps in Canada, the UK, or other parts of the world where the language barrier will be minimal if it exists at all. You’ll Have Problems with Team Management and Processes It’s crucial that you take the time to make certain you understand how the outsourcing process works before you dive in headlong.Managed IT support services should have a very clear process that is easy for you to follow, and you should be able to track your team’s progress every single step of the way. Team management is very important, but this is where choosing managed IT comes into play. When you allow the experts to handle your IT department for you, you don’t have to micromanage it, and you can focus on other, more important parts of your business. The Work will be Poor Quality When Your Outsource IT The fear of poor quality work is a very real one, and it’s completely justified too. When outsourcing was a new concept, companies often had a hard time figuring out whether an outsourcing company or even a single IT professional met their expectations for quality work. However, if you choose an experienced team to help you find IT professionals who are perfect for the task at hand, the risk of poor quality work is very low. Choosing a company to help outsource and manage your IT is crucial; they do all the vetting, hiring, and more, and they only hire the best of the best. Remote Workers will Cause a Data Breach If there’s one thing that should be a huge concern – especially in the information age when big data is everywhere – it’s a data breach. If your customers’ or clients’ information were to get into the wrong hands, the effects could be detrimental. These days, many of the companies responsible for managed IT outsourcing also handle data security, which includes backups and disaster recovery. Not only do you get the best IT professionals for the job, but you also get even better data security than you already had. Though there are certainly plenty of reasons to be afraid of outsourcing your IT department, it’s important to remember that many of these reasons only existed when the concept of outsourcing was in its infancy. Today, all it takes is a little research and the right partner to find the perfect match for your company’s needs – and a few extra benefits on the side, too. Are You Looking to Outsource IT For Your Business? If you are looking to outsource IT for your business, contact Pennyrile Technologies today. We can manage your network infrastructure, devices, third-party vendors, and more. Be at ease as our professionals manage your IT and help you save money on labor, software, and insurance costs that you would have to spend on an internal IT department.

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SMB IT Support

What Does Managed IT Support Do for a SMB?

As a small or medium business, there’s a very good chance that you prioritize your company’s ability to operate efficiently. Such efficiency is the key to your revenue, after all; the more you can do, and the faster you can do it without sacrificing quality, the more you can earn. Unfortunately, not all SMBs have the equipment and personnel for that efficiency, and that’s exactly where managed IT support comes into play.  What is Managed IT Support? To put it simply, managed IT support is designed to help small to medium businesses by providing them with access to the IT resources they need to succeed. Those resources may include human IT professionals, access to cloud-based servers, software and even hardware as a service, and much, much more. Back in 2016, some 64% of organizations used some sort of managed service, and by 2020, that number is expected to increase by 12.5%. Managed IT support can help small companies grow without huge investments in employees, equipment, and more.  Round-the-Clock Care Back in the old days, when the internet was brand new and data storage was in its infancy, if a server or a computer crashed and a company couldn’t access its database, there was only one solution, and it involved calling a professional, waiting for that professional to arrive, and hoping that professional had the knowledge to get things up and running again quickly. Today, managed IT support not only prevents downtime associated with server and computer crashes, but it also helps to resolve these issues no matter the time of day.  How They Do It You will get access to a variety of services when you choose managed IT support. These include: Assessment and optimization – First things first, your network will be examined for security issues, which will then be resolved. Your computer network and data will also be optimized.  Support and management – Remote support software makes it incredibly easy for outsourced IT professionals to watch over and manage your computer infrastructure.  Constant monitoring – You won’t have to stay up all night keeping an eye on things. That’s exactly what managed IT support is for. Not only do they watch, but they also resolve issues as they happen.  Plentiful maintenance – Many of the tasks required for maintaining your servers and computers can be automated, which means you can proactively keep your network up-to-date and help your equipment last longer at the same time.  Helpdesk access – If you have an issue, the remote help desk is just a call or an email away.  Asset management – Inventory and asset management can be time consuming, so leave that to the professionals.  Antivirus management – Last, but most certainly not least, managed IT support also includes a complete antivirus solution that includes best-in-class comprehensive security that is remotely maintained.  At the end of the day, managed IT support benefits small and medium businesses by providing them with a bevy of services that would otherwise require several onsite employees. Everything from assessments and implementation to monitoring and security response comes with managed IT services, and when these things are managed remotely, business owners can focus on other things – like growing their businesses and boosting their revenue. 

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