When you run your own business, it feels like there are never enough hours in the day. Even when you start early and end late, there’s always something else, another e-mail or task, nagging for your attention. If you want to be productive, and ultimately successful, it’s important to prioritize...

Back in May, the company MOVEit, a file transfer platform made by Progress Software, was compromised by a Russian ransomware operation called Cl0p. They used a vulnerability in Progress’s software that was unknown to exist at the time. Shortly after the attack was noticed, a patch was issued. However, some...

Nothing is more aggravating than attempting to watch a video or use your PC when the Internet is operating slower than molasses flowing uphill in winter. For our clients, we have many solutions to make your Internet connection faster, more reliable and secure. But what about at your home? Spotty,...

In June a popular file-sharing software amongst big-name companies likes Shell, Siemens Energy, Sony, several large law firms, a number of US federal agencies such as the Department of Health and more was hacked by Russia-linked cybercrime group Cl0p. Security Magazine reported that, to date, there are 138 known companies...

As a business owner, you know that continuous, steady growth is an essential part of success. When you’re ready to get serious about scaling your organization, several vital activities must happen. Documented workflows and processes, streamlined hiring, onboarding and training, well-oiled marketing systems and more top the list. One key...

Cybercriminals know the easiest way to sneak under your radar is to pretend to be a brand you know and trust. These large companies have spent years on marketing, customer service, branding and consistency to build a trustworthy reputation, and hackers leverage this to go after you. The most common...

On a recent interview about the Titan sub catastrophe, director of the movie Titanic James Cameron, who has made 33 successful dives to the Titanic wreckage site, pointed out that this tragedy is eerily similar to the 1912 Titanic disaster: the captain of the 1912 RMS Titanic was repeatedly warned...

You’ve all heard the stats – small businesses are the #1 target for cybercriminals because they’re easy targets, with a recent article in Security Magazine reporting that nearly two-thirds (63%) of small businesses have experienced a cyber-attack and 58% an actual breach. But what many still don’t understand (or simply...

Growing your business involves learning how to make money and hang on to it responsibly. When you’re in the weeds, it’s easy to think that a fancy piece of well-marketed software could help dig your way out. That’s usually not the case, and you’ll likely end up paying for software...

As former President Ronald Regan once said, the scariest words you’ll ever hear are “We’re from the government, and we’re here to help.” In this case, the government is trying to help by forcing nearly all businesses to implement and maintain a strong cyber security program to protect the customer...

Along with the surge of people working from home or in hybrid situations over the last few years, there has also been an increase in employers looking for ways to monitor their employees’ work activities to ensure they actually ARE working when remote. This is no surprise given the new...

Training employees on anything can be an expensive process. You incur the cost of investing in necessary materials plus the time it takes away from your employees doing revenue-generating activities. But what’s worse when it comes to cyber security training is the expense you’ll incur if that training fails. Recent...

An Arizona family was recently in the news warning others about how they were the target of a ransom call in which scammers used AI (artificial intelligence) to clone their daughter’s voice to convince the parents they had kidnapped their daughter, with the apparent goal of extorting money. DeLynne Bock,...

How To Apply For Your Share Of Facebook’s Recent $725 Million Privacy Lawsuit Here’s a shocker: Facebook is being forced to pay a whopping $725 million in a settlement following a number of lawsuits claiming they violated users’ privacy. This is in addition to another class action lawsuit for $650...

Every business needs the right tools to get the job done and to keep your team on track. But juggling multiple apps and software can be a nightmare when trying to keep information streamlined and easily accessible. That’s where Microsoft Teams for small businesses comes into play. In this article,...

They say, “You get what you tolerate” and now more than ever, we’ve been conditioned to tolerate worse service at higher prices. Companies get a ‘free pass’ simply by saying phrases like “the labor shortage,” “because COVID,” or “inflation.” But it doesn’t have to be that way. While you may...

“The biggest risk is the one you don’t take” is a mantra you’ll hear motivational speakers deliver in their presentations to make the argument that you should throw all caution to the wind and go for it (whatever “it” is). And while that may be a good piece of advice to get...

Once upon a time, you could install antivirus software and go about your merry way online and in your inbox, opening, clicking, and downloading files without care. Today, antivirus alone cannot and will not protect you, especially if you INVITE the hack by downloading a file that is infected with...

