What Is Your IP Address? IP stands for Internet Protocol, and it is a numerical value assigned to your computer network on the Internet. You can think about it in this way; your IP address identifies the host and establishes your location on the Internet, while also creating a path between the two. So, long story short (and without overcomplicating things), your IP address is just your network?s location on the Internet, but it?s helpful to know what it is for the purposes of configuration and whatnot. Chances are you are not going to be the one doing the configuring, so leave this business to the IT professionals at your organization. Still, for those interested, figuring out your IP address can be pretty simple. Now, back to the task at hand: finding your printer?s IP address. Finding Your Printer?s IP Address If you have already installed the drivers for your printer, then you should be able to access the printer?s IP address through the Control Panel. You might need to configure or troubleshoot your printer, which is where your IP address comes into play.  Of course, you can only use these steps if the computer on your network is already connected to the printer. If it?s a new printer that isn?t yet connected, you?ll need to consult the owner?s manual. Follow these steps to find your printer?s IP address: Open the Control Panel Navigate to Hardware and Sound Select View Devices and Printers Right-click on the printer you would like more information on Select Properties from the list of options Select the Web Services tab Under Troubleshooting information, you should see your printer?s IP address. And, that?s all there is to it! Now you know your printer?s IP address. What other tips do you hope to see in the future? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to our blog.

Consider your average day-to-day operations. They might be going perfectly fine for a while, but then small hiccups start to occur. Files start to go missing or they are moved around somewhat. Even your network starts to slow down a little bit. Either way, these issues grow more and more noticeable over time, but you just attribute it to your own diminishing technology?something that is remarkably easy to do until something very concerning happens. By the time you make a move to investigate, you might notice that things are pretty bad. You find out that one user has been accessing your network to create these issues, but you don?t believe for one second that this particular person would do such a thing. You decide to confront the person about it, but they insist that it was not them. Still, the logs don?t lie? or do they? You decide to continue your investigation and discover that the source of these issues is an unknown IP address in a different country. Naturally, this can only mean one thing: you?ve been hacked. Your network is being accessed through a compromised account, and since you haven?t been actively monitoring for these issues, you had no idea until now. But how far does the issue go? These kinds of situations are more common than you might think, and they are a very real reason to keep a close eye on your network activity. If you don?t act on these inconsistencies, even if they are false positives, then how are you supposed to know when there is an actual problem that needs to be addressed? White Mountain IT Services can help your organization by offering comprehensive remote monitoring and network security solutions designed to detect anomalies and address them in an appropriate manner. We know that you don?t have time to do this all the time, which is why we make our services as accessible as possible to all. Through solutions like Unified Threat Management, multi-factor authentication, access controls, and password management, you can keep your organization as secure as possible. To learn more about how you can accomplish this, reach out to us at (603) 889-0800.

A [Few Hundred] Applications for Every Need When it comes to the software that a business has to choose from (with almost no exceptions in any industry or any software?s purpose), a lack of choice isn?t really a problem. Quite the opposite, in fact. If an organization relies on too many different applications and platforms, its productivity can ultimately suffer. This is why you see so many business productivity suites in use? the basic tools for organizational productivity are bundled together and built to play nicely with one another. As a result, linear, more productive workflows are made possible. Another benefit of using a productivity suite is the fact that it helps to discourage the use of the ominously-named shadow IT, a cybersecurity term for software that is on your systems without the knowledge and approval of your IT department or resource. Basically, if an employee doesn?t have?or doesn?t know they have?the software needed to complete a certain task, they may go looking for a solution to this issue independently. Any software they find and download could potentially be a vehicle for threats, making shadow IT the threat it really is to businesses. Ensuring that your team members have the tools they?ll need from the start, and are comfortable using them, is much easier when these tools can all be found from the same source. Finally, we should mention that maintaining a bunch of individual software programs is sure to be an expensive endeavor, both in subscription costs and in the hours invested in the proper support for each. Consolidating your use into a unified platform like a productivity suite as much as you can is a great way to budget your available capital into a more manageable monthly cost. Productivity-Enhancing Tools Decreasing Productivity Let?s return to the ?too many tools for one job? issue for a moment. With too many disparate software titles in play, your team will likely need to switch between them to complete different aspects of their work. It just doesn?t matter how efficiently someone can complete their tasks if half of their time is spent moving data from one program to another so they can carry out these tasks at all. This is just another reason that choosing software that is bundled into a suite is generally the better option for a business. If time is considered money, you don?t want your tasks to take any more time than absolutely necessary. Oversight Becomes Impossible … or at least far more difficult than it should be. Part of effectively managing a team is to be able to observe certain key performance indicators (or KPIs) and identify trends that can be seen in them. For instance, if Tom, Dick, and Harry each take three hours to complete Task A every time, while Eileen can consistently complete it in two, there?s likely some valuable insight to be gleaned that would benefit your processes. KPIs like this are easier to obtain from unified software platforms, as all the data is found in one place. When all is said and done, your work processes are not the place that you want your team members to find themselves overwhelmed. Standardizing the software that should be used is a great way to help streamline these processes, and is something that we can […]

