The Ultimate Guide to Tech Support for Small Business

In an ideal world, the tools you use to run your business would work properly and exactly when you need them to. However, the reality of being a small business owner is somewhat like Murphy’s Law: If something can go wrong, it probably will. Therefore, it’s important as entrepreneurs to have small business IT support measures in place that are ready to jump into action when disaster strikes and you find yourself without a working computer and/or a malfunctioning software application.

Small businesses will start small and perform some common IT practices including setting cookies that manage the websites from all of your traffic sources (organic traffic, paid search, social media, etc.) and a company-wide privacy statement. A cookie is a text file that contains small pieces of data (i.e. a username, password, etc.) that is used to identify one’s computer as they use a computer network. 

There are several cookies one’s browser may take advantage of including performance and functional cookies. Performance cookies are used to gather data on how visitors use a website, which pages are visited often, and if visitors receive error messages on said pages. Functional cookies remember and store a user’s site preferences for sites like username, and language in a privacy preference center.

However, many businesses need IT support beyond cookies and company-issued privacy statements. Ultimately, the precise details of your IT support strategy will depend largely on your business needs. At the end of the day, though, you should be able to answer one question: when a crisis strikes, will you be able to respond quickly and effectively?

Types of Small Business Tech Support

There are two primary options to consider for your small business’s tech support: outsourced services and in-house experts. It’s not necessarily an either-or decision, but it’s important to understand the benefits and drawbacks of both options.

(i). Outsourced/ Managed IT services

• Benefits of outsourced/ managed IT services
• Drawbacks of outsourced/ managed IT services

(ii). In-house IT support

• Benefits of in-house IT support
• Drawbacks of in-house IT support

Outsourced/ Managed IT Services

If you have an especially lean team of people helping run your business, outsourcing your IT support needs to a party provider might be your best option. As opposed to hiring someone to support your IT needs full time, it may be better for your small business to become customers and work with an external partner on a contractual basis.

Benefits of Outsourced IT Services:

With an outsourced IT support contract, there are a few benefits you can expect. First, you’ll have direct access to a wide range of experts, ensuring peak performance and that you’ll be able to get a solution to any problem you encounter. Rather than digging through countless troubleshooting documents yourself, you can spend your time focusing on your business priorities.

Plus, most service provider contracts include minimum service-level agreements. This means when you reach out to your IT service representative with an issue, there is a set timeline in which you should expect to receive a response. In-house IT staff aren’t always able to drop all of their other priorities at the drop of a hat, but service providers have a stake in making sure all your needs are met in a timely manner.

Drawbacks of Outsourced IT Services:

On the other hand, outsourcing your IT needs can get expensive if you have a large number of employees. Some providers may offer a lower rate to provide more services to more people, but outsourced contracts can still come with a higher price tag than bringing someone on full time.

In the same vein, you may end up paying for more than you actually need. With in-house staff, you can ensure that your employees’ time is put to good use, but with contract work, you’ll be expected to pay the company you hire whether you ultimately use their services or not.

In-house IT support

Hiring in-house staff for IT needs might seem like a more pragmatic option for larger teams, but it’s hard to know when it’s worth the investment to add another person to your team. The first thing to consider is your staffing budget and how much service your small business will actually need.

Benefits of in-house IT support:

Regardless of whether you choose to hire someone or ask an existing employee to take on more responsibilities, keeping tech support in-house is usually more affordable than hiring an external vendor. It’s also easier to maintain continuity with this approach; for example, if someone has an ongoing issue with their computer, their co-worker will better understand the history of the problem and not need it repeated every time something malfunctions.

Drawbacks to in-house IT Support:

At the same time, relying on internal IT support staff sometimes means problems aren’t always resolved as quickly as they could be if you opted for outside assistance. All of your employees have a limited number of hours in the day, and sometimes more pressing concerns mean smaller issues fall to the bottom of the to-do list. With outsourced IT support, the vendor you choose can add more manpower to support your business during busy seasons.

Dorks Delivered spearheads IT support management and program development for a broad spectrum of clients in Brisbane and surrounding areas. We take pride in being a top provider of managed IT services in Brisbane and other parts of QLD. Through our automation and time-saving solutions, we aim to add more feathers to our cap for the years to come!

Data Security and Its Benefits for Small Businesses

Cyberthreats don't affect only large enterprises and governments – they can also affect small businesses. According to research, nearly half of small businesses have experienced a cyberattack, and 69% are concerned about future attacks. Small businesses should be aware of cyber security statistics and take tangible steps to protect their businesses against cyberattacks.

