Spire Technologies
Be careful what apps you install on your android phone
Researchers have discovered more malicious apps on the Google Play Store, including some that are designed to steal users’ personal information. The researchers advise users to be cautious when downloading apps from the Google Play Store, and to only install apps from trusted sources. When you install an app on your Android phone, you’re giving
Researchers have discovered more malicious apps on the Google Play Store, including some that are designed to steal users’ personal information. The researchers advise users to be cautious when downloading apps from the Google Play Store, and to only install apps from trusted sources. When you install an app on your Android phone, you’re giving
Read full post on spiretech.com
Starlink initial testing results
This week I received delivery of a Starlink for RV’s system, and decided to evaluate if it would work reliably for attending meetings and working from the road. I set the system up and connected my laptop wifi to it, and attended several hours of meetings with video, phone calls, OneDrive/SharePoint collaboration, and typically heavy
This week I received delivery of a Starlink for RV’s system, and decided to evaluate if it would work reliably for attending meetings and working from the road. I set the system up and connected my laptop wifi to it, and attended several hours of meetings with video, phone calls, OneDrive/SharePoint collaboration, and typically heavy
Read full post on spiretech.com
New unpatched Microsoft office vulnerability – “Follina”
A new unpatched Microsoft office vulnerability has been discovered by security researchers. The vulnerability, dubbed “Follina”, affects all versions of Microsoft Office from 2007 onwards. Follina tricks the system into downloading malware from a remote URL that is not part of the initial document download. It is triggered when a specially crafted office document is
A new unpatched Microsoft office vulnerability has been discovered by security researchers. The vulnerability, dubbed “Follina”, affects all versions of Microsoft Office from 2007 onwards. Follina tricks the system into downloading malware from a remote URL that is not part of the initial document download. It is triggered when a specially crafted office document is
Read full post on spiretech.com
IT Checklist – 10 Best Small Business IT Practices
When starting a small business, there are a lot of things to think about. IT is often one of the last things on a small business owner’s mind, but it is one of the most important aspects of any business, especially in today’s digital landscape. At SpireTech, we believe that every small business should have a comprehensive IT checklist to ensure that their business is running smoothly and efficiently. We’ve put together a list of the 10 best SMB IT practices to help you get started. These will be areas of IT development, maintenance, and support that you should focus on in order to create a s
When starting a small business, there are a lot of things to think about. IT is often one of the last things on a small business owner’s mind, but it is one of the most important aspects of any business, especially in today’s digital landscape. At SpireTech, we believe that every small business should have a comprehensive IT checklist to ensure that their business is running smoothly and efficiently. We’ve put together a list of the 10 best SMB IT practices to help you get started. These will be areas of IT development, maintenance, and support that you should focus on in order to create a strong IT foundation for your business. Hardware Today’s workstations have improved capabilities in terms of processing, graphics, and storage. Simultaneously, they’ve gotten significantly smaller, portable, stylish, and inexpensive over the years. Considering all these benefits, it should come as little surprise that small- to mid-sized businesses are starting to consider workstations as an alternative to the consumer PCs they’ve traditionally favored. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
Starlink offers new “service portability” internet connectivity
Digital nomads and really remote workers have probably heard of Starlink – SpaceX’s satellite-based internet connectivity service. Designed as a high-speed connectivity option where no other wired or cellular options exist, Starlink is a good choice for people who have no other option for internet connectivity. Service portability is a new feature rolled out this week that allows customers to move their dish to a new location (other than your home location) within the same continent for an extra $25/mo. For US workers, that means Canada and Mexico coverage areas are currently included.
