Tag: IT Security Solutions

IT Support in LA: The Importance of Proactive Security

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With so many cyber attacks hitting the headlines, companies that need IT support in LA must do all they can to protect their infrastructure and sensitive data from thieves and hackers. It is all very well knowing what to do and coping with the fallout if a business suffers a data breach. However, ideally, the best way to cope with the threats is to be more proactive, stopping them before they happen. It is much safer to protect a company by preventing incursions than it is by just fighting the metaphorical fires that a breach causes. In order to get ahead of the hackers and keep your networks running, you may like to consider implementing these points:

Training and Real-time Backups

Your employees have to be onboard with any security changes as they are working at the sharp end. Training is important so that they will know how to identify spam and phishing emails and recognize the risks concerned with clicking on any embedded links. They should also be made aware of the inherent dangers of BYOD and know the best practices that will ensure continued protection for your infrastructure.

It is also important to ensure that your backups are not only effective but will work as expected. Testing of backups is often omitted, but regular checking to make sure your company’s data and programs can be restored in the event of a breach is vital for future security.

Living Documentation

Creating a security document that can be constantly updated can consolidate the ethos behind security measures that are being taken. It should include what steps are needed to protect data with regards to BYOD, as well as password and encryption management, network access control, and what the policy should be to enforce such procedures.

Full Protection

It goes without saying that firewalls, antivirus programs, and full encryption of sensitive data should be employed throughout the company. However, IT support experts in LA also suggest that it can be advantageous to have specific devices such as those that can prevent internal intrusion, mail systems that protect against phishing and anti-malware gateways.

In order to protect your business, you need to be aware, organized, and proactive. There is a great deal to think about so that all vulnerabilities can be found and protected, but an IT support provider in LA can help you. At Advanced Networks, with our extensive experience in defending companies’ data and improving their overall security, we can help you protect your infrastructure and keep your business safe for the future. Contact us now for more information.

Does Your IT Services Provider in Los Angeles Take Security Seriously?

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Does Your IT Services Provider in Los Angeles Take Security Seriously?

Whether you are looking for a new IT services provider in Los Angeles or already have an existing relationship, security needs to be your number one priority.

Hiring an MSP to manage internal IT needs is a smart move for small to medium-sized businesses. It gives them access to expert resources without the overhead cost of an internal full-size IT department. However, problems arise when an SMB fails to ensure their MSP take security seriously. Overlooking that could cost the SMB everything.

It can be difficult for a non-IT expert to gauge the security knowledge and expertise of an MSP. That is why it’s important for SMB owners and managers to educate themselves on the basics of IT security so they can ensure that an MSP will make it a top priority. Here are four basics to get you started:

IT Security

The basic definition of IT security is the protection of your company’s IT assets, including data, software, email, servers, PCs, laptops, mobile devices, and networks. Comprehensive IT security should have multiple layers that are constantly tested and improved. It starts with safeguards that protect the infrastructure from unauthorized access, malicious code, and internal malpractice. It includes comprehensive policies on computer use, password security, disaster recovery and external access.

Backups

Data losses happen all the time. A server crashes at the wrong time or a virus hits the network. Backing up critical data ensures quick recovery and minimizes a loss of productivity. The term “backing up” refers to copying computer data and archiving it to a local server and to an external site. The external backup ensures your business continuity in case of a local problem. The MSP should use the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) with a minimum key length of 128 bits.

Disaster Recovery

If your company gets hit by a disaster, you need to be able to recover quickly. Disaster recovery planning for your IT assets should be part of any company’s internal strategy. This is especially critical in any MSP relationship. When you rely on an IT services provider in Los Angeles to handle your IT assets, you need to know that they will be there to help you recover from a disaster. An IT provider can create a well-designed disaster recovery plan for your business.

Compliance

Many industries, such as healthcare and legal services, have strict guidelines when it comes to handling sensitive data. Remaining compliant with these guidelines is a major business concern in these sectors. If your company is in one of these sectors, your MSP needs to be fully aware of the guidelines and have established policies and procedures for bringing and keeping clients into compliance. It will save your company money while protecting your brand at the same time.

Security needs to be a top priority when building a relationship with an IT service provider. Understanding the basics of IT security is the first step. If you are in the market for IT services in Los Angeles, contact us at Advanced Networks today. We have the knowledge and expertise in IT security to ensure your infrastructure remains safe.

Why You Need IT Services in Los Angeles to Reduce Threats Which Develop Internally

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IT services in Los Angeles can be integral resources in helping you both prevent breaches to your healthcare operation and design an operational flow which addresses the issue effectively.

