The 2016 United States presidential election was an ugly one for multiple reasons–chief among them the accusation that hacked voting machines could have altered the outcome of the election significantly. Thankfully, there are steps being taken to alleviate the worries that third parties might alter the outcome of such important events. One state that has been taking measures to keep hackers out of their affairs is Virginia, which has recently made the choice to phase out direct-recording electronic voting machines with those that can produce paper documents. Furthermore, Virginia has introduced legislation that will eliminate touch-screen voting devices by November 7th. This is the date when voters will decide on who their next governor will be, among other political positions. Politico reports that Governor McAuliffe requested legislation which would provide funds to purchase new voting hardware, but it was initially denied. That was two years ago. Now, however, they have little choice but to upgrade away from their current systems, as the machines used currently will no longer be certified. The Board of Elections has recommended that other states follow suit with this decision, but who can say whether they will or not? It?s easy to suggest that paper ballots retain the authenticity required of important elections, but counting paper ballots is a time-consuming process that we wouldn?t blame anyone for wanting to automate with more advanced technology. Still, the risk of using technology to do the dirty work is a risky one, as you are placed in a position where hackers can easily influence the data contained by the election system. In a way, your business is no different. While it makes sense to have physical documents in the office for certain reasons, it makes even more sense to have these documents backed up in an online environment. Unfortunately, the same risks that plague voting systems can exist in your technological infrastructure. If the systems aren?t maintained, they could be subject to various vulnerabilities and hacking attacks. No business wants to endure one of these, especially with so much sensitive data on the line. White Mountain IT Services can equip your business with the tools you need to secure your organization?s future. We can equip your business with a Unified Threat Management tool that?s designed to augment your organization?s network security with a four-pronged defense mechanism designed to prevent infections in the first place. Call us at (603) 889-0800 today to learn more.

As we look toward the new year, here?s a look at how working with a managed IT service provider (MSP) can help your business leverage technology to drive growth and revenue. Managed IT The vast majority of SMBs rely on technology for day-to-day operations. From customer contact records to production blueprints, productivity and revenue generation are directly influenced by technology. Downtime and data loss ricochets beyond the affected devices and, ultimately, reduces the overall performance of the entire company. A proactive approach will help your technology maintain maximum productivity and efficiency. Remote Monitoring: Time is money – and downtime or other technology issues cost SMBs thousands of dollars a year. Managed IT takes a proactive approach to technology by constantly monitoring your network, looking for the warning signs of potential technology issues and remedies them before your company experiences loss of time or resources. Proactive Maintenance: If you take a look at data security breaches from the last six months, there is a trend among them. They could have been prevented if the victimized companies would have performed regular maintenance and applied security patches released by the software manufacturers. SMBs that are looking to expand their client base must make every effort possible to avoid the damage that results from a security breach. Think of IT maintenance in the same way that you think about oil changes for your car. It?s not a frivolous expense, it?s an absolute must-do. Help Desk Support: For entrepreneurs and IT decision makers, an SMB is going to be more than a 9-to-5 job. In fact, about ? of US adults work for an hour or more every weekend. If you operate outside of traditional business hours, your IT support should, too! Subscribing to White Mountain IT Services?s 24/7 helpdesk support is there whenever you need it. Cloud Services Continue to DominateA survey conducted among SMBs for Q2 of 2017 found that 92% of small businesses currently use one or more cloud-based solutions – and the number is expected increase continuously. One of the biggest advantages of cloud solutions is the flexibility it offers businesses. In general, cloud services are easily scalable and secure. Companies that have mandatory compliance and regulatory standards often find the security of cloud solutions desirable. Unified Communication and Collaboration One of the biggest parts of any customer service-centric business model is consistent, transparent communication at all stages of the customer?s life cycle. To facilitate desired growth, it?s equally as important to maintain that type of communication internally, as well as with vendors and other affiliates. Traditional phones are no longer meeting the needs of an increasingly digital market. For 2018, many small businesses are looking to invest in a more versatile, comprehensive solution for both internal and external communication. Unified Communication and Collaboration (UCC) is the key to meeting their communication goals. When virtual meeting room software was first introduced, it was associated with low functionality and a high price tag. Today, there are enough choices available for any business to find cost-friendly, high performance software and applications. UCCs generally feature collaboration on documents and projects, virtual meeting rooms, internal messaging apps, VoIP telephony, and more. Often a UCC will integrate seamlessly with customer management systems and other line of business apps. With the rate that technology changes, partnering with White Mountain IT Services as technology […]

