Agencies are always on the lookout for ways to enhance their communication networks, particularly their alerting systems. Remote administration is the go-to solution for addressing the challenges of multimodal alerting. Strong remote administration tools represent a type of service-first methodology that offers comprehensive benefits across:
Ransomware has been a malicious tool used by attackers to extort money since the late 1980s. In the decades since, ransomware has gone through multiple stages of evolution, becoming increasingly sophisticated and destructive. Here, we will explore how ransomware has changed over the years and discuss modern techniques attackers use to create more powerful threats.
All too often, businesses approach emergency response, disaster recovery, and business continuity planning in the context of the “worst-case scenario,” which usually takes the form of some natural disaster that destroys an entire facility. Although it’s a worthwhile exercise to prepare for such a scenario, that preparation may not apply to less-destructive emergency situations.
Modern businesses rely on a vast array of internal and external infrastructure systems, including energy, ventilation, and data networking systems; software systems, both in local data centers and the cloud; and machines, vehicles, and other equipment to support their operations.
Government security generally refers to the measures and protocols implemented by a government to protect its citizens, infrastructure, and assets from various types of threats, including physical, digital, and cyber threats. Continuous monitoring and security vigilance is necessary to protect this highly sensitive data throughout generations. Government security measures can include everything from border security and intelligence gathering to cybersecurity and disaster management.
The Internet-of-Things (IoT) is a network of physical devices, vehicles, home appliances, and other items embedded with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and network connectivity, which enable these objects to collect and exchange data. IoT is reshaping government processes by improving efficiency, increasing transparency, and saving costs.
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) helps organizations detect, investigate, respond to, and defend themselves against ransomware and other malicious network activity. The technology offers real-time insights into threats. EDR tools provide visibility into endpoint devices like computers, phones, servers, and smartwatches.
Now more than ever, citizens are getting invested in politics, monitoring communications, and trying to find ways to hold government entities accountable for what happens behind closed doors.
The push for transparency in government is nothing new, but the landscape has changed over the past few decades commensurate with the rise of new communication technologies.
In May 2021, the Colonial Pipeline, which transports gasoline and other fuels from Texas to New York, was hit by a ransomware attack. which resulted in the shutdown of the pipeline, caused fuel shortages, and gas prices spiked in several states. The company ultimately paid a ransom of around $4.4 million to the hackers to regain access to its systems.
As much as we might wish otherwise, mission-critical emergencies can and do happen. While the initial focus is on correcting the problem, it's also essential to do a postmortem of what occurred. This means you look at what went wrong and determine if the situation was avoidable or inevitable.
In the IT world, new processes and solutions are released every day that promise to overhaul systems, streamline activities and generally make life easier for the department. But the problem is these disparate plug-and-play patches are often not designed to serve as holistic solutions.
No one wants an emergency to delay or completely halt daily operations. But even with a state-of-the-art IT department, this reality can’t be completely avoided.
You’re an IT service provider with a client account where a critical server that manages payment processing just crashed. You need to get that server operational immediately. And every minute that it’s down can represent thousands in lost revenue for your client.
You’ve been brought on as an outside IT provider. Your company’s primary purpose is to oversee routine IT needs. But more importantly, you’re the first line of defense if your client’s system crashes, experiences an outage, or any other issue that interrupts routine or critical operations.
Disaster recovery planning is a set of business practices that allow an organization to defend against downtime, ensure stability, and mitigate problems during IT-related events.
When you think of a cyberattack, you might think of a basement-dwelling teenager spending hours trying to break into business networks.
Cyber security isn’t just a matter of IT. Adequate security relies on system-wide coordination among people and processes, touching every aspect of IT administration.
Compared to the previous years, 2021 saw a significant increase in cyberattacks. IoT rose by 6%, cryptojacking rose 19%, and ransomware attacks rose by a staggering 105% between 2020 and 2021. Regardless of the size of a company, having adequate cybersecurity equipment and protocols is essential for any successful business.
IT downtime is a certainty in any business. Even with advanced cybersecurity planning and ironclad disaster recovery tools, most companies will eventually need to contend with a loss of system operation.
Famed American poet Robert Frost wrote “good fences make good neighbors” in his 1914 poem, “Mending Wall.” While the literati might like to spend countless hours parsing every word in that phrase, we’re taking it more literally.