Too often, we come across clients whose systems are out-dated. A general rule of thumb that we try to follow is replacing desktop systems every 3 years, servers every 5 years. These are general rules, and they don’t always apply. Here are some reasons you may need a hardware replacement now.
Readers of my personal blog or listeners to the Fresh Ubuntu Podcast will know that I have long been a proponent of Linux as an alternative to Windows, and now, more than ever, this should be a reality at your organization. What’s changed? Last year, Ubuntu, the leading desktop Linux distribution today, addded a package […]
This week, the Washingon Post reported a fascinating story on how “organized cyber-gangs in Eastern Europe are increasingly preying on small and mid-size companies in the United States.” They appear to be targeting small businesses for the simple reason that they are easier nuts to crack than large financial institutions.
This article broke yesterday, in which an alleged whistleblower claims that FairPoint falsified the tests that showed its readiness to take over Verizon’s New England landlines. “The account from an alleged FairPoint Communications insider may explain why telecommunications regulators in northern New England were surprised when FairPoint customers complained so vigorously after the firm took […]
This week, at a client’s request, I am reviewing their entire telecommunications spending. I decided to look at four different vendors to compare their offerings. The first one I looked at was AT&T, to see if they had a comparable long distance package.
I recently started the process of converting my personal finances from Quicken to Moneydance. I have been using Quicken for at least ten years, not because I like the program, it’s just that it’s “what I’ve always used.” I decided it was time to apply some of my own consulting practices and take a look […]
Today I am reviewing a tiny, free, handy piece of software for end-users: Rubber Ducky System Monitor by MimarSinan International. The program is a tiny application which gives even a novice user a simple, easy to read display which tells them how busy their system is and identify potential problems.
We sometimes get support requests from frustrated clients who are in some way prevented from accomplishing a task because of system security policies. Unfortunately, they sometimes think that we have done this deliberately to make their job difficult. One of my jobs as a security professional is to explain to my clients just what security […]
I frequently hear security professionals and pundits proclaim that such and such a technology “is dead.” Lately, I’ve heard that “antivirus is dead,” “Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS) are dead.” A while back it was “firewalls are dead,” and “SSL is dead.” People who utter phrases like this are doing a disservice to the security community.
Symantec Ghost is a useful application for what’s known as “imaging” or “cloning” computers. It allows you to copy a single computer’s hard drive contents to multiple machines at once so you have a base Windows install that’s exactly the same on all of the machines. The only difference is the uniquely identifying information about […]