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The Cybersmile Foundation was formed on June 17th, 2012, to help spread awareness of this problem and promote online inclusivity over toxic harassment and abuse. Unfortunately, their efforts are very much needed, as cyberbullying is still a pervasive problem. What is a Cyberbully? A cyberbully is pretty much what it sounds like: they are someone who torments others, causing them pain and angst, over a digital medium. Common media for a cyberbully to leverage include social media, online forums, and even texting and instant messaging. Since this form of harassment doesn?t require the bully and their target to be in the same place, there is a much greater timeframe of opportunity for this kind of bullying to take place. While many cyberbullies work alone, it isn?t uncommon for groups of people to engage in such activities cooperatively. Not only can this kind of bullying be very public, it can more insidiously be kept private, and many cyberbullies act anonymously to protect their own identities. Even worse, a total stranger may be the one to target someone as a victim of their attacks. What possibly makes cyberbullying so insidious, is the fact that the target may not even be aware that it is going on. If, for instance, nasty things are being said on a social media platform or profile that the target cannot access, the only way they will find out is if someone says something – which doesn?t always happen. Workplace Cyberbullying While it may be known best as something that kids and adolescents have to contend with, cyberbullying has been seen among all age groups. This has only become more true in an increasingly digital workplace, where tools like email, instant messaging, and social media are leveraged for their productivity benefits. Considering this increase, it comes as no surprise that the workplace is becoming prime hunting grounds for cyberbullies. A study that polled almost 3,000 people found that 96 percent – yes, 96 – had been on the receiving end of workplace bullying. Whether this cyberbullying takes the shape of gossip over instant messages between conspiring coworkers or a manager that sends abusive and unpleasant emails at intentionally inconvenient times, it creates a hostile work environment that erodes motivation and engagement and makes collaboration effectively impossible. What Can Be Done There are actions that both the recipient of cyberbullying and their employer can take to discourage this kind of unprofessional and hurtful behavior from occurring. First, if the recipient of this kind of abuse is aware of the situation, they need to keep a cooler head and speak up for themselves. Calmly, rationally, and politely, the recipient should inform the perpetrating coworker that the behavior is to stop. Taking the high road, as it is with most interpersonal confrontations, is the best option when harassment is involved. The receiving employee should also start collecting evidence. This will help them support their position if the time should come that they need to lodge a formal complaint. Keeping emails, social media posts, and other instances that they feel constitute abusive and hurtful behavior will give them what they need. Furthermore, they should also educate themselves on their rights as they pertain to their personal information. If some has been shared by the cyberbully, there could have been some laws broken. […]

First of all, if you work with a cloud provider, you?ll have to ask them specific questions about how compliance is handled. You should also make sure that any and all information you discuss with your cloud provider regarding compliance be put into a written agreement so that you can adequately document who is responsible for what. Here are some of the details that you will want to consider. The Cloud Can Be Interfered With Since data is being stored in an online environment, there will naturally be concerns regarding how it is being managed, maintained, stored, and transferred. Of course, this also means that any traffic going to and from the source of the data could be tampered with and cause problems. Data can be intercepted while it?s in transit, which is a considerable issue if you hope to remain compliant. Your goals should be to make sure that your data can?t be changed without your consent or knowledge. If you?d like to make sure that your organization is protected in the event of a cloud compliance mishap, start by thinking about the legal issues that could surface from not knowing who is hosting the data or how it?s maintained. It?s also critical that you understand who can see this data. The differences between the private and public cloud also make this a challenging prospect, as depending on the way it?s hosted, there could be further complications associated with it. For example, if someone else is hosting your data, are they the one responsible for its security? Ultimately, it all comes down to figuring out who is responsible for what–for compliance?s sake. What You Should Do The best way you can improve your organization?s cloud compliance is by taking the above ideas and applying them directly to how your business approached cloud-based data hosting. First, ask yourself just how much cloud computing your organization actually uses or needs. If certain data is particularly important, perhaps it?s better to simply host it in-house rather than rely on a third party to take care of it for you. The best way to achieve compliance is a proper blending of private and public cloud hosting, so knowing which data is most sensitive or important is of the utmost importance. Next, start thinking about who should be managing this data, as well as any agreements that you?ve made to ensure its safety. Is it an in-house department or an outsourced agency? Depending on whether it?s outsourced or not, you?ll need to make sure that you?re aware of whose responsibility it is to adhere to compliance guidelines. Furthermore, you should also plan for having data backups to protect assets in the event of the worst. To learn more about how you can ensure cloud compliance, reach out to us at (603) 889-0800.

