Software Vulnerabilities If a piece of software has some kind of security flaw or shortcoming in it, a hacker can take advantage of it in numerous different ways. Whether the security issue comes from an improperly coded application, an out-of-date or neglected piece of software, or even something just being misconfigured, there are plenty of ways that the tools you rely on can inadvertently let in a threat. Making sure you only use software that has been vetted and cleared by an IT resource and is properly updated will be critical to your ongoing security. Insufficient Passwords If we?ve said it once, we?ve said it thousands of times?you need to be sure that everyone in your organization is using sufficiently secure passwords, or ideally, passphrases, and that each account they have is protected by a unique one. This makes it so that?should one password be undermined (ideally through no fault of your own)—it is just that one account that?s problematic and needs to be fixed. If you?re concerned about your team having difficulty keeping track of all these passwords and/or passphrases, implementing a password management system is a secure and efficient option that we can help you execute. Social Engineering Let me ask you something?what would your response be if I were to reach out to you and request some of your data, or ask to have a password updated? I should hope that your first instinct would be to say no until you confirm that the request is legitimate and aboveboard. Cybercriminals don?t all use fancy programming and malware, all the time. Why would they, if they can get just as much, just by targeting your employees and taking advantage of them directly? You need to be sure that your team members understand how real this threat is, and that they can identify when this kind of attack comes in. Excessive Permissions Let me ask you one more thing: does every member of your crew need the same access to the same resources in order to do their jobs? Of course not?in fact, there are more examples where the exact opposite is the case. Your support team doesn?t need access to the rest of the team?s time off requests, and your sales team doesn?t need access to the entire business? budget. Locking down access permissions on a need-to-know basis will help to eliminate the risk of a data leak. On the subject? Malicious Insiders Not all data breaches are sourced from outside your business. Whether one of your employees feels the need to lash out in perceived retribution, someone with ill moral structure decides to act in their own interest, another business has a plant employed at your company, or someone has decided to turn data theft into a side hustle?insider threats come in all shapes and forms. Restricting permissions to only those who actively need them helps to take some of the teeth out of an insider attack. Malware There are so many different forms of malware out there, and it doesn?t help that it only takes one to potentially bring your network to its needs and abscond with your data. What?s worse, these threats have no shortage of means to get onto your infrastructure. From downloaded attachments to public Wi-Fi connections to infected USB devices to so […]

 Don’t settle for a vendor who uses knowledge as job security. Lack of transparency ranks as one of the top five pain points that we hear about when we interview prospective clients that are looking to change IT support vendors. Complaints often include: Poor explanation of the Service Agreement Billing surprises and unexplained cost overruns Lack of documentation, passwords, and license info No access to the ticketing system, no roadmap, no asset management No visibility into the status of security patches, data backup, or policy compliance No visibility into the monitoring and alerting systems, best practices or Standard Operating Procedures “Your business depends on technology, you shouldn’t be kept in the dark.” As a White Mountain client, you can have access to our systems and tools, as well as records and documentation about your network.  We believe in full transparency and visibility and can provide each client with a customized IT Management Portal for easy access to everything you need to know. You can be as involved as you want to be, and will never feel that you are intentionally kept in the dark. We feel that the more you know about what we are doing, and why, the more successful we can be together. By working together to provide proactive IT Management, we can help avoid surprise costs and unplanned downtime. Working together allows us to: Maximize the value of your IT investments Institute standard policies and procedures Ensure that we are always providing maximum value Gather feedback to ensure exceptional customer service Help organize, document and protect your business data  Develop a tech road map to help achieve your strategic goals  Why wait? If you think it may be time for a change, give us a call today to schedule a free consultation.  We are experts at providing discreet and confidential advice on how to protect your business and avoid problems and disruptions when replacing your IT support provider.  There is no reason to put up with a never ending cycle of problems and frustrations, give White Mountain a call and let us help you make things right!     Call today and give your business the White Mountain advantage! There IS a Better Way! Whether you are in need of occasional IT Support, project work to supplement your internal IT resources, or would like an all-inclusive Managed IT Service agreement, White Mountain can provide your business the expert services that our clients have come to expect for over thirty years. Contact Us Today For a Free Confidential Consultation. Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Name *Company *Email *Phone *Comment or Message * Submit

