The Benefits of Authentication for Business Security
While the hassles of the authentication process can be overwhelming for those looking to access specific accounts or data, the benefits of authentication for business security, employee security, and consumer security are strong.
Your employees likely have several passwords to remember as part of their digital lives. At some point their password creativity runs dry, or they don’t see the need to create multiple passwords for different accounts. They may overlook the need for online security, inadvertently laying the groundwork for cybercriminals.
Account authentication is another layer of added security against this outcome. It’s a way to protect company data from cybercriminals who may otherwise be able to access multiple accounts with one password. It’s also a safeguard against weak or recycled passwords.
There are other benefits to authentication as well, listed below.
5 Benefits of Authentication
Enhanced Data Security – Two-factor authentication drastically reduces the occurrence of data theft by involving a second device that the hacker would not have access to in the login process. The majority of security breaches are due to weak or recycled passwords, and authentication can lower this number.
Reduce Help Desk Tickets – Authentication can help streamline the workflow for the IT department. In many organizations, password resets involve the IT department. Either security personnel has to complete the task themselves, or employees involve them when they become confused by the process. Two-factor authentication can help reduce the need for this, and put data security safely back in the employees’ hands.
Added Security for Remote Work – Many businesses are relying heavily on remote work during the pandemic. This makes it harder to involve the IT department in the data security process.
Authentication can help ensure that employees are able to safely access much-needed data, reducing the threat of hackers gaining access to sensitive materials.
Prevent Identity Theft – Authentication works well to protect customer information as well. If cybercriminals are able to hack into customer accounts, it can be devastating to your company’s reputation. Authentication can help you guard against that. While Amazon’s two-factor authentication may seem tedious to some, it beats someone logging into your Amazon account to make unauthorized purchases.
Quick Process – While employees or customers may be slightly inconvenienced, the process does not take long. For two-factor authentication, it’s typically as simple as entering a code that is sent to a mobile device. This 30-second action can have a drastic impact on the safety of your data.
Protect Your Most Sensitive Data
As businesses are increasingly dependent on the data they collect, cybercriminal activity has been sharply on the rise over recent years. The benefits of authentication help to guard organizations and customers’ most sensitive data.
As companies gravitate more heavily to remote work, this trend will only accelerate. As far as data security measures are concerned, it’s pretty straight forward to implement.
If you find yourself in need of recovering sensitive data, contact We Recover Data today!
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Common Industries at Risk for Data Breaches
The industries at risk for data breaches are varied. A hacker’s motives will likely determine why an industry, or a specific company is targeted. Understanding their motive and the information that they are after can help your company protect itself from these types of cybersecurity threats.
Some of the reasons that a hacker may attack include:
- Financial gain
- Prestige
- Ideology
- Recreation
- To gain knowledge of current activities through spying
The most frequently targeted industries each offer something for hackers in this respect. Below are some of the hackers’ most common targets.
Top Industries at Risk for Data Breaches
The Financial Industry
The financial industry is routinely a top target for hackers who are looking for financial gain. Banks, insurance companies, and wealth management companies are all at risk. A hacker may use web application attacks to force their way into the system. In a large company, millions of clients may be using the web app at any given time, making these attacks cumbersome, and difficult to track down.
In March of 2019, 2.4 million records from the Dow Jones were exposed. The incident highlighted the need for major organizations to look into vendor risk management. Some hackers may try a different approach. It could be as simple as installing skimmers or card traps on an ATM.
Academic Institutions
Higher education institutions often funnel money into building renovations and attracting potential new students. They’re focused on large academic projects and research development. Their singular focus in other directions can leave them susceptible to various cyberattacks. Ransomware poses a threat for colleges and universities. They need to develop strong IT departments capable of handling these types of threats in real-time.
K-12 schools are also at risk because hackers understand that there won’t be as strong of a cybersecurity presence there. They can serve as a training ground for hackers to learn how to access important records. K-12 schools often have outdated, less secure equipment. Malicious actors are able to break in and access student or teacher personal information, modify grades, or simply disrupt the system in any way they want.
Healthcare
Stolen medical records give hackers access to personal data that often leads to financial gain. They also lead to the ability to secure prescription drugs or gain unauthorized access to medical programs. These benefits can lead to strong incentives for cyberattacks.
Because the data storage programs used by healthcare companies can often be complex, unintentional leaks also occur frequently, which can also be damaging.
