Welcome to the MPG online Blogs. Here, we will be posting regular company updates in addition to useful tips & tricks on getting the most out of IT and digital technologies for you and your business.
Expect topics to include Cybersecurity, Managed IT Services, software reviews and recommendations, We will also post security update information, industry news, plus lots more.
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This can be the most frustrating part of your day, with deadlines and heavy workloads who has time for this. Well here at MPG online we have 7 simple and effective actions to regain some of your computer’s speed.
Power settings are often configured to reduce performance to save power. Adjusting this setting appropriately will give you a power boost.
Streaming services such as Pandora, Spotify, Amazon Music, and Netflix can affect speed. If you are attempting to do other tasks and notice a lag, try closing the windows for these applications.
Regular browser updates are a proactive way to maintain computer speed. Keep in mind these are different from Windows OS updates, which you should also complete when prompted for optimal speed.
Restarting your computer is a go to problem solver we have heard for years, but doing this at the end of each day can positively affect your computer’s speed.
Get rid of bloatware. Bloatware is the software that came with your computer such as the “free for 30 days” offers and other items that are installed behind the scenes.
An excessive number of open tabs on your browser will contribute to a lag in speed. Closing unnecessary tabs will improve this.
Complete a disk cleanup which is similar to decluttering. This will clear used space on the hard drive that is no longer needed.
At the end of the day take a look at how old your PC/Laptop is, this might be a sign it is time to upgrade your computer hardware to a newer model. If you are still on a Windows 8 or older system then it is time to upgrade.
If you are looking for IT support for your company, please give MPG online a call at 678-824-5990 today and let us help you or click here to learn more IT Support.
The Internet allows small businesses new customers and work more efficiently by using computer/web tools. Whether a small business is going to use cloud computing, email or maintaining a website, cybersecurity should be a part of the plan.
Broadband and IT hardware are important factors in small businesses to increase productivity and efficiency. However, businesses need a cybersecurity strategy to protect their own business, their customers, and their data from growing cybersecurity threats.
Train employees on basic security principles: Establish basic security practices and policies for employees, such as requiring strong passwords, and establish appropriate Internet use guidelines. Establish rules of behavior describing how to handle and protect customer information and other vital data.
Passwords and authentication: Businesses should require employees to use unique passwords and change passwords every three months. Also consider implementing multi-factor authentication that requires additional information beyond a password to gain entry. Check with your vendors/banks/cloud accounts to see if they offer multi-factor authentication for your account.
Protect information, computers, and networks from cyber attacks: Have the latest security/antivirus software, web browser, and operating system are the best defenses against viruses, malware, ransomware, and other online threats. Set antivirus software to run daily scans.
Limit employee access to data and information, limit authority to install software: Employees should not have access to all data on the systems. Employees should only be given access to the specific data systems that they need for their jobs and should not be able to install any software without permission.
Create a mobile device action plan: Mobile devices can create significant security problems for small businesses, especially if they hold confidential information on them. Require users to password-protect their devices, encrypt their data, and install security apps to prevent criminals from stealing information while the phone is on public networks. Be sure to set reporting procedures for lost or stolen equipment.
Employ best practices on credit cards: Work with banks or processors to ensure the most trusted and validated tools and anti-fraud services are being used. Isolate payment systems from other, less secure programs and don’t use the same computer to process payments and surf the Internet.
Make backup copies of important business data and information: Make regular backups the data on all computers. Critical data includes word documents, spreadsheets, databases, financial files, human resources files, and accounting data. Backup data automatically if possible, or at least weekly and store the copies either offsite or in the cloud.
Secure your Wi-Fi networks: If you have a Wi-Fi network at your small business, make sure it is secure, encrypted, and hidden. To hide your Wi-Fi network, set up your wireless access point or router, so it does not broadcast the network name, known as the Service Set Identifier (SSID). Password protect access to the router. If you allow access to customer create a “Guest Wi-Fi” not on your internal network for these users.
Provide firewall security for your Internet connection: A firewall prevents hackers from accessing data on a private network. Make sure the operating system’s firewall is enabled or install a hardware firewall at the demac. If employees work from home, ensure that their home system(s) are protected by a firewall.
Control physical access to your computers and create user accounts for each employee: Prevent access by unauthorized individuals to your small business computers and hardware. Laptops can be particularly easy targets for theft or can be lost, so lock them up when unattended. Make sure a separate user account is created for each employee and require strong passwords. Administrative privileges should only be given to trusted IT staff and key personnel.
If you are looking for IT support for your company, please give MPG online a call at 678-824-5990 today and let us help you or click here to learn more IT Support.
Private web browsing in a nutshell! Other users of your device won’t see your history. When it comes to private browsing however there are a few misconceptions and common myths. These are important things to know if you want to feel safe surfing in whatever browser you prefer.
Let us take a look at each of them before discussing exactly how you can use this feature in each of the web’s most commonly used browsers.
