by Felicien | Jul 10, 2017 | Education
Many businesses cannot survive a data attack: Here’s how to focus on the latest effect prevention.
Don’t get us wrong, disaster recovery is and will be an important part of security plans – but it’s absolutely a scenario best avoided, especially for smaller companies where a data attack is often a death knell. The average attack costs an organization around $4 million including litigation and damage to the brand. You can see why we prefer preventative measures instead! And we’re not alone – IT security is trending more and more toward reliable prevention and finding prevention best practices. We’ve got some ideas to help keep your business on the cutting edge.
Follow the Latest Security Threat News
This is a general piece of advice that we highly recommend for growing companies, especially small businesses where IT security tends to be flatter, and there may not be a CSO role to watch for significant trends. Keep an eye on the security industry or set up an alert for important news related to cyber attacks, vulnerabilities discovered, and news about the services and vendors you use. It’s important to keep on top of everything that’s happening in the data security world, especially if that includes information about new threats or new updates for vulnerabilities. You don’t have to be obsessive about this, but it’s a good idea to review headlines on a regular basis and add any important revelations to the schedule.
Find Ways to (Politely) Require Secure Behavior from Employees
Prevention is just about finding the right rules to apply to digital data – it’s also about making sure there are no employee-based vulnerabilities in your workforce. That means no unsecured devices, no bad passwords, no access to prohibited files, and no complex personal and business data on the same device. This is a strict order: Device and app management can help a little, but at the end of the day people are still people, and employees will still be lazy about passwords and avoid reporting stolen phones.
Fortunately, solutions are starting to find methods that work more effectively with employees. Biometrics, for example, tends to have a lot less room for employee error, while virtualization allows companies to keep data off employee devices and in centralized locations. However, consistent education and training remain an important part of employee security, so don’t hesitate to share what you’ve learned.
Implement a Patching Strategy that Works
There’s no good argument against patching vulnerabilities in your system. If a patch is released that’s designed to remove a threat, it needs to be downloaded to all applicable devices ASAP. One of the easiest ways to do this with the average computer is automatic updates: Switch them on, and that helps guarantee OS patches (individual software patches can be more complicated, however).
The downside to immediate patching, especially for businesses in more static industries, is that they may not be possible if they interfere with necessary software that isn’t compatible with the latest update. This is how you end up with companies that still use Windows XP. It’s a challenging and horrible situation, and hopefully, future systems will be agile enough to make sure it doesn’t happen. For now, ensure that incompatible software is absolutely required, preferably by law, if patching is causing you any problem.
Look for Services that Offer “Threat Intelligence.”
Threat Intelligence is the name companies like Microsoft are using to describe new features that rapidly analyze all data in their clouds to quickly identify malware and alert security administrators about any new threats. This is very valuable, particularly for small businesses that may not be able to afford all the in-house security that they want: Let your services do the work for you! Microsoft offers Threat Intelligence on Office 365, so make sure the appropriate users are receiving updates, and look for other threat intelligence options in your alternative services.
Keep an Eye on Additional AI Scans
Security AI mainly predicts data attacks by looking through massive amounts of data and “learning” which specific behaviors are associated with hacking or malware. When security AI identifies suspicious behavior, they alert a human, who goes in to take a look at the suspected process can continue. Many threat intelligence programs use this type of AI behavior, and it’s a standard feature in the security strategies of larger companies. It’s a good feature to watch for when identifying services with strong threat intelligence, and you can expect it to grow more frequent in the coming years.
Make Sure Your Cloud is Protected
What clouds hold your data? What types of security and encryption do they use? Who has access to them – and is that access limited to secure wireless/wired networks? Cloud solutions are extremely popular, but to prevent data attacks they need to be backed up by powerful security. It’s a good idea to sit down with your cloud data plan and go through all your cloud services to make sure they offer adequate protection and warnings.
Have a Plan for the Internet of Things
Even if you aren’t using the Internet of Things right now, the chances are good that smart devices will be a part of your company sometime in the future. They are growing increasingly common, from maintenance sensors on equipment to smart temperature control for offices. The problem is that the Internet of Things is also largely open to data attack, specifically DDoS attacks that can quickly shut smart devices down.
It’s currently tough to find security options designed specifically for the Internet of Things: That should improve, but for now it’s a good idea to use smart devices carefully. Avoid depending on smart devices for vital parts of your business operations, try to limit how data from the Internet of Things can be accessed, and understand the threats that may come.
Do you have more specific questions regarding attack prevention? Probably! But since we can’t talk forever, why not send {company} a message to find out more about our services and discuss customized solutions for your {city} business. You can contact us at {phone} or {email}.
by Felicien | Jul 10, 2017 | Education
Harley-Davidson managed to turn their fortunes around by making use of predictive analytics. Here is a detailed analysis of how they made it work.