Retail
Retail is one of the top industries at risk for data breaches because it was unaccustomed to the need for cybersecurity. Many retailers have been slow to the need to adequately protect the sensitive customer information that they collect, such as credit card or even social security numbers.
As many as half of all US retailers have experienced a data breach within the last year, an alarming statistic that speaks to the frequency they are targeted.
Because of the sensitive nature of the personal information that is stolen, the attacks on big box retailers have become high profile and tend to draw attention to this issue. These cyberattacks can have a devastating effect on a retailer’s brand when they are mishandled.
Conclusion
There are many industries at risk for data breaches, for various reasons. With the ability to store vast amounts of data, come those who look to access it for malicious purposes. A more robust data protection effort can help to protect sensitive data and company infrastructures. If your organization has fallen victim to a cyberattack, it can be devastating to your organization and your reputation.
If you’ve lost access to sensitive data, you can contact us to help you regain access.
Data Security and Remote Learning
As more and more schools transition to a home-based approach, data security and remote learning will become increasingly intertwined. While a good move to keep people safe from the virus, this transition requires an increased effort in cybersecurity.
School districts across the nation are faced with similar data threats as the businesses that were forced into utilizing a remote workforce. Teachers and students alike will need to be educated on how to use remote learning technology safely. This could mean crash courses in everything from video conferencing software such as Zoom, to remote learning hardware devices, such as Chromebooks or other laptops.\
There’s also the safety of the main remote learning platform to consider, and any other software programs that might be utilized.
Data Security and Remote Learning: The Process is Moving Faster
For many school districts, remote learning may have been a long-term initiative, rather than an immediate objective. One-to-one programs, where a piece of technology would stay with the student, may have been rushed to accommodate the current reality.
But because of the nature of the pandemic, and remote learning becoming the only way for students to continue their education, the process was expedited. This rush is what makes data security and remote learning such important considerations.
In the midst of the recent stay-at-home flurry, many tech companies began to offer free or discounted subscriptions to their software. This opened the door for teachers to access it without the traditional district vetting processes that would typically involve the IT department. These programs may not follow the school’s typical student data security standards.
There are federal laws such as the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act that districts need to adhere to, even as we rapidly shift to remote learning during this pandemic. When teachers make software and technology decisions independently of the district, there’s no check to ensure that these privacy and data security standards are being met.
While some states have clearing houses that will vet educational software for districts throughout the state, in others, each individual district is responsible for their own vetting. The process can typically take months to complete, depending on the size of the district and the resources they can allocate to the process.
On-Camera Security Concerns
While Zoom’s educational products meet federal regulations for children’s privacy laws, they’re other products do not. So a standard Zoom subscription may not be the quick answer for video access and remote learning.
Parents should also consider covering their child’s laptop camera as an added security precaution. There is a 2019 complaint against Zoom filed by the Electronic Privacy Information Center for activating users’ cameras, even when they’re not on the platform. It’s also a potentially dangerous target for hackers.
Conclusion
Data security and remote learning are extremely important. In the past, school districts have rightly acted in a slow and deliberate manner when it comes to technology, investigating their hardware and software options to ensure they meet state and federal laws.
The pandemic understandably created a sense of urgency when it comes to the implementation of remote learning. Even in these unprecedented times, the district is responsible for both students’ and teachers’ data security.
This means finding a way to vet software before it is implemented. It means arming users with common sense security measures, such as covering their cameras and overseeing the methods that teachers use for video conferencing. It’s important to make sure that safety is considered in all aspects.
If you’ve lost any sensitive data, contact us today!
Cybersecurity and Disinformation
Cybersecurity and disinformation are heavily intertwined in the U.S. and around the globe. With a pandemic, social unrest, and important elections happening all over, accurate information for the public is more critical than ever. In many places, human safety is at stake, and we need to be able to trust the information that we receive.
What happens when there are very few safeguards on that information? Anyone can publish a website, social media posts, or videos regardless of the accuracy of their message. People who are receiving misinformation or disinformation may not be aware that it’s even occurring.
According to Dictionary.com, misinformation is false information spread regardless of the intent to mislead. We’ve all told a story and forgotten the details. (Think about how the size of the fish increases every time you tell the story.) The childhood game of telephone is a prime example of how quickly misinformation can spread from one telling of a story to the next.
Disinformation on the other hand, is knowingly spreading false information. This could be spread through false or deliberately misleading news or political statements. Propaganda can have its roots in disinformation from time to time.
