Wednesday, November 18, 2020

4 Reasons to Consider an IT Security Audit

4 Reasons to Consider an IT Security Audit

By Robert Blake


Looking at ways to protect your IT infrastructure from cyber threats is critical for small business owners. A cybersecurity incident can create hours of downtime and ruin the reputation of your company. Conducting an IT security audit on a routine basis is a great way to stay proactive and limit the chance of a successful cyber attack. A managed IT service provider can identify any areas of weakness within your organization and develop a detailed plan to give you the best cybersecurity available.


Here are a few more of the top reasons to consider an IT security audit from a managed service provider.


1) Establish Benchmarks

One of the first objectives of an IT service provider is to establish benchmarks for your company. These IT security professionals will evaluate your current level of protection and look at ways to boost your cybersecurity. Setting these benchmarks early on will provide your organization with an IT roadmap that will give you short-term and long-term goals related to IT security. Always finding ways to improve cybersecurity is a top concern for a managed service provider, as cyber threats never stop evolving.


2) Identify Areas of Weakness

Cybercriminals are constantly finding new ways to target small businesses. An IT security incident can easily bankrupt your business and ruin trust with your clients. However, conducting IT security audits on a routine basis can help identify any weaknesses within your organization before they are exploited by cybercriminals. These proactive IT services can save you a lot of stress and help your business stay one step ahead of cyber threats in the workplace.


3) Create an Action Plan

Performing IT security audits are only valuable if they result in an action plan for your business. An IT service provider will work with your employees to create a plan that addresses potential vulnerabilities to give you greater protection from cyber threats. Following these guidelines from an IT security audit will greatly reduce the chance of downtime while also giving your business an extra layer of protection against data breaches.


4) Educate Employees

A cybersecurity incident can happen to your business in many different ways. An unsuspecting employee may fall victim to a phishing scam or accidentally click on an unsafe website. An IT security audit provides a perfect opportunity to train your employees on how to recognize and learn from their mistakes. A managed service provider can conduct cybersecurity training classes based on the results of an IT security audit.


Final Thoughts

Conducting an IT security audit is a critical aspect of giving your business the best protection against cybercrime. Typically, it is recommended to conduct IT security audits at least twice a year. However, it is often a good idea to perform these audits more often if you are a bigger organization. These IT security audits play a key role in identifying areas of weakness while also allowing you to develop an action plan. Cybercrime is a lucrative business, as remaining proactive against these threats is essential for business owners.


We offer a free initial network and security assessment.  Please contact our office for details, 877860.5863 x190


Bit by bit helps client networks run smooth and secure.. visit our website at www.bitxbit.com/texas 877.860.5863

Thursday, November 12, 2020

Ransomware Recovery is Long and Expensive. Should You Just Pay the Ransom to Make it Easier?

Ransomware Recovery is Long and Expensive. Should You Just Pay the Ransom to Make it Easier?


Ransomware has been the story of the year in cybersecurity, as attacks have boomed by more than 40% since March 2020. This slippery, dangerous foe is a nightmare that can wreak havoc on your business and cost a fortune in restoration and recovery on top of the lost business and general damage.

No one wants to deal with ransomware. But since you’re already looking at an expensive proposition, can you save yourself the money, time, and headaches of undertaking a ransomware incident response by paying the ransom and getting the encryption key to unlock your systems and data – and will you get in legal trouble for doing it?

The answer is complicated. While paying the ransom may not be expressly prohibited by law, legal officials are not fans of the practice. The US Treasury issued new guidance this month urging people not to pay hackers, and noting that businesses could face civil penalties if they pay ransoms to hacker groups affiliated with sanctioned nation-states, a particular concern for the healthcare sector.

The better approach to protecting your business from phishing danger including ransomware is increased security awareness and phishing resistance training. Ransomware is most likely to arrive at your doorstep as the cargo of a phishing email, as well as other dangerous cyberattacks like business email compromise, spear phishing, and whaling.

Regular phishing resistance training and testing with a solution like BullPhish ID is extremely effective – security awareness training including phishing resistance can reduce your cybersecurity incident rate by up to 70%. No matter how you slice it, increased security awareness training is the best way to ensure that your employees are ready for the threats they face ahead to keep ransomware from taking your profits hostage.


Bit by bit helps client networks run smooth and secure.. visit our website at www.bitxbit.com/texas 877.860.5863

Go Inside the Ink to Get the Inside Scoop on Cybercrime


Bit by bit helps client networks run smooth and secure.. visit our website at www.bitxbit.com/texas 877.860.5863

Dark Web Data Powers Impersonation & Business Email Compromise Scams

Dark Web Data Powers Impersonation & Business Email Compromise Scams 


Dark Web danger doesn’t just come to your company’s doorstep from compromised passwords – it also comes from data dumps full of email addresses, employee information, website user logs, supplier records, medical data, and more that can provide cybercriminals with exactly what they need to lure your staffers into a nasty (and expensive) trap. 

Every kind of data about your employees that you can think of is available on the Dark Web – sometimes for free. As the 2020 US elections race to the finish, voting registration data and records from special interest groups have fueled extremely dangerous spear phishing attacks including impersonation scams. 

General business email compromise attempts are landing in employee inboxes every day too. A recent survey reported that over 30% of respondents reported receiving one every day. Running the gamut of impersonations including scary vendor notices, fake unpaid invoices, spoofed supplier communications, and even fake emails from colleagues, cybercriminals are pulling out all the stops to trick your staffers into falling into a business email compromise scam.


a red envelope on a computer screen representing phsihing like ransomware threats up 33% in 2020

See how to enlist your staff in the fight against ransomware to transform them into your biggest security asset! WATCH THE WEBINAR>>


The most efficient and effective way to put the brakes on business email compromise risks is to mitigate the foundation that they’re built on: phishing email. With a more than 600% increase in phishing attacks clocked in 2020, making sure that your staff is ready to defend against phishing attacks is crucial to protecting your business from cybercrime like business email compromise.

BullPhish ID can help with that. Regular security awareness training including phishing awareness can reduce your company’s risk of falling prey to a cyberattack by up to 70%. The key is regularity though – research shows that employees only retain security awareness training for about 4 months unless it’s regularly refreshed.

That’s not a problem with BullPhish ID. Featuring a huge library of more than 80 plug-and-play phishing simulation campaign kits in 8 languages, we also add 4 new kits every month to make sure that your staffers are getting the training that they need to be on guard against the latest threats.

Regular training doesn’t mean expensive either – BullPhish ID is affordable and effective. Improved cybersecurity awareness and phishing resistance training isn’t something that can wait. Protect your systems and data from impersonation and business email compromise scams now to avoid a mess tomorrow.  Contact us today for a live demo of BullPhish ID to see how it can secure your customers and grow your business.


Bit by bit helps client networks run smooth and secure.. visit our website at www.bitxbit.com/texas 877.860.5863

Go Inside the Ink to Get the Inside Scoop


Bit by bit helps client networks run smooth and secure.. visit our website at www.bitxbit.com/texas 877.860.5863

Monday, November 2, 2020

Monday, October 26, 2020

Bit by Bit November Newsletter


Bit by bit helps client networks run smooth and secure.. visit our website at www.bitxbit.com/texas 877.860.5863