How Microsoft’s Response to Canadian Election Concerns Speak to Their Value for Your Business
Canadian Minister of Justice David Lametti recently admitted that he is losing sleep over data privacy and 2019 federal election interference in Canada. Days later, Democratic Institutions Minister Karina Gould announced the Canada Declaration on Electoral Integrity Online before an international committee of politicians in Ottawa. The declaration is as it sounds, and takes aim at figuring out how best to protect citizens’ data privacy and democratic fairness in light of all that befell elections across the border on a fateful tail end of 2016. Governing bodies are calling upon tech giants (Facebook, Google, Twitter, Microsoft, Amazon, Mozilla, etc.) operating in Canada to sign onto the declaration on electoral integrity, and yet to date not all have followed suit. Microsoft, however, has shown leadership by signing on.
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Tech Talent Shortage in Canada and Why Businesses Are Turning to Outside IT Support
Like the looming oil and gas issues in Canada, there’s a different kind of crisis that is costing Canadian companies hundreds of thousands of dollars or more per year - tech talent. TechVibes reports that 2019 is the year that our country’s tech talent shortage will manifest itself across all levels of business. Studies find that local organizations are especially concerned about the invasion of foreign tech companies (Amazon, Microsoft, Samsung, Uber, etc.) who are armed with enterprise budgets to scoop up what limited talent supply there is. SMBs simply can’t compete. The inevitable rise of digital transformation across all industries may make businesses more efficient in theory, but when the human resources aren’t in place to power it, opportunities quickly become threats and strengths become weaknesses. Today, we’re going to look at how the tech labour crisis affects your business, what your next course of action should be.
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Top 5 Phishing Targets Your Organization Needs to Protect
Phishing surpassed ransomware attacks for the first time last year, and now shares the throne as a top cyber security threat to businesses to watch out for in 2019. While it’s an organization-wide concern, evidence shows that there are certain individuals and departments that have bigger bullseyes painted on them. And as you might suspect, Phishers are going after them in droves in order to access sensitive data and/or inject malware. Today, we are identifying these top targets so that you can recognize human resource vulnerabilities and take preventative action.
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3 Recent Cyber Attacks on Canadian Soil ~ A Wake Up Call for Your Business
In April of 2019, IT World Canada reported that despite the awareness of IT security risks, most Canadian organizations remain unprepared for a cyber incident, with 74% stating that they do not have a response plan that is applied consistently across their entire company. Among the organizations that do have a plan, 59% admit to not testing them regularly, or at all. It seems that press releases and statistical reports have little to no impact on corporate decision makers, which is why it’s important to look at current and tangible examples of attacks that have occurred on our own soil. From these attacks, we hope that you draw the clear conclusion that now is the time to take action to prevent the same from happening to your company.
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Why Your Business Needs Cyber-Security Insurance Too
Cyber crime prevention has headlined many articles in our blog, and for good reason given that the threat level is higher than ever. While a Managed Services Provider can protect you with enterprise level security solutions, another important layer of risk mitigation to consider is cyber-security insurance. Here's why.
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Why Use Bitlocker Drive Encryption
BitLocker Drive Encryption is a Microsoft data protection feature that integrates with your Windows 10 operating system and addresses the threats of data theft or exposure from lost, stolen, or inappropriately decommissioned computers. Simply put, should your desktop or laptop fall in the wrong hands for whatever reason, you will have some peace of mind when you’ve enabled this security feature. Below is a practical accounting of what you need to know.
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Key Features and Benefits of Microsoft Teams
By definition, Microsoft Teams is the hub for team collaboration in Office 365 that integrates the people, content, and tools your team needs to be more engaged and effective. At Microsoft's annual Ignite conference in 2017 they announced that Skype for Business would be phased out for Teams. That moment arrived, with Microsoft reaffirming in 2019 that the time to upgrade from Skype to Teams is now. Many businesses are uneasy about the transition. After all, they’ve relied upon Skype for Business to great success for years and some feel “forced” into unfamiliar territory. Fret not, because the unfamiliar in this instance is friendly, with Teams offering you an unparalleled opportunity to improve corporate communications and productivity. Here are 5 reasons why your business will benefit from the Skype for Business to Microsoft Teams upgrade.
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Why You Need a Cloud to Cloud Backup Plan
By now you know that your business should increase migration to the cloud in order to leverage the numerous productivity benefits, one of which includes data backup. But now here we are telling you that you need a cloud to cloud backup plan too? Redundant? You bet. Today we have detailed why cloud to cloud backup should be an essential mandate for your ongoing business operations.
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Strengthening Office 365 Security with Microsoft Secure Score
Organizations choose the subscription-based Microsoft Office 365 over traditional MS Office not only for ongoing support, robust cloud productivity features, and multiple user/device access, but for regular updates to business applications and security features alike. The security features is of particular importance, given the impending threat of cyber crime. Here's a few tips on how to leverage Microsoft secure score to help keep your office 365 usage free from Cyber Crime.
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How A Managed IT Support Investment Generates ROI
There’s no denying the numerous benefits of Managed IT support, so why do some businesses remain on the fence about outsourcing? A lack of understanding the ROI. Establishing reliable and effective systems will allow your team to maximize production and revenue. We recommend most businesses set aside 2% of their anticipated gross revenue for "technology" each year. This should be sufficient to cover Internet, Software, Security, PCs, Servers, Printers, Cell Phones, Toner, Support, Surveillance, etc. If your business is heavily dependent on technology, you should consider increasing the amount by 1-2%. Today, we’ll define, in practical terms, how securing Managed IT support can deliver more ROI and result in an increase in overall revenue.
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