Top 10 Security Tips For Your Small Business Part 2 »

To continue our Top 10 list of simple (and mostly free) security tips for your small business.

7. Watch out for email attachments

Email attachments can be a wonderful thing. They allow people from all across the world to send pictures to family and friends, businesses to send documents to clients, and sometimes the occasional Powerpoint presentation that somehow didn’t make the trip can be sent directly to you in a matter of seconds. Though, for all of these wonderful things, email attachments can also be very harmful. Many of the most common and harmful viruses are spread through email. These will infect your machine as soon as you open the attachment. The main ways to avoid these nasty viruses are:
Never open an email attachment from someone you do not know. Only open an attachment if it is from someone you know and you were expecting it. If you are sending an attachment to someone else, let them know ahead of time. And last, but certainly not least, have an Anti-Virus program, such as Norton Anti-Virus (updated daily) that will scan incoming and outgoing emails for viruses.

6. Anti-Virus Software

Having a properly updated Anti-Virus program on your PC is crucial these days. Most Anti-Virus programs such as Norton Anti-Virus, Trend Micro, McAfee, and AVG all do updates daily in the background, so you don’t have to worry about it. Without an Anti-Virus program, accidentally opening the wrong attachment, or clicking on the wrong pop-up on a website, may open the door for spyware, adware, malware, and viruses to take over your PC.

5. Windows Updates and patches

I was just working on a PC yesterday and noticed that we are up to 93 Windows Updates AFTER the Windows XP SP2 update. That’s quite a few updates! Most of these updates are actually security patches for either Windows or the programs that are running with Windows, such as Microsoft Office, Windows Media Player, etc… These updates are important because they help to close “backdoors” that hackers have found that allow them to compromise your data and your privacy. Having some type of firewall, an anti-virus program and not opening strange email attachments will protect against most of your common threats. Though, to take it one step further and keep your data safe, set your Windows Updates to automatic and let it do it’s thing. There can be exceptions to this rule, though not commonly. Feel free to ask me any questions if you are having any troubles with your Windows Updates.

 Click here to see tips 8 through 10 and stay tuned until next time for the Top 4 security tips!

What exactly is Adware »

To continue our journey into the land of annoying pop-ups and information stealing software, let’s talk about Adware.

Adware is in the same group as spyware (privacy-invasive software) in that Adware may be used to allow Spyware into your PC. If the program you are using has Adware built-in, it may display or download advertisements to your PC at any time. (Ever had pop-ups out of nowhere? Even while not on the internet? That’s one example of Adware) Most software developers may use this as a means to offer free software or software at a reduced cost (since they are being paid by whomever they are advertising for). Though as I stated above these adware programs basically leave the door open for spyware programs.

To keep your PC ad free, I recommend running a program called Ad-Aware on your PC(s) at least once per month. This will scout out those nasty Adware registry files and program files. It also deletes them for you, how great is that!

Check out part 1 of What exactly are Spyware, Adware, Malware, and Viruses to find out more information on Spyware.

The Importance of Data Backups »

These days almost any business large or small has some type of important electronic data that they rely on. Whether it be email, financial, or basic documentation this data can be crucial to keeping your business running smoothly and efficiently. However, a simple PC crash can cause many hours of hard work to be lost instantly. Even worse, having some sort of natural disaster, be it a hurricane, flooding, fire, etc… can cause you to lose thousands of dollars in data loss. Hardware can be covered and replaced by your insurance company, data on the other hand, once lost, is gone forever (or at least until someone goes through the lucrative task of trying to rebuild years of data in a few weeks.) Here are two simple words that could be your saving grace from any of these horrible events: Disaster Recovery

Having a Disaster Recovery plan in place will give you the peace of mind to concentrate on the other areas of your business instead of having to worry about data loss. Crystal Coast Technologies offers a Disaster Recovery plan that will fit your business needs through something called Online Backups. These online backups will back up your important data off-site and have it available to be restored 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Before your data is sent off-site, it will be encrypted and completely secured so that your data stays completely safe. With Crystal Coast Technologies your data is going to be safe and there for you when you need it.

Click here to learn more about our Online Backup Solutions.

HP Desktop and Laptop Deals »

HP puts out great products that cover almost any application you need, from the Home User, to Small Office all the way up to Enterprise applications. Here are some weekly specials on HP Desktops, HP Laptops, Printers and even cameras:

HP Laptop Deals:

Save up to $364 on the HP Pavilion dv9700z Notebook PC
Includes:

• $150 instant savings
• FREE upgrade to 2GB memory from 1GB ($50 value)
• FREE webcam and fingerprint reader ($50 value)
• FREE LightScribe ($15 value)
• 4 year LoJack for the price of 3 year ($20 value)
• $30 off Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo X2 ($30 value)
• FREE shipping ($49 value)
• PLUS, get a FREE printer with Mail In Rebate ($70 value)

Save $369 on the HP Pavilion tx2000z Customizable Notebook
Includes:

• $150 instant savings
• FREE upgrade to 2GB memory from 1GB ($50 value)
• FREE upgrade to Bluetooth ($20 value)
• FREE webcam and fingerprint reader ($50 value)
• 4 year LoJack for the price of 3 year ($20 value)
• $30 off Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo X2 ($30 value)
• FREE shipping ($49 value)
• PLUS, get a FREE printer with Mail In Rebate ($70 value)

Save $414 on the HP Pavilion dv9700t Customizable Notebook
Includes:

• $150 instant savings
• FREE upgrade to 3GB memory from 2GB ($50 value)
• 50% off discrete graphics ($50 value)
• FREE webcam and Fingerprint reader ($50 value)
• FREE LightScribe ($15 value)
• 4 year LoJack for the price of 3 year ($20 value)
• $30 off Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo X2 ($30 value)
• FREE shipping ($49 value)
• PLUS, get a FREE printer with Mail In Rebate ($70 value)

HP Desktop and Printer Deals:

Save up to $179 on an HP Pavilion s3400z Desktop PC

Includes:

• $50 instant savings
• FREE upgrade from 2GB to 3GB of memory ($50 value)
• FREE hard drive upgrade to 500GB from 320GB ($50 value)
• FREE shipping ($29 value). PLUS get a FREE printer after mail in rebate ($70 value)

Save up to $300 instantly on select HP Laserjet Printers, plus get FREE shipping

Save 40% off select HP Digital Cameras

We are also tracking some Dell Laptop specials and will have them for you soon.

Top 10 Security Tips For Your Small Business »

The funny thing about computer security these days is the general idea that it costs an arm and a leg to secure your business’s data. While it is possible to spend plenty of cash on a fully secured and encrypted data center, budgets tend to get in the way. Over the next few weeks we will show you how most of the threats to your network can be eliminated by a little bit of common sense and by following 10 simple (and mostly free) tips. Let’s kick it off with the following 3 tips:

10. Secure your wireless network

Wireless networking is a wonderful tool for any small business. Let’s face it, nobody likes cables. Though, if you haven’t secured your wireless network, anyone in close proximity may have access to all of your data. If you’ve noticed a strange car parked outside for the past few days, it is probably time you got that network secured.

9. Make sure your firewall is activated

Most of your internet routers will have a firewall built-in. If you are not sure if you have a firewall, check the router’s user guide or give us a call and we can help you out. A firewall is a pretty efficient tool for blocking intruders from coming into your network.

8. Encrypt the data on your laptop

Losing a laptop with important information on it can be a daunting thought. Encrypting the data on your laptop can be extremely helpful in both keeping your data safe as well as giving you a peace of mind. Click here for a full step-by-step on how to encrypt your important data.

Stay tuned for the next 7 tips that won’t break the bank!