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Why healthcare companies need mobile device managementAs mobile devices become more instrumental to healthcare organizations, it’s becoming even more difficult to keep track of all devices connecting to company networks. With mobile device management (MDM), IT staff in healthcare will have an easier time watching over company-registered devices. Read on to learn more about the advantages of MDM. Compliance Governments have […]

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Why healthcare companies need mobile device management

As mobile devices become more instrumental to healthcare organizations, it’s becoming even more difficult to keep track of all devices connecting to company networks. With mobile device management (MDM), IT staff in healthcare will have an easier time watching over company-registered devices. Read on to learn more about the advantages of MDM.

Compliance

Governments have established several regulations, such as HIPAA, to protect patient records, but mobile devices are posing a major challenge to these regulations. If companies violate the rules, they can be penalized with a fine as high as $1.5 million.

The largest compliance risk associated with the use of mobile devices is data leakage. The most common example of this is an employee keeping sensitive data or footage in his or her phone and then uploading it on social media. MDM mitigates this risk by allowing system administrators to set access and usage restrictions for data and applications so employees comply with the company’s security policies.

Cost-effectiveness

Many practices are adopting bring your own device (BYOD) policies, encouraging employees to use their own tablets, computers, and smartphones for work. MDM solutions make it possible for IT administrators to remotely monitor and control these devices. But more importantly, organizations benefit from the reduced overhead and hardware costs, since they don't have to purchase the devices for their staff.

Better device security

As long as the systems administrator uses MDM, it will be a challenge for hackers to gain access to any confidential information, regardless of where in the hospital the device is. The best MDM applications can encrypt files in a portable device and distinguish corporate data from the employee’s personal information. In the event that the employee leaves the company, the MDM software will remove corporate data on their devices, minimizing the risk of unauthorized access to protected health information. Meanwhile, if the device is lost or stolen, the MDM software can be used to fully wipe the device remotely.

Company-wide updates

One of the biggest challenges of mobile devices is it’s often difficult to keep software updates consistent throughout the company. What’s worse is that employees may put off updates because they’re on a tight schedule. However, these updates are essential in defending against the latest threats.

MDM addresses these problems with company-wide updates. When a security patch is available for business software, MDM makes it easy to track which devices are still vulnerable and lets system administrators automatically administer updates. This way, companies can secure any vulnerabilities in company-registered devices from a central location.

No changes to infrastructure

MDM applications will not demand a change in the Wi-Fi infrastructure of an organization, but if the system cannot handle all the devices logged in to the network, the support team will have difficulties managing all medical applications and individual devices. If a hospital has a strong wireless network, then there will be no need to make changes to the system.

These are just some of the advantages to having MDM in the healthcare industry. If you need more information on MDM, or if you have other technical concerns, feel free to get in touch with us today!

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

The post Why healthcare companies need mobile device management appeared first on Complete Technology Resources, Inc..

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5 Security issues to look out forCybersecurity is a constant battle, but there are significant steps you can take to keep your IT defenses strong and effective, one of which is to increase your knowledge of security threats. Here are five common ways your business systems can be infiltrated. 1. You are tricked into installing malicious software There are countless ways […]

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5 Security issues to look out for

Cybersecurity is a constant battle, but there are significant steps you can take to keep your IT defenses strong and effective, one of which is to increase your knowledge of security threats. Here are five common ways your business systems can be infiltrated.

1. You are tricked into installing malicious software

There are countless ways you can be tricked into downloading and installing malware. One is by downloading software from torrent websites. When you visit these sites, you are told to download software in order for the site to load properly. Once downloaded, the malware that came with the software infects your system. In other cases, hackers send emails with a malware-infected attachment.

Luckily, there are steps you can take to avoid accidentally installing malware:

  • Never download files from an untrusted source. If a website is asking you to download something, make sure it’s reputable and reliable. Double check the URL of the website as well, as hackers can spoof legitimate websites and use similar but slightly altered URLs, such as “www.g00gle.com” instead of “www.google.com.” If you are unsure, it’s best to avoid downloading and installing the software.
  • Always look at the name of the file before downloading. A lot of malware is often deliberately given names similar to those of legitimate files, with only a slight spelling mistake or some unusual wording. If you are unsure about the file, then don’t download it. If you know the sender, you may contact them to verify the file’s authenticity.
  • Always scan a file before installing it. Use your antivirus scanner to check downloaded files before opening them.
  • Stay away from sites with torrents, adult content, or those that stream pirated videos. These sites often contain malware, so avoid them altogether.

2. Hackers obtain admin privileges

Many users are logged into their computers as admins. Being an administrator allows you to change settings, install programs, and manage other accounts. The problem with this is that if a hacker manages to access your computer with you as the admin, they will have full access to your computer. This means they can install other malicious software, change settings, or even completely hijack the machine.

