As small business owners, we spend strategically so every dollar counts. We need to get the most value for our spend. This has been compounded in recent months with uncertainty around the impacts of the pandemic. The approach of making small adjustments to handle incremental growth or change based on previous years and experience is no longer a reliable method of planning and decision making. Rapid changes in work patterns, locations and tools have created an opportunity for bad actors. Depending on who you ask, and the types of attacks reviewed, estimates range from 100% to 600% increase in cyber-attacks. This increase, added to a poorly planned or executed IT strategy, is a recipe for disaster. 75 – 95% of successful hacks are due to employee actions like clicking on phishing emails and social media posts.
While the specifics and nuances of a technology plan will vary from company to company, there are some common situations we encounter when working with potential clients.
No plan
- These businesses tend to purchase needed hardware and services and then just use them.
- Often, Internet comes via a cable modem and the assumption is that it provides any needed security filtering and functions as a meaningful firewall protecting the company office.
- Devices frequently come with free or trial anti-virus, anti-malware software. Maybe not the same for each device but something; at least for a while until it expires.
- No standards for anything; if it appears to work, its good.
Employee Personal Devices and Accounts
- Some businesses have invested in a network. They have a firewall, WIFI access points, and a network to control access to company resources internally, such as file shares.
- However, now that people are working remote, they are using personal devices like home PCs or laptops and mobile devices.
- Employees Zoom and share files via email or personal accounts with Google Drive or Drop-Box.
Lack of centralized control and visibility
- Clearly, the previous examples have zero or almost zero lack of control over company resources and activities. They lack visibility or understanding of each device’s status or health.
- There is no ability to control access other than maybe a password. Many times, with no control over password requirements such as length, complexity or 2 factor authentication (2FA).
- No control of company data. If it’s stored in an employee’s personal email or file storage, its theirs, not yours. You can demand that they return or delete but you have no positive control.
The most common excuses for not focusing on the IT effort within a company are expense and complexity. While there is expense and it can be complex, there are affordable options to simplify the process. The need to hire expensive employees or pay technology companies by the hour or sign long-term contracts no longer exists. The need to purchase expensive productivity software repeatedly with each new version no longer exists.
The modern network and Play Good Group provide the expertise and systems to manage your technology and security needs. We provide everything on an auto-renewing 30-day agreement and we earn your business each month. We make it easy to plan and forecast your IT expenses and give you control over how much you need in any given month.
If you are unsure of your company’s IT readiness and security practices, and you are serious about making a change, we need to talk. Play Good Group can take care of everything and leave you free to run your business without frustration.
