MatrixAdapt | Logiciel de gestion d'Entreprise, Création et référencement des sites web

A password manager keeps people safe from hackers.

Consumers who regularly sign up for some type of online service are likely required to include a password to access their account. The process of filling out complex phrases that include punctuation marks, numbers and other symbols can be tiresome for anyone, but using complex passwords is one way to make it more difficult for hackers to obtain sensitive information.

A password manager,such as Sticky Password, is another and more effective option for consumers looking for ways to improve their password security. Such tools create complex passwords for accounts so people don't have to. These phrases are backed by advanced algorithms, making them a challenge for any hackers to break.

In addition to staying safe on a home computer, people must also practice safe browsing habits while on the move. Smartphones have become a staple for consumers and employees alike. These powerful gadgets are not just for making phone calls or sending text messages. The devices come equipped with mobile browsers, making it possible for people to access their most important accounts. Apple's iPhone remains the king of the smartphone arena, but its popularity means that cybercriminals are likely trying to take advantage of iPhone owners. Luckily, password managers keep users of iOS devices safe anywhere they travel.

Passwords are sometimes overlooked for various reasons. Although it may seem impossible that a hacker can guess a person's unique phrase, cybercriminals prove this is possible on a daily basis. Instead of trying to create a uncrackable password, consumers can use a password manager to do the heavy lifting for them and protect their most critical information from being breached. The only safeguard a person must remember is a master password and the rest is handled by the manager.

Backup your files on discs and be sure to store them in a secure location off-site.

Whether you own a large corporation or run a small business from home, it is essential that you are aware of the Importance of data backup and disaster recovery. Unfortunately you can never predict when disaster is going to strike in the work place. A disaster can be anything from system failure, to damage caused by a flood, fire or earthquake. Many businesses that experience a disaster never fully recover. Follow our simple tips below to ensure that your business does not become one of them.

1.) Primary back-up solutions:

Your customer database is one of your most valuable assets. Without it your business may not be able to function. This is why it is essential to make back-up copies of your database as well as other important files and information. Back-up copies can be made on disks, USB sticks and external hard drives. Understandably many business owners are wary of copies being made, especially of confidential data, so it is important that these copies are stored in a secure location off-site.

2.) Secondary back-up solutions:

Larger businesses will be able to store back-up copies of their files in an off-site data centre, but this is not an affordable option for many small to medium sized businesses. Instead why not Store your files on the cloud? This virtual form of storage, known as cloud computing, enables businesses to upload their files to a safe place on the internet. These files can be accessed remotely using a username and password.

Cloud computing is an affordable solution for small to medium sized businesses. Shop around to find the host offering the best price and be sure to check their terms and conditions. Using cloud storage will give you the peace of mind knowing that your files are safe, even if your physical IT infrastructure has been damaged.

3.) Use a virtual server:

A virtual server is capable of hosting a replica of your physical environment. It can be accessed remotely and often works out much cheaper than having a physical back-up server. If something unfortunate has happened to your workplace, you can simply access the virtual server within minutes from an off-site location.

4.) Create a data retention policy:

All businesses should have a data retention policy in place. This policy should inform your employees of the importance of backing up their data. It should tell them what data they need to back up, when they should do it and how it needs to be done. Business owners should schedule regular back-up sessions and appoint a member of their team to oversee it. If you fail to teach your staff the importance of backing up data, you may find that you are left with out of date copies of your files, which will not be of any worth to your business in the event of a disaster.

External hard drives are great for backing-up data but it is essential that they are kept in a secure location, especially if they contain confidential data.

5.) Test your plan:

It is important to create a disaster and recovery plan that is clear, concise and easy for your staff to follow. A step-by-step guide is always useful. Appoint a leader to oversee the whole procedure as you may be busy doing other things like contacting your insurance company.

We cannot stress enough how important it is to regularly test your plan. It would be no good to find out that your back-up copies do not work, or that you cannot gain access to your virtual server in the middle of a disaster. The more you test your plan, the less likely you are to face problems recovering your data, should disaster strike your workplace.

The key to successful data back-up and disaster recovery planning is to always plan for the worst. It is much better to spend time and money preparing for a disaster than to find that you are left with no resources to run your business if something unfortunate happens.



Written by SAS London, digital agency based in the United Kingdom.

Image credits: bobbigmac&miss karen

Img.Credit: freedigitalphotos

How often do you send emails, Word files or spreadsheets containing information that whilst not “top secret” it would be better that they were only accessed by your intended recipient? In the case of large file exchange or sharing this is normally achieved by uploading the file to a file sharing server and then letting the recipient know that it is there for them to download. Should we do more to protect these “shared files” from unauthorised access? Well in fact if these “file shares” are part and parcel to your companies business and contain any personal information you have a legal duty of care to ensure that their content is not revealed to the wider world.

