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Payment Skimming The fact that your credit card quickly and conveniently withdraws money from an account and transfers it in exchange for consumer goods is often overlooked. Most people in fact, don?t even bother verifying their account and the transaction that went through. This is an easily targetable characteristic associated with your average card-user. The way these users are typically targeted is through skimming. Payment skimming is the act of discretely acquiring credit card information. What an attacker chooses to do with this acquired information is up to them. However, due to the lack of attention to detail and also fraud detection on high cost purchases, most attackers will withdraw small, unnoticeable amounts of money from a large amount of victims, rather than one lump sum of change. So how do they do this? Attackers will often add their own, home-made skimming device to a location where debit or credit cards are swiped. Every time a card is swiped, the skimmer collects information and adds it to the criminal?s to-do list. The criminal can do a number of things with this information, from producing a phony card which they can swipe wherever, or just making a fraudulent purchase. Your credit card information could even be sold on the Dark Web. These skimming devices can be found on gas pumps, ATMs, or even made to be mobile. Here are a few tips on how to recognize if a skimmer is in place. Combatting Skimmers There are a few different means of protecting yourself from skimming attacks. Many of them are put in place by the card provider themselves. Many cards are equipped with computer chips to contain data, rather than a magnetic strip. This is a much more secure option. In 2015, a new law was determined: if a store decides against utilizing this more secure chip payment method, they themselves would be liable for the fraud that took place. This ruling convinced most business owners to update their POS infrastructure. Assuming your ATM transactions are safe isn?t wise. While you might think that these sorts of attacks don?t happen in your area, this ideology is foolish. Here are a few things you can do to reduce your risk of being a victim to a skimming attack. Where You Swipe is Important Before you decide to swipe your payment card, consider your environment. ATMs in the corner of a gas station are a lot easier for a criminal to attach a skimming device to. An ATM in a bank is in a much more secure, well monitored location. Plus, you won?t have to pay those outrageous ATM fees if you are using your own bank. Payment Has Gone Touchless Paying for consumer goods has gone touchless. You can use a mobile app, or another touchless payment option. This ensures that your magnetic strip on your card never comes in contact with a potential skimming device. Keep Your Card Another simple way to keep your cards secure, is by keeping a close eye on them. This doesn?t have to mean following your waitress up to her POS system and monitoring the transaction. It means do your best to avoid situations where a merchant needs to take your card away, out of sight. They could easily swipe your card in their skimming device […]
Introducing document management, a system that can file away all your business? data and provide you with easy data retrieval without the headache of depending on other people to physically get the data for you. If your business has been in operation for years (or decades), documents can go missing and create inefficiencies. With the integration of a Document Management System, your business will immediately move faster. What is Document Management? The Document Management system (DMS) is basically a structured repository for all of your organization’s documents. It?s a simple concept that seems difficult to implement, but with today?s solutions, it?s easy for your business can keep all of its crucial data in one secure location. Here?s How It Works Once you decide that a Document Management System is right for you, you need to address some logistical problems. The first is where are you going to store all your information. You will need to procure file storage space inside your location or in the cloud. Next you will get all of your paper documents digitized. Using either scan-to-storage or data imaging, the DMS you choose will capture a document as an image and file it away in a pre-defined location. When scanned, the images of the new documents are saved as PDF files, it provides users a way to search the DMS for keywords and metadata found on that document. With a DMS you will never have to have another filing cabinet. All of your data is stored digitally and searchable through the DMS. What are the Benefits? The benefits of a DMS are substantial for manufacturers. Business moves fast and no large (or small) manufacturer can afford to deal with downtime. With a DMS, business moves faster. Some DMS solutions integrate with document signing applications providing built-in contract management. This keeps the supply chain constantly working for your company, and keeps it from working against it. A full list of benefits includes: Reduction in physical space needed for storage Enhanced security with encryption Improved compliance with regulations Easy and fast retrieval of documents Remote retrieval for enhanced collaboration Easier redundancy for your organization’s business continuity efforts If you are a manufacturer that is searching for a way to centralize all of your documents in a reliable and secure document management system, call the experts at White Mountain IT Services today at (603) 889-0800.
Costs of a Data Breach Before we go into depth about the manufacturers, we need to get across just how devastating a data breach can be for your business. Here are some interesting statistics from a study of 2018?s data breaches conducted by IBM: The average cost of a data breach: $3.86 million The average cost per lost or stolen record as a result of a data breach: $148 The average cost of lost business after a data breach: $4.2 million The average cost of notifying individuals that their data has been compromised: $740,000 With this information, you know that protecting your business? data and infrastructure is imperative to the long-term success of your business. Manufacturing Cybersecurity Manufacturing is the second most attacked industry. For the manufacturer it can get a little tricky since it seemingly depends on several different entities and departments to make the finished products. Here are four ways that modern manufacturers can go about guarding against today?s cybersecurity threats. Protect Your Company?s Intellectual Property Intellectual property is one of the most stolen entities in modern computing. As a result, companies looking to protect their property against outside threats need to do what many organizations would do while protecting personally identifiable information. The first would be to limit access. A comprehensive access control system will go a long way toward keeping knowledge on a need-to-know basis. Prioritize Training Every employee that has some type of access to your business? information systems have to be trained with the requisite knowledge necessary to properly protect the company?s network and data. Some topics that should be touched on include how to identify phishing, the dangers of unauthorized access, and the dangers the organization faces if this strategy isn?t successfully maintained. Monitoring and Maintenance In order to keep your data secure, having your systems and data monitored and managed is important. Keeping systems up to date with security patches and new features can help by closing vulnerabilities. This helps keep intrusion to a minimum. Partner Accountability Network security is always a joint venture. It requires coordination and collaboration. Your vendors, suppliers, and other entities that you interact with normally may work with you, but they don?t work for you. You have to understand which partners could possibly be a liability to your cybersecurity efforts and demand that they show the accountability needed to help keep your business from being inundated with threats. If your manufacturing enterprise is having difficulty with keeping its information systems secure, call the professionals at White Mountain IT Services today at (603) 889-0800.