Employee records, customer information, loyalty schemes, transactions, and data collection are critical pieces of information that businesses need to protect. This is to prevent third parties from using the information for fraudulent purposes, such as phishing scams and identity theft.

It's crucial to safeguard your company from cyberattacks, but some business owners are unsure how to do it. This article is intended to help small business owners navigate the realm of cyber threats and fortify their data security. The benefits of data security for small businesses are also discussed.

Data Security:

Data security is the practice of keeping data safe from unauthorized access or corruption. Data protection entails safeguarding not only your company's data but also that of your customers and vendors. Data encryption, hashing, tokenization, and key management are data security strategies that safeguard data across all applications and platforms. Small firms, unfortunately, appear to be a much easier target for hackers, as their security systems are typically less advanced than those of a medium or large company. Despite this fact, most small business owners believe they are not vulnerable to a data breach.

Why Data Security?

To secure their essential assets, organizations all over the world are investing extensively in information technology (IT) cyber security capabilities. Every business has to protect its brand, intellectual capital, and customer information. It also needs to provide controls for essential infrastructure. However, incident detection and response have three fundamental elements: people, processes, and technology.

Cyber Security Problems and Their Effect on Small Businesses

Security Risks Faced by Small Businesses?

Small businesses may not have the operational know-how or employees to protect their IT systems and networks appropriately. Small firms confront a variety of cyber security challenges, including:

Attacks by phishers: Phishing refers to a type of social engineering attack that is frequently used to obtain personal data from users; such data includes login credentials and credit card details.

Malware attack: Malware attacks are common cyberattacks in which malware (usually malicious software) performs unauthorized actions on the victim's system.

Ransomware: Ransomware is a sort of cryptovirology malware that threatens to expose or permanently limit access to the victim's personal information unless a ransom is paid.

Internal threats: Internal threats are often the result of poor access controls or a lack of proper staff training. Hostile employees or ex-employees might perpetrate cyber attacks in the company, posing internal threats.

Weak passwords: Passwords that aren't strong enough can expose a company to unauthorized access and security risks.

Use a combination of at least eight different letters, numbers, and symbols in your password to make it strong. It is more difficult to guess a password that is longer and contains more character types (including upper and lowercase letters). For instance, M0l#eb7Qs? employs a unique mix of capital and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. It is also recommended to change passwords every 90 days or less.

Organizations should carefully review password security policies and password management since stolen or weak passwords are still the most common cause of data breaches.

What Effect Does an Attack Have?

A successful cyber attack on your business can be devastating. It can have a negative impact on your financial line, as well as your company's reputation and consumer trust. A security breach has three major consequences: financial, reputational, and legal.

Financial cost of a cyberattack

Cyber breaches frequently cause a significant financial loss due to:

• Unauthorized access to corporate data
• Theft of corporate data
• Financial information theft (e.g., bank details or payment card details)
• Theft of funds
• Trading disruption (e.g., inability to carry out transactions online)
• Loss of contract or business

In addition, businesses would typically pay fees for fixing systems, networks, and devices affected, as part of their response to the breach.

Damage to the Company’s Reputation

A good customer relationship must be based on trust. Cyberattacks can harm your company's reputation and reduce client trust in you. This might ultimately result in:

• Loss of clients
• Sales decline
• Decrease in profits

Reputational damage may also have a negative impact on your relationships with partners, investors, suppliers, and other interested parties.

Cyberattacks are becoming increasingly common among small businesses, but you don't have to be affected. You can avoid falling victim to preventable cyberattacks by implementing the necessary security measures, from employee training to suitable cybersecurity software. This will not only save you time and effort, but it will also save you money by preventing revenue losses, regulatory fines, and other costs.

Dorks Delivered is an award-winning provider of managed IT services in Brisbane. We focus on delivering technology solutions that make businesses better and more successful. Whether you are planning to make a minor update, start a major project, enhance your network security, or improve your helpdesk and customer service, we're here to help.

The Importance of Data Security for Your Company

Data security is a company’s protective measures put in place to keep any unauthorized access out of their databases, websites, and computers. Basically, this process offers a mechanism to protect data from corruption or loss.

Whether you’re running a small or a big company, data security is very important and must not be overlooked so as to avoid any security breaches. That is the reason why one of the recommendations you should take into consideration is to implement data security solutions as soon as possible if you want to protect your company from cyber-attacks.

