From Apple?s Siri, to the Google Assistant, to Microsoft?s Cortana, to Amazon?s Alexa, these voice-activated solutions have appeared in our computers, our mobile devices, and in stand-alone devices. As they have become more commonplace, they have grown in capabilities. Many of these capabilities are admittedly well-suited for the workplace – but the always-on microphones that these devices rely on to function make many pauses. After all, there?s the potential for sensitive data to be sent along to a third party if it is merely spoken aloud in this device?s presence. This has created a quandary for those wishing to leverage these devices – do the benefits outweigh the potential risks of such an implementation? Here, we?ve assembled a few considerations that should help make these risks less of a factor. Just Another Internet of Things Device The risks inherent in Internet of Things devices have been clearly documented. One notable example was the Mirai botnet, which enslaved IoT devices to power its attacks. Furthermore, it seems to be easy to forget that these virtual assistants are simply another Internet-connected device. However, if you keep that in mind, you may find it much simpler to outline policies for these devices that can help to reduce your potential security risk. For instance, if there is a location in your office where sensitive information is spoken aloud, a virtual assistant shouldn?t be placed there. Furthermore, you don?t want to put your business? network at risk, so it would make more sense to establish a secondary wireless network for these devices to use. That way, even if these devices are infiltrated, the rest of your network isn?t made vulnerable as a result. Whose Devices are They? Data privacy and ownership is a big deal in business, which could potentially complicate our issue further. Let?s say an employee were to bring in their own virtual assistant. While this may reduce the business? capital investment into the use of a virtual assistant, there are a lot of concerns regarding security and privacy. How can you enforce data privacy if the data is being accessed by a device that you can?t control? Policies Are Your Greatest Asset In order to keep your business safe, while still embracing the benefits that virtual assistants can bring to the workplace, you need to set firm controls on how they can be used. There should be the assumption that one of these devices can always be listening, leading to a policy of keeping these assistants out of areas where sensitive information is regularly discussed. This awareness should also spread over to your other devices. There are already plenty of microphones and potential vulnerabilities in the office. Phones can have their firmware hacked, and laptops can have monitoring software installed without your knowledge. White Mountain IT Services can help you be sure that your business remains secure against a variety of threats while still enjoying the use of different technologies. Call us at (603) 889-0800 to learn more.

The Everyday SituationSmall businesses sometimes have issues working within their constraints. More often than not, budgeting issues mean that a dedicated in-house IT department is nothing but a pipe dream. Instead, they rely on employees doing more than they are trained to do. This means that many IT-related tasks may be done incorrectly, leading to more issues than would otherwise be present. Alternatively, small organizations that do have an in-house IT department likely generate a lot of duties that fall into that department?s purview. Countless little tasks can pile up and get in the way of critically important responsibilities, like patching and network maintenance. How the Right Tools Can HelpMany automated management solutions are seen as most effective because their processes can be done remotely, meaning that technicians don?t have to be on-site to make sure the work gets done properly. Whether it?s scheduling updates or automating processes, these solutions can be deployed so that minimal involvement is needed on your end. With these tools, you can also identify suspicious activity on your network. This is especially helpful to detect logins in remote locations to ensure that they aren?t coming from, say, halfway across the world. You can be alerted if someone accesses your network from a suspicious IP address. To learn more about how a we can deploy such a solution to help your business, reach out to White Mountain IT Services at (603) 889-0800.

Endpoint SecurityCybersecurity is the management of the security protocols of your organization?s computing endpoints. Since the endpoints are the ones that touch the Internet, keeping these machines clear from threats is extremely important. That is why when you talk about cybersecurity, you have to talk about the ability to sufficiently train your staff with the knowledge they can use to ensure they aren?t the ones giving hackers and other malcontents an avenue to infect your business? network and central infrastructure with malware, spyware, or any other software that isn?t supposed to be there. The first thing you?ll have to understand in order to successfully secure your business? computing environments are that upwards of 94 percent of cyberattacks that affect business computing environments are made possible by the people that work for the company–trained or not–that do the wrong thing. It is astonishing that nearly all cyberattacks that have short and long-term effects on an organization’s ability to conduct business are completely avoidable. With this knowledge in hand, it?s up to an organization and their IT administrator to put together a strategy to take their organization?s security seriously. Strategy #1: Network-Attached SoftwareFor the company looking to secure their network, the first place they should start is to put together the resources that are needed to insulate their data, network, and infrastructure from the harmful elements found on the Internet. Software solutions like monitoring, a firewall, a spam filter, an antivirus, antispyware, an access control system, an intrusion detection system, virtual private networks, and a content filter all present value for keeping your IT secure. Strategy #2: TrainingThis goes without saying, but if your people are sufficiently trained to be skeptical about where digital correspondence originates, your business? chances of keeping unwanted code and users off of your network gets expeditiously better. How do you go about this? It?s pretty simple. First you should start with their email training. This is where most of the problems originate, after all. Here is the strategy you should use: Promote awareness of phishing, social engineering, and cybersecurity. Continually test your staff to determine which users are susceptible to phishing. Re-train deficient employees and frequently test all staff. These actions may seem like common sense, but you would be surprised how many organizations will ignore that their employees are the number one reason why they may deal with a major data loss disaster resulting from malware or a network breach. Strategy #3: Don?t Forget About MobileMobility is more important for businesses today that ever before. As a result, more data is being shared between people using mobile devices. Every phone, every smartwatch, every tablet, is a potential endpoint, and needs to fit under the organization?s network security umbrella in order to be effective at securing these endpoints, and thus your central infrastructure, from threats. Strategy #4: Testing and LogsOnce you?ve got all the software, solutions, and other strategies in place it is important to test all of your network security platforms. This means testing your network devices, your servers, your DNS, and all other platforms for potential or active vulnerabilities and threats. The first set of tests should be aimed at your internet-facing systems. These include firewalls, web servers, routers, switches, and mobile platforms. If these come back clean (they likely won?t), you want to make […]

