Managed Services: How Cloud Computing Can Benefit Your Business

How Cloud Computing Can Benefit Your Business

Several Advantages to Using The Cloud

A company seeks to find ways to keep itself competitive in the marketplace. There are several ways this can be done, especially with the help of managed services. One of these is the establishment of cloud computing services for the use of a company. There are several advantages to using the cloud.

Scale Up and Scale Down Depending on Current Needs

First of all, it provides a company with the ability to scale up and scale down depending on its current needs. For example, a business may receive a large contract that requires bigger storage and processing requirements than usual. The normal approach would be to upgrade physically, but, with the cloud, all that needs to be done is to call for additional resources allocated to the company. The difference is days and this can help save a firm a lot of money.

Offers Continuity in the Face of Problems and Disasters

Secondly, it enables a business to have continuity in the face of problems and disasters. It is easy to have a company crippled if something like a fire or an earthquake devastates the main office. Businesses need data to function nowadays like invoices, receipts, and documents. With a cloud service, data is stored offsite and can be easily accessed as long as there’s an Internet connection. This can keep a business running and earning even through the tough times.

Provides a Business with Flexibility

Third, the cloud provides a business with flexibility. Instead of being bound to a single physical location, the data an employee needs to work can now be accessed anywhere. This gives employees the ability to work from home or while on a business trip.

Keeps a Company Updated

Finally, the cloud keeps a company updated. Software nowadays need constant updates to be effective. The cloud enables this easily. With the right help from 1ix Network Solutions any company can benefit from these perks.

Sources:

Why Move to the Cloud? 10 Benefits of Cloud Computing, SalesForce

Benefits of cloud computing, Queensland Government

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Managed IT Services Can Help Keep a Company’s PCs Well-Maintained

Managed IT Services Can Maintain a Company’s PCs

Companies Depend On Their Use of Computers

Reports and more are written on them, while e-mails to clients use the company network; confidential data is also stored on the company PCs. It is no surprise then that it is important that they are kept in good condition. The trouble is that some companies don’t have a dedicated IT team to maintain their computers. Fortunately, managed IT services can help with that. Here are a few things that they can help with.

PC Hardware and Software Up To Date

Development is constant on both fronts; computers get faster and have larger data storage, while software is improved to become more efficient. Regular updates ensure that a business is performing at the top of its game. For example, the Windows OS has constant updates, especially the current versions. IT professionals would know what updates are necessary to ensure smooth business operations.

Good Condition of PCs

Computers can go through a lot of wear-and-tear. This means that they eventually break down; when this happens, an expert is the best person for a business to turn to. They have the knowledge and expertise to repair a PC quickly, lessening a company’s downtime. For example, when a company’s primary business computer breaks down, there are several possible reasons. It could be the power supply or any other parts. An amateur would have a hard time identifying what is wrong. A skilled professional can easily identify the problem and repair it quickly.

Companies should never try to go it alone when it comes to PC maintenance. 1iX Network Solutions provides services needed to help them out.

Sources:

Hardware Tips: Complete PC Preventive Maintenance Guide, PC World

Basics of Computer Hardware Maintenance, Tech Warehouse

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Managed IT Services Can Help You Avoid Costly Data Security Mistakes

Managed IT Services Can Prevent Data Security Mistakes

Nowadays, with a lot of companies connected to the Internet and keeping confidential information for their customers, data security is an important concern. It’s a lot more difficult than people assume; there are a lot of mistakes that a business can make when securing their data. This can be a problem since the confidential info that they possess is often pursued by data thieves. Here are a few of the common security mistakes that companies make.

Lack of Awareness About Data Security

One of the popular ways that data thieves get in is via an employee’s carelessness. For example, a lot of people use personal e-mail when doing business. A personal e-mail address is a lot easier to hack into than a company one and employees using that to transfer private company data can result in a security breach.

Use of Personal Devices

People like using their gadgets at work, but personal devices can be a source for data breaches. This is especially so with people using wifi; confidential data stored on a personal device can be accessed when it enters a public wifi network.

Additional Security Measures

Finally, not taking additional security measures is another mistake. People often assume that their current security arrangements are enough. The truth is with the constantly changing trends in software and security, it would be best to have security measures constantly updated.

Managed IT services can help businesses avoid these mistakes and more. 1iX Network Solutions has the expertise and knowledge on how to properly implement data security and keep data safe. Get in contact today to see how we can help.

Sources:

4 Data Security Mistakes You Can’t Afford, Small Business Computing

Three Innocent Data Security Mistakes Employees Make (and one less-than-innocent mistake), SecureSpeak

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Managed IT Services: Provide Security and Convenience for Your Business

As the needs of organizations evolve, so do their data storage and security requirements. Companies once electing to store data on-site are quickly recognizing the practice is no longer the best option available. Today, cloud-based solutions are generally expected to provide the infrastructure contemporary businesses require to provide higher levels of service for clients. In addition, Managed IT Services provide the ability to foster improved collaborations with business partners. The question then becomes, where is the technology going in the future?