You’ve heard the phrase “Get with the program!” It’s often used as a direct order to someone to fall in line with the way things are supposed to be done at your company. The problem is, most business owners don’t have “a program” for employees to get with, and therefore they get...

Southwest Airlines’ recent fiasco that caused them to cancel over 16,700 flights, leaving people stranded across America, was the epitome of what’s happening with so many businesses right now across the US. A total and complete meltdown in service due to cheapness. During their busiest season, Southwest had to apologize for...

In his book The Road Less Stupid, Keith Cunningham makes this correct observation about succeeding in business: “I don’t need to do more smart things. I just need to do fewer dumb things.”  When it comes to cyber security, I see a lot of dumb decisions made by smart people based on...

Covid changed everyone’s lives in dramatic ways on many levels – but small and big businesses alike were radically impacted, from events, restaurants, and retail being shut down to sending everyone home to work remotely.   It’s no surprise that the tech sector thrived during this time, from remote work solutions...

A little over a year ago, the FTC made several amendments to the existing Safeguards Rule requiring even very small businesses to ensure the protection of client data. These changes, set to go into effect back in December of 2022, are now going to be enforced starting June 9, 2023 – and it’s...

What do these three real e-mails have in common?  Kohl’s Winner – “Notifications – Re: 2nd attempt for Paul” WalmartStores – “Re: CONFIRMED: Paul you are selected” Lowe’s Winner – “Congratulations Paul! You Are The Lucky Online Winner Of A Brand-New Sweepstakes Dewalt Power Station Entry No, “Paul” isn’t the...

Have you ever had a conversation about a topic, and then later that day you start seeing news, ads, or updates about that subject, and said to yourself, “This can’t be a coincidence”? Well, you’re probably right.  According to Norton, who you may remember as an antivirus software company and...

ROI Revolution estimates that e-commerce sales will eclipse $236 billion this holiday season. While that’s the most popular time for consumers to purchase online, in 2021 over $2 billion a day was made in online purchases. Chances are you and your employees make purchases weekly personally and for your business. And…chances...

The last few years have seen countless companies going to a hybrid work model. According to a survey by Envoy over 77% of businesses have some full or part-time remote employees. While this change comes with many benefits, as a business owner, there are three big things you need to make sure...

It’s not just cybercriminals who hack into networks and steal data. Most business owners erroneously think cybercrime is limited to hackers based in China or Russia, but the evidence is overwhelming that disgruntled employees, both of your company and your vendors, can cause significant losses due to their knowledge of...

If you depend on your computer network to run your business (and who doesn’t?), you’ll want someone treating your data as securely as they would their own.    Not knowing what’s going on behind the scenes should scare the crap out of you. It is NOT unreasonable that your IT company...

Anyone active on social media has seen those seemingly harmless quizzes that someone in your newsfeed takes and then shares…the ones that ask you to enter your first name, your middle name, and the street you grew up on to create your “new name.” Joe + Schmo + Blow Avenue...

They don’t call you back, they don’t text back, and when you get time with them, they are disheveled, rude, and uninterested, doing barely enough to keep things going. This sounds like a bad date…and it’s one that many businesses are on with their current IT guy. You have a...

There are two types of people…which one are you? The frustrated, constant updater: You find yourself having to constantly click on “Forgot My Password” and verify your account, check your texts, scan a finger (give a pint of blood…maybe not that one) so you can reset your password. And it’s...

One of the common issues on the Dark Web – whether you use it or not – is the sale of passwords, bank account information, Social Security numbers, and other private data. Hackers can breach firewalls and software to obtain this information and then go to the Dark Web to...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSQiydksJuE So many things we use on our computers will automatically add themselves to the startup. While some of these are important, most of the time they are unwelcome party crashers that slow your computer down. In this podcast episode, I’ll show you how to evaluate the programs that startup...

