Suffolk Computer Consultants, Inc. Blog

What’s your strategy for talking on your cell phone in public? Do you excuse yourself to a room with fewer people? Do you try to talk as quietly as you can in order to prevent eavesdropping? Or do you blab away for all to hear? Thanks to a new product called Hushme, you’ve got another option--but be warned, it will turn some heads.

As with all innovative technology, there is only a certain amount of time you’ll have until someone inevitably finds ways to exploit it. One such exploitation of a common technology that has flown under the radar and avoided widespread knowledge by users is VoIP fraud. VoIP fraud is no different than other cybercrime - the exploitation of a network or data to procure ill-gotten gains.

We are never shy about insisting that certain standards are met when devising passwords, but many major companies are seemingly far less worried about password security than we are. A recent study conducted by the password manager developer Dashlane paints a troubling picture of the state of password security, providing anecdotal evidence in the form of some very well-known and trusted companies scoring at the low end of the password security spectrum.

When it comes to hacking and cybercrime, it can literally be a few seconds that will ruin your business. One single chink in your network’s armor is all it takes for your data to be compromised. Modern SMBs need to take every opportunity to ensure they’re using best practices to help keep their network safe and secure. Here’s a look at four network security bad habits that you and your team can fix today.

Too often, the desire to share an exciting travel destination with the world overrides any security or safety concerns one might have. Even people who are traveling for business will use social media to document their trip as a method of promoting their attendance at the event over social media. This includes photographing and sharing proprietary documents, like boarding passes and passports.

Smart technologies are becoming more and more prevalent in everyday life. As such, it may not be a bad idea to prepare today’s children for their technology-filled tomorrow. However, as Mattel discovered with their kid-targeted smarthome hub, Aristotle, it is important to make sure that these devices are secure enough to ensure the safety of their youthful users.

Did you know that a surprising number of data breaches are the result of insider threats? Insider threats are defined as data exposure, either malicious by nature or unintentional, that results from the actions of an employee in your workforce. With so many threats out there, it’s easy to forget that some of the most dangerous are right within your walls. How can you keep insider threats from becoming a major problem for your organization?

It is our hope that you are aware of how much of a risk spyware can pose to your business. Your business generates, collects, and leverages truly considerable amounts of data each day that is intended for your business only. While spyware that is introduced by a hacker is clearly a bad thing, what if the manufacturer of the device installed a program that pulled data from your machine?

Passwords are everywhere. It seems that every account requires a password, in addition to the devices we use to access these accounts. This is a good thing, as it only helps to increase security - assuming that the password is strong. After all, a password that anyone can guess can hardly be called a password at all.

Most users are aware that their browsers offer a “secure” browsing experience. Google Chrome has Incognito mode, Microsoft’s Edge browser allows you to surf the Internet “InPrivate,” and Apple’s Safari offers Private Browsing as well. The trouble is, these “secure” browsing options aren’t actually all that secure. For today’s tip, we’ll discuss ways to actually keep your Internet browsing private.

Internet scams are major threats to individuals and business because all it takes is one wrong click of the mouse and a user is embroiled in an unenviable situation. One such scam that is happening today is designed to catch users with their pants down, so to speak.

Email is (and has been) a prime method of communication for businesses of all sizes. With email comes a whole slew of issues that are essentially synonymous with the technology; spam, information overload, phishing, and information privacy. Even New York small businesses that only do business locally are at risk of these issues. Personal email accounts are equally at risk. Employing proper precautions and practices whenever communicating via email is very important to prevent the risk of security compromises, monetary loss, and even legality issues.

Your identity has quite a lot of value, especially in the wrong hands. Security firm ZoneAlarm put together some numbers in 2011 concerning identity fraud, and it even shocked us. Let's talk about a few of these statistics and what it means.