Technology Advisor Blog



Outsmarting QR Code Scams: Your Guide to Spotting and Stopping Them

Posted by Ann Westerheim on 1/25/24 4:39 PM

QR codes, short for Quick Response Codes, are the gateway between the physical and digital realms, offering a seamless bridge in our interconnected world.  Just point your camera at a QR Code and you'll be conveniently directed to a website.  Easy, right?   However, their simplicity and widespread adoption have opened the door for innovative cybercriminals to exploit. These tech-savvy fraudsters ingeniously manipulate QR codes, turning them into tools for executing scams, potentially leading to significant security breaches and financial damage. As a small business owner in the digital age, it's imperative to understand the nature of QR code scams and the strategies to effectively recognize and thwart them. This article will arm you with essential tips and insights, empowering you to safeguard your business against the hidden dangers of these seemingly innocuous codes.

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Tags: Managed Services, cybersecurity, cybersecurity training





Videoconferencing from Home - What you need to know

Posted by Ann Westerheim on 4/8/20 10:58 AM

Many workers are taking business meetings from their living rooms or kitchens these days due to the Coronavirus pandemic.  Non-essential businesses were ordered to close, and encouraged to continue operations remotely when possible.  Many small businesses have gotten very creative to find new ways to operate and survive the crisis.   
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Tags: small business, Managed Services, remote work





Supporting Local Small Businesses During COVID-19

Posted by Ann Westerheim on 4/6/20 11:37 AM

Over the past two weeks, Ekaru engineers have closed over 1,000 tickets as we helped local businesses transition to work from home and remain as productive as possible. 

Information Technology is classified as an "essential service" and Ekaru remains fully available to support our community, while following social distancing protocols.  Please refer to the list of Covid 19 Essential Services that are exempted from the Massachusetts emergency order. 

Ekaru is fully configured to work through situations like this.  We have previously established a disaster recovery plan and leveraged technology to maintain full functionality to work remotely.  We are also fully committed to mitigating the risk of exposure to and transmission of the virus.  

Please call for urgent support issues, and email for non-urgent issues.  Most support calls that we would have gone on site for will now be handled remotely, and for urgent issues that require an onsite visit, we'll follow protocols from the CDC.

Here are some of the things our engineers have been working on:

  • Helping our clients with transitioning to work at home, including access via LogMeIn, VPN, or access to VoIP phone systems, as well as online tools such as remote meeting / conferencing tools.
  • Helping advise our clients on ways to reduce the risk of accessing corporate information from likely very insecure home systems not protected by approved security antivirus, without up to date security patches for operating systems, and possibly infected with malware.
  • Educating our clients on, and protecting them from, the new Corona virus scams, fake websites, and phishing emails by malware creators to take advantage of the current situation. So, in addition to human virus issues, there are cyber-virus infections related the COVID-19.  One staffer opening a map of Coronavirus cases from a phishing email or a healthcare worker’s cracked password could give cybercriminals the ability to deploy ransomware to shut down critical systems right when we need them the most.  
  • We are also mostly all working at home ourselves and trying to do as much as possible remotely to avoid having to do onsite visits, but still keeping systems up and running.

We're here to help.  If you have any questions, please let us know.   Every situation is unique and we're here to support you. 

Here are some links to additional resources:

Videos:

3/27/2020 - Video - How to Spot a Phishing eMail

3/27/2020 - Video - How to Launch a Video Call

Blogs:

4/3/2020:  VoIP Telephony - e911 and Staying Connected During the COVID-19 Crisis

4/3/2020:  How to Get the IT Management Services You Need During the COVID Outbreak 

4/2/2020:  Three Tips to for Working Remotely to Help Your Team Stay Productive

3/27/2020:  COVID-19 Remote Work Tips

Together we can all work through this crisis.  

 

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Tags: Managed Services, remote work





VoIP Telephony - e911 and Staying Connected in the Covid-19 Crisis

Posted by Ann Westerheim on 4/3/20 3:37 PM

VoIP (Voice over IP) telephony ensures effective communication and business continuity in times of crisis, as many of our clients have seen over the past few weeks.  Unlike traditional phone systems that are tied to an office location, VoIP phones can be used anywhere. 

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Tags: Managed Services, business continuity, VoiP,





How to Get the IT Management Services You Need During the COVID Outbreak

Posted by Ann Westerheim on 4/3/20 12:18 PM

With the large majority of still-open businesses now working remotely, you may be experiencing a sudden need for IT support that you no longer have easy access to. Getting the IT management services and support you need when working in an office is one thing, but getting it when your entire team is spread across any number of locations is a far more complicated matter.

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Tags: Managed Services, computer support, remote work





Get S.M.A.R.T and save your data BEFORE you lose it!

Posted by Ann Westerheim on 3/20/13 10:00 AM


One of the things we strongly advise our clients to get on board with is proactive monitoring of all their systems with our managed services.   With this service, we monitor all systems for a long list of parameters including Antivirus software updates, Security Patch updates, system performance and when capable, S.M.A.R.T monitoring of hard drives.  

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Tags: hard drive, S.M.A.R.T, Monitoring, Managed Services





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