Michael Pertuit cybersecurity and electronics guides 2022? You might have come across expansive claims about how a VPN can help you save thousands of dollars. You can supposedly do so by finding cheaper subscription plans for software, streaming services, and other apps and programs. Even airfare, rental car rates, and hotel prices could be much cheaper when using a VPN. I’m not going to scoff at this claim as it does work in theory. Certain pieces of software, streaming service subscriptions, and airline booking rates, are priced differently across the world. You can use a VPN to see what the differences are and it’s certainly worth the purchase if you can save big. However, you either have to be very very lucky, or do a lot of trial and error to save thousands of dollars.

Michael Pertuit on internet security: Form an Incident Response Team. While you should always have one head person in charge of making sure the incident response plan is being followed, you will need a team to help that person follow through quickly. For example, a PR person to release any communications and a sales person to speak to customers. Depending on the size of your organization and the possible size of the attack, you want to ensure the right people are managing the response.

Michael Pertuit on ransomware attacks: Use Anti-Virus Protection & Firewall. Anti-virus (AV) protection software has been the most prevalent solution to fight malicious attacks. AV software blocks malware and other malicious viruses from entering your device and compromising your data. Use anti-virus software from trusted vendors and only run one AV tool on your device. Using a firewall is also important when defending your data against malicious attacks. A firewall helps screen out hackers, viruses, and other malicious activity that occurs over the Internet and determines what traffic is allowed to enter your device. Windows and Mac OS X comes with their respective firewalls, aptly named Windows Firewall and Mac Firewall. Your router should also have a firewall built in to prevent attacks on your network.

Michael Pertuit about data breach: Malicious criminals tend to follow a basic pattern: targeting an organization for a breach takes planning. They research their victims to learn where the vulnerabilities are, such as missing or failed updates and employee susceptibility to phishing campaigns. Hackers learn a target’s weak points, then develop a campaign to get insiders to mistakenly download malware. Sometimes they go after the network directly. Once inside, malicious criminals have the freedom to search for the data they want — and lots of time to do it, as the average breach takes more than five months to detect. In many cases, data breaches cannot just be patched up with some password changes. The effects of a data leak can be a lasting issue for your reputation, finances, and more.

To that end, make sure that anyone who uses the company network from home has a strong firewall system. You should also utilize virtual private network (VPN) software to protect data, encrypt Internet traffic and ensure security on all remote computers. It’ll also update software and check for viruses.You can require extra passwords for remote access. Warn employees to avoid connecting to public wireless networks and to never submit sensitive information or perform business transactions on public WiFi. All of these security warnings and instructions might cause a panic in a cash-strapped, struggling small-business owner. Good security is just as important to a 10-person business as it is to a huge corporation, but it’s a lot to take on. That’s where cloud-based services come in — they’re a godsend to anyone who doesn’t have the the funds, time or staff to install and monitor security systems. To get this level of security, you used to have to invest in email and file servers and hire at least one IT staffer or consultant. Find more info at https://www.youtube.com/user/mjpertuit.