There are many other reasons why data security is essential for any company out there and these include the following:

(i). Any Business May Suffer from Cyber-Attacks:
A lot of small companies may assume that they’re not big enough to be a hacker’s target – but hackers have been known to target any kind of company, both small and big. As a matter of fact, growing small companies suffer the most from cyber-attacks since they don’t have enough resources to resolve the problem afterwards.

On the other hand, a big company can handle the financial burden caused by cyber-attacks. However, it doesn’t mean that you should ignore the significance of data security since you’re in a great financial position. Besides, why would you want to waste your money and hurt your company’s image? So, make sure to consider data security solutions for your company to limit cyber-attacks.

(ii). Your Company’s Assets Include Your Data:
Anybody who’s running a company is also in ownership of information about the business itself. It includes information about the services or products offered by the company, financial plans and business plans, and information regarding the buyers of the services or goods.

Other company data are used for revenue optimization, risk mitigation, and overall improvement of your company. Since data can generate future benefits, it’s no doubt an essential asset that your business has. Any assets used to enhance your business must remain confidential and secure and this is why data security is important to protect your company’s assets.

(iii). Avoids Unnecessary Expenditures:
Businesses are responsible for data loss such as financial details, confidential customer files, and employee information. But some companies are ignorant about the dangers such vulnerabilities may impose upon their business and they fail to invest in data security and the necessary security protocols.

The cons of data aren’t only monetary, but they may also impact the company’s reliability and trust. It may also impact your company’s future and jeopardize your growth opportunities.

(iv). Hackers Can Automate the Process:
One of the reasons why you must pay importance to your company’s data security is because hackers have the ability to automate cyber-attacks. Sometimes referred to as bot attacks, such attacks can be initiated consistently without the hackers lifting a finger on their computers. These are also good in diverting the attention of your security team just to break into the system. This is why data security solutions matter, regardless of how big or small your company is.

Conclusion:

Adding extra layers of data security could go a long way in preventing unauthorized access to your company’s equipment and systems. Although some may think that only big companies are the primary targets of hackers, they actually go after small companies because they have easier systems and don’t have much protective measures compared to big companies. So, if you want to avoid data breaches, make sure to pay importance with your data security needs.

Dorks Delivered is an award-winning provider of managed IT services in Brisbane. We focus on delivering technology solutions that make businesses better and more successful. Whether you are planning to make a minor update, start a major project, enhance your network security, or improve your helpdesk and customer service, we're here to help.

Network Services: Why It Matters That You Get It Right

In today’s ever-changing digital world, having reliable network services is essential for any business. Whether your company has dozens of employees or is a sole proprietorship, the need for reliable connectivity is paramount. This is because you want to maximize your organization’s productivity and capability while also reducing costs. The key to success, then, lies in finding quality network services that can deliver results at an affordable price — with uptime guaranteed and customer service that meets your expectations.

In this article, we’ll look at the critical reasons to ensure correct configuration of network services. We’ll also examine why it’s a necessity to find the right network provider and discuss critical elements you should consider when selecting one.

Why It’s Important to Get Network Services Right?

Properly configured network services are crucial for a successful business, as they provide improved security, better performance and can prevent system failure. It’s important to optimally  configure the environment to maximize the benefits of any network services.

Business Continuity:

Network services are essential for maintaining business continuity. If your network services go down, your business operations may be severely impacted, leading to lost productivity operating costs, revenue, and even reputation damage.

Customer Satisfaction:

Customers expect businesses to be available 24/7, and network services are critical to meeting this expectation. If your network services are unreliable, it can lead to frustrated customers, lost sales, and even a tarnished reputation.

Cybersecurity:

Network services are a primary target for cybercriminals. A secure network is essential for protecting sensitive business data, customer information, and intellectual property.

Scalability:

As your business grows, your network systems and infrastructure need to be scalable in order to accommodate the increased demand for data network services. Getting network services right from the outset ensures that you have the necessary infrastructure to support growth and expansion.

Cost-effectiveness:

Investing in the right network services can save your business money in the long run. Proper network infrastructure reduces the likelihood of downtime, data loss, and cybersecurity breaches, all of which can be costly for your business.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, businesses must invest the time and funds necessary to achieve effective network services. Therefore, partner with professionals who have experience and expertise to configure and maintain enterprise systems. Many organizations have already discovered the benefits of outsourcing their network needs to a trusted managed service provider.

By working with a Managed IT Service Provider (MSP), not only are businesses spared from having to manage these critical networking services all on their own, it also supports them in staying up-to-date with the latest security technologies and strategies.