Asaf Jacobi was selling one or two Harley-Davidson motorcycles a week at his New York dealership. One day during winter, he decided to take a walk in Riverside Park and came upon Or Shani, the CEO of Adgorithms. After talking about his low sales numbers, Shani suggested that Jacobi tries Albert. This AI developed by Adgorithms is designed for marketing purposes. It works on various platforms such as Google and Facebook to optimize ad campaigns.
Impressive Results.
When Jacobi gave it a trial, he sold over 15 motorcycles that week. It was almost double, what he had sold all summer. Jacobi kept at it. He went from getting a qualified lead a day to more than 40. In the first month, 15% of the new leads were similar to past high-value customers and were thus likely to purchase. By the third month, leads had grown by 29-30%. Out of those leads, 50% were similar to past high-value customers. Jacobi had to expand the call center to handle all the new business.
How the AI did that.
Today, Facebook, Google, and Amazon are leading in the use of AI. This has given them a significant advantage over customers by enabling them to target them with highly personalized marketing campaigns. However, other companies are also starting to join the AI race.
In the case of the Harley-Davidson dealership, Albert the Ai helped to grow store traffic by generating leads, which were simply customers who filled out a form expressing interest.
Making Data work for you.
Albert was given creative content from Harley-Davidson and some performance targets. The AI began to analyze existing data from the dealership. It was able to find characteristics and behaviors of high-value customers within New York. The Ai targeted those who completed purchases, added an item to their online cart, or were among the top 25% of people who spent time on the site.
With this data, Albert went after people on the internet that had similar characteristics. The AI ran tests on a few sample groups and collected data from the tests. It then conducted further tests with more variables. At the end of it all, it had gathered enough data to develop what a high-value customer would look like. It then scaled up the campaigns to reach out to these people.
The Benefits of AI in Predictive Analytics.
For Harley-Davidson, the AI analyzed what was working and what was a waste of money. The AI used what it gathered from these tests to create opportunities that were likely to lead to successful conversions. In short, it allocated resources to what had worked, which helped to improve the ROI for digital marketing campaigns.
The traditional method used by marketers is to create buyer personas. The personas are based partly on historical data, the marketer’s experiences, guesswork, and gut feelings. When a company decides to use personas, it has to rely on guesswork to determine what worked and what failed.
An Ai does need to come up with personas. They find real opportunities by checking the behaviors of online profiles and determining who has behaviors that are indicative of a high degree of conversion.
AI Could Help to Save Time.
Even when equipped with the most complex digital tools, humans can only manage a few tasks at a time. They will also have a hard time making an unbiased application of any insights that they gather. On the other hand, an AI can process millions of interactions a minute. They can also run more than thousands of tests at the same time and make predictions at the same time.
Another advantage of an AI is that it never gets tired. While humans can only manage a few hours of analysis, the AI can work all the time all year round. Also, the AI modifies its marketing strategy in real time, which means that no money is wasted at any time.
Making Use of AI.
Since AI is still quite new, and since marketers may be wary of relinquishing control to a device, it is wise to adopt AI incrementally. At first, it can be used to run small and short experiments. As the results trickle in, the AI can then be modified.
When carrying out experiments, it is important to define goals. For instance, the goals can be increased leads or better ROI.
When choosing the tool to use with AI, you need to know what you want. Some tools can focus on a single task such as optimizing web content. Other sophisticated tools offer more capabilities. Still, others can produce results but will not act on them without being prompted.
However, you should not be afraid to take the plunge. You will be able to have the edge over the competition that is still not sure whether they should use the technology.
How You Can Ensure Success.
If you decide to use AI for Predictive Analytics, some best practices will help you to succeed. Here are some of them:
1. Have Accurate CRM.
The AI will work with your current CRM. Thus, if it is full of garbage, it will generate garbage. The predictions will only be as good as the underlying data. It is better to have less data, which is accurate than to have silos of data that is full of errors.
2. Take Your Time.
Although the AI is fast, you do not have to be. A good example is Harley Davidson that started with micro-segments and numerous tests. This helped them to adjust the campaign accurately before they ever went full scale.
3. Let the AI do its Magic.
It can be difficult for business owners to wrap their minds around the concept of a program controlling their marketing campaign. However, they will have to learn how to let go and let the AI work. The AI will work based on proven data and not personal insights. It will allow you to make predictions that are more accurate.
Conclusion.