Sending emails and files in “clear text” format is like sending your business letters on a post card. They can be intercepted and read by anyone who has the will to do so. Routinely our electronic ramblings are monitored by the various national security services at the very least.

So what can we do about it? We can obscure the content by means of encryption. By encrypting the content of an email or file we have effectively sealed it in an envelope. But surely this is going to be complicated and require the installation of software not only for me but also for my intended recipient, I hear you say. Well not necessarily. The new and emerging software solutions to this aged problem of providing robust encryption that everyone can use, simply without the need to understand all of the requisite complexities of random number generators, entropy and key pairs is proving that it is possible to bury these hitherto barriers within the program allowing a straightforward user interface to guide the user effortlessly through the maze in a couple of simple clicks.

If you will allow the pun, the “key” to this has been utilising a unique identifier for both sender and receiver. In this electronic age we all have such a thing, our email address! Imagine a system where a user’s email address is used in this way, the system can then generate key pairs associated with this address. These key pairs will be used to encrypt and decrypt any code the user may require protecting; emails, files, disks, thumb drives, CD-ROMs the list goes on. These encrypted portions of code can then be safely transported over any public or private network including the internet. They can even be stored on public servers awaiting collection by the recipient with the correct key/email address.

But how does the intended recipient’s email address work to decrypt the message? Easy because the data author or owner will know who they want to share that data with,so all that needs to happenis for the sender to supply the system with the email address of the intended recipient and it creates the necessary key pairs to enable encryption and decryption of the target code. These matching key pairs can be one-time pairs that will only apply to each data exchange further improving the security. Since each key pairing is only good for one exchange, if they were to be compromised it does not result in any future or past exchange being put at risk, clever!

This type of system can be used to encrypt emails, their attachments, files copied to disks, thumb drives, CD-ROMs in fact any media. Making use of a cloud based repository you instantly have the ability to transfer large encrypted files with users anywhere on the planet. Or if you prefer by hand via whatever storage medium you wish to use.

One such system Egress’s Switch even allows you to make these secure file transfers with user’s who are not subscribers to the system. This allows you to make secure exchanges with your trading partners or friends without the need for them to make any installation of software on their systems. Superb!

Spying like a boss

As BYOD (Bring your own device) sides up with employees and their privacy, we are also faced with the fact that employers are, for the welfare of the organization, is supposed to know what, when, where and how their employees are spending time at their workplace.

Assigning a smartphone for your employee and getting them a data plan might get a ‘World’s Best Boss’ mug for Christmas but that is not where you are supposed to stop at that. The smartphone might be used for Facebooking all day long while the organization has to pay for the data plan which might be spent on making personal calls. Sneaking in corners or hiding in a washroom cubicle while your employees try to wage a civil war in the organization doesn’t seem to the thing for the boss. It takes up a lot of time and effort. Monitoring your employees cell phone, it’s use and abuse helps you keep an eye on how they are utilizing their time and resources. It can also prove to be a helpful tool for measuring your employees’ productivity. If the employer is going for a top-notch spyware on the internet to monitor the cell phones of their employees, they can easily listen to calls made and received, have a look at the text messages, the contact list and the web browsing history. The spying doesn’t stop there; by issuing a simple command you can access the audio settings and the microphone of the device and get an audio recording of the surroundings of the cell phone. The employer can also get snapshots of the screen of the monitored device.

However, monitoring your employees might not be as easy in practice as on paper. Imagine asking the company’s executive’s for their smartphones so you could have them monitored. Moreover, BYOD is giving employees some legal backing too and that might restrict your way through monitoring employees.

Bringing up a teenager

For working parents who have little time and energy left after returning from their workplaces to discuss their teens problems and ups and downs in their kid’s life. Even if you believe your child to super teen who has brains and confidence to solve their own problems, they might be indulging in activities that you wouldn’t want them to be a part of. Rearing a teen while keeping in mind your principles is not easy when you are not physically present for your child is very difficult.

Cell phone tracking is one solution to that. While most teens consider their smartphone to be a vital part of their lives, it is impossible that cell phones hold a record of what they have been up to. By monitoring their cell phones, you can locate your teens even when the GPS is not working. While viewing data in the cell phone is a basic service, some software also allow you to wipe any unwanted data like videos, pictures or contacts and block certain type of communication.

Leaving all the employer and parenting woes, monitoring software can also be used as a security tool for your own smartphone. To keep out intruders, installing a cell phone monitoring app can help you keep a check on who has been doing what with your phone. In case the device gets stolen, there is nothing better than this app if you want to locate the thief.