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It doesn?t matter which phone you have. This week?s tip will help you learn how to block everything from telemarketers to stalkers. Even though telemarketing is completely legal, the last thing you want to do is put up with it time and again. The most effective way to deal with it is to just block them. Follow these steps to block a number and never be bothered by the pesky number again. Android UsersFor users of Android Nougat and Marshmallow, follow these steps: Go to the Phone application Select All Calls Choose Call from Undesired Contact Select Block/Report Spam You will be asked if you want to report the call as spam. If you?d like to report it, select this box. For users of Android Lollipop (on Samsung Galaxy S4, S5, S6, and Note 4 users): Open the Phone app and tap the Call Log Select the phone number that you want to block Tap More Add the number to the Auto reject list iPhone UsersIf you want to block a number on your iPhone, follow these steps: Select Recents, which is found at the bottom of the screen Find the number of the caller that you want to block Tap the i icon in the right-hand side of the screen You?ll now see the caller?s information, along with how to create a new contact. Look at the very bottom of the screen and you?ll see the option to Block This Caller Select this and a message will ask if you really want to do this. Tap Block Contact and you?ll seal the deal. In the event that you?re receiving unwanted text messages from a stranger rather than phone calls, iOS demands that you add the number to your Contacts list before actually blocking them. To create a new contact directly from your Messages app, select the phone number at the top of the screen and select Create New Contact. Once you?ve done this, follow the directions outlined above. However, if you have yet to upgrade to iOS 10, you?ll have to look for the i icon in the top-right corner of the text conversation. Once you?ve selected it, tap Block This Caller and proceed to Block Contact. Was our guide on how to block phone numbers helpful? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to our blog for more technology tips and tricks.

This vulnerability was uncovered and reported by researchers Tavis Ormandy and Natalie Silvanovich, of the Google Project Zero team. Taking to Twitter, the duo reported that they had made a discovery, reporting it to Microsoft and the Microsoft Security Response Center. The MSRC confirmed the presence of the vulnerability, discovering that numerous pieces of software within the Microsoft Malware Protection Engine would allow a “specially crafted file” to begin running any code the attacker pleased on the system. This vulnerability was present on essentially every Windows machine, having been found on Windows 7, 8.1, and 10, and even affecting Windows RT. While Microsoft pushed out this particular update, this story still serves as a reminder to keep all of your solutions up-to-date. There is a digital arms race that is waged between programmers and hackers, where each side tries to gain the upper hand over the other by improving their programs. This is one of the main reasons why your solutions have regular updates released, and why it is so important to implement these updates in a timely manner. Without these updates, your system is left vulnerable to threats that have been made preventable. White Mountain IT Services can help you to be sure that your company’s systems are updated. We’ll keep an eye out for any updates as well as warning signs of impending threats. For more information, give us a call at (603) 889-0800.

Cloud computing offers businesses an economical way to obtain the software and services they need. Yet, there comes a point when having too much of a good thing becomes wasteful, no matter how affordable the service may be. If a business owner isn?t careful about how they utilize the cloud, then they can unknowingly find themselves experiencing ?cloud waste.? Simply put, cloud waste occurs when more cloud resources are consumed than what your business actually needs. Business 2 Community provides a helpful list of various ways that cloud waste can manifest itself: Instances or VMs which are left running, chewing up $/CPU-Hr costs and network charges Orphaned volumes (volumes not attached to any servers), which are not being used and are incurring monthly $/GB charges Old snapshots of those or other volumes Old, out-of-date machine images Any kind of waste is tragic due to it being preventable and cloud waste is no different. The tragedy of cloud waste is that it hurts bottom lines. For businesses, the waste erodes their return on assets, return on equity, and net revenue. Additionally, cloud waste hurts the bottom lines of cloud providers, seeing as they are more profitable when they can oversubscribe their data centers. Consequently, when cloud providers can?t oversubscribe, they?re forced to build more data centers than they need to–a very expensive endeavor. On the surface, this fact may seem inconsequential to consumers. However, like any profit-minded business, a cloud provider will charge enough for their services to cover their expenses and still be profitable, which means users will inevitably be charged extra to cover the expense of a cloud provider?s waste. Preventing cloud waste can be achieved with proper oversight and planning whenever your company?s cloud services are implemented. In order to spot cloud waste in your company?s cloud solutions, this may mean taking a fresh look at your cloud setup. More likely than not, this will require an outside perspective, like consulting with IT professionals. White Mountain IT Services can do this for you and determine if there?s any waste or not, as well as suggest changes that will remedy the waste and improve operational efficiency. Call us at (603) 889-0800 to learn more.

One thing to keep in mind before we even get started is to be sure to take preventative measures before you?re in a situation you regret. By this, we mean that you don?t wait until your desktop is rendered obsolete before replacing it. Therefore, you need to look for warning signs that your computer is failing? before it inevitably fails to work properly. Warning SignsHere are five possible warning signs that hint your technology might not last much longer. Keep in mind that some of these could mean multiple issues–for example, a slowdown might not mean that your computer is about to break down. General PC slowdown Freezing or even operating system crashes Corrupted files or data loss Random shutdowns Startup errors Know When it?s Time to Replace Your TechnologyOf course, nothing lasts forever, so it?s natural that you?ll need to plan for the end of a PC?s life cycle. When your PC has reached its limit, you need to make sure that your old unit is properly replaced and disposed of. If you don?t have a clear policy surrounding the disposal of your old computer equipment, then you may find yourself in a jam if there?s a data breach and you?re investigated by authorities to prove that the source wasn?t your fault from improperly disposing of old computers that contained sensitive data. Gartner explains, ?Best-practice PC disposal processes provide an audit trail documenting the serial-numbered inventory of disposed PCs, certification that proprietary and personal data has been removed and made unrecoverable, and transfer/reuse of software licenses, where applicable.? If your business would like help disposing of your old technology the right way, contact White Mountain IT Services. We can help you with the process by eliminating data found on your old PC?s hard drives so that it doesn?t fall into the wrong hands. Furthermore, we can help you recycle your old devices in a way which causes minimal impact to the environment. Our organization?s trained IT professionals will be able to help your business handle the transition to new technology as painlessly as possible. To learn more about what White Mountain IT Services can do for you, reach out to us at (603) 889-0800.