As it turns out, the greatest overall threat to any business in terms of cybercrime develops internally. MSPs providing IT services have an added incentive to help prevent this because of a thing called shared liability, whereby should HIPAA find your institution in violation, they get fined as well. Accordingly, they’re likely going to give you more comprehensive, regulation-compliant services than an internal solution can.

With that in mind, here is a process of preventative techniques to help you most successfully prevent cybercriminal intrusion throughout your healthcare facility:

  • Education of Staff – Since the majority of compromises to your security will result from poor practices among staff, IT services providers in Los Angeles strongly recommend education of healthcare workers in a comprehensive way. They need to know why security is important, best and worst practices pertaining to security, and how to prepare.
  • Ensure Cybercriminals are Deterred – Firewalls, antivirus software, monitoring and support that is continuous, BDR plans, quarantine protocols, and other methods of both deterring cybercriminals and responding to breaches are integral.
  • Proper Detection Protocols – Your healthcare facility needs to have security solutions in place which can: detect the anomalous behavior which is most consistent with cybercriminal activity. MSPs can help you most successfully detect these issues.
  • Investigation of Breaches – When a breach does happen, it must be closely investigated both to eradicate the issue, and to determine what vulnerability was exploited. There are many different things that can facilitate a breach, and deep investigation with the most professional available tools is necessary. MSPs are ideally suited to help your healthcare institution with this.
  • Recurrent Training – A single round of courses is not enough. You need to continuously train medical staff as possible at recurrent intervals. If you can arrange for some means of training every four to six months, this is ideal. Working with an MSP can help expedite the process. Once primary education is complete, further training may only involve being conscious of operational, technological, and sociological shifts defining contemporary technology.

IT services in Los Angeles through Advanced Networks can help you remain secure from cybercriminal intrusion, protecting your patients in a comprehensive way. Additionally, we can ensure your operations are always in compliance. Contact us to see what security solutions for healthcare facilities are out there and which one works for your facility.

IT Support in LA Can Help Safeguard Telecommuting Employees

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An Increasingly Mobile Environment

IT support in LA has been forced by the market to transition beyond simple on-site IT security solutions. Cloud computing makes it possible for an entire network to be “floated,” such that on-site servers are no longer necessary. DaaS (Desktop as a Service) makes it possible for remote employees to log into a company database or desktop. Then, they can bring up their occupational tasks and finish them from wherever they happen to be connected to the internet. That saves money in terms of equipment, space, and time. No longer do employees have to commute and no longer do they milk the clock. Additionally, they are only productive when clocked in, unless some abstruse situation forces things another direction.

Now all that sounds excellent, except for untrustworthy networks. A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is affordable and ideal. Although, this may not always be a tenable solution for your company. However, what can be done in terms of security is educational expansion. IT support in LA can help your remote employees exercise IT security practices that will safeguard your network:

  • Only using trusted networks
  • Employing multi-factor authentication protocols
  • Educating employees internally
  • Outsourcing password management to an MSP

Only Using Trusted Networks

Say you’re in a coffee shop and the Wi-Fi decides to quit. Then, you go through your Wi-Fi list and find some “unlisted” Wi-Fi option that is listed as “open.” This could be a hacker’s Wi-Fi used to leach onto corporate networks, through end-user portals accessing the cloud. So, you get the web for a bit, then the hacker “gets his” and cuts the connection. You go back to work and think nothing of it until the home system crashes and you have to drive to the main office for a meeting about computer security practices. What did you do wrong? You used an untrusted network. Don’t do that! Turn your Wi-Fi/Hotspot/Bluetooth connectivity off when you’re not using it. Only log onto secure networks and use a VPN if such a thing is available to you.

Employing Multi-Factor Authentication

You’ve, likely, encountered this already when you go to retrieve a forgotten password from your email account. You get a text message with a code you must type in to verify your identity, upon initial request. After you’ve typed in the code, which arrives via automated text message, then you’re granted access. This can be a great way to keep cybercriminals from exploiting your network. Employ multi-factor authentication protocols.

Educating Employees Internally

If employees don’t know where they’re making mistakes, how can they fix them? You must have training sessions. If you’ve got the right MSP, they can send a trainer. At the very least, educate your trainers so they can pass the knowledge on.

Password Management

It’s pretty easy to hack a bad password; that’s what imploded the DNC in 2016. Don’t let that happen to your business. MSPs can manage and update passwords more securely than many internal options. Use such solutions as they’re available.

Enhanced Mobile Security

IT support in LA through Advanced Networks provides IT security solutions, which can help safeguard employees in most remote situations. Contact us to help protect your remote operations.