Before we begin, you should always work with your IT resource to make sure that any tips we suggest will work for you. Eliminating Bloatware While you?re going about your business, you might notice that you?ve picked up a couple pieces of software that weren?t there before. Or, perhaps you?ve noticed some on your computer that have been there for a long time, but you?re not sure how long. In this case, it?s possible that you have acquired ?bloatware? or ?adware.? While these programs aren?t necessarily harmful, they can eat up system resources and create slowdown. IT should be able to identify these programs and wipe them from your infrastructure, considerably boosting computing speeds. Adjust the Power Settings Windows 10 comes with a built-in power saving setting, but it?s not necessarily the answer you?re looking for. This setting cuts your device?s processes to a minimum to conserve energy, which makes more resource-intensive tasks more difficult. Since most desktops are plugged into the wall anyway, the chance to use the power saving function isn?t really there. To improve the way Windows 10 works on your laptop, just stick to the ?Balanced? power option when unplugged, then switch to ?High? when power is available. Kill Windows Tips and Tricks We know it?s a little odd to recommend disabling Windows Tips and Tricks, but there are several good reasons to do so. The most important one is that Windows is referencing your usage for these capabilities, meaning that your device?s performance could suffer. You can disable this by clicking the Start button > Settings > System > Notifications & actions. Under this, you want to select Get tips, tricks, and suggestions as you use Windows. You want to deactivate this option. Restart Your Device You should always restart your device before assuming that anything is ever wrong with it. When you restart your device, you are wiping unneeded memory usage and stopping unnecessary background processes. Restarting your device gives you the chance to start the day with a blank slate. For more great tips and tricks, be sure to subscribe to our blog.

Optimizing EHR As noted above, electronic health record technology has been made a priority for healthcare providers for the better part of a decade. By optimizing their EHR system, practices can solve many of the operational shortcomings they are typically falling for. They are able to improve workflows, provide an improved quality of care, improve intelligence of the practice, see more patients, stay compliant with state and federal mandates, and see a substantial increase in their ability to get reimbursed. VR and AR Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are gaining more commercial traction by the day. In the medical industry, the innovations of these technologies hold an extremely important place in what will be the healthcare practice of the future. By being able to successfully simulate (or more accurately emulate) care delivery, they are important platforms for training and understanding the complex systems that make up the human body. By building software that provides visual representation of intricate systems health providers will be able to train staff by emulating a procedure before they undertake it. AI Growth Most industries are trying to find ways to use artificial intelligence more effectively, and healthcare is no different. There are several manners in which doctors, administrators, and medical staff are leveraging the burgeoning technology. From systems that can help healthcare providers communicate with patients with severe neurological diseases or trauma, to monitoring growing antibiotic resistance in patients, to using data analysis to monitor and predict when a person is going to have medical problems, AI is on the cusp of many major breakthroughs in the medical sector. Expansion of Virtual Care Virtual care is the act of providing one-on-one health consultation over the Internet. This practice is expanding quickly. In fact, 96 percent of health systems, or almost the entire market, plans to expand their virtual care systems in 2019. Virtual care, also known as telehealth, is the delivery of health-related services and information over the Internet or other communications platform; and, it has shown to dramatically improve patient health and understanding of the health services they undertake. Virtual care expands a patient?s care from the doctor?s office to the home, offering many different manners in which to communicate, solutions to remotely monitor health, a cost reduction in care provision, and more. By providing outreach and virtual care services, a healthcare provider utilizes the strongest technology available to deliver healthcare services to people all over the world. The healthcare industry is utilizing IT more than ever to connect with their patients, vendors, and other industry professionals. If you would like more information about IT for healthcare, or how your practice could upgrade its use of information technology, reach out to our IT professionals today at (603) 889-0800.