Does your IT vendor seem to take your business for granted? You don’t need to settle for the same old story with the same old problems, because we make changing vendors easy. Don’t let your IT vendor hold your business hostage. When you’ve had enough, give us a call today to schedule a free consultation.  We are experts at providing discreet and confidential advice on how to protect your business and avoid problems and disruptions when replacing your IT support provider.  There is no reason to put up with a never-ending cycle of problems and frustrations, give White Mountain a call and let us help you make things right!   Why wait? If you think it may be time for a change, give us a call today to schedule a free consultation.  We are experts at providing discreet and confidential advice on how to protect your business and avoid problems and disruptions when replacing your IT support provider.  There is no reason to put up with a never-ending cycle of problems and frustrations, give White Mountain a call and let us help you make things right! Call today and give your business the White Mountain advantage! There IS a Better Way! Whether you are in need of occasional IT Support, project work to supplement your internal IT resources, or would like an all-inclusive Managed IT Service agreement, White Mountain can provide your business the expert services that our clients have come to expect for over thirty years. Contact Us Today For a Free Confidential Consultation. Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Name *Company *Email *Phone *Comment or Message * Submit

Let?s dive into these benefits and explore how you might see improvements through adopting VoIP. VoIP Offers Many Business-Friendly Benefits VoIP Offers the Mobility that Modern Businesses Often Need As recent events have definitively shown, the capability to work from places other than the office is a valuable one for an organization and its team members to have. Due to its use of the Internet as its network, your team?s phone connections can follow them to wherever they happen to be working. With today?s VoIP options working as a softphone on a computer or as a mobile application, you can be confident that your team members will still have the communication tools that many offices rely on, without forcing them to be tied to their workstation. VoIP Offers All the Features of Traditional Telephony? Plus Some Businesses need their phones to do more than just receive and make calls. Nowadays, there?s a laundry list of additional features that businesses often need. Rest assured, a phone company is happy to enable these features?it?s just going to cost a lot more. VoIP offers the same, without the added costs. All of these features are included in the software, along with some (like instant messaging and video conferencing) that many telephone service providers don?t offer. VoIP Simplifies Your Business? Infrastructure We also need to touch on the fact that VoIP, unlike traditional telephony, doesn?t rely on its own network to function. Like we said before: VoIP uses the Internet. Traditional telephony, on the other hand, requires that each telephone have a dedicated connection. Regardless of how big or small your team is, that?s going to add a significant bit to your business? necessary infrastructure. Plus, that?s without mentioning how much of a hassle it can be to add new lines throughout your office. VoIP?s use of the Internet eliminates all that. Of Course, We Can?t Forget that VoIP Helps Save Money This is perhaps the biggest benefit that Voice over Internet Protocol brings: you?re already paying for your Internet services. By using them as your telecommunications network, you?re getting more value for the price. Compare that to actively having to pay for your telephone service each month in addition to your Internet services, and there really isn?t much of a comparison. VoIP wins. We Can Help You Make Use of All of VoIP?s Advantages! White Mountain IT Services has a lot of experience in business networking and communications, and we?re happy to help you implement and manage VoIP in your operations. Give us a call to learn more at (603) 889-0800.

A lot of times it can be a complete lack of risk identification that can put your business? computing resources in jeopardy. The unfortunate reality is that when something bad happens, it?s in human nature to find a scapegoat for the event or to point our fingers at something deemed to be the cause. This need to blame someone for an attack like a data breach can alienate and frustrate employees to the point where they may start to think, ?What?s the point of being careful if I am going to be blamed, regardless of the amount of effort I invest in this?? It?s a dangerous mindset to have in today?s age of cyberthreats. One of the absolute worst things that can happen as a result of this culture of blame surrounding cybersecurity is that employees might find themselves reluctant to come forward when they have made a mistake. When employees do not own up to their mistakes, they might even try to hide the mistake and sweep it under the rug. When cybersecurity is involved in such a decision, the situation can get ugly. Imagine if an employee accidentally downloaded a malicious file to their device, then didn?t report it to anyone for fear of punishment or scolding. That threat could very well multiply on your network and eventually cause all kinds of damage. It might steal credentials or harvest personal information. It might even install other threats, too! It?s safe to say that any threat that goes unreported could become quite problematic, and it?s your job as the business owner to foster an office environment and culture that encourages employees to come forward when they make mistakes like this. So, how does one make a culture of acceptance surrounding cybersecurity? Oftentimes, the issues surrounding the culture of cybersecurity within businesses are systemic and have a lot to do with either the security systems in place or the training provided to employees. You can start with the following: Make cybersecurity easy for your employees to understand and relate to. Train your employees on how to identify threats. Let your employees know that it?s okay to make mistakes. Regularly test employees so that mistakes are simulated in safe environments. What do you think about this approach to cybersecurity? Do you think it can help employees be more cognizant of their actions, or at least more likely to report when they have messed up? Good questions to consider when you consider that while most data breaches are the result of employee mistakes, they aren?t (usually) the ones actively attacking your business. If you would like to talk to one of our IT professionals about cybersecurity strategy and how to keep your business? IT resources secure, give us a call at (603) 889-0800 today.