Although the AI will take away some of the decision-making power, it can help to motivate the sales team and keep the business moving forward. You will also have more time to make other decisions about your business.
by Felicien | Jul 10, 2017 | Education
Here is a detailed description of Office 365 and G suite. The article will discuss their pricing, functionality, and when you should choose either of them.
G Suite and Office 365 are the two main productivity apps for businesses today. G Suite, which was previously known as Google Apps, and Office 365 both have cloud access. With demand for both being so high, they are always working to introduce new and competitive features. While it can be a tough choice between the two, there are some unique differences. In this article, we will check the different aspects of the two. That may help you to make the choice between either of them depending on your business’ needs.
1. Word Processing.
For word processing, Google Docs offers minimalist features. In Office 365, Microsoft Word is a heavy-duty application for creation of complex word documents.
However, the features offered by Microsoft can seem unnecessary sometimes. In fact, they only serve to make it seem bloated in some instances. Google is great in terms of real time editing. In Google Docs, users can suggest edits or make changes, which will be sent to all users in real time. Microsoft Word does not have the same level of capabilities.
If you need convenience, Google Docs should definitely be your first choice. The documents can be accessed from any device as long as it has an internet connection. However, Microsoft Word can be a great option if you require making significant manipulations.
2. Plans.
The Plans Available from Google.
G Suite has only two simple choices from which to choose from. These are G Suite Basic and G Suite business.
G Suite Basic.
This plan only costs $5 a month per user. You will get a unique business email address, Video and voice call on Google Hangout, an online Calendar, and 30GB of space to share and sync files. You will also get access to online spreadsheets, slides, and text documents. Additionally, you will have security and administrative controls and 24/7 email and phone support.
G Suite Business.
G Suite Business costs just $10 per month per user. It includes all the features of G Suite Basic plus 1 TB of space per user for up to five users. Additionally, you will get advanced administrative controls in Google Drive, audit reports for Drive content, and access to Google Vault that covers chats, emails, files, and documents. You will also be able to search and export files to different formats, archive emails that are sent by your company, create a unique message retention policy, and place litigation holds on inboxes.
An awesome bonus of G Suite business is that any documents you create using Google apps do not count towards the storage restriction.
Plans Offered by Microsoft.
Office 365 has many complicated options for those who wish to use its platform. Here are some of the plans that you will have:
Office 365 Business Plans.
Under Office 365 Business Plans, you will have these options:
Business Essentials: Requires an annual commitment of $5 per user per month. Without the annual commitment, the cost is $6 per month per user.
Business: With an annual commitment, the cost is $8.25 per user per month. With an annual commitment, the cost is $10 per month per user.
Business Premium: This comes with an annual commitment of $12.0 per user per month. Without the commitment, the cost is $15 per user per month.
Office 365 Enterprise Plans.
This is another great category of Office 365 Plans. All of the plans in this category require an annual commitment. They are:
ProPlus: $12 per user per month.
E1: $8 per user per month.
E3: $20 per user per month.
E5: $35 per user per month.
While all the plans are different, you should note some things. If you use the Microsoft Office suite often, do not use Office 365 Business Essentials of Enterprise E1. These options only provide the applications on the clouds, and they cannot be accessed offline. Additionally, if having an email with at least 50GB per user is important to you, do not use Office 365 Business or Office 365 ProPlus.
3. The Email Options.
Both G Suite and Office 365 come with email options. If you want to make use of email storage, you will need to purchase the Office 365 Business Essentials plan that costs $5 per month per user. You will receive 50GB of space and the 1TB that comes with this plan. This is more than what you will get with G Suite Basic, which costs $5 per month and has just 30GB of space.
If you need more than 1TB of data, Google comes on top as long as your team has more than five people. If you use Office 365 Enterprise E5, you will get unlimited storage for $20 a month. However, you will have to make a yearly commitment.
In the email option, you will have to choose between Outlook and Gmail. This will mainly come down to personal preference. Outlook is better for sorting and grouping while Gmail is compatible with more third party apps.
4. The Applications.
Apps are the main reason most people choose Office 365. Except for the Business Essentials and enterprise E1 plans, you will get a desktop version of the app in addition to the version in the cloud.
While Google Sheets allows users to use simple language in calculations, Excel definitely has more advanced features. This applies to all other apps in G Suite. Microsoft definitely has more functionality in their apps.
However, you should note that G Suite allows you to open Microsoft Office files in its environment. Besides that, you can save G Suite files as Microsoft Office versions. However, when converting G Suite files to Microsoft Office, the formatting may not always be accurate.
If you would prefer that your team work on the Cloud for collaboration purposes, you will be glad to note that most people say G Suite is better. The main reason for this is that G Suite was designed for collaboration from its inception.
