Tech Spot

There is a misconception out there that if you have a Mac, you are exempt from getting hacked. However the real answer is yes Macs get hacked. In many cases this is due to social hacking (read my previous blog on this). Computer operating systems in general are similar enough that malware developers can easily create a version for each operating system. Are you less likely to get hacked if you have a Mac? The only way you are less likely to get hacked is to use quality tools and educate yourself on scams and cyber security. Just because you have a Mac will not automatically protect you from hacking. How to protect yourself on a Mac? Anti-virus is highly recommended for all Macs. I install Anti Virus on all Macs I manage. Not a free anti virus but a high quality anti-virus. See my blog on anti-virus. Also educate yourself about how scammers work because they are very sneaky and will convince you to navigate around the built in security features on your Mac and infect your mach...

Yes it is true, January 2020 is the end of the road for Windows 7. It is necessary to end use of this very popular operating system. At this point Windows 10 is a proven mainstream operating system. Some may not like windows 10 but now is the time to move on. Windows 10 is more secure than Windows 7 and it is here to stay.  So let's get you updated! How much will it cost to update to windows 10? Most (not all) Windows 7 licenses are allowed to upgrade to windows 10 for no license fee. If you are a DataCom Technologies Uptime Subscriber, you can upgrade with no service charge on any covered device! Otherwise a standard service fee will apply. This is all the more reason to subscribe! All new subscribers can upgrade to Windows 10 with no service fee.  Will I be able to keep all my applications when I upgrade? Most (not all) applications are written to upgrade to windows 10. An evaluation of your current applications is necessary to determine if any applicat...

Unfortunately in IT there are a lot of acronyms. And DDOS is no simple acronym. DDOS stands for Distributed Denial of Service, which does not give us any explanation. DDOS attacks can be the hardest and the scariest type of attack to deal with as a business owner. In my career I have only dealt with this on rare occasions. On the dark web there is software that can be purchased to launch a DDOS attack. This has made it very easy to launch these types of attacks. How does a DDOS attack work? An attacker will launch this sophisticated attack from multiple locations in an attempt to flood your network or website with so much traffic that it cripples you. Typically these attacks are targeted at a website and not a network. Generally these types of attacks are targeted at large companies. However DDOS like attacks can happen to small companies and residential. A hacker could make you apart of their DDOS attack by using your network resources to attack a large company. This will als...

Hacking is a very diverse word now. Hacking is something that has many different meanings. In the IT world we get the responsibility of dealing with all types of hacks even if they really do not fall into our category of work.  One of these areas that is not real hacking by IT standards is Social Hacking. Social Hacking does not involve any real computer expertise to do. Anyone who is good at lying or deception can be a Social Hacker. Real hacking involves real computer knowledge to break into accounts or computer systems and steal the information. Whereas Social Hacking is the practice of convincing you to give the hacker your information or pay them money. Why would you give a hacker your information? Social Hackers are scam artists, they intend you trick you in some way and steal your information. For instance a Social Hacker may call you and state that they are from your bank and they need to confirm some information about your account. In this process they will attem...

Passwords are an essential part of cyber security. In fact they are the oldest form of cyber security. Without a doubt you have used a password for something online, or on your computer. Passwords are important! But how you store them is just as important as all the other elements of a password. Saving passwords is one of the hardest subjects for users. How do you remember all the passwords? Why can't I use one password for everything? To answer all of the questions surrounding  passwords a whole series of articles could be written. For the sake of this article we will assume you use a different password for every account. How to save passwords? The most common way passwords are stored are sticky notes on a desk or in a note pad. Often the note pad says "passwords" on the front. A note pad is not necessarily a bad way to store your passwords, if you store your notepad in a safe that only you have the key. However these notepads are often left on desks for a...