So, Where Does the Role of Cybersecurity Come In?
Cybersecurity and disinformation will remain heavily intertwined as the technologies that cybercriminals use continue to advance. As mentioned before, we are in turbulent times with the raging pandemic, social unrest, and contentious elections. Hackers may play on our sensitivities to these issues, providing disinformation, in hopes to get us to provide sensitive data in phishing scams.
They may go as far as registering fake domains and opening social media accounts, in an effort to make the entire scam appear legitimate from beginning to end.
But the stakes can go steeper than any one person as a victim. Entire countries can put out disinformation campaigns in an effort to sway another country’s election. Fake charities are set up as a way to scam innocent people into providing money.
These and other methods often have very real-world ramifications.
Cybersecurity and Disinformation – Taking Action
Disinformation can be a threat to society as a whole. It’s important for cybersecurity officials to make a plan and take action against harmful disinformation. IT departments, technology professionals, and government officials must work together to protect the integrity of organizations and institutions while protecting citizens.
Social media companies have taken action with disclaimers about the accuracy of a post, or removing it from their platforms altogether. IT officials can work to have fake sites, or spoof sites taken down. They may spoof large companies or agencies in an attempt to fool people.
It’s important to realize that cybercriminals won’t operate with the same ideals or ethics instilled in most of us. The disinformation that they weaponize in order to exploit people online can and should be stopped. IT and cybersecurity professionals are in a unique position to put a check on this type of crime.
The Pandemic’s Role Speeding Up Cybersecurity
Speeding up cybersecurity efforts has been an initiative of many IT departments and technology professionals since the pandemic began.
Work from home initiatives were always going to be something that IT departments and security experts needed to figure out. But the pandemic led huge numbers of the workforce out the door of the building, and to their private home office. Many businesses are seeing benefits, but they are also forced to deal with the risk.
Businesses are tasked with the tall order of improving productivity from remote locations, while mitigating dangerous threats at the same time. According to a survey of 800 businesses conducted by Microsoft, providing secure remote access to resources, apps, and data was the number one challenge reported by security professionals. This necessitates speeding up cybersecurity efforts.
Cyberattacks During the Pandemic
Cybercriminals understand that when more employees work from home, they become a more attractive target. Below are some common cyberattacks that businesses need to be prepared for:
Phishing – Employees should be careful when it comes to opening emails from outside the organization, especially those that may be asking for money or some form of sensitive personal information.
Ransomware – A Covid-related subject line may appear on malicious ransomware emails. It’s important for organizations to prepare their employees for this reality, and to be ready by backing up essential data.
DDoS – More users trying to access services remotely at the same time, can open up more vulnerabilities for the system to be attacked. It’s important to be prepared.
Speeding up Cybersecurity Means Securing Employee Home Networks and Personal Devices
While no one was exactly ready for the pandemic and its resulting impacts on businesses in 2020, there are some measures that can be taken to improve security on employee’s home networks and personal devices. Speeding up cybersecurity measures will help to prevent any worst-case-scenarios that may emerge down the road.
Using a Virtual Private Network can add a layer of security. It may also help to make sure that employees have access to their device instruction manual so they can follow recommended manufacturer security measures.
The instruction manual may provide additional insight such as:
- Setting up two-factor authentication
- Enabling automatic updates for operating software, routers and modems
- Configuring security and firewall setup
- Establishing lock screens
Adjusting to the Times
As the pandemic rages on, companies will need to get used to operating under less than ideal circumstances. Adjustments will need to be made to maximize productivity, and the necessary security adjustments will surely follow. This of course means an organized effort in speeding up cybersecurity.
The types of integrated security measures listed above will need to be followed by all companies, small, medium and large. The work from home movement is no longer something that can be forestalled. The best thing that companies can do is to hire experienced cybersecurity and IT personnel that can help to institute solid planning measures that maximize that productivity while protecting corporate data at the same time.
Educating employees on how to make their work-from-home experience a safe one is a big part of these measures. Employees must understand the looming threats, and how to decrease the risk of falling victim to a cyberattack.
What are the Newest Cybersecurity Threats in 2020?
There’s no secret that cybersecurity threats in 2020 have been on the rise for businesses and organizations. Advancements in technology and the creativity of the individuals perpetrating these crimes have both been on the rise. At the same time, organizations have become more reliant on customer data, which can at times be sensitive.