Digital nomads and really remote workers have probably heard of Starlink – SpaceX’s satellite-based internet connectivity service. Designed as a high-speed connectivity option where no other wired or cellular options exist, Starlink is a good choice for people who have no other option for internet connectivity. Service portability is a new feature rolled out this week that allows customers to move their dish to a new location (other than your home location) within the same continent for an extra $25/mo. For US workers, that means Canada and Mexico coverage areas are currently included. Sorry Alaskans – nothing available that far north yet. Starlink plans to eventually have worldwide coverage. If you’ve ever traveled and tried to use cellular service to maintain internet connectivity, and run into data caps, speed issues, or no-service situations, you might be glad to fork over the extra money for this service. It doesn’t come cheap though – Starlink’s service starts at $110/mo, and the portability option raises the fee to $135/mo – far more expensive than cellular. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
Cyber insurance costs on the rise
We’re starting to hear from clients and insurance brokers that cyber insurance costs are on the rise, in some cases up to 200%. Of course, this comes with insurers cracking down on IT controls – making sure their insureds are operating as securely as possible. Clients can expect increased scrutiny over their application or renewal. The length of the questionnaires vary greatly, but at a minimum, insurers will ask about and want to see the following things in place: Multi-factor authentication across all systems and accounts including email, remote access, vendor access, VPN’s, SAAS/c
We’re starting to hear from clients and insurance brokers that cyber insurance costs are on the rise, in some cases up to 200%. Of course, this comes with insurers cracking down on IT controls – making sure their insureds are operating as securely as possible. Clients can expect increased scrutiny over their application or renewal. The length of the questionnaires vary greatly, but at a minimum, insurers will ask about and want to see the following things in place: Multi-factor authentication across all systems and accounts including email, remote access, vendor access, VPN’s, SAAS/cloud applications, etc. An enterprise-grade endpoint protection solution (antivirus and malware). Employee security awareness training, including phishing training. Email spam and phish filtering software. No end-of-life software. Closed remote access ports, including remote desktop protocol (RDP). Security patches applied in a timely manner. Offsite, tested, and monitored backups that are not accessible from your network. Clients that implement all security best practices and tools will likely face lower Cyber insurance costs, easier renewals, and enjoy the benefits of increased security. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
Why “app registrations” present a security risk to M365
Let’s start by describing what an app registration is: An app registration happens when you allow an external program to integrate with your Microsoft 365 tenant. A common example might be allowing a scheduling tool like Calendly to access your companies’ calendars stored in M365. What we are noticing more of is the requirement for mobile phones to require an app registration to be able to access company email if the employee is not using the mobile Microsoft Outlook app (eg, when using the mobile phone’s built in mail client). It is also possible for these permissions remain afte
Let’s start by describing what an app registration is: An app registration happens when you allow an external program to integrate with your Microsoft 365 tenant. A common example might be allowing a scheduling tool like Calendly to access your companies’ calendars stored in M365. What we are noticing more of is the requirement for mobile phones to require an app registration to be able to access company email if the employee is not using the mobile Microsoft Outlook app (eg, when using the mobile phone’s built in mail client). It is also possible for these permissions remain after the application is no longer needed or in use. Because app registrations are persistent, they may present a security risk long after the permissions have been forgotten about. Examples of things we’ve seen include: Zoom, Samsung email, Apple Business Manager, Quickbooks desktop (for email), Zapier, Smartsheet, Addevent, Calendly, Atlassian, LinkedIn, Polly, Doodle, and so on. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
FBI engages in white-hat hacking
An interesting development came to light recently wherein the FBI intervened on behalf of people who had not updated their watchguard firewalls and had gotten hacked by Russian threat actors. In a clandestine takedown operation cloaked by a federal warrant, FBI agents remotely accessed infected WatchGuard firewalls, hacked in, kicked out the intruders, and closed the vulnerability. Watchguard firewalls are used by some businesses to protect their networks. Although the vulnerability had been addressed in May of 2021, as recently as February of 2022 some people still hadn’t updated.
