Whether you're watching the World Cup or going on a business trip overseas, you will experience foreign cultures and run into what's known as "the language barrier." Thanks to technology, you can quickly and easily make sense of World Cup statistics, or make your way around a city where English isn't the norm.
Whether you're on the move or at the workplace, your WiFi connection isn't the most secure method of browsing the Internet. Hacking techniques are growing more sophisticated, and you never know who could be observing your connection and Internet activity. Thankfully, there are ways to remediate this issue, like using a Virtual Private Network (VPN).
In this day and age, your company's data is extremely important. Without it, your company would likely cease to exist. But, it's not just you - the entire world is this way, and the more information that's out there, the more storage and backup that is needed. Professionals are constantly looking for ways to expand the way we store data, and last month, Sony managed to discover something entirely new that may change the way that we store our information.
Take a moment to consider your answer to this question, "What would you do if all of your business's data was somehow lost overnight?" How would you react, and what would you do about it? Your data is valuable, so much in fact that your business would be lost without it, and likely wouldn't be able to run properly.
On May 7, 2014, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released a news alert declaring Bitcoin, and all other virtual currencies insecure and unsafe. Due to a rise in Bitcoin popularity, many investors and business owners like to use it for worldwide transactions. But, how safe is it, and how likely are you to run into a Bitcoin fraud scheme?
In December 2013, retail superpower Target was the target (hehe) of a massive data breach that could have affected as many as 110 million customers. On Monday, May 5, 2014, the CEO of Target, Gregg Steinhafel, announced that he would be stepping down, no doubt a result of the chaos that engulfed his company in the aftermath of this data breach. Target's CFO, John Mulligan, has stepped in as interim CEO until the position is filled once again.
GameOver Zeus, a member of the Zeus family of malware, has been discovered and disrupted by the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Department of Justice. But, this is only a temporary respite from the danger the malware poses - in two weeks, the threat will be back, and very much alive.
Mobile devices are designed for different purposes than the big, bulky desktops are. The Chrome operating system of the Google Chromebook is a perfect example of this - it looks like nothing but a browser with a keyboard. Sure, it can't do everything a real computer can do, but it sure can do a lot more than some people give it credit for.
With the world still on edge about the recent vulnerability found in most versions of Internet Explorer, another one has been discovered, this time in Internet Explorer 8. This bug allows a hacker to execute malicious code when a user opens an infected email or webpage.
Firewalls are the first thing companies think of when it comes to data security. What is the last security risk on an organization's mind? Your most tech-savvy employee. If someone were to "get to" the employee overseeing your network, they would be able to do some serious damage. What are you doing to protect your data from the employees you trust the most?
Many websites around the world are still suffering from the nasty little bug called Heartbleed that we covered last month. This prompted over 30,000 TLS/SSL certificates to be revoked and reissued, but many of them were reissued with the same keys. If this was going to happen, why revoke and reissue them in the first place? They're still just as vulnerable as before, since Heartbleed could have leaked those same keys weeks ago.
eBay issued an official declaration on Wednesday, May 21, 2014 that one of its databases had been hacked. The worst part? This database, which housed users' passwords, was compromised. But, there is a silver lining to all of this - no information has been stolen.
None that they know of, anyway. The auctioning website is still cautioning users to change their passwords in light of the attack.
How much paper and ink does your company use every week? Every month? Every year? More importantly, how much does this wind up costing your company in the long run? According to a study by 14 year-old science fair wiz Suvir Mirchandani, it was discovered that his Pittsburgh-area school district could reduce ink consumption by 24 percent and save an average of $21,000 a year by simply switching fonts. That's half of what the average American's annual salary is!
If your workplace is filled with computers, you likely experience a number of eye-straining problems related to your technology. According to All About Vision, symptoms of computer eye strain impair 50-to-90 percent of all computer workers. That's a pretty good-sized chunk of your employees, and they probably don't enjoy any of these symptoms, including physical fatigue, decreased productivity, and even increased error rate.
Think your data is safe when you lock your phone? Thanks to a newly discovered vulnerability with iOS 7.1.1 (the latest version), a hacker has the ability to bypass your lock screen and easily access your contact information.
Who's in charge of making the decisions in your business concerning technology? Ideally, you want an internal IT manager or a CIO with IT experience calling the tech shots. However, many businesses don't have this luxury. According to a CompTIA survey from last November, 48 percent of businesses have managers making decisions about technology implementation that don't have IT experience.
Let's face it, no matter how quickly you can type, there is only so much you can accomplish without the use of keyboard shortcuts. Perhaps you never cared to learn them, or maybe you never had the opportunity. Now that you own a small business, your productivity and efficiency is at stake. Thankfully, some of the most useful shortcuts utilize one common key: the Control key.
You've just started your own small business, and your head is swimming with ideas that you want to share with the entire world. You create a blog and publish a few articles, but only get a few hits. You sigh, write another entry, and then shut down your computer for the night. This happens for a few days, which turn into weeks, and months, and something doesn't feel right to you. Why aren't you getting any viewers?
The Internet Explorer vulnerability that was discovered early last week was so intense that the United States and United Kingdom deemed it necessary to issue a warning. Found in six different versions of Internet Explorer, anyone who used the browser was at risk. The bug allowed hackers to potentially take over your computer and install malware or steal personal information. But fear not - on May 1st 2014, Microsoft issued a patch that ends this bug's reign of terror.
Due to the growing popularity of employees using their personal devices in the workplace (BYOD), many companies have created BYOD policies to handle the unique security threats brought about by these devices. Does the new trend of wearable technology mean that you need a separate WYOD policy?