As a result, some actually prefer to buy the whole suite of offline Microsoft Office applications and use G Suite for cloud-based collaboration purposes.
Verdict.
Both Office 365 and G Suite are quite great options. However, in terms of collaboration and ease of use, G Suite comes out on top. However, for detailed processing, Microsoft should be your number one choice.
by Felicien | Jul 6, 2017 | Education
Ransomware is a crippling, vicious attack with devastating consequences for corporations and small business owners alike. What steps should you take if your company is being held hostage by ransomware?
Ransomware has become a global threat, attacking some of the world’s largest companies, including Merck, Federal Express and much more. Businesses of all sizes are at risk of ransomware like Wannacry, Petya and now the recently named ExPetr. With ransomware, digital files are virtually “stolen,” and a monetary ransom is demanded before the files are restored or returned. Ransomware is a crippling, vicious attack with devastating consequences for corporations and small business owners alike. What steps should you take if your company is being held hostage by ransomware?
Report It
Being hit by ransomware isn’t shameful. Some of the most powerful corporations have been victims of attacks like these. The hackers behind these malicious viruses have a predatory and sophisticated methodology that even savvy business owners can fall prey to. If your company is being held by ransomware, you should report it to the proper authorities without delay. In the case of ransomware, the FBI wants to hear about it first. From the FBI’s website, the FBI wants you to “contact your local FBI field office and report the incident to the Bureau’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.”
Reporting your incidence of a ransomware attack helps authorities and other companies deal with this growing threat. First, when you duly report the incident, authorities may be able to spot a pattern or a means by which the hacker was able to commit the crime. Information about your case will be compounded with other reports to formulate possible causes, means, and solutions. Your honest and timely report may help solve a cyber crime.
Second, when you report what happened, other companies can be forewarned. The more cases like yours can get talked about, the more likely it is that future attacks will be unsuccessful. Think of it as if a predator were lurking on your street. You’d want to let your neighbors know about it so they can take precautionary steps, right? It’s the same with ransomware attacks. The more people you can let know and warn, the fewer victims there will be.
Alert Your Service Provider
If your company has been the victim of a cyber attack of ransomware, the perpetrators had to at one point go through the door of your service provider. While it can’t be surmised that the breach occurred at the service provider’s level, they do need to be alerted as to the breach.
Your service provider has an obligation to take precautionary steps against cyber attacks. If their steps aren’t sufficient, and your company is being held hostage by ransomware, your service provider will want to know about. They don’t want their other customers to become victims as well. The sooner you can alert them, the faster they can take swift action to protect current and future customers from similar breaches.
Contain the Malware
When malicious code is detected by your local virus software, the system is quarantined to minimize the damage. When your company is being held ransom with ransomware, get your IT company on board right away so they can contain the malware. It’s possible that total damage hasn’t yet been done. Don’t take any steps like shutting down computers until you consult with your IT company in [city]. They’ll be able to instruct you with immediate measures, as well as take action to contain the malware as much as possible. When the malware is safely contained, you may be able to get your business back up and running sooner rather than later.
Restore Backup Data
Hopefully, you’ve got backup data files that you can restore in case your company is being held hostage by ransomware. If so, work with {company} in {city} to restore the backup data in such as way that it, too, won’t fall into the hands of the “kidnappers.” Restoring the backup data should enable your company to continue operating while the ransomware situation is being handled. If you don’t have backup data, you can at least begin working with a cloud services firm to implement a backup routine for the future.
Get as Much Information as Possible
Ransomware and all malicious code are a deadly threat that you don’t have to deal with alone. When this happens to you, get as much information as possible to keep yourself informed with news updates. One reliable source is BleepingComputer.com, a site where you can get up to date news on the latest cyber threats facing individuals and businesses today.
Stay in touch with your local authorities, service provider, and FBI to make sure that you are fully informed, and to make sure your company complies with their instructions. Never try to handle an incidence of ransomware attack by yourself.
Let Customers and Investors Know
For safety and liability reasons, let clients and investors know as soon as possible if the company’s data has been attacked by ransomware. While you have an ethical duty to do so, you also open yourself up to potential liability if you don’t disclose this relevant information as soon as you can safely do so. If your customers’ data is stolen and misused in any way, you and/or your company could be held liable for damages incurred. This is a scenario that’s easily avoidable as long as you let all affected parties know what happened.
It is disheartening to disclose to investors that the company data has been breached by ransomware. In a public company, stock prices may fall, at least temporarily. In the end, your business will look better and be able to rebound faster the sooner you let interested parties know what happened. At that time, you can also tell them that you’ve taken steps to work with a reliable IT company such as {company} in {city}. You can contact us at {phone} for swift attention and service.