In today’s video blog, I show you how you can snap windows to the corners of your display essentially creating a multi-monitor effect on a single screen. It’s really handy when you need to look at two different windows at the same time. We’ll start with positioning two windows on...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9Kx9rND6x4 Passwords are a hassle, no doubt about it! In this blog post and video, I show you how to set up a password manager to help control password chaos. There are two tools that we recommend for managing passwords. One is LastPass, which is a cloud-based solution.  The other...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqXYClyi-gc Using a UV Sanitizer is an easy and safe way to protect yourself from germs lingering on your electronics. In this blog post, I show you how to use two different devices designed to keep you safe. First, the phone soap.  This is a very slick device designed to...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW7FhDMmzNY Multi-factor authentication is a very secure process of keeping your sensitive data private. In this blog, I explain in simple terms what Multi-factor authentication is, why you should use it where available, and how you can use it to keep your data private. First, what is Multi-factor authentication and...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pT298DBYG8Y Technology Tips By Centrend Podcast: Episode #6 Don’t you admire the professional look of a well-crafted email signature? Much more than just a name, a well-designed email signature is a block of text and graphics representing you and your brand. In this video podcast, I will show you how...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5dFilcmY4w Technology Tips By Centrend Podcast: Episode #5 With the scarcity of computers right now and the need for additional computers for remote working and remote learning, many folks are dusting off their old Windows 7 computers. The problem is, you may not remember the password to it. In this...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyyB-OWr3So Technology Tips by Centrend Podcast: Episode 4 I love working with a whiteboard. In fact, I can think of no technique more effective for brainstorming a project than getting a team of folks to share ideas in front of a whiteboard.  In 2020, we are forced out of the office,...

https://youtu.be/8S-6LXy57Cg Technology Tips by Centrend Podcast: Episode 3 These days, when we aren’t on camera in a web meeting, it seems like we are typing on our computer keyboards. Typing skills are essential to be productive and competitive. I’m going to show you some effective and fun ways to improve...

Increasing Threats Companies rely more and more on digital information and network-enabled devices. Threats are increasing, and cybercrime is on the rise, so it’s no wonder cybersecurity is increasingly important. Is your company prepared for a cyber attack? If you are like most small/medium businesses, you don’t have a written plan at...

https://youtu.be/FtdD_mQsTRg Technology Tips by Centrend Podcast: Episode 2 “Phishing” is a social hacking attempt to get you to reveal information that hackers can use to exploit your email or computer account. Here are some clues on how to detect a phishing attempt and what you should be looking for. Welcome to...

https://youtu.be/cc2rpvI-SH8 Technology Tips by Centrend Podcast: Episode 1 We’ve all come to rely on online meetings to stay connected with business associates, remote learning for our children, and keep in touch with our loved ones that we can’t visit in person. That’s why in this first episode of my video...

Individuals and small businesses struggle with ways to increase the lifetime value of their PC hardware. ​ What can you do​ to keep your computer running strong like you?​ Extending the life of existing desktops and laptops to reduce your cost and lower your budget is critical in today’s economic...

When an Internet Service Provider (ISP) installs internet access in your business, you are usually provided with a router/firewall combination. Do you need to invest in a commercial-grade firewall, or is the ISP’s firewall sufficient? Let’s start with a simple description of what a firewall is and how it protects...

Cyber Criminals are taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic in some of the worse ways. Read on to learn how to avoid their evil scams… 1. Phishing: Phishing (pronounced fishing) occurs when criminals send fake mail, email, or phone calls pretending they are legit. They try to convince you to share...

Sometimes, it’s obvious, right?  There is a big obnoxious warning that pops up and tells you that you are infected and you need to call for support! Don’t call the number presented because that’s a scam. Call us instead!  Other times, the infection is much more subtle. Here are some...

With the threat of coronavirus (COVID-19) all around us, we are all being more diligent about wiping down our work areas. One of the highest touch areas in your environment is your keyboard, mouse, and touch screens. If you’re a customer of Centrend, I already have the inside of your...

Since the Coronavirus pandemic outbreak, there has been a massive surge of remote workers. Your information is at risk when remote access is not done correctly! Read on to learn what to avoid when it comes to remote workers. Remote access requires careful thought and planning to keep business data...

Centrend cares about our employees’ and our customer’s safety, and we’re doing our part to reduce the spread and flatten the curve. Read on to learn what we are doing to keep safe and keep our customers’ information systems running well. We are practicing social distancing and utilizing our extensive...