A network audit helps your business know which parts of your infrastructure are working well, and which parts could use a helping hand in the form of software updates, hardware upgrades, and most important of all, security patches. We’ll run through some of the best reasons why your organization can benefit from a comprehensive network audit from White Mountain IT Services. You?ll Know Where Network Inefficiencies LieThe flow of data can be a rather complex one. The same network could work perfectly fine for one business, but cause another more trouble than you might think. This is why a network audit is such an important investment. If your network isn?t set up in a way which is conducive to the success of your individual organization, you?re setting yourself up for failure. Network bottlenecks are just one example of how the flow of data could be restricted. These issues can be solved by simply finding where they are, and immediately addressing the issue before prolonged inefficiencies result. You?ll Identify Hardware Issues Before They HappenIf your business has been around for a while, chances are you?ve experienced your fair share of hardware replacements over the years. If you haven?t, though, and you?re still using technology that served you well 10 years ago, you?re one of the lucky few who haven?t had to experience a hardware failure at a critical moment. If you run your hardware into the ground, you?re more likely to experience catastrophic hardware failure that could hold up operations and place your business at risk. Hardware solutions like workstations and servers often give hints that they are on their way out ahead of time, so a network audit can help you identify these before it?s too late to do anything about them. You?ll Be Able to Identify Security IssuesSoftware solutions aren?t the easiest things to maintain, as you have to frequently implement patches and security updates to ensure that they are protected from developing threats. The problem here is that businesses often don?t have the time or resources to implement such patches on every single machine, and sometimes the patches aren?t compatible or cause problems with other software solutions on your network. A good network audit can help you by both implementing necessary patches and updates, as well as identifying problem areas that could cause trouble for your organization. But Most Important of All, You Meet UsThere?s something that can be said about face-to-face meetings with IT professionals who love the work they do. When you request a network audit from White Mountain IT Services, you get a chance to see us in action, doing the thing that we were meant to do; help small businesses just like you get the IT services you need to succeed. To learn more about what White Mountain IT Services can do for you, reach out to us at (603) 889-0800.

VPNs are nothing new for businesses. Organizations have so many moving parts that it can be overwhelming–especially in this age of mobile devices and remote access software. A VPN works by using a powerful encryption protocol that keeps data both sent to and by a device secure while it?s in transit. This keeps any onlookers from spying any sensitive information that?s sent through it. More than anything, though, it keeps data privacy the way it should be–without the Internet companies? special interests in mind. Plus, since a VPN uses a different computer?s IP address rather than yours, you?ll have even more privacy. You still need to carefully vet your potential VPNs, though–especially for business purposes. Here are some features to consider when looking for the best VPN for your needs. ReputationA third-party VPN could potentially be funneling all of your data through their servers, which is why it?s so important that you know who you?re trusting with this responsibility. You don?t want your VPN to go through a company that shares your personal information with the NSA or advertising organizations. A VPN provider should pride themselves on security and privacy, so look for those that have solid reputations in both. Online reviews are quite helpful in this regard. Logging PolicyYour Internet service provider logs your activity and tracks communications with your network. Naturally, you?d expect something a little different from a VPN provider. You?ll want one that sticks to a strict zero-logging policy that keeps your activity as private as possible. JurisdictionWhere is your VPN company located? Unfortunately, depending on the location, they may not have your privacy as a priority. This isn?t necessarily their fault–in fact, due to legislation, they can?t. You want to avoid companies that have to abide by the laws put into place by Five Eyes and Fourteen Eyes countries–those found in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. Encryption StandardsMost VPNs you find will use OpenVPN protocol, but will offer increased security features at the expense of bandwidth and speed. You can choose between SSH or SSL tunneling, depending on the needs of your organization. Just remember that you deserve the best privacy settings for your business? important data. A consumer-grade VPN will only suffice for your personal browsing needs, but it won?t be enough to keep your business safe. To learn more about a business-grade VPN, reach out to us at (603) 889-0800.

Have you ever been working on writing a blog article or trying your hand at a formal proposal letter and wondered if your writing was appropriate for your audience? You?re not alone. The readability of a document is such a concern for people that Microsoft Word added a feature that will automatically calculate a document?s readability using the Flesch Reading Ease formula and tells approximate reading level using the famous Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level scale. First let?s look at the Flesch Reading Ease Formula. Developed in 1948, the Flesch Reading Ease formula is considered to be the most accurate readability scale in use right now. The formula gives a scale of ease of reading on a scale from 100 or less, 100 being the easiest to read. In this case, the article below has a Flesch Reading Ease Formula of 46.7. This means that it is mid-level difficulty. The Flesch Reading scale also gives an approximate grade level. In this case, the reading level is 10.7, meaning the article is written for an average grade level of between 10th and 1tth grade (based on accepted US school data). Use Word to Evaluate Document ReadabilityMost users are familiar with the basic Word functions in Review – Spelling & Grammar checks and Word Count. After checking over the spelling and grammar of the document, it will post your readability statistics. Think of it like an enhanced Word Count full of all the information a writer could want about how their article is shaping up. It?s broken into three sections: Count – Includes the counts of: Word, Characters, Paragraphs, Sentences Averages – Sentences per Paragraph, Words per Sentence, Character per Word Readability – Flesch Reading Ease, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, Passive Sentences To activate the Readability Menu, start by navigating to the Options menu item in Microsoft Word. Then, select the Proofing menu item within the Word Options. Scroll down to the option that is labeled ?When correcting spelling and grammar in Word? from there, you see a few check boxes. In addition to making sure that ?Check grammar with spelling? is checked, you also want to check the box next to the option ?Show readability statistics?. As with most scales, the Flesch Reading Ease results should be taken with a grain of salt. Using the scale to gauge whether or not your copy is appropriate for your target audience is helpful tool. Would you like to learn more IT tips and tricks? Subscribe to our blog today!