Even worse is if a hacker gains access to a computer used to manage the overall IT network. Should this happen, they can control the entire network and do as they please.

To avoid these unfortunate situations, limit the administrator role only to users who need to install applications or change settings on their computers. Installing antivirus software and keeping them up to date, as well as conducting regular scans, will also help reduce the chances of being infected.

3. Someone physically accesses your computer

Your system can also get infected with malware or your data can get stolen because someone physically accessed your systems.

Let’s say you leave your computer unlocked when you go out for lunch. Someone can just walk up to it and plug in a malware-infected USB drive, which can infect your system. They can also manually reset the password, thereby locking you out.

An easy way to defend against this is to secure your computer with a password. You should also lock, turn off, or log off from your computer whenever you step away from it. You can also disable drives like CD/DVD and connections like USB if you don’t use them. Doing so will limit the chances of anyone using these removable media to infect your computer or steal data from it.

4. Someone from within the company infects the system

A disgruntled employee can compromise your IT systems. They can do so much damage such as deleting essential data or introducing highly destructive malware.

The most effective way to prevent this, aside from ensuring your employees are happy, is to limit access to systems. For example, you may find that people in marketing have access to finance files or even admin panels. Revoke unnecessary access rights and ensure that employees only have access to the files they need.

5. Your password is compromised

Passwords are typically the main verification method businesses use to access their accounts and systems. The issue with this is that many people have weak passwords that are easy to crack. To make matters worse, many people even use the same password for multiple accounts, which could lead to a massive breach.

It is therefore important to use strong and different passwords for your accounts. It’s best to also utilize multifactor authentication, which requires users to present more than one way to verify their identity such as a password plus a fingerprint or a one-time code.

If you want to learn more about securing your systems, contact us today.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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Struck by ransomware? Try out these decryptors to recover your dataThere are several ransomware decryptors now, thanks to communities of white hat hackers concerned about increasing ransomware attacks worldwide. While some of these decryptors do come with a price, the rest are free or can be availed for a minimum donation. The state of ransomware in 2021 so far Businesses need to deal with ransomware […]

The post Struck by ransomware? Try out these decryptors to recover your data appeared first on Complete Technology Resources, Inc..

Struck by ransomware? Try out these decryptors to recover your data

There are several ransomware decryptors now, thanks to communities of white hat hackers concerned about increasing ransomware attacks worldwide. While some of these decryptors do come with a price, the rest are free or can be availed for a minimum donation.

The state of ransomware in 2021 so far

Businesses need to deal with ransomware both from outside and within. On one hand, there are more cybercriminals trying to infiltrate your network. On the other hand, careless and unknowing staff can easily let ransomware enter your network. For instance, employees may be tricked into providing their access credentials in phishing sites, or they may click links to websites that upload ransomware downloaders onto their machines.

The statistics are sobering. Ransomware cost businesses more than $75 billion per year. Over the past two years, ransomware attacks have increased by over 97%. And compared to the first two months of 2017, ransomware campaigns that were initiated from phishing emails increased by 109% in the same span of time this year.
According to studies, there will be a ransomware attack targeting a business every 11 seconds in 2021. That is up from every 14 seconds in 2019, and every 40 seconds in 2016. And the trend is that the rate will continue to increase over the years.

Zombie ransomware is easy to defeat

Not every type of infection is targeted to individual organizations. Some infections may result from self-propagating ransomware strains, while others may come from cyberattackers who are hoping targets become so scared that they pay up before doing any research on how dated the strain is and how to remove it.

No matter what the circumstances of your infection are, always check the following lists to see whether free decryption tools have been released to save you a world of hurt:

Prevention

But even when you can get your data back for free, getting hit with ransomware is no walk in the park. There are essentially three basic approaches to prevent ransomware:

  • First, train your employees about what they should and shouldn’t open when browsing the web and checking email.
  • Second, back up your data as often as possible to quarantined storage. As long as access to your backed-up data is extremely limited and not directly connected to your network, you should be able to restore everything in case of an infection.
  • Finally, regularly update all your software solutions (operating systems, productivity software, and antivirus). Most big-name vendors are quick to patch vulnerabilities, and you’ll prevent a large portion of infections just by staying up to date.

Whether it’s dealing with an infection or preventing one, the best option is to always seek professional advice from seasoned IT technicians. It’s possible that you could decrypt your data with the tools listed above, but most ransomware strains destroy your data after a set time limit, and you may not be able to beat the clock. And even if you do, you probably won’t have the expertise to discern where your security was penetrated.

Don’t waste time fighting a never-ending stream of cyberattacks — hand it over to us and be done with it. Call us today to find out more.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

The post Struck by ransomware? Try out these decryptors to recover your data appeared first on Complete Technology Resources, Inc..

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