Line of business software is made up of applications designed specifically for your needs, or close enough to your needs that you can adjust the way you use the software to fit your business. Either way, line of business software is some of the most crucial applications the modern business uses. Examples of Line of Business Software Line of business software is any software that is necessary for the specific needs of your business. A software that was built for businesses like yours in mind. As where your business may not be able to properly function without its word processor, or its email client, or its accounting software, these applications are used by many businesses in many industries and wouldn?t be considered Line of Business solutions. Let?s take a look at some line of business software you might find in different industries. Finance Finance is where you probably would find the most line of business software. Most elements in finance are regulated, which means that companies would be more apt to have specific software created for them, or they would have open-sourced software altered with security as to meet the criteria of any compliance standards their company is beholden to. Some line of business software you might find in finance include: Consumer banking applications Wealth management applications Retail brokerage applications Insurance portal applications Retail The retail space is a major growth space for software integration. Not only do businesses develop their own management software that integrates inventory management, staff scheduling, and point of sale systems, they also need to integrate those systems with their online ecommerce software. These custom software titles can carry huge upfront and recurring development costs. Service Companies that provide a service needs to have the basic elements that will allow them to sell, carry out the service, and support the service delivery. Many service businesses tend to need a ticketing system, a scheduling system, with integrated payroll systems as the work is usually carried out by trained professionals. The professional services automation (PSA) software works well for the service industry as it gives a business? staff all the resources it needs to deliver service and support customers. Medical The medical field, much like finance, is governed by very specific regulations. As a result, specialized line of business software is needed to protect sensitive health data, while still providing patients access to their data so that they can make the right decisions about their health. Encrypted electronic medical records that are designed to specifically integrate all factions of care delivery are a great benefit for physicians, insurers, and patients, alike. Manufacturing Most manufacturers need the ability to manage their supply chain and distribution processes from one central hub. The enterprise resource planning (ERP) software incorporates business management, client relationships, supply chain management, and internal operations in one end-to-end management software allowing manufacturers of all sizes to control their businesses. Line of business software is extremely important, especially as software begins to integrate with new and more dynamic systems to speed business up and promote efficiency. Find out more about what type of line of business software your business might need by calling the experts at White Mountain IT Services today at (603) 889-0800.
Myth #1 – RAM determines how fast your computer runs. Most mislead tech gurus believe that a computer with more RAM, or random-access memory, means a faster performing PC in general. RAM is essentially a temporary storage space where active programs are called from. This super-fast storage space does nothing more than allow you to run more programs at the same time. While it is necessary, and more RAM does improve your computer, it isn?t the fix-all component. It doesn?t give it hyper-loading abilities, but you could see small improvements depending on the workload you give the computer and the intensity of the software. Myth #2 – ?Safely remove USB? prevents data loss. USB drives might seem the same as they were 10 years ago, plug it in, download information, click ?safely remove USB?, and pull the drive out. Simple, but do you know what clicking ?safely remove USB? does for your computer, and your USB drive? When this option is selected, your computer ensures it is not sending or receiving data from the disk. If you aren?t saving anything, or pulling data off of your drive, there is no harm in removing your USB drive. Myth #3 – It is unsafe to use your smartphone while charging. This myth is brought up frequently enough that we thought we should address it. Some scenarios, like the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 snafu where devices caught fire, have led people to believe that using a device while it?s charging could lead to burns, fires, or even explosions. Sure, your smartphone will take on extra heat if you?re using it while it is plugged in, but they are designed to be used while charging. Myth #4 – You should not use a different phone manufacturer?s charger. Let?s take a look at an actual phone manufacturing company?s Q&A regarding charging their cell phones. ?Ensure a manufacturer-approved wall plug and USB charging cable are used to avoid extended charging times or other charging issues.” A common corporate-infused idea is that using a lesser-known charger brand will corrupt your device or destroy the battery. The truth is, your phone does not recognize who made your charger, and it does not care. All your phone looks for when plugged in is a charge to store. We?re not saying go out and buy the cheapest, lowest quality charger money can buy, but if you need to charge your phone with an Amazon Kindle charger, your phone will be fine. Myth #5 – Using a private (or incognito) browser hides my identity. Sometimes, private browsing is used for absolutely no reason. It doesn?t make you a ghost, you?re not unhackable, and you?re not untraceable. The only thing a private browser does is ignore locally saved data, and clear any additional localized data added whilst the browser is open. Any external source still is able to track your activity. If you?d like a secure and private experience, you will need a Virtual Private Network. Do you have any additional myths you?d like us to bust? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below and return to our blog for more technology information.
