The Irvine Company is sponsoring a business data destruction and electronics recycling event at the Alton Marketplace (Technology and Alton Parkway) on Friday, May 15, 2015 from 9am to 1pm. The event is free and open to all businesses and organizations in the area who are looking to recycle their unwanted electronics and receive free business data destruction services. Electronic recycling will be provided by Living Green Recycling and business data destruction services will be provided by Data … [Read more...]
10 Tablet Tools for Business
Because of their functionality and portability, tablets are quickly becoming the tool of choice for business owners and managers. With so many applications available, deciding what tablet tools to use can be intimidating. Here are 10 tablet tools to consider for your business. Google Apps for Business Offers a suite of products to keep you connected, including business emails, video conferencing, shared docs, cloud storage. Powered Now If you find yourself out in the field a … [Read more...]
5 Tips to Outsmart Cyber Crooks
Cyber crooks are becoming more and more sophisticated in their attempts to victimize people and steal their sensitive information. Here are five tips that may help you stay one step ahead of cyber crooks. Tip #1: Protect against spear phishing by looking for incorrect or unusual URLs. Spear phishing is when cyber crooks send targeted emails to you hoping you will share personal financial information or passwords. Emails can look very sophisticated and may even address you by name or … [Read more...]
World Data Backup Day
Today is world data backup day…but you might want to consider setting a regular schedule for data backup more often than once a year! Just last week I was working on my laptop when I smelled plastic burning, I just knew it was my laptop…and I rushed to do a data backup before it burst into flames. I felt like I was in a race against time, panicking over the thought of losing all my files, all our business documents, all my hard work. And I knew if I did, I would have no one to blame but … [Read more...]
Data Security & Breach Notification Act of 2015
The Data Security & Breach Notification Act of 2015 is a legislative bill introduced by Republican Representative Marsha Blackburn and Democratic Representative Peter Welch. If passed, the act would establish a national standard for the way companies protect consumers’ personal information and respond to data breaches. In a commentary published on www.CNBC.com on March 25, 2015, Blackburn and Welch stress the need for Congress to pass The Data Security & Breach Notification Act of … [Read more...]
Proper Handling of Electronic Data
No one plans to have a data breach. People don’t intentionally leave themselves open to electronic data theft. But because some business owners and managers are not intentional about having a plan to protect their electronic data, many do put their companies at risk of a data breach or theft of electronic data. Most companies are aware of the risk of information theft associated with paper documents. Many have contracted with paper shredding companies to destroy their paper files. They will … [Read more...]
Data Destruction on Android Smartphones
When it comes to data containing devices, like your smart phones, many people believe that using a system restore or doing a factory reset is enough to delete all of the personal information that is on the device – but that is not always true. When it comes to Android smartphones, simply doing a factory reset on older versions is not enough to keep your information safe from someone who really wants to get it off your old phone. Think of all the things you or your employees may have stored … [Read more...]
Keeping Trade Secrets a Secret
Maybe you think your business isn’t big enough to have trade secrets – but if you have a list of customers, you have trade secrets. And trade secrets are worth protecting. A trade secret is defined as any valuable commercial information that provides a business with an advantage over competitors who do not have that information. Trade secrets tend to fall into two categories – either technical information or business information. Examples of technical trade secrets include: Plans, … [Read more...]
10 Tips for Preventing Identity Theft
Identity theft not only happens online, but a lot of identity theft fraud is a result of offline activities. In fact, we were victims of identity theft because a mortgage broker mishandled the paper file that contained all of our personal financial information. Here are 10 tips, courtesy of the U.S. government, on how to prevent offline identity theft. Don’t carry your social security card on you. Not in your wallet. Don’t write it on your checks. Only give it out when absolutely … [Read more...]
Corporate Espionage in India
Threats to data security are a global problem as businesses in India are finding out. In particular, Indian companies are increasingly at risk of corporate espionage and are racing to IT security firms for help. According to an article in The Economic Times/India Times, some studies indicate that as much as 35% of Indian companies engage in some form of corporate espionage. Corporate espionage is defined as companies that indulge in illegal and unethical activities to gain information from … [Read more...]