To make sure that your business continuity plan is as effective as possible, you?ll want to be comprehensive. If you?re not, chances are that a disaster will still cause issues for you, whether it?s data loss or an inability to access important applications. A complete business continuity plan will consider the following information: Threat Matrix: What kind of threats will your business be targeted by? This shouldn?t be limited to just simple threats that can be prevented with little-to-no effort. You should consider all threats, from the smallest viruses to the most devastating vulnerabilities. Treat each and every one of these possible threats as major problems that need to be addressed in some way. Critical Processes: The next step is to identify what your workflows are and who is accomplishing them. What processes does your business absolutely need to keep going in a worst-case scenario? You should be able to both identify these and ensure that they can happen with minimal interruption. Command Chain: Who are your mission-critical personnel? Who is in charge in the event of a disaster? You should designate someone as the leader in these situations and make sure that everyone knows it. If you don?t do this, you run the risk of chaos taking over. Employee Safety and Evacuation: Employees are essential to the success of your business. If you don?t take their safety into consideration, you could be risking the future of your business. You should have an evacuation plan in place to keep them safe. Communication Plan and Contact Information: If you experience a disaster, everyone involved with your company will want to know. You should inform them of what?s happening and give them a timeframe for how long you suspect it to last. You should also have a plan in place to update them on major developments during this time. Backup Processes and Location: Do you have an off-site location where operations can continue uninterrupted? Is your data being backed up to an off-site location where it can be safe from external factors? In the event your office and internal data infrastructure is destroyed, you?ll want to have both of these to keep your organization going. Inventory and Infrastructure: Your business? infrastructure is full of moving parts. This includes hardware and software. You?ll need to make sure that any and all assets that your organization takes advantage of are accounted for. Having an inventory helps you assess a loss scenario when it comes time to order replacements or file insurance claims. End of Incident Criteria: You should have clearly defined terms that determine when your business is outside the realm of a disaster incident. You can start by creating a list of conditions that need to be fulfilled before declaring that your organization is no longer suffering from an incident. This keeps you from beginning the recovery process prematurely, potentially causing more damage in the long run. Post-Incident Debriefing: Once you?re in the clear, you should take some time to determine why the incident happened and how it could have been prevented. Consider ways that you can improve processes and reduce damage the next time something like this happens (and yes, there will always be a next time). You should put together a questionnaire for all of your contacts so that you can […]

If this sounds incredible, the general consensus agrees with you. During its unveiling at I/O, the demonstration of Google Duplex brought various reactions from the crowd as the Google Assistant called to schedule a hair appointment and to make a reservation at a restaurant. More than just that, too – the Assistant?s requested time for the haircut was unavailable, so it needed to independently agree upon a different time, and there was a language barrier affecting the conversation as it tried to make a reservation, but it still navigated the conversation successfully? arguably, more successfully than many people would. This, in and of itself, is enough to make Google Duplex a huge leap forward for its kind of technology, but that wasn?t all Google had to demonstrate. Not only could Google Duplex intelligently carry on conversations that didn?t always go as planned, it could navigate these conversations while using a natural, human voice, using filler words like ?um? and ?uh? naturally, casually confirming things with ?mhmm? rather than ?yes? or even ?okay.? Google Duplex could even deal with interruptions while reciting information like phone numbers, picking up where it left off and repeating itself, just as a human would over the phone. Clearly, this makes the Google Assistant much more useful to its users, but what about those that don?t use it, and only refer to the web version of Google? Well, Google Duplex takes the information it gathers from its calls and will update a business? page based on the information it gathers. So, if Google Duplex calls a business looking for its hours on Thursdays, the answer it receives will be used to update the results online. This even includes holidays. Some outlets have voiced concerns, however, that there is no indication given that the recipient of the phone call is speaking to an automated assistant. What do you think? Have you seen any of the videos demonstrating these capabilities? Let us know in the comments!

Overarching Technology No matter which kind of student we?re talking about, there are some technology solutions that are in place for just about any of them. For example, many schools at both a primary and secondary level have computer labs, and you would be hard-pressed to find any college campus today that doesn?t utilize them. In many cases, computers are practically required in order to earn an education of any kind. Mobile devices and tablets are also commonplace in schools as well, but they are more of an emerging technology. Gone are the days where teachers would take away phones during class, as they are an invaluable tool to augment education in the modern classroom. Web applications and other online learning tools are also available for use, but their application varies depending on the type of student. Educational Technology in Universities College students have a lot of opportunities to benefit from technology both in and out of the classroom. For example, many students might find that they would rather have the digital versions of their required textbooks rather than investing in more expensive print copies. Instead of taking notes in a notebook, some might find it easier to type in a Word document or in the cloud. Furthermore, many universities have taken the initiative by implementing fully online degree programs that can be earned remotely. This brings in many new possibilities for how one can earn an education. No longer are students restricted by geographic location. Thanks to educational learning software hosted in a cloud-based environment, students can take classes, purchase textbooks, and access educational resources that are all designed to augment and enhance the student experience. Notice a familiar trend? Technology doesn’t just help businesses. Your organization can leverage technology resources to improve efficiency, productivity, and build greater profitability. To learn more, reach out to us at (603) 889-0800.