HIA Trade Show Tomorrow!!

This event is the largest business to business trade show and conference on Long Island. It is a great way to connect, collaborate and reach out to the LI community.

Click HERE to visit the official event page.

Visit CMIT at Booth 126 to enter to win a free mini laptop!

The show is tomorrow!

May 26, 9am-4pm

Suffolk Community College Sports and Exhibition Complex, Brentwood Campus

Industries that will be present at the trade show include:

Economic Development Agencies

Finance

Green Industries

Manufacturing

Technology

Workforce Development

Come to the Merr-Olympics!

CMIT Solutions of South Nassau, along with Therapeutic Solutions, Merrick Kiwanis, and the Professional Performance Athletic Center of Garden City are proud to sponsor the Merr-Olympics!

Merr-Olympics

Sunday June 12th (Raindate June 19th)

9am - 12pm

Chatterton School in Merrick

For more information click here or contact Dr. Rich Seibert at 516.867.8585

Cybercriminal Threats

Cyber threats of any kind are a continuous risk. Various types of malware exist and we want to inform you of these rising threats and also how to protect yourself from them. Over the next two days we will continue to inform you about various threats.

Text-message malware: Smartphone viruses exist, but even more popular is text message spam. Hackers have moved onto attacking mobile devices. This works the same way as it would on a computer—downloading a picture or opening an attachment can install malware on the device. Usually this can charge you per message and even start buying ringtones. You may even receive an invite to download an app for free Internet access, but really will then send text messages from your phone that you will be charged a hefty fee for. Businesses may want to enforce policies that limit who employees can text using company phones.

Social network account spoofing: As the popularity of social networking continues to rise, this makes us more susceptible to scams. Hackers can pose as a friend and trick you into revealing personal information. This could ultimately lead to something serious like identity theft. Social networks provide a new means for con artists and criminals to get close to you. Platforms like Facebook allow hackers to see your interests, which further streamlines their research on how to retrieve information from you. Be sure to look for faulty links or URLs, as shown in the image below.If you click the picture, you will see that the address includes a spelling error.

Cloud Concerns: Data Security

A major concern that business owners have regarding cloud based services involves DATA SECURITY.

When entrusting your valuable data to a third-party, you need to ensure that the company takes the data security very seriously. Below we will discuss two of the main points you should address with a potential cloud-services provider.

Where does my data live? And how is it stored?
Where your data is physically stored has several implications. You'll want to know not only where the servers upon which your data resides are geographically located, but whether multiple copies of your data exist in case of one provider's data centers fails. In case of the Amazon Cloud outages that occurred a few weeks ago, clients who had data mirrored outside of the North Virginia facility were much less affected than those who didn't. Data that isn't replicated across multiple geographical locations is vulnerable to total loss.

Recovery.
In the event of a prolonged cloud outage or data loss, what measures does the provider have in place to restore your data? If data loss is permanent, your business could experience severe consequences, which is why we always urge you to have a disaster recovery plan in place. Another important question to ask is, in the event that data restore needs to take place, in what format will your provider return your data to you? Will it be in a format compatible with widely available software, or in some sort of proprietary format specific to the provider?

We know and understand that data security and cloud computing are important issues, so please feel free to contact us, a trusted IT advisory team, with any questions.

NACHA Scam Makes its Rounds Via E-mail

NACHA is a non-profit financial organization that oversees an electronic payment system called Automated Clearing House (ACH) Network. However, they do not process ACH transactions, and will not send you notifications of any problems with them.

The email scam is an ACH transfer rejection notice that directs you to open up and download an attachment referring to your account which is actually a virus.

It has been confirmed by NACHA that these scams are indeed fradulent e-mails and they advise you NOT to open up any files or documents attached to these notices. Here is an image of the e-mail so you are aware of what it may look like:

Please beware of e-mail scams such as these. Never open up any attachments from email addresses that you don't know. It is better to be cautious about this subject matter because they may contain malware that can compromise your computer system.

Types of Clouds

We’ve talked about cloud computing before and want to continue keeping you informed about it. If you are unfamiliar, cloud computing essentially refers to the usage of resources through a network. A common type includes Google Docs, rather than using Microsoft Office. The obvious benefit is that anywhere you have Internet access, you have your files, which also assists in collaborative efforts. Today we want to inform you about a few different types of clouds that exist and what purposes they serve.

Public: Available to the general public; managed by a cloud services provider

Private: Operated by the organization using it; either the organization or a third-party manages it

Community: Shared by multiple organizations and works together for a common reason; either the organization or a third-party manages it

Hybrid: Consists of two or more of the aforementioned clouds; bound together by a technology that allows data and application portability

As cloud computing continues to be a prominent trend, we will continue to post more information so that you stay up-to-date. CMIT will also be holding a Cloud Computing webinar on May 26^th, 2011 at 2pm EST. If you would like to join us, visit www.cmitsolutions.com/webinars to register.

Malware Targets Mac Users

Fake security software that is aimed at Mac users has been on the rise this week since the news that Osama Bin Laden had been killed. The software claims to be an antivirus program, and while malware like this has been popular amongst Windows users for quite some time, this is essentially the first time Mac users have been targeted. Whether you are a Mac or PC user, it is always important to remember that just because the application appears to be sophisticated and professional-looking like it is in the screenshot below, it can still be phony.

The new type of rogueware (fake antivirus software that informs you your computer is infected) is called MAC Defender and can cause many pop-ups and false alerts. Until the application is removed, this will continue until the user pays a fee ($60-$80) for the useless program. Users cited various websites that they were viewing when the pop-ups and alerts started, so there does not seem to be a common cause. Mac users are no longer immune to viruses and malware. So, just like any other issue, we urge all computer users to be cautious and to refrain from clicking on things they aren’t 100% sure of. For more information on the details of MAC Defender, read this article from Computerworld.

Protecting Your Technology

We can’t emphasize enough the importance of proper business planning. We encourage implementing disaster recovery plans in case of damage of any kind. This could include a natural disaster like a fire, or even a security breach on your computer. It may seem difficult to prevent a fire, but you can definitely prevent a security breach.

Enforcing safe measures for your technology is a great way to prevent cyber attacks from occurring. Hackers can potentially retrieve sensitive information or your usernames/passwords, leaving your company’s finances “up for grabs”. We want to remind you of essential reminders to keep information secure.

• No matter the size of your business, keep in mind that you are still a business and not an individual, which still makes you a higher target for hackers.

• Make sure you have unique passwords. Hackers can obtain usernames/passwords by installing malware on your computer. They then could have access to private data, including bank account information.

• Install security software on every machine that updates automatically to keep your computer safe from viruses and other malware.

• Explain appropriate computer use to your employees and also why security procedures should be followed. Even if it seems like a tedious task, it’s important in the long run.

• Also be especially careful with thumb drives. If your computer at home is infected, malware can copy itself onto a thumb drive, and then infect any other computers it is plugged into.

• Assign one computer for the use of online banking. Keep security settings high and don’t use that machine for email and internet surfing. To keep it safe even further, disconnect it from the internet when it is not in use. Also be sure this computer is performing frequent system scans.

• Keep in mind that it is best to be proactive rather than reactive. Be prepared so that you have necessary safeguards in place before a problem occurs.

If you have any further questions about keeping your technology safe, please feel free to contact us!