Matching Technology to Client Needs

IT services in Atlanta are rapidly changing as client’s needs evolve. Different industries are seeing changes occur at breakneck speed, which suggests Atlanta managed service providers must respond quickly to allow clients to successfully deal with their unique demands. To do so, careful monitoring of current strategies and how they are or are not meeting a client’s needs is incredibly important. When data is gathered on the results of current strategies, service providers use the technical information garnered to respond to client’s changing needs and arrive at new solutions to improve future outcomes.

Exploring New Ways to Achieve Goals

Once the revised or new solutions are implemented, managed service providers monitor the results, suggesting changes as needed to make sure client companies and their partners or customers are enjoying the level of experience needed to keep everyone satisfied. Cloud-based services, by their very nature, require monitoring to stay abreast of the results being seen and comparing those results with stated targets. With carefully deployed, client-based IT services, IT support professionals are able to spot issues and employ solutions to minimize any negative consequences for the client.

Managed IT Services Allow Greater Security and Reliability

Protecting data is, arguably, the most important aspect of managed hosting services. Clients depend on IT service providers to give reliable solutions no matter what the organization’s particular needs. Custom solutions are needed to ensure each client organization’s information system is functioning at optimal levels. Beyond that aspect, managed solutions must have the ability to spot issues and resolve them long before the client is even aware an issue exists.

As the managed IT needs of an organization evolve, the managed hosting service must provide solutions for new problems and opportunities that don’t even exist today. Top service organizations like 1ix Network Solutions are always looking to the future and planning for changes to enhance client services. That means the IT professionals will be ready to provide new services that are both convenient and cost-effective when client’s need new solutions as their organizations evolve and expand.

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How Managed IT Services Provide Numerous Benefits for Small Businesses

Companies looking to leverage cloud technology often turn to Atlanta managed service providers to handle this task. When a company chooses this option, they have the ability to establish an information technology infrastructure making use of the cloud. The system may then be used to collaborate with other businesses or to deliver services, among other things. What are the benefits of using IT services in Atlanta?

Solutions

Solutions become available to companies more quickly when managed IT services are used. Service providers deploy a product or service and monitor its usage to determine how it responds. As a result, service providers find it easier to improve their design and deployment. They collect information on the user end, the underlying application programming interface, and the cloud design to make adjustments. The service also manages and monitors all equipment and software, including updates, patches, installs as well as managing firewalls, reducing the burden of the business owner.

Reliability

Users find managed IT services to be the most reliable option presently available. The provider ensures their products and services function at optimal levels at all times, as they are in complete control of these items. This allows them to quickly identify problems and fix them before clients become aware of the issue. Companies find the solutions to be both sturdy and reliable, thus they feel confident storing more data using this option.

The Computer Technology Industry Association recently found that it takes 96 percent longer to repair a network device or server that went down when managed services weren’t used. This leads to costly downtime and can have a significant negative impact on a company. In addition, they found that downtime is 88 percent longer for end users when devices and servers aren’t covered by this type of service. The money is well spent for managed IT services when these statistics are taken into account.

Cybersecurity

The world is constantly changing, and businesses may struggle to safeguard critical information. This includes financial information, intellectual property, and the company’s reputation. As cyber attacks become more sophisticated, it becomes harder to protect this information, and information security becomes more critical, yet companies may lack the funding they need for capital expenditures. In addition, chief executive officers often fail to provide the leadership needed to address information security. Security executives, in contrast, state the biggest problem lies in the fact their organization lacks understanding or actionable vision when it comes to securing information. Managed service providers can be of help in these and other areas.

Companies need to evaluate their IT services to ensure they aren’t at risk of a breach. If a company finds they struggle in this area or need additional help, managed IT services may be the solution. The IT environment continues to change, and these service providers are tasked with keeping up with improvements in the field. When a company chooses to employ a managed services provider like 1ix Network Solutions they find more time to focus on other tasks—ones they are better equipped to handle.

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Managed IT Services: Before Your Business Is Hacked, Upgrade Your Cybersecurity

Atlanta managed service providers have the resources and knowledge necessary to identify and protect against hackers and cyber threats.

The most important asset that a company owns is their data. A building and equipment can be replaced, but if digital information is stolen or compromised, that can destroy the business. Every CEO shudders at the prospect of having to tell customers their personal information has been hacked. The theft and misuse of proprietary information could irreparably damage a company’s brand. Yet, this crucial and irreplaceable information may not be as well-protected as it should be.

Do CEOs Pay Enough Attention to Cybersecurity?

Successful CEOs know how to delegate important tasks to those they trust. Protecting the company’s data is the job of the CIO, who is also being pulled in many different directions. How successful are those efforts? In the annual PwC survey of global executives, over 41% of U.S. executives stated that there had been at least one threat to their company data during the past year. The impact of these security incidents was divided between financial losses, the theft of intellectual property, and damage to the company’s reputation and brand.

Given the impact that loss of data can have, why do many people feel that CEOs aren’t sufficiently concerned with data security?