Ransomware is becoming increasingly common, and small and big business is equally at risk. For advice and assistance in ensuring that your business is as protected as possible against cyber threats like ransomware, please call {phone} or email {company} at {email} today.
by Felicien | Jul 6, 2017 | Education
Predictive analytics offers vast potential for organizations with the complexity, horsepower, and skillset to leverage the thousands of intersecting data points required for analysis — but is it truly a crystal ball for the future?
A few years ago you started hearing about “Big Data” all the time, and while you may not understand the term as much today, the need for hundreds if not thousands of data points continues to grow. Digital business thrives on personalization and the ability to have an in-depth knowledge of your customer — their buying habits, their needs, their life — so you can create the most relevant experience possible in the hopes of driving more sales. Today’s big buzzword is artificial intelligence (AI), and an ages-old but newly popular form of leveraging data to make assumptions about the future: predictive analytics. How likely is it that predictive analytics is truly a crystal ball into the future that will help you maximize your business growth and efficiency? The answer depends on some different factors.
What is Predictive Analytics?
Predictive analytics utilizes a range of techniques from statistics, machine learning, data mining, modeling and AI to make predictions about the future from current data points. However, just like with every project — the output is only as good as the input, so your data must be cleaned rigorously and reviewed regularly. Data scientists use theories from information technology, process management, and business to define patterns within the data and identify potential risks and opportunities in the future. Predictive analytics requires some deep number-crunching, as it attempts to establish relationships between a diverse data set and assigns scores, or weights, to the possibility that a particular scenario will occur in the future. Enterprise-scale organizations regularly employ predictive analytics to actually interpret vast quantities of data for their benefit – or forecast the future.
Benefits of Predictive Analytics
This new way of gazing into a digital crystal ball and “seeing around corners” has benefits far beyond allowing marketers to provide a next-best upsell to customers, and provides a way to determine long-term profitability and even predict potential shifts in market conditions. Perhaps one of the most universally applicable uses of predictive analytics for business is to take an educated guess at how customers will embrace the shifts away from bricks-and-mortar stores to an online store. Following millions of customers as they interact with a brand across social media, phone, web, television, email and in physical locations provides a growing body of knowledge that brands can take advantage of by leveraging vast quantities of data to predict where the actual purchase will be held. The benefits honestly go across the enterprise, as:
Sales teams provide estimates for the coming quarter
Procurement managers are able to order more effectively based on expected sales
Human resources leaders staff groups appropriately based on demand
Operations teams schedule production runs for the most likely products to meet expected demand
Distribution chains gear up for shipping schedules
Technology teams provide patches, support, and upgrades during projected downtimes
Supply-chain partners receive advance notice of the need for critical components
Predictive Analytics Process
Predictive intelligence requires firmly-defined relationships between structured data such as buying habits and demographic information and unstructured data such as social media interactions, call center notes, survey responses or sentiment analysis. Together, these proactive pieces of data allow data analysts to make likely scenarios based on data instead of merely a hunch, or guess. Over time, the body of gathered data provides deeper insight, but the overall process is a loop that begins with ingestion of the data, moves through reporting and analysis, then monitoring and eventually becomes a real prediction based on data over time. The assumptions are then fed back into the system and adjustments made based on whether the expected action became a reality, so the model can be continuously tweaked. Data mining and modeling for effective predictive analytics can be a cumbersome task, but once gathered — the data can be analyzed to begin telling the story of the future.
Prescriptive Analytics
The ability to automate complex decision making and proactively update recommendations is known as prescriptive analytics. While predictive analytics allow companies to get ahead of their customers, prescriptive analytics may allow organizations to leapfrog their competitors. These advanced data-driven models attempt to deliver targeted recommendations based on the propensity for individuals to take the desired action. Prescriptive analytics drive interactions with brands such as this: when you’re driving past your automotive dealership and hear a “ding” on your cell phone. The notification tells you that you’re due an oil change, and offers you a $5 discount on your next oil change.
The Future of Analytics
Analytics, in general, offer a bright future to organizations — the ability to understand customer needs, provide them with next-best actions, and provide context around behavior and other customer dynamics. The insight given by a deep dive into predictive and prescriptive analytics allow firms to maximize business value while driving customer engagement and increasing revenues for the brand. Mainstream applications are appearing on a daily basis that allows organizations of all sizes to take advantage of the benefits provided by analytics.
Want to take your customer interactions and business insight to the next level? Contact {company} today at {phone}, or via email to {email}. We work with {city} organizations of all sizes to provide leading-edge predictive analytics to drive digital business transformation.