Of all the questions I am asked this is the hardest to really answer because this idea is very abstract. To answer this question I will have to define computer networking as a whole. Computer networking is a vast amount of computer that talk to each other. This network (the internet) is made of all sorts of devices connecting to it and they do all sorts of different tasks. IOT is the next generation of this vast network. IOT stands for  "Internet of Things" . Your probably are already thinking, isn't the internet already an internet of things? Yes it is, however these things are more automatic than your computer or phone. These IOT networks when deployed do not need any user interaction to function. They are sensors and devices that perform simple or complicated tasks and report to a central server. An example of a IOT network can be a connected network of traffic sensors. This network could compile the data of traffic light changes. Other sensors could count how ...

5G is something that everyone talking about. The media keeps talking 5G and saying how much a game changer 5G will be. And yet what difference does it make and will it really be a game changer? If you read our previous blog about bandwith this, relates in a lot of ways. 5G is a wireless technology that providers like Verizon, and ATT, Sprint plan to use to increase speed. Back a few years ago the big push was 4G.  4G was great for it's time. It allowed us to watch videos on a quick connection and really changed the mobile speeds of times gone past. 4G pushed us to a wireless level that had never seen before and it brought us to the edge of the capabilities of long range speed. In short 4G is the fastest data can run based on the distance you are from the transmitter. I will not get to technical as this is not a technical blog. 4G is fast, 5G is faster. Here is how 5G is faster. 5G involves the companies that provide it to build out more points of access. Just like with ...

Bandwith is something we all have but not many know what it is. You know that you pay for it every month on your Isp bill or your cell phone. What is it really? And do you need more or less? What is Bandwith? Have you ever worked with a water pipe? A water pipe is the best example to understand bandwith. Imagine that the internet is the Ocean. The internet has a vast, resource of knowledge and your internet connection is the way that you access it. It is much like having a small 1 inch connection that huge ocean of information. Imagine trying to get all that water through your tiny 1 inch connection. This is how data moves through data pipes. The larger your pipe (bandwith) the more you can get through. Internet speeds are based on how much bandwith you can get through. Isp's base how they charge you on bandwith. There are limits on how big your pipe is, and how much your pipe can transfer in a given period of time (such as during a billing cycle). All of this relates to h...

Anti-Virus is the first thing that any responsible computer owner should have installed on their computer after firing it up for the first time. This question is likely the #1 question I am asked daily about computers. However the question should be not which "FREE" but rather which "PAID" anti virus should I get? The old adage "you get what you pay for" is so true when it comes to anti-virus. Everyday there are news articles about malware attacks and ransomware. And it shocks me so often how unprepared everyone is when it comes to computer security. Many business owners,  purchase a great computer to run their business. However they will not spend $100 or less per year to protect themselves from a malicious attack? Ongoing maintenance and security should always be factored into the cost of your computer. You will end up spending more and experience more loss if you do not. What you get for free Understand how free anti viruses work. Free Anti V...

Many of my clients get confused about networking equipment that they have in their place of business. And rightly so as these are appliances that you generally never touch and may never see. They just sit in place and work. One of these devices is a Firewall. Firewalls can be virtual but they can also be a physical stand alone device that have firewall software installed on the system. Often Firewalls and Routers are the same physical device.  Keep in mind that many routers have firewall capabilities but this does not mean they are turned on. Not all firewalls are created equal. You should always work with an IT professional when selecting a firewall as there are so many out there to choose from  and there are so many configurations that it is even hard to know what to pick. No matter what.  Get a firewall! What is a Firewall? A firewall stops bad traffic from coming on your network. A firewall scans and filters traffic. A firewall helps route traffic to keep you...

More often than not my clients are confused by the many networking items that are around their offices or homes. And to their credit, it is really confusing, as to what all this stuff does and how to use it all.  They all look very similar and do similar things. The key is they all are not the same and do not do the same things. In a typical network setup (in a business environment) you will have the following devices before anything ever gets to a computer. Modem Router/Firewall Switch Let us work backwards and look at the switch, this is usually the last appliance that the data will touch before it comes to your computer from the internet or another machine in your network.  What do Switches do? Switches do what the Router tells it to do. The Router is the boss is the network setup. Networks can be configured in all sorts of ways but you cannot do anything large scale without a switch. Some switches can be configured as routers(not recommended). Routers ...

