Steven Rodin

You've probably heard computer security experts warn you not to use wireless connections at public places such as coffee shops, airports or hotels. But have you ever wondered why? There are a few important reasons for this. First - and most obvious - is something called "packet sniffing". You may not realize it, but every unsecured communication that you transmit over the internet is broadcast to every computer within your local network. For a coffee shop with free WiFi, this could be every computer within a one-mile radius. Packet Sniffing used to be the exclusive domain of hard-core hackers with advanced networking expertise. But today, we're seeing free, easy-to-use packet sniffing programs with intuitive graphical interfaces. Now every teenager can be a hacker without actually having to understand exactly what it is they're doing. But most of your highly-sensit... (more)

Moving Smoothly Through the Post-Disaster Panic

When asked how they protect their corporate data, most business owners will tell you that they back up on - at minimum - a daily schedule. But is this really enough? Well... it all depends on WHY you're backing up the data in the first place. The "why" of data protection is one of those obscure, poorly understood concepts that suddenly become very important during an emergency. That's why you need to frequently test your backups and your recovery plans using various disaster scenarios. If your servers were to crash right now, what effect would this have on your stakeholders, cu... (more)

Yes, Outlook and online backup CAN live together in peace

Normal 0 false false false EN-CA X-NONE X-NONE One of the greatest features of online backup is its ability to protect data continuously. In the past, you would've had to back up your PC data after business hours on a daily basis. This created a "backup window" where you had to wait for the system to copy all of the data over to the backup device. This backup window could be anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, depending on what needed to be copied. And in the case of scheduled daily online backups... not only were these backup windows longer, but they would also slow dow... (more)

Search Engine Promotion Advice for VARs and Channel Partners

Search engine optimization is an absolute must for any business. It’s a low cost way of generating sales and in building credibility. Quite simply, SEO has been the single most effective new small business marketing tool to come out within the last 15 years. However, SEO does pose certain challenges for VARs and IT consultants. Search engine optimization is normally used to attract a worldwide audience. But most IT services companies operate locally. A business in this space that wants to market themselves through the search engines has to streamline their process in such a way th... (more)

Backing Up SharePoint Effectively

SharePoint Archiving Journal As your data becomes more integrated into the way your company does business, properly maintaining that data is now more important than ever. The recent exponential growth in business data collection/production has caused a major logistical headache for companies that need to maintain this data and ensure that the right information can be located quickly & easily when needed. Although Microsoft SharePoint helps simplify document management, corporate communications, and project collaboration, much of the sophistication that makes SharePoint so incred... (more)