Are you trying to cobble together pieces of disparate systems that weren’t meant to talk to each other? Are you hopeful that connecting mismatched data sets will breathe life into your IT Systems? Don’t Frankenstein your IT! Read on to find out what I mean. You know the story of Dr....

Your router is the box that connects your computers, phones, and tablets to the outside world. If your router is old or undersized for the number of devices you have, it can create a bottleneck. Here are a few essential things to keep in mind when assessing your router. These rules apply...

If you are using a laptop on a slow wireless connection such as hotel Wi-Fi or a cellular hotspot, your connection can slow to a crawl if you have installed cloud services such as Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft’s One-Drive. Here’s how to limit how much resource the service uses, so...

Have you ever been working on a spreadsheet and after entering a formula in a cell, you see the formula instead of the result? This article explains what happened and how you can get it back. This can happen in both Excel and Google Sheets, and I’ll explain how to...

You should always secure your computer by locking the screen when you walk away. But sometimes in a rush, we forget to lock it down. This article shows how to set up an automatic lock so that when you walk away from your computer, your screen will lock itself! Keeping...

While any Chromebook, PC, or Mac can be used for email and web browsing, it’s all the other activities that determine what is right for you. Read this article to get some insight into the advantages of each option. They are all computers but Chromebooks run the Chromium operating system whereas...

Many users leave their computers on all the time so that they can receive automatic updates and security patches. This is a great strategy but leaves users with the question, “How long can you go without restarting your computer?” Read on to find out. During use, programs open and close,...

No doubt, solid-state drives are fast, energy-efficient, and long-lasting. Unfortunately for users on a budget, solid-state drives can be too expensive to justify the cost. Here’s some advice on how and when to use solid-state drives (SSD) and how to stretch your budget on this crucial technology. Because SSDs are...

Card keys are fast replacing traditional keys in small businesses. Here are 7 reasons why it might make sense for your small business! Regular keys are bulky, clunky, and slowly going away. Have you been car shopping lately? You will be hard-pressed to find a new automobile that has a...

WiFi has come a long way in terms of speed and reliability. But there is still nothing like those irritating wires that are much faster and more reliable than interference-prone WiFi. Here are some guidelines for when you can go WiFi only and why you might not want to ditch...

So you’ve put your data in the cloud. Should you back it up? The short answer is Yes!  This article explains why I think it’s essential.  We put data in the cloud for different reasons. Sometimes it is the primary access point for our data, and it’s in the cloud...

No doubt, the most secure way to give someone a password or other confidential information is in person or over a private phone call. There are times, however, when you want to send a password or a bank account number via email simply because of the convenience. This article explores...

Technology is great. I believe in its development and use to the benefit of all humankind. However, there is a real danger that we are losing our ability to communicate with each other because of the way cell phones are way overused.  I’m sure you’ve seen the scenario. A set of...

Who doesn’t love their email?  Ok, maybe love is a strong word, but we all tend to save a lot of email, don’t we?  How much is too much and what are the risks of letting Outlook grow out of control? This article assumes you are using MS Outlook so the...

If you work for or care about a non-profit organization, make sure they know about Centrend – and these strategies for obtaining the best software for free or nearly free. Corporations understand that investments in technology can make a huge difference in the success of their non-profit organization. After calculating...

A friend of mine and I were together at a venue, and I asked him if he was able to get on the local free Wifi that was provided. He said, “I usually don’t go on public wifi because I don’t think it’s secure.” This article describes what I told...

Even the most reliable systems can go down, and you deserve to know what is happening! Here are some thoughts on what you should be able to find out when a critical piece of your Information Technology fails. As a managed service provider, we take great care to keep our...

This week, one of our managed services customers sites went down due to a power failure. The site has a backup generator, but guess what? Their generator failed to start! While there is not much we can do for a customer that is entirely without power, there are things we...

If you’re like me, you meet a lot of people and end up collecting a lot of business cards. Several years ago, serious business networkers had to have a special scanner for scanning business cards effectively. With our smartphones so powerful, and with such great cameras, there’s an app for...

There is NOTHING worse than having worked on an Excel Spreadsheet or written something in MS Word and then had to redo it because of a power loss or application crash. You can avoid this frustration by following a few quick and easy precautionary steps. So How Do I Protect from...