Author: iltadmin

If you watch the news with any kind of regularity, stories of companies falling victim to a cyber-attack almost seem commonplace nowadays.
Typically, the attacks are centered around credit card information or personal records like medical or personnel.  Either way, it never plays well on the news for the company who fell victim.

In 2017, cyber-attacks cost the global economy over $450 million and the average breach costs a company around $3.6 million in total.
Aside from this terrifying amount of money, cyber-attacks take their toll on companies in ways that are tough to recover from.

The “Unseen Costs” can include…

1. Damage to Brand and Reputation
2. Loss of Intellectual Property
3. Compromised Customer Relationships
4. Huge Insurance Costs

The days of approaching cybersecurity for your business as a second thought are over.  Companies both large and small, from huge manufacturers to private medical practices must all become vigilant and take aggressive and proactive steps to protecting themselves…NOW.

Chances are, if your company DOES become a victim of a cyber-attack, you won’t end up on the six o’clock news.
But what would it cost YOUR business?  And could you survive it?

To learn how Info-Link Technologies can help protect your business, visit us at www.nfolink.net.

If you are a business owner or manager, you can probably remember a time when acquiring new technology for your business was actually?exciting.
It was a time for unwrapping shiny new gadgets that promised incredible productivity and exciting new ways to manage your businesses.? And oh, that new electronics smell!

But as all those new tablets, touchscreens, phone systems, cameras, and laptops came into your offices, so did the headaches when they didn?t quite live up to your expectations.

After all, they needed to be connected, networked, firewalled, protected with anti-virus software, upgraded, and maintained.

It took time.  A LOT of time, and many of us started to wonder how we would manage it all and still run our companies.

And then came the time when your beloved technology just up and failed you.  Maybe a laptop crashed or a printer fell off the network just as you were preparing that big presentation.

That?s when many owners and managers are forced to call in a professional IT company.  And for many, that is when the romance with technology ended.

Long wait times for repairs, excruciatingly extended downtimes, and unexpectedly high invoices for these repairs hit us hard.

Many businesses admit to being frustrated, resentful, and distrusting of their chosen IT companies.  It seemed that the IT pros that were being paid to keep things working were actually invested in keeping their client?s technology failing.

After all, that?s when they made their money.

As fellow business owners and managers, we here at Info-Link found this business model unacceptable and we set out to change how businesses experienced IT support and management.

1. We knew that it was our client?s technology UPTIME that should be invested in, not paying to correct DOWNTIME.
2. We knew that our clients could not afford to be hit by huge, surprise IT bills.? They required predictable billing that could be budgeted for ahead of time.
3. We knew that our clients demanded the most highly trained and experienced technicians and engineers.? Our clients would not pay high hourly rates for someone to ?learn their way? through the solution.
4. We knew our clients needed to trust us with their business?s health and success.? We had to be trusted partners, not just vendors.
5. We knew our service had to be FAST.? Because when critical technology fails, our client?s businesses could come to a halt.

Today, Info-Link Technologies provides IT management and support services unlike anyone else in the market.  Our business model and people are not to be found anywhere else in central Ohio.

So, if you are ready to fall back in love with your business technology, and your IT company, contact us today to discuss how we can rekindle the romance.

For most of us in business today, our work performance and ability to service our customers is directly connected to our computer systems running reliably.  When our IT assets fail, business as we know it stops.

We need our hardware to work efficiently and we require around the clock access to our data and information systems.

When these systems go down, we miss deadlines, our employees lose productivity, and we disappoint customers and clients.  This means stress, lost focus, and eventually, lost revenue.

In short…downtime sucks.

There are two major ways that our I.T. systems can fail us. Hardware failure and software issues.

Luckily, with a bit of proactive planning and some Boy Scout like preparedness, we can head off many of these disasters and keep things running just as smooth as a dolphin’s belly.

First, we will tackle hardware.

A recent survey from Quorum’s Disaster Recovery Report found that hardware failures account for at least?55% of all I.T. related downtime, and it takes an average of 30 man-hours to recover from this kind of failure to our systems.

And that 30 man-hours of recovery time is expensive, costing our businesses thousands of dollars or more in unbudgeted expenses and lost revenue.

There are two main strategies for preventing and preparing for hardware failures.

1. Have Backup Equipment on Hand:? This can be as simple as having a spare mouse or keyboard in the office, to an extra laptop or tablet.? The cold, hard truth is, it’s not IF your hardware will fail, but WHEN.
   
   When we have a spare available and ready to deploy, our downtime is virtually eliminated and we have time to replace the failed equipment without impacting our operations.
   
   
2. Use Multiple Hard Drives and Cloud Backup:? Hard drive failures are especially devastating and drives can fail gradually, with defective sectors dropping out over time and without warning.
   
   The key to avoiding these failures, and the resulting loss of critical data, is REDUNDANCY.? Utilize multiple hard drives on your computers and employ cloud-based data backup services that will ensure that, even in the event of a location based disaster like a fire or flood, your data will be protected on an off-site location.

Just like the hardware issues discussed just now, software has two main areas that can cause a business heartburn, when not properly managed and system failure raises its ugly head.

1. Malware and Virus Protection:? According to industry surveys, threats to data security for businesses?cost an average of $3,000.00 per day, per user.? Contact a professional I.T. Management and Support company to make sure that your systems are protected with effective and consistently update anti-malware and virus protection software.
   Just as critical as the software protection is developing and adhering to Computer Security Best Practices.? A well-qualified IT Support firm can assist you in developing a custom designed program for your business, but here are a handful of key points to adhere to.
   
   
   • Don’t automatically click on links or attachments in emails.
   • Keep your anti-virus software updated regularly and be sure scans are being executed.
   • Be sure your systems are securely firewalled.
   • Don?t allow data files to auto-execute programs.
   • Keep passwords and other online credentials protected and secured.
2. Software Upgrades:? Although keeping our software systems updated and delivering at peak performance is beneficial in most instances, this process also comes with some inherent risks to our system’s stability.? Software upgrades and updates can potentially cause conflicts with other software your business utilizes.Prior to deploying upgrades, carefully research any potential conflicts or consult with a qualified IT professional to be sure that one minor update doesn’t result in a major system crash.

As you can see, with a few simple, proactive steps, many of the scary I.T. disasters we all dread can be greatly avoided.  Sound best practices, backup systems, and preparedness, along with partnering with a solid I.T. support partner will keep your business up, running, and most importantly, making money.