FTC Safeguards Gets a Crucial Update

What is the FTC Safeguards Rule? The FTC Safeguards Rule is a regulation that compels financial institutions under the FTC’s jurisdiction to implement comprehensive measures to protect consumer data. The rule applies to a wide range of entities, including banks, mortgage lenders, credit unions, and other financial service providers. Its primary objective is to ensure that businesses establish and maintain a robust information security program to protect sensitive consumer information.

Smishing: A Variety of Phishing Attacks Utilizing SMS

The Dangers of SMS Phishing, or ?Smishing? Ultimately, any plot carried out by a scammer that is trying to either pose as someone else or urge the user to do something particularly dangerous could be considered a phishing attack. This kind of definition goes beyond simple email scams, where you get a message in your inbox urging you to click on links or download infected attachments. There are other forms of phishing, like smishing using SMS messages or even vishing, where voicemails are involved.

Securing Your Wireless Network

Alter the Security Information on Your Router As with any account that is protected by a password, you will want to ensure that your router?s login information is changed to something much more secure than the default configuration that comes with the device. This is because any default credentials for router models can be found online and can easily be accessed by anyone that can use a Google search. Changing this password regularly will ensure that you have control over who accesses the router settings.

The Pros and Con of Cloud Storage

Cloud Storage Benefits The first major benefit of utilizing cloud storage is certainly the ability for your business to add flexibility. One of the ways it provides this flexibility is by allowing anyone to access the data and files it needs from any location with an Internet connection. This not only provides ease of access, but also provides the business to lean on a distributed workforce to do so. Companies can redirect capital from real estate, utility costs, and other financial considerations that are present by having a centralized location, while giving their employees the same access to data and applications.  Another great advantage of using cloud storage is the ability for the business to scale their needs on demand. This way they don?t have to purchase storage facilities for their business? data only to use a fraction of it until they have to migrate away from that device because they need faster storage or there is a fear of failure. If they need more space, they can get it with a simple phone call, or in some cases from a provided dashboard that lets administrators manage the data on the cloud server. The last consideration we?d like to mention could be the best thing about cloud storage: a cloud storage platform is completely redundant and is maintained by the service provider, ensuring that all a company?s data is available and backed up proficiently. If there is any question about the technology used to store and protect data, cloud storage answers all of it with provider guarantees.  The Elephant in the Room Not necessarily a pro or con is the issue of cloud storage security. Data security for files stored in the cloud comes down to two issues: Is the platform secure enough for my organization to trust our data there? Is there a problem with the files in transit? The first issue is handled by the cloud provider. Since they are the one managing the infrastructure, and any security problems would hurt their business model, they have enough motivation to ensure that data is safe when stored on these platforms. The other, however, is left up to the user. How can you ensure that any data that is stored on the cloud gets to the cloud securely? Let?s take a look at four things you can do to ensure this happens: Ensure logins are protected – Probably the most important consideration for protecting cloud data is to ensure that they are protected by strong passwords and multi-factor authentication. Don?t store mission-critical data – Some data should absolutely remain in-house, whether it is for compliance purposes or simply because the data is too sensitive to send out over the Internet.  Use encryption –  There are services that allow you to encrypt your files before you send them to cloud storage, and this is something to look into if you are concerned with your data storage security.  Constantly monitor connected apps – Keep all connected applications monitored and updated to help avoid data security troubles.  The One Major Issue with Cloud Storage At this point, so many organizations from all over the world use cloud storage to their advantage, that there is only one real problem with it: You need an Internet connection to access anything stored on the cloud. That […]