Free WiFi is everywhere today. At the restaurant down the street your auto repair shop and your hair salon. WiFi is great, it connects you to the wonderful world of the internet, however with all the free WiFi out there another risk is associated. When you connect to any WiFi anyone else on that same connected network has access to you and what you do. Unless you have educated yourself on how to stay safe on a WiFi network and then initiate the right practices you will likely be a victim on your WiFi network you are connected to. In a free public WiFi situation generally hundreds of people over time will connect to that network. During that time they will do a variety of things. Including checking their social media and reading their email. What you do on public WiFi is important, because what you do could be seen by a nefarious source. Most business owners put in free WiFi to add value for their clients, they are not in the business of securing their network or making sure you are...

What is a Cloud? There is a lot of talk about Clouds, not the clouds in the sky but rather the virtual clouds we all seem to have but have no idea what to do with. I hope to clear up the misconceptions about clouds and help you understand what they are and how exciting they really can be. Think of a cloud like a sky rise. In this sky rise there is a hotel, there are apartments and business suites and even a penthouse at the top. From the lobby everyone enters and goes to their places of business or homes. Everyone rents something here, they rent from the building owner and the building owner may live or have an office here as well. Let's relate this to the cloud. The cloud is a computer that stores things for people like you and businesses. You may own a business. You may want to store all your files in an apartment for a long period of time and come by from time to time and get something. Another person may need temporary storage like a the hotel patron. And another may need...

Why do Hard Drives Die? The Hard Drive in your computer Hard Drives are part of the backbone of any computer's functionality. Without a Hard drive you do not have a functioning computer. There are many types of Hard drives, and unless you have a mobile device or bought your computer yesterday you likely have a HDD. Today there are two common drives for consumer computers HDD and SSD. We will cover these two today. HDD (Hard Disk Drive) This drive literally has a spinning disk inside of it and there is a read/ write head that reads and writes. Over time I am sure you can imagine this drive breaks down. It can only take so many reads and writes from the head. Imagine a record player or a cd, these get scratched, an HDD does not get scratched but it gets worn. The wear is not something you can see without magnification. Repair is optional, however this is expensive and considering the price of this many opt to just replace as you can buy most HDD's for under $100. ...

About me Fresh out of school I starting working for a break fix shop. I did the typical items replace hard drives, upgrade memory and we did a lot of refurbishing in this shop. I also worked with the commercial clients onsite. I quickly learned that break fix is no big money maker especially in a small market. Basically the owner told me there was no money in break fix computer repair and I would do better to find another career path, which was frustrating as this was my chosen path. I also realized that computers were the future of course and there had to be more to this story. Eventually I left the break fix shop after about 4 years there. During that time I presented the owner with multiple business plans. Many had a built recurring model and this was not accepted. I learned that I would have to do this on my own. So I left for another job. I took a business development role at a national water filtration company bottled water company. I sold and marketed a delivery service or...

Cyber Security is as important as locking the door at night or setting the alarm. If you do have a plan in place for cyber security you are destined for a breach in your company. And constantly I am frustrated by potential clients I am speaking with that do not regard this as a serious things. The attitude is often "It will not happen to me" and the reality it probably already has happened and you do not realize.  You would not imagine leaving the office without locking the door.  Would you leave money laying on the  lobby floor, checks from customers setting in the conference room? No, these are terrible ideas. All these open you up to risk. Another sentence I hear far to often is "I'll call you when I have a problem". And while that sounds like a good reason and maybe potential clients are saying this to get rid of the salesman me, it is an indication that they do not understand the risks out there. If you wait to call me it is likely to late the damage ...