You Are Anonymous When Private Browsing
Private browsing does not make you invisible on the internet. Your internet service provider and other websites can still see and gather information on your activity. The same goes for browsing in this mode on your work computer, so your employer may still have access to your activity’s also.
Don’t be fooled into thinking nobody else can see or trace your activity. These modes only usually apply to masking your activity from users of the same device. Firefox, for example, explicitly tells you this; warning that your ISP or employer can still track the pages you visit.
Private Browsing Erases All Browsing Activity
Any downloads you make or bookmarks you save won’t be hidden from view if done in private browsing. Downloads will remain saved in file directories on your computer and bookmarks will be saved to the tab in your normal browser mode. What private browsing modes does do is let you surf without saving cookies or tracking your browsing history.
Private Browser Is Safe and Keeps Keystroke Loggers Out
Some internet security experts might recommend, private browser modes to protect you from malware, viruses, spyware or programs tracking your keystrokes, sorry this is not the case. You’ll still need to have regular security protocols in place.
Now lets take a look at browsing privately in some of the popular browsers.
Chrome’s private browsing option is also referred to as ‘incognito mode’. You can switch it on by clicking the More button in the top right (three dots), and choosing New incognito window. Alternatively you can switch to it via keyboard shortcuts; Ctrl+Shift+N in Windows and Mac+Shift+N on Mac.
You’ll know you’re in incognito mode when the incognito icon (man with hat and glasses) shows in the top right corner. Simply closing the window will end the mode.
Switching to private browsing in Safari can be done by going to File > New private window. You can also set the app to always open in this mode by going to Safari > Preferences > General and then choosing a new private window from the pop-up menu. You can stop the mode by going through the same process.
You can browse privately on an iPhone and an iPod touch similarly. All you have to do is press the new page button, tap Private and then Done. You’ll know it’s in the mode when Safari changes from white or grey to black or dark.
You can open a new Private Window from the Firefox menu in the top right of the browser window. Alternatively you can also press Ctrl+Shift+P.
To open up links in a normal browsing window in a new private one, right-click it and select the option. You’ll know you’re browsing privately as they’ll be a purple mask at the top bar of the screen.
Private browsing is called InPrivate in Microsoft Edge and Explorer browsers. You can access it by clicking the Settings and more button in the top right (three dots). From there, select New InPrivate window.
Pressing Ctrl+Shift+P can also switch to the mode. You’ll know it’s on when the InPrivate label shows in a blue square in the top right of the browser.
If you are looking for IT support for your company, please give MPG online a call at 678-824-5990 today and let us help you or click here to learn moreIT Support.
Managed Service Providers are increasingly being turned to as a outsourcing partner that remotely manage & delivery IT services to their customers. MSP’s are hired remotely manage IT services such as network, servers, applications, desktop support, or security management for a client company. MSPs can also bundle in hardware, software, or cloud technology as part of their offerings.
Managed Service Providers Examples
Services offered by MSPs include network management, Server management, Patch management, mobility management, infrastructure management, backup and recovery management, and security management. MPS’s have evolved to offer services that support longer-term business planning, consulting, compliance audits, technology roadmaps, and needs assessments.
The Benefits of Managed Service Providers
The top benefits of using a MSP include improved security, more flexibility and scalability. MSP’s also give your company access to top technical and industry expertise, and reduced costs. An MSP can also offer billing models based on a variety of measures. Variable billing can provide a great deal of flexibility and scalability to a customer. For example, an enterprise that has large investments in hardware and software can’t just reverse that investment during downturns. Similarly, layoffs can be very costly and cause long-term damage once the business turns around if those employees have since found other jobs. Similarly, adding capacity during temporary business surges can be difficult.
According to Mordor Research, the managed services market will grow to $274 billion by 2026, up from $152 billion in 2020, with many companies turning to MSPs to manage more than half of their IT needs increased from 25% last year to 38% in 2021, according to NTT’s 2021 global managed services survey.
If you are looking for an MSP to help your company support your companies IT needs, please give MPG online a call at 678-824-5990 today and let us help you or click here to learn more Managed IT Services.
(CISA), The (FBI) and the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) have released a joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA), showing North Korean state-sponsored cyber actors are using the Maui ransomware to target Healthcare and Public Health (HPH) Sector organizations in the US.
The North Korean state-sponsored hackers used Maui ransomware to encrypt servers responsible for healthcare services. The servers contain electronic health records services, diagnostics services, imaging services & intranet services. Please see the following alert(AA22-187A) summary and technical details Advisory.
Technical Details
Maui ransomware (maui.exe) is an encryption binary. According to industry analysis of a sample of Maui (SHA256: 5b7ecf7e9d0715f1122baf4ce745c5fcd769dee48150616753fec4d6da16e99e) provided in Stairwell Threat Report: Maui Ransomware—the ransomware appears to be designed for manual execution [TA0002] by a remote actor. The remote actor uses command-line interface [T1059.008] to interact with the malware and to identify files to encrypt.