All of this adds up to a perfect storm. Below are some of the most common cybersecurity threats in 2020. It’s important to do more to protect your data and to understand that professional data recovery may be your best option to get it back in the event of a loss.
Common Cybersecurity Threats in 2020
Cloud Vulnerability
Cloud storage provides a significant asset to businesses looking for alternative ways to store their data. But storing sensitive data related to employees or business operations with a third-party host can present a risk. Below are some of the cloud vulnerability threats that IT departments and organizations can prepare for:
- Data breaches
- Misconfiguration
- Account hijacking
- DDoS
Major cloud providers are working to improve their security, but they are not immune from attack. But IT departments need to be ready to secure their own data.
Artificial Intelligence
As AI is utilized for many new business applications, hackers and those looking to do malicious harm are finding ways to incorporate it, too. This new tool can be used to make malicious software more sophisticated and threatening. It can be used to detect system vulnerabilities and break-in.
Phishing
Phishing relies on misleading the victim into giving up compromising information. This could be login credentials, credit card information, or a social security number. Cyber criminals are developing new methods and strategies, often preying on victims who often simply want to do the right thing.
Deepfakes
This is the term given to a fake audio or video file, often used for malicious reasons. With the emergence of AI, it’s become easier to create computer-generated videos of prominent figures, while recreating the message. This can be used for political figures, CEOs, celebrities, or more. They have become high quality and believable.
Preparing for Cybersecurity Threats
Organizations must be ready for incoming threats from cybercriminals. The internet has always had an element of people looking to do harm, that’s not new. But the sophistication level is ever on the rise.
IT departments can educate employees to the common threats and help them to recognize when their hardware or their actions may pose a threat. Strong, regularly changed passwords improve security. Two-factor authentication also helps to prevent attacks. It’s also important to keep software up to date to prevent threats.
Backing up data in multiple places can help you maintain access and prevent common business disruptions. Encryption can also help to protect it should it fall into the wrong hands.
You can invite employees or people that you trust to hack your own system so that you may understand where any potential vulnerabilities may exist. And make sure to fix them. When you are proactive regarding data, you can protect your organization from these common cybersecurity threats in 2020.
The Role of AI And Cybersecurity
AI and cybersecurity go hand in hand. As companies continue to expand, they require more hardware and software. Combine that with emerging work from home and bring your own device type policies, and traditional methods of cybersecurity may no longer accomplish the job.
Growing companies have an ever-growing number of vulnerable attack points. Analyzing and protecting these points is no longer a job that can be accomplished on a human scale. This is where artificial intelligence can help. AI can do anything from pinpoint attempts to hack into your server, to identifying behavior that may leave data increasingly exposed.
What It Means to Have AI In the Fight
You may have advanced technology software that protects your company’s data, but that doesn’t necessarily make it AI. The main difference is this: AI becomes more intelligent with more data. It becomes more efficient, or smarter at the job.
Alternatively, many cybersecurity programs may simply employ data analytics. With data analytics, you are collecting data points to make the next logical conclusion, but there is no cognitive ability on the part of the program.
AI Improves Cybersecurity by Employing New Knowledge
AI and cybersecurity both improve when the technology can employ its new knowledge to protect company data. This is done through machine learning, neural networks, or deep learning.
It becomes an ideal tool for solving cybersecurity issues when tasks like threat detection become automated. A medium-sized company may have hundreds of devices and only a handful of skilled cybersecurity professionals on staff. There may be more data stored than any one person can analyze or protect.
When the scale of data and information passed around is beyond what any one person can protect, AI becomes a dependable option for asset protection. Once AI is properly trained, it becomes an extension of your cybersecurity team.
What AI and Cybersecurity Can Accomplish
Below are just a few of the tasks that a properly trained AI can handle in order to help with cybersecurity:
- Asset inventory – This includes getting a scope on the number of company devices and data volume surrounding a company.
- Threat risk – AI can establish patterns in hacker behavior and company exposure to determine the level of risk that your company is currently under.
- Improved Response – Without AI, it may take days, weeks, or months to even realize that data has been breached. AI can help with an immediate response.
The bottom line is that attacks are becoming more advanced as well. The best tools available to protect your data are also being used to coordinate the attack in the first place. The ability for AI to detect and help protect companies against evolving threats provides a distinct advantage in cybersecurity.
AI and cybersecurity will continue to