It Can Be Unsettling to Think What Headphones Go Through Apologies in advance, but headphones can get pretty gross. First of all, ears can sweat, and likely will if your headphones are on all day (as they probably will be). Second, ears generate wax, and that wax often winds up in or on a person?s headphones. Third, it has been shown that headphones and earbuds help promote the growth of bacteria in the ear and can even carry strains in and out. Again, gross. So, you want to be sure that the headphones you?re wearing are clean. How to do so properly depends on the kind of headphone you are wearing. Here?s how to safely clean the two types of headphones you?ll see in the office. Cleaning Over-Ear Headphones Gather your cleaning supplies: Isopropyl alcohol (70 percent alcohol or higher) A clean, soft, dampened cloth A clean, dry cloth Cotton balls Optionally, electronic dust-cleaning gel When cleaning your over-ear headphones, your first step should be to check if the earpieces can be removed. Some brands incorporate this feature specifically to simplify the cleaning process. It?s okay if they don?t, but you?ll need to be extra careful. Once you have your supplies, follow this process: Remove the earpieces from the headphones, if possible Using the damp cloth, wipe away as much grime as you can from the earpieces and rest of the headphones in general Using the clean cloth and alcohol, wipe down the earpieces and rest of the headphones Dampen a cotton ball with alcohol and clean any small areas the cloth couldn?t reach Fully extend the headphones and use your cloth and alcohol to clean the frame, focusing on where you grab the headphone and any buttons or dials Dampen a cotton ball with alcohol and gently wipe the speaker mesh. Clean the microphone, too, if there is one Wipe down all cables with rubbing alcohol Once the headphones dry fully, it will be safe to reassemble and use them. Cleaning In-Ear Headphones and Earbuds Gather your supplies: Isopropyl alcohol (70 percent alcohol or higher) A clean, soft, dampened cloth A clean dry cloth Cotton balls A toothpick Optionally, electronic dust-cleaning gel Considering how in-ear headphones reach deeper into the ear, hygiene becomes even more important. The first step to cleaning this variety is to check if there are removable silicone tips on them. If so, remove them and clean them with soap and water. Let them air-dry as you clean the headphones themselves. Foam covers can also be removed and cleaned with the alcohol, or with some soap and water. After this is done, follow this process: Wipe down the whole unit with the damp cloth Carefully remove any gunk from the speaker mesh with the toothpick If using, heat up the electronic dust-cleaning gel in your hands and dab the speaker mesh to clean it Using the clean cloth and isopropyl alcohol, wipe down the whole unit Dampen a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol and wipe the speaker mesh Wipe down any cables with the cloth and alcohol and let air dry. Hopefully, this will help you keep your necessary equipment clean. We can help keep your equipment operational. Find out more by calling (603) 889-0800.

Expel published a report revealing the most common subject lines used in phishing emails, all of which encourage the reader to take some sort of action. This is problematic, especially for employees who don?t typically tend to think twice before downloading an attachment or clicking on a link. Expel looked at 10,000 known malicious emails and put together a list of keywords used in phishing emails. The fact that most of them have a sense of urgency should come as no surprise, as this tactic has been used in phishing attacks since their inception. Plus, this is a tactic also utilized in marketing emails, so hackers can blur the lines a bit and create uncertainty in this way. Ben Brigida, Director and SOC of Operations at Expel, had this to say regarding the matter: “Attackers are trying to trick people into giving them their credentials. The best way to do this is to make the email look legitimate, prompt one clear action and lace it with emotion – urgency or fear of loss are the most common? The actions are as simple as ‘go to this site’ or ‘open this file,’ but the attacker wants you to be moving too fast to stop and question if it’s legitimate.? Basically, the simpler and more direct the phishing email is, the easier time a hacker has in pulling it off. This idea is reflected in the keywords. You might notice that not only are they simple, but they also mimic emails sent from legitimate businesses. Here are three of the most common ones: RE: INVOICE Missing Inv ####; From [Legitimate Business Name] INV#### These subject lines tap into the fear that one might have of missing a payment, something which can be problematic for a small business that relies on goods or services to stay operational. Rather than take a step back and question these messages, users will simply make the payment. Plus, when you consider the sheer amount of invoices or messages sent out by automatic systems, this type of language is not necessarily a red flag. Some other common phishing subject lines might include the words ?required,? ?verification required,? file sharing, action requirements, or service requests. The tags that sometimes get assigned to emails in inboxes also don?t help, as employees might see the word ?new? next to a message and impulsively click on it. If you want to take your network security seriously and stop phishing emails in their tracks, White Mountain IT Services can help. To learn more, reach out to us at (603) 889-0800.