Month: July 2020
Tech Time Warp: Zotob worm wreaks havoc on the news
One way to make headlines is to go after the journalists themselves. On August 16, 2005, computers at CNN, ABC, The New York Times and The Associated Press were infected by the Zotob worm, along with machines at Caterpillar, and...
Pandemic cybersecurity in South Africa
The coronavirus has brought economic devastation to all parts of the world. As a journalist based in the United States, I understandably tend to focus on the United States. But it’s easy to become so focused on one’s home country that...
COVID-19 has the potential to change the nature of work forever
Over the last several months, many businesses, large and small, have been forced to close their offices and send employees home to work. This has presented many challenges, but companies have also learned many lessons about remote work that could...
Organizations are betting on IT like never before
Historically, anytime there has been a sharp economic downturn, investments in IT have tended to suffer. Fortunately, the economic downturn brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be something altogether different. Recent financial results, from Intel and Microsoft especially,...
Meeting strategic IT goals while staying in budget
Ambition in driving customer facing innovation is often dimmed when organizations are faced with the pragmatic reality that their IT budget is consumed by required security projects, “keep the lights on” operations, and desperately needed technology upgrades. Innovation is often...
Ask an MSP Expert: Should I monitor my employees?
Q: Due to the pandemic, my MSP’s employees are now working remotely. I don’t like the idea of “spying” on my employees, but I also miss being able to pop my head in someone’s office to chat and check on work....
Tech Time Warp: Almost the end of the road for Adobe Flash
Network administrators may have Dec. 31, 2020, marked on their calendars as a day of celebration. In just over five months, Adobe Flash—once a major breakthrough in online video, eventually a security hassle—reaches its end of life. Adobe will remove...
Cybersecurity Threat Advisory: Windows DNS Server RCE (CVE-2020-1350)
Advisory Overview A Remote Code Execution (RCE) vulnerability exists affecting Windows Domain Name System (DNS) Servers when they improperly handle requests. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could allow attackers to execute code with SYSTEM level privileges. SKOUT recommends all organizations...
Seamless cybersecurity and two emerging threats
For most MSPs, the pandemic of 2020 has been a rush of implementing new policies and procedures while at the same time trying to keep customer cybersecurity fortifications intact. Wisconsin-based SWICKTech is an example of an organization that acted early to...
Digital workspaces are the next big opportunity for MSPs
There’s much speculation about the degree to which employees will return to the workplace versus continuing to work from home. The truth of the matter is work as a concept will remain fluid. While more employees will be returning to...