Managing information is not just about ensuring your employees can access what they need. Just as important is protecting it - from dangers both within and outside your organisation.
It is absolutely vital to secure the integrity of your data against loss as a result of either system failure or infection by outside sources. Equally important is to prevent your confidential company information from falling into the wrong hands.
Tek Response will advise and configure the most appropriate combination of hardware and software to protect your company information and resources.
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DATA BACKUP |
'Backing up' of data - transferring it onto another medium such as disk or tape - is a relatively simple process, yet research suggests that 72% of companies do not have adequate back-up for their shared information.
Organisations accumulate hundreds and even thousands of documents each week, much of it containing business critical information such as client and accounts details, yet protecting it against the unforeseen and the unexpected is surprisingly, for many, not treated as a priority.
Tek Response's back-up solutions are produced by industry leading vendors and are specified based on the amount and type of data involved to ensure a reliable and practical back-up system at an affordable cost.
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ANTI VIRUS & ANTI SPYWARE |
A computer virus is a program which can replicate itself and attach itself to files which are transferred between individuals, usually via e-mail. Once established on a computer or network, viruses can do immeasurable damage, from affecting computer performance to destroying files and even irreparably damaging the hard drive.
It's easy to see that viruses are at best a nuisance and at worst a potentially major cause of downtime, information loss and impact on profits.
Modern anti-virus software scans incoming files for viruses, 'cleaning' them before allowing them onto the network or blocking and then removing them completely if they cannot be cleaned. These programmes can make the difference between normal system operation and costly downtime and repairs due to virus infection.
Spyware describes any computer program which monitors online activity (such as using the internet) and transmits information about those findings to third parties without the user's knowledge or consent.
Spyware can be installed by a hacker, via 'spam' (junk e-mail) or an e-mail attachment or downloaded with legitimate programmes and is often invisible to the user. Once it has infiltrated the network, it can not only affect performance but can even capture keystrokes, personal information such as passwords, account numbers, login details and credit card numbers, and also corporate information, compromising company security. There are also instances of spyware initiating outgoing calls to premium rate phone numbers which then appear on the user's bill.
Clearly it is better to negate the possibility of spyware entering your system in the first place and Tek Response can recommend anti-spyware solutions with extensive reporting and alerting procedures to cover all internal and remote users, protecting your organisation from unwanted intrusion and risk.
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ANTI SPAM |
Spam is the electronic equivalent of junk mail and these days accounts for a massive 95% of all e-mail messages. It ranges from adverts to website links and much of it comes from e-mail addresses overseas. It is therefore totally unregulated, with the potential to carry viruses, spyware or both.
Even if the spam email is not infected, not only does the downloading of it slow down your system, but staff time is also taken up with reading and deleting it, with the risk that they could be deleting something genuine. The law also provides for staff to sue their employer if they receive an offensive spam e-mail.
A variety of solutions are available to combat the entry and effects of spam onto your system or network and so save on bandwidth for genuine communications, staff downtime, and the potential legal implications of spam.
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FIREWALL |
These days a crucial security measure for many organisations is a firewall which controls access from one network to another.
It is estimated that a PC that is not protected by a firewall will come under attack from hackers within just 20 minutes of connecting to the internet. During this time, that PC - and therefore any network to which it is attached - can become the point of entry for anyone wanting to access that company's confidential information, with major potential impact on its operations.
Firewalls can either be hardware or software based - or a combination of both - providing first and second line defence against the actions of hackers wherever they may be.
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VIRTUAL PRIVATE NETWORK OR VPN |
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) enables the protection of data sent from one company location to another via the Internet. A VPN means that a costly private leased line between the two locations is no longer needed, a private network is costly to run and with internet connections improving all the time it is preferable to have an internet connection at each site and to create a 'Virtual Private Network' which secures the link from the internet using powerful encryption techniques.
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FILE SECURITY |
Even in a small company, it is not necessary, or even desirable, for all confidential company information to be available to all employees. For example, access to information such as payroll and personnel details needs to be carefully controlled to protect each individual's privacy. Solutions available through Tek Response allow a tight rein to be kept on permission to view information, with each user only able to access what Management deem they need to see.
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WEB CONTENT FILTERING |
Abuse of internet access and staff use of company resources for sending and receiving personal e-mails affects many organisations, with 'cyber slacking' resulting in significant lost productivity and also the potential for problems associated with spyware. Properly managed content filtering can totally or partially restrict access to certain websites and also block offensive or illicit communications from outside the organisation, resulting in better use of staff time, a reduced risk from staff suing due to receipt of offensive content and a reduced risk from viruses and spyware.
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