• CEOs tended to report that lack of resources prevented them from increasing the level of information security.
• CFOs, on the other hand, felt that CEOs were not demonstrating enough leadership in this area.
• Those directly concerned with providing the data security, the CIO and technicians, felt that the organization as a whole did not understand the depth of the problem.

The Four Different Levels of Cyberthreats

Nuisance Hacking: A nuisance hacker could be a bright teenager who manages to get into the company’s website and defaces it. This type of hack is usually fairly quick to discover and correct.

Financial Hacking: Financial hacking can involve the thefts of customer data, employee passwords, or a search for data that could be used for stock manipulation.

Theft of Intellectual Property: It’s no secret that foreign state-sponsored hackers are constantly at work stealing trade secrets, manufacturing processes and specifications, and other intellectual property. Some of these thefts endanger national security. Malicious worms may be embedded into the target system for years before being activated. It’s reported that the Stuxnet worm had been within the Iranian systems linked to uranium production for four years before taking down those systems.

Hacktivism: WikiLeaks typifies this type of hacker. The goal is to steal private information and publicly disclose it with the intent of destroying the company’s brand in the eyes of the public.

Managed IT services in Atlanta offers a way for challenged CEOs to add a substantial layer of protection against looming cyber threats.  Leverage the resources and technology of 1iX for your business.

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The Value Of Working With A Managed IT Services Provider To Mitigate Business Security Risks

These days, businesses who expect to thrive must make use of the best technological solutions. When technology use is aligned with a business’ goals, it can make achieving those goals much easier. Unfortunately, the same businesses who embrace advanced technology are also putting themselves at risk for security issues. What is even more unfortunate is that data breaches often cost small businesses hundreds of thousands of dollars to fix and can lead to a loss of trust with current and potential customers. For those business owners who would like to avoid this fate, here are just two of the ways that working with an managed IT services company can help them do that:

Security Assessments and Strategic Consulting

In order for business owners to address any potential security threats to their company, they must first know how to identify those threats. Working with a company who provides managed services in Atlanta allows small business owners to have access to technology experts who are trained to find the vulnerabilities in their network that will make it easy for unscrupulous hackers to steal valuable information and wreak havoc on their business. Once these vulnerabilities are pinpointed, a managed IT service provider can then create a comprehensive plan to address them. They’ll develop a strategic road map that helps business owners make a smooth transition to a more secure network and provide much-needed ongoing support throughout every phase of the process.

Business Security Monitoring

Even for small businesses who can afford to have a dedicated IT staff member, it can be difficult for that person to find the time to monitor the network and proactively respond to threats or problems. Fortunately, this is where a managed services provider really shines. When they take advantage of these services, business owners can rest assured that they have trained experts keeping an eye on their servers and networks who can respond immediately when it looks like something is going wrong. This not only helps to keep threats at bay, but it minimizes downtime and fallout should a breach situation ever occur.

For business owners who are truly concerned about mitigating the security pressures they face, having help from a managed IT services provider is a must. Get in touch with a reputable firm today to discover more about how their services can help business owners find lasting peace of mind in a world that is constantly threatening it.

Strengthen Your Company’s Cybersecurity Using Managed IT Services

Technology is both a boon and a bane for the corporate world. It makes working more efficient, but it also exposes the business to certain risks. As a result, many people are looking to beef up their company’s cybersecurity to guard against such threats. In fact, cybersecurity is now a main priority due to the drastic effects of security lapses like financial losses, intellectual property theft, compromised reputation, fraud, extortion, legal exposure, and loss of shareholder value. Here are some of the biggest security threats you can eliminate with the help of managed IT services.

Wireless Access

No business today doesn’t make use of their own wireless network. After all, it’s one way to bring in the customers and get them to stay a while. Unfortunately, ill-doers who are connected to the free Wi-Fi you provide and know their way around wireless networks can do serious damage. You need to address any vulnerabilities in your network so that they can’t access sensitive information.

External Media

USBs, external drives and other storage devices make data transfer very easy, yet they may pose a threat to your company. If a drive infected with a virus gets in the system, there’s no telling what kind of damage it can do, not only to one computer, but to others connected to the network. This is why it’s important to always keep the anti-virus software on each computer updated. The same goes for company laptops and other handheld devices used to share documents and files.

Malwares

Malwares are programs that are designed to bypass security defenses and exposes your organization, customers, employees, etc. to a variety of risks. What makes malwares even worse is that you might be unwittingly downloading them off the Internet because they can be disguised as a helpful tool or application.  

Sources:

Cybersecurity: The New Business Priority, PwC

IT’s 9 Biggest Security Threats, InfoWorld

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Managed IT Solutions Selection: 3 Prominent Questions to Consider

If there’s a data solutions package that works for every company in every situation, it definitely hasn’t been created yet. This is because every company has a different set of needs. As difficult as it may sound, you need to overlook the initial price tag and focus on the usability, adaptability and integrity of each service you evaluate as it pertains to your business needs. You may ask yourself the following questions to help you make the right decision.