An interesting development came to light recently wherein the FBI intervened on behalf of people who had not updated their watchguard firewalls and had gotten hacked by Russian threat actors. In a clandestine takedown operation cloaked by a federal warrant, FBI agents remotely accessed infected WatchGuard firewalls, hacked in, kicked out the intruders, and closed the vulnerability. Watchguard firewalls are used by some businesses to protect their networks. Although the vulnerability had been addressed in May of 2021, as recently as February of 2022 some people still hadn’t updated. The botnet infecting the firewalls was dubbed “cyclops blink” and was controlled by the Kremlin, according to an advisory jointly issued by the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the National Security Agency (NSA), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). SpireTech VIP Support Managed IT Service provider clients receive regular firewall updates, and emergency firewall updates when needed. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
M365 price increase reminder
We’d like to take this opportunity to remind clients about the price increases to all Microsoft 365 packages on a monthly term and commitment effective July 1, 2022. We wrote about this in our February blog post, please refer to that article for further explanation and information.
We’d like to take this opportunity to remind clients about the price increases to all Microsoft 365 packages on a monthly term and commitment effective July 1, 2022. We wrote about this in our February blog post, please refer to that article for further explanation and information.
Read full post on spiretech.com
Client Security Journey
By now we hope that our clients understand that IT security is never “done”. It is a constantly evolving and maturing process involving additional tools, training, and knowledge. This image shows the journey many clients are on with us to improve and mature the security posture of your organizations. Some of you fall in different places on this journey – do you know where your company sits? As mentioned in the previous article, we are now including Huntress threat hunting in our VIPSupport managed services packages. We are referring to the current iteration of our managed services
By now we hope that our clients understand that IT security is never “done”. It is a constantly evolving and maturing process involving additional tools, training, and knowledge. This image shows the journey many clients are on with us to improve and mature the security posture of your organizations. Some of you fall in different places on this journey – do you know where your company sits? As mentioned in the previous article, we are now including Huntress threat hunting in our VIPSupport managed services packages. We are referring to the current iteration of our managed services plan as “version 3.5” or “v3.5”. We encourage all clients to be on at least v3.5 or better for security purposes. This is an evolutionary journey, and some clients are hesitant to increase expense to further limit risk by implementing additional security services. Limiting the “included” security features, while we feel it is important, helps keep the base price affordable for cost-sensitive clients. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
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Be careful what apps you install on your android phone
Researchers have discovered more malicious apps on the Google Play Store, including some that are designed to steal users’ personal information. The researchers advise users to be cautious when downloading apps from the Google Play Store, and to only install apps from trusted sources. When you install an app on your Android phone, you’re giving
Researchers have discovered more malicious apps on the Google Play Store, including some that are designed to steal users’ personal information. The researchers advise users to be cautious when downloading apps from the Google Play Store, and to only install apps from trusted sources. When you install an app on your Android phone, you’re giving
Read full post on spiretech.com
Starlink initial testing results
This week I received delivery of a Starlink for RV’s system, and decided to evaluate if it would work reliably for attending meetings and working from the road. I set the system up and connected my laptop wifi to it, and attended several hours of meetings with video, phone calls, OneDrive/SharePoint collaboration, and typically heavy
This week I received delivery of a Starlink for RV’s system, and decided to evaluate if it would work reliably for attending meetings and working from the road. I set the system up and connected my laptop wifi to it, and attended several hours of meetings with video, phone calls, OneDrive/SharePoint collaboration, and typically heavy
Read full post on spiretech.com
New unpatched Microsoft office vulnerability – “Follina”
A new unpatched Microsoft office vulnerability has been discovered by security researchers. The vulnerability, dubbed “Follina”, affects all versions of Microsoft Office from 2007 onwards. Follina tricks the system into downloading malware from a remote URL that is not part of the initial document download. It is triggered when a specially crafted office document is
A new unpatched Microsoft office vulnerability has been discovered by security researchers. The vulnerability, dubbed “Follina”, affects all versions of Microsoft Office from 2007 onwards. Follina tricks the system into downloading malware from a remote URL that is not part of the initial document download. It is triggered when a specially crafted office document is
