A study by Exact and Pb7 Research shows that the cloud has the potential to be an invaluable asset to businesses, claiming that the cloud can potentially double profits and help them achieve an additional 25 percent revenue growth compared to businesses that haven?t adopted cloud solutions. The study is based on 750 interviews with small businesses, all of which have less than 50 employees. 51 percent of all respondents claimed to use at least one form of cloud computing software, while nearly 30 percent of small businesses in the United States admitted to using three or more cloud applications in the workplace. In other words, most businesses are adopting the cloud and using it to improve the way they operate. When asked why they chose to implement cloud solutions, businesses gave these top five reasons: Security: 32% Lower IT costs: 26% Low maintenance requirements, less physical infrastructure: 23% Easy mobile access: 23% More productivity and efficiency for end-users: 21% Additionally, when asked to rate certain aspects of the cloud on a scale of 1 (low) through 5 (high), the average results were: Easy to use: 4.0 Easier to find information: 4.0 Easier to share information: 3.9 Increased productivity: 3.9 Easier to add and remove users: 3.8 Before integrating a cloud solution, it?s important to consider the reasons you want to take advantage of it. What goals are you hoping to achieve, and how will the cloud going help you reach those goals? These are questions that absolutely have to be answered if you hope to reap any benefits from your cloud. White Mountain IT Services can help your business make an educated decision concerning the future of your cloud infrastructure. Give us a call at (603) 889-0800 to learn more.

Take, for instance, this worst-case scenario of how easy it might be for a hacker to impersonate one of your Facebook friends. If you have your profile set to public, anyone will be able to see the posts on your wall, your personal information (phone number, address, email, etc, if you opt to share it), any pictures and videos you?ve posted, your interests, and plenty more information. Hackers, scammers, or worse, can use this information to either locate you in the physical world, or contact you through a digital environment. All it takes is a misstep on your part to allow them to get away with this deplorable behavior. To avoid these unnerving possibilities, try these three tips to lock down your Facebook account: Examine the Privacy Checkup ShortcutClicking on the padlock icon in the top-right portion of Facebook will display privacy shortcuts, which you can take advantage of to perform a number of different functions. By clicking on the Privacy Checkup button, a friendly bipedal blue dinosaur will guide you through a short process. You?ll be required to set your default post status (public, private, etc), which apps can access your account, and your profile information. Afterwards, you can see how the public or specific users will see your profile, allowing you to tweak your settings in order to ensure your own privacy. Besides the privacy checkup, you can also use the shortcuts to access other settings, like who can contact you via inbox or friend request, and how you can get someone to leave you alone. At the bottom of the drop-down, you can access even more privacy settings. Enable Login NotificationsBy enabling these notifications, you?ll be informed of new logins on your account. The way this works is that you can enable the alerts to come to you in the form of ordinary Facebook notifications, like if someone commented on a post; through email, which requires that you provide Facebook with your email address; or through text messages, which also requires some prior setup. You can also view where your account is currently logged in, and you can end any current activity on signed-in devices. It will also tell you which devices specifically are accessing Facebook, as well as the operating system and physical location. If you notice any suspicious activity, you can easily click End Activity, which will give them the boot and give you some time to change your password. Use Two-Factor AuthenticationFacebook?s version of two-factor authentication involves sending a pin number to your smartphone as an additional means to keep your account secure. You can also access the Code Generator application on your mobile phone, which gives you a security code that lets you access your account. This helps keep your account open to you, and only you. In today?s security-minded world, it?s more important than ever to ensure that all of your online accounts are optimized to allow for maximum security from hackers and other suspicious activity. It doesn?t take a genius to navigate Facebook and find out all about you, so take a proactive stance on defending yourself and the people you love by spreading the message about online security. Want to help lock down your friends and family? Share this article on Facebook!

Why a Network Might Perform PoorlyIt?s actually much easier than you might think for a business to hit their network?s maximum capacity. If your business has experienced unprecedented growth recently, this usually means that there will be more strain on the network than originally anticipated. More users accessing the same applications across the same old network will inevitably cause some problems down the road, especially if nothing is done to facilitate and accommodate the increased traffic. Other times, however, a network might just be suffering from old age. Hardware that?s been around the block a time or two might not hold up the way it used to, and your access to information could suffer because of it. This is why it?s so important to monitor your business?s infrastructure and ensure that any malfunctioning hardware is promptly taken care of. Indicators of Poor Network PerformanceIf you feel that you might be losing some productivity due to poor network performance, consider these telltale signs: Poor application performance. If your employees are having trouble accessing important applications, one problem might be due to an overloaded network. If a network is trying to process too much traffic, applications will load slower, and therefore, won?t be as useful for your productivity as anticipated. Ask employees. Nothing helps you understand the current state of your network better than asking the end-users. Perhaps you?ve run into a couple of issues yourself, but either way, you need to confirm that there?s a problem with not only your own network access, but all avenues of your organization?s network access. Slow network performance in general. You know there?s something wrong with your network when it takes several minutes to load files that are stored on it. Get a Network ConsultationThe problem with managing a network is that it?s an exceptionally knowledge-intensive task. You don?t want just anyone managing your entire network infrastructure. Instead, you should have skilled professionals like those at White Mountain IT Services take a comprehensive analysis of your network infrastructure. We have the ability to point out bottlenecks in your network infrastructure, potential resource hogs that are bogging it down, and other troublesome flaws that might be hurting your staff?s ability to get its job done. Give us a call today at (603) 889-0800 to schedule a network audit and consultation.

