Business Impact of a Major Data Loss Event

Data breaches are costing companies more than ever, according to a recent study—and smaller companies may be most at risk. Data losses, which can result from theft or carelessness, are a downside of the information age. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), more than 35 million data records were breached in 2008 in the United States—47 percent more than in 2007. How much do data losses cost? The Ponemon Institute, which studies business privacy practices, surveyed 43 U.S. companies across 17 industry sectors that lost data in 2008. According to the study, data losses ranged from 4,200 records to 113,000 records, and each data record lost cost $202—making the total cost between $848,400 and $22,826,000. That number was up from $197 per data record lost in 2007, $182 in 2006, and $138 in 2005, the first year the study was conducted. Why are data losses so costly? When you lose data, a number of costs are incurred, including detecting data losses, notifying victims, paying for victim reparations (such as free credit checks), and hiring experts to remedy the problem. You also must account for business lost as a result of customer mistrust. In fact, in the Ponemon study, $139 of the lost $202 per data record represented the cost of lost business. Small companies may suffer the most from data losses. Another study conducted earlier this year by StollzNow Research asked IT managers from 945 companies about their experiences related to data management. They found that an alarming 49 percent of small companies fail to back up their data on a daily basis. This is despite the fact that nearly half of all participants experienced data loss in their workplace in the past two years, and 36 percent felt that data loss could have a significant impact on their business. Don’t put yourself at risk. We can help you prevent costly data loss by implementing a policy for the preservation of data, and by installing and testing backup systems on a regular basis. Related articles: Tech Managers Often Underestimate Impact of Data Loss Study: Data Losses Proving More Costly for Businesses

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Does your business need a server?

Is it time for you to consider a server for your business? This question was raised recently by Rhonda Abrams, a writer for USA TODAY’s Small Business section. According to Ms. Abrams’s article, if your business is growing and you have more than two people in your business, then you should definitely consider buying a server. Having a server, or a dedicated computer that acts as a central resource for data and applications within your office network , can dramatically improve the way your business runs. A server allows you to consolidate your data in one place, making it easy to share among your colleagues. Network file shares allow you to upload and archive files and data in one centralized location for everyone. Centralizing data also makes it easier to secure and back up. Servers often are powerful computers that can host applications your business runs within the office network. With servers, you can run applications such as email and security services, host your business website or company intranet , deploy multi-user databases, and much more. Let us know if you are considering deploying a server for your business – we can help you do it efficiently and cost effectively. Related article: Strategies: It might be time to get serious about a server.

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Hackers Launch Cyber-Offensive Against American and South Korean Sites

Last July 4th and 5th, a massive denial-of-service attack was launched against several government and commercial websites in the United States and South Korea. According to security researchers, the attacks were the work of malware that infected PCs and routed traffic to government and commercial sites during the July 4 weekend in an attempt to take them down with the flood of simultaneous requests hitting them. Among those affected were the U.S. Department of Treasury, the Secret Service, the Federal Trade Commission, and several others. The attacks, which hit South Korean sites a few days later on July the 7th, are widely believed to have been carried out by an updated version of the MyDoom worm which gained infamy when it first hit Windows machines last 2004. The motive for the attack is not yet known. In the meantime, users are advised to scan their machines and update their operating systems to protect against known vulnerabilities. Contact us to learn more about protecting your business from a similar attack. Related articles: Mysterious cyber-attacker hits at federal websites, crisis averted? Cyber Attack Targets Government Websites Who’s behind cyber assaults?

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Dual Boot Windows 7 and Vista on One Machine

Excited about Windows 7 but unsure if you want to replace your existing Vista installation? Worried about potential compatibility and driver problems with the Windows 7 beta or release candidate? Why not install both on the same machine? Microsoft has posted an interesting article on how to have both Vista and the upcoming Windows 7 Beta or Release Candidate on the same machine by dual booting from one operating system to the other. Be sure to check out the system requirements for Windows 7 ensure your system is up to the challenge. Generally speaking, if your system can handle Vista then it will likely have no problem with Windows 7; however, you’ll need ample space on your hard drive to have both running. Check out the article at Microsoft’s Technet website. Not sure how (or why) to do it? Contact us – we can help! Related articles Windows 7 testers have long path to upgrade Can a Windows Vista PC Run Windows XP Instead? Windows 7 release date announced

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