Maui uses a combination of Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), RSA, and XOR encryption to encrypt [T1486] target files:
Maui encrypts target files with AES 128-bit encryption. Each encrypted file has a unique AES key, and each file contains a custom header with the file’s original path, allowing Maui to identify previously encrypted files. The header also contains encrypted copies of the AES key.
Maui encrypts each AES key with RSA encryption.
Maui loads the RSA public (maui.key) and private (maui.evd) keys in the same directory as itself.
Maui encodes the RSA public key (maui.key) using XOR encryption. The XOR key is generated from hard drive information (\\.\PhysicalDrive0).
During encryption, Maui creates a temporary file for each file it encrypts using GetTempFileNameW(). Maui uses the temporary to stage output from encryption. After encrypting files, Maui creates maui.log, which contains output from Maui execution. Actors likely exfiltrate [TA0010] maui.log and decrypt the file using associated decryption tools.
At the time of this post CISA does not know the identity of the actors and are requesting reporting of any incidents to your local FBI field office. In the mean time CISA recommends the following actions to “mitigate” ransomware attacks.
Limit access to data by deploying public key infrastructure and digital certificates.
Use standard user accounts on internal systems instead of administrative accounts.
Turn off network device management interfaces such as Telnet, SSH, Winbox, and HTTP for wide area networks (WANs).
Secure personal identifiable information (PII)/patient health information (PHI) at collection points.
Protect stored data by masking the permanent account number (PAN).
Secure the collection, storage, and processing practices.
Create and regularly review internal policies that regulate the collection, storage, access, and monitoring of PII/PHI.
If you are looking for Malware/Ransomware help for your company, please give MPG online a call at 678-824-5990 today and let us help you or click here to learn more about our Malware Protection.
A “Free” email ALERT SYSTEM by MPG online to provide you with the latest cyber security notifications.
We will alert you of new threats that could damage your Business systems and network. At MPG online we understand the struggles that come with keeping your network, data, & your business safe, which is why we have created the free email alert system that will notify you of new threats that could damage your business.
What do you get?
Malware: We update you on dangerous new malware trends you should lookout for.
Application Vulnerabilities: Receive alerts regarding application vulnerabilities & advice on how to mitigate the risk.
Scams: Stay informed about new scams that are getting harder to spot & becoming more believable every day.
Security Patches: Get notified of software or operating-system patches intended to correct vulnerabilities.
Sign Up Below for the Security Emails
You can rest easy when you put your IT support needs in our hands. Contact us today for more information and ask us about our Managed IT Services.
Put your business on the fast track with a free quote today. Call us today at 678-824-5990.
Our clients testimonials praise us for our great results, personable service, expert knowledge and on-time delivery.
Here are what just a few of them had to say:
TechBios (Milton Williams)
We thank MPG online for the wonderful job in helping us build our network and maintain it. Everyone was professional, excellent, and hard working. Thanks to them, we were able to achieve our goal on time, and we look forward to continue working with them in the future.
Traffic Calming USA (Glyn Owen)
We are very happy with MPG online; very serious and consistent in their work. David and his team of IT engineers have always been there for us all the time. This is a company I can recommend to anyone to perform any IT support work.
James Hymas prefinfo website(s)
I have MPG online provide website maintenance for all of my investment sites and do the spam/malware and firewall security for them. I have had no viruses since using MPG online and everything is finally running smoothly.
Derrick Ryel (wholesalemx.com)
We have been using MPG online’ service for the last four months for maintaining our web servers’ security/updates. They have been a professional and committed partner who have taken responsibility for the partnership.
D. R. Holley (Georgia P. I.)
MPG online is an exceptional leader in digital forensics and data recovery. His team is knowledgeable and professional as well as quick and efficient. I would definitely recommend them to anyone and everyone, and will go to them again for all of my company’s digital forensic needs.”
John Reid (JER Group)
I had a full time I.T. administrator for my network. By outsourcing my I.T. needs to MPG online, I cut my I.T. expenses in half.
Jean Clary (Ken Clary Company)
MPG online has surpassed all our expectations and never said “no”. They have always found a solution regardless of what our issues were, and the service is top-notch with all their employees having the best attitudes. Their response time is extremely quick, and we are proud to be associated with them and have them partner with our company for the last ten years. I look forward to the next ten!
ontheMARKinvestigations (Mark Sintich)
I first started working with MPG online several years ago with another investigation firm where they provide forensic support and data recovery. He has become a good friend over the years and his knowledge in data forensic field is unmatched. I would recommend his expertise to anyone that needs to get results.
Put your business on the fast track with a free quote today. Call us today at 678-824-5990.
Schedule a “FREE” Consultation Appointments: If you would like to schedule and Free appointment or just have questions about our services, our pricing, or our support, then please call us directly at 678-824-5990 or email support@mpg-online.com and we will answer any questions you have about Cybersecurity, Manage IT Services, Data Recovery, Remote IT Services, and more.
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