Cybersecurity is a critical concern for all organizations. When you hear about cyberattacks on the news, it’s usually about large organizations that have been hacked. Unfortunately, you don’t need to be a Fortune 500 company to be in the crosshairs of cybercriminals. For non-profits in Maryland, cybersecurity is a real threat.

These organizations face unique challenges, from limited budgets to specific compliance requirements. Yet, the threat of cyberattacks is ever-present and growing.

“I don’t need to worry about cyberattacks… my business is too small to be of any interest.”

This brief rationalization is one of the most dangerous fallacies a modern business can make concerning cybersecurity, and shows a fundamental misunderstanding of how modern cyberthreats operate. If this has been your mindset, we urge you to read on so we can help set you on a more realistic path.

With technology being such a massive part of business today, many organizations are looking to use it to their advantage. One aspect of the business that is increasingly significant is their ability to stand out amongst their competition. Let’s take a look at a few technologies that can improve your organizational marketing efforts.

In an era where security is a non-negotiable aspect of business operations, Baltimore businesses are no exception. The rise in crime rates and the need for accountability make it imperative for local businesses to invest in modern digital surveillance systems. Advanced cameras and security solutions not only deter criminal activity but also provide a robust framework for asset protection, 24/7 monitoring, and access control.

We’ve spent the last few weeks discussing ransomware's impacts on different subsets. First, we discussed how a ransomware attack impacts the customers of the infected business, and then we touched on the infected business itself. To end, we want to touch on ransomware's impacts on society, specifically regarding economic health and geopolitical security, known as third-order harms.

Last week, we discussed the many impacts your business suffering from ransomware has on “second-order harm,” downstream businesses, and average, ordinary people. This time, we wanted to return to “first-order harms”… those the impacted business has to deal with itself.

It can be too easy to look at ransomware as a business problem. After all, it attacks businesses, locking down their data for ransom, often selling it or spreading it, and sometimes altering it for the business if returning it at all. It can be too easy to overlook another impacted target in all the mess.

What happens to the people whose data a business has collected and uses?

Businesses need a certain degree of good fortune to continue to grow in the manner in which they project when they hang out their shingle. With so many businesses failing after a very short time, taking advantage of the opportunities you’re given is extremely important. In this month’s newsletter, we’ll go through some of the things that a business can do to take better advantage of some opportunities. 

The modern customer is more educated than ever before. As a result, you have to have an active strategy to build great customer experiences so you can retain business with them. In this month’s newsletter, we’ll go over some things you can do to improve your customer relationships. 

Professional services make up a significant portion of the business landscape. They can be broadly defined as any organization with trained professionals at the center offering a service of note. The most common professionals under this umbrella term are lawyers, agents, consultants, and others who help businesses in their day-to-day operations. Let’s explore some of the technology that fuels professional service providers.

Leadership can take many forms. As a leader in your own company, it can pay to understand what form of leadership you tend to express when working with your team. Let’s review some leadership styles to see if anything resonates.

Modern business technology is complicated. Baltimore businesses need a reliable IT partner who can help them implement, maintain, and protect their IT infrastructure.

By outsourcing your IT support to a reliable managed IT service provider near you, you can focus on growing your business while leaving the technical aspects to the experts. In this article, we will discuss the benefits of finding reliable managed IT services near you and how it can be a game-changer for small businesses.

Your business might depend on technology, but if it’s not managed properly, this dependence can become a detriment. Small businesses in particular must be aware of several challenges specific to their technology infrastructures. Let’s examine three of the most common culprits for your company’s technological troubles and what you can do about them.

Keep Your Business Insurance Payments Low: Invest in Modern Cybersecurity Best Practices

If you’ve recently renewed your business insurance, or you are about to, you might have noticed that your insurance provider is starting to ask you questions about your overall IT security. Depending on how you answer these questions, they may increase your premiums or choose to not cover your business at all. This raises the question—how can my Maryland business lower my insurance costs and properly protect my business from cyberattacks?

Regulations and compliance standards are in place for effectively every industry to uphold, many of which address cybersecurity in some way or another. Let’s talk for a moment about why compliance to these standards is of the utmost importance for your organization.

It was only a few decades ago that purchasing a couple of computers for a business was almost the same investment as purchasing a decent company van. In 1986, a business could spend $3500 on a single Compaq Portable II, which was a 24 lb monstrosity with a tiny 9-inch screen. Alternatively, a Chevy Astro Cargo Van cost about $7800 around the same year. 

Despite not wanting to think about cybersecurity incidents derailing your operations, it’s important nevertheless to consider them before it’s too late to do anything about them. These days, businesses need to invest considerable capital into protections, including a cyber insurance policy to cover all of their bases.

Let’s discuss some of your options for cybersecurity insurance and what you’ll need to know to make the most informed decisions possible.

When you’ve been doing business for a while, you pick up a few things. We’ve been around for (as of this writing) twenty years now and have resultantly learned quite a bit—and, since we’re in the business of helping other businesses grow, we figured we’d share a bit of what we’ve learned.

Artificial intelligence has several uses in the business world, many of which utilize machine learning. With greater access to this technology than ever before, small businesses have more opportunities to grow as a result. Let’s go over how SMBs can utilize AI, including how to get started with it.

As businesses grow, the technology that they use needs to adjust. For example, once a business requires more than one computer, it needs a network. Once a business has multiple users trying to access the same information across multiple devices, it needs a server (or the cloud). Every step of growth requires more complexity when it comes to technology.

This is where an IT consultant comes in, and they can help you navigate the options and establish a budget for your technology as your business evolves and grows.