Remember, in the face of every disaster, the key to coming out unscathed is to back up your data. Loss of PowerThe thing about power loss is that it?s a devastating side effect of some of the most common disasters. Now, you might be thinking that losing power is no big deal; just light some candles and keep working on your fully-charged mobile device. However, for your IT infrastructure, losing power is a huge deal because the sudden loss of electricity could lead to data loss due to your system being improperly shut down. You need to have a plan in place to safeguard your data from such a disaster. Unless your company happens to have deep pockets or you’re located in a place that has spotty electrical service, it?s likely the case that purchasing a full-blown backup generator isn?t feasible. Instead, a more reasonable option for SMBs is to equip your network with an uninterrupted power supply (UPS). This is a battery-powered tool that kicks on as soon as the power is cut. Different models of UPSs provide your system with different amounts of power. The overall goal of the device is to buy you enough time to properly power down your system in the event of a power loss, not to act like a generator. Floods and Tropical StormsIf your office is located next to a body of water like a river, lake, or ocean, then there?s a realistic chance that heavy rains will one day cause major flooding that will damage your facility. Even if you?re not directly next to water, a major storm like a hurricane can move inland and cause flood damage to structures far from the coast. Not sure what kind of risk your business is in from a major flood? Research your local history; you may be surprised to learn that your location was hit with a flood a hundred years ago. If that?s the case, it?s only a matter of time before a big flood happens again. To prepare your IT infrastructure for a flood, one action you can take is to make sure that your equipment is located off the floor. Of course, a measure like this will only protect you from a minor flood that trickles in and ruins your carpets. For a major flood that wipes away everything with a tsunami-like wall of water and debris, there?s little you can do except to have your flood insurance policy paid up. In regards to any disaster like this, having your data backed up off-site is the way to go (this is achieved with White Mountain IT Services?s Backup and Disaster Recovery tool). EarthquakesThe risk from earthquakes isn?t as regional as you may think. The Earth?s tectonic plates are constantly shifting and their movement can be unpredictable. In fact, Oklahoma used to only average two small earthquakes per year. In 2014, the state was hit by 585 earthquakes, which is three times more than California, which sits on the infamous San Andreas Faultline. We don?t have to tell you how devastating ?the big one? can be for your business; having your data backed up off-site and available for recovery once you rebuild is the fastest way to get your business back on its feet from a major disaster. Additionally, taking advantage of cloud services […]

The first thing that you should know about workstation and other technology upgrades is that they?re absolutely imperative if you want to keep your systems as secure as possible. Many viruses and malware types try to take advantage of security flaws that are periodically discovered in the source code of operating systems. This helps them get into your systems, even when they shouldn?t. These flaws are often addressed in system updates issued by the software provider. So, the reality of the situation is that you shouldn?t be missing software updates; yet, this happens more often that you might think. When technology management isn?t the sole responsibility of your staff, regular maintenance which should be routine are often neglected or forgotten entirely, leaving your systems exposed to the myriad of threats that are found in the online environment. To avoid this, consider the following when analyzing your network to make upgrades a priority. Software UpdatesSoftware updates aren?t limited to just your operating system; many of your mission-critical applications also need to be regularly updated if you want to ensure that they too don?t have any unnecessary security flaws. Furthermore, these updates often enhance the user experience to make your workday more productive. You really have no reason to not be using the most recent version for all of your software solutions. Often times, however, you might realize that you can get the same job done by switching to a more convenient piece of software. It?s always recommended that you consult with a professional technician before making drastic changes to your business?s software infrastructure. Antivirus UpdatesAlthough your antivirus solution is another type of software, it?s worth mentioning separately. If your antivirus and other security software solutions aren?t properly maintained, it?s like you?re basically ?leaving your keys in the front door,? so to speak. Your antivirus solution needs to be managed on all workstations, or better yet, centrally controlled from the server to ensure that all users are protected and up-to-date. Hardware UpgradesSimilar to software, your organization will need to replace or update your hardware solutions consistently to ensure your data is as safe as possible. Old hardware can be detrimental to the operational efficiency of your organization, and you can potentially lose all of your data in one sitting due to an unexpected hardware failure. This means that it?s more important than ever to make sure you?re monitoring your systems for hints of degradation or even a looming hardware failure. Of course, if you simply don?t have time to review your business?s network and the status of your technology updates, White Mountain IT Services is willing to provide you with the time and expertise needed to address these important issues. We can perform a comprehensive network audit that helps determine where potential update problems might be holding your business back. Furthermore, we can offer our remote monitoring and maintenance solution, which allows us to monitor your technology infrastructure for potential signs of hardware failure and the detection of lacking software updates. Give us a call at (603) 889-0800 to learn more.