Read full post on spiretech.com
IT Checklist – 10 Best Small Business IT Practices
When starting a small business, there are a lot of things to think about. IT is often one of the last things on a small business owner’s mind, but it is one of the most important aspects of any business, especially in today’s digital landscape. At SpireTech, we believe that every small business should have a comprehensive IT checklist to ensure that their business is running smoothly and efficiently. We’ve put together a list of the 10 best SMB IT practices to help you get started. These will be areas of IT development, maintenance, and support that you should focus on in order to create a s
When starting a small business, there are a lot of things to think about. IT is often one of the last things on a small business owner’s mind, but it is one of the most important aspects of any business, especially in today’s digital landscape. At SpireTech, we believe that every small business should have a comprehensive IT checklist to ensure that their business is running smoothly and efficiently. We’ve put together a list of the 10 best SMB IT practices to help you get started. These will be areas of IT development, maintenance, and support that you should focus on in order to create a strong IT foundation for your business. Hardware Today’s workstations have improved capabilities in terms of processing, graphics, and storage. Simultaneously, they’ve gotten significantly smaller, portable, stylish, and inexpensive over the years. Considering all these benefits, it should come as little surprise that small- to mid-sized businesses are starting to consider workstations as an alternative to the consumer PCs they’ve traditionally favored. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
Starlink offers new “service portability” internet connectivity
Digital nomads and really remote workers have probably heard of Starlink – SpaceX’s satellite-based internet connectivity service. Designed as a high-speed connectivity option where no other wired or cellular options exist, Starlink is a good choice for people who have no other option for internet connectivity. Service portability is a new feature rolled out this week that allows customers to move their dish to a new location (other than your home location) within the same continent for an extra $25/mo. For US workers, that means Canada and Mexico coverage areas are currently included.
Digital nomads and really remote workers have probably heard of Starlink – SpaceX’s satellite-based internet connectivity service. Designed as a high-speed connectivity option where no other wired or cellular options exist, Starlink is a good choice for people who have no other option for internet connectivity. Service portability is a new feature rolled out this week that allows customers to move their dish to a new location (other than your home location) within the same continent for an extra $25/mo. For US workers, that means Canada and Mexico coverage areas are currently included. Sorry Alaskans – nothing available that far north yet. Starlink plans to eventually have worldwide coverage. If you’ve ever traveled and tried to use cellular service to maintain internet connectivity, and run into data caps, speed issues, or no-service situations, you might be glad to fork over the extra money for this service. It doesn’t come cheap though – Starlink’s service starts at $110/mo, and the portability option raises the fee to $135/mo – far more expensive than cellular. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
Cyber insurance costs on the rise
We’re starting to hear from clients and insurance brokers that cyber insurance costs are on the rise, in some cases up to 200%. Of course, this comes with insurers cracking down on IT controls – making sure their insureds are operating as securely as possible. Clients can expect increased scrutiny over their application or renewal. The length of the questionnaires vary greatly, but at a minimum, insurers will ask about and want to see the following things in place: Multi-factor authentication across all systems and accounts including email, remote access, vendor access, VPN’s, SAAS/c
We’re starting to hear from clients and insurance brokers that cyber insurance costs are on the rise, in some cases up to 200%. Of course, this comes with insurers cracking down on IT controls – making sure their insureds are operating as securely as possible. Clients can expect increased scrutiny over their application or renewal. The length of the questionnaires vary greatly, but at a minimum, insurers will ask about and want to see the following things in place: Multi-factor authentication across all systems and accounts including email, remote access, vendor access, VPN’s, SAAS/cloud applications, etc. An enterprise-grade endpoint protection solution (antivirus and malware). Employee security awareness training, including phishing training. Email spam and phish filtering software. No end-of-life software. Closed remote access ports, including remote desktop protocol (RDP). Security patches applied in a timely manner. Offsite, tested, and monitored backups that are not accessible from your network. Clients that implement all security best practices and tools will likely face lower Cyber insurance costs, easier renewals, and enjoy the benefits of increased security. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
Why “app registrations” present a security risk to M365
Let’s start by describing what an app registration is: An app registration happens when you allow an external program to integrate with your Microsoft 365 tenant. A common example might be allowing a scheduling tool like Calendly to access your companies’ calendars stored in M365. What we are noticing more of is the requirement for mobile phones to require an app registration to be able to access company email if the employee is not using the mobile Microsoft Outlook app (eg, when using the mobile phone’s built in mail client). It is also possible for these permissions remain afte
Let’s start by describing what an app registration is: An app registration happens when you allow an external program to integrate with your Microsoft 365 tenant. A common example might be allowing a scheduling tool like Calendly to access your companies’ calendars stored in M365. What we are noticing more of is the requirement for mobile phones to require an app registration to be able to access company email if the employee is not using the mobile Microsoft Outlook app (eg, when using the mobile phone’s built in mail client). It is also possible for these permissions remain after the application is no longer needed or in use. Because app registrations are persistent, they may present a security risk long after the permissions have been forgotten about. Examples of things we’ve seen include: Zoom, Samsung email, Apple Business Manager, Quickbooks desktop (for email), Zapier, Smartsheet, Addevent, Calendly, Atlassian, LinkedIn, Polly, Doodle, and so on. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
FBI engages in white-hat hacking
An interesting development came to light recently wherein the FBI intervened on behalf of people who had not updated their watchguard firewalls and had gotten hacked by Russian threat actors. In a clandestine takedown operation cloaked by a federal warrant, FBI agents remotely accessed infected WatchGuard firewalls, hacked in, kicked out the intruders, and closed the vulnerability. Watchguard firewalls are used by some businesses to protect their networks. Although the vulnerability had been addressed in May of 2021, as recently as February of 2022 some people still hadn’t updated.
An interesting development came to light recently wherein the FBI intervened on behalf of people who had not updated their watchguard firewalls and had gotten hacked by Russian threat actors. In a clandestine takedown operation cloaked by a federal warrant, FBI agents remotely accessed infected WatchGuard firewalls, hacked in, kicked out the intruders, and closed the vulnerability. Watchguard firewalls are used by some businesses to protect their networks. Although the vulnerability had been addressed in May of 2021, as recently as February of 2022 some people still hadn’t updated. The botnet infecting the firewalls was dubbed “cyclops blink” and was controlled by the Kremlin, according to an advisory jointly issued by the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the National Security Agency (NSA), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). SpireTech VIP Support Managed IT Service provider clients receive regular firewall updates, and emergency firewall updates when needed. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
M365 price increase reminder
We’d like to take this opportunity to remind clients about the price increases to all Microsoft 365 packages on a monthly term and commitment effective July 1, 2022. We wrote about this in our February blog post, please refer to that article for further explanation and information.
We’d like to take this opportunity to remind clients about the price increases to all Microsoft 365 packages on a monthly term and commitment effective July 1, 2022. We wrote about this in our February blog post, please refer to that article for further explanation and information.
Read full post on spiretech.com
Client Security Journey
By now we hope that our clients understand that IT security is never “done”. It is a constantly evolving and maturing process involving additional tools, training, and knowledge. This image shows the journey many clients are on with us to improve and mature the security posture of your organizations. Some of you fall in different places on this journey – do you know where your company sits? As mentioned in the previous article, we are now including Huntress threat hunting in our VIPSupport managed services packages. We are referring to the current iteration of our managed services
By now we hope that our clients understand that IT security is never “done”. It is a constantly evolving and maturing process involving additional tools, training, and knowledge. This image shows the journey many clients are on with us to improve and mature the security posture of your organizations. Some of you fall in different places on this journey – do you know where your company sits? As mentioned in the previous article, we are now including Huntress threat hunting in our VIPSupport managed services packages. We are referring to the current iteration of our managed services plan as “version 3.5” or “v3.5”. We encourage all clients to be on at least v3.5 or better for security purposes. This is an evolutionary journey, and some clients are hesitant to increase expense to further limit risk by implementing additional security services. Limiting the “included” security features, while we feel it is important, helps keep the base price affordable for cost-sensitive clients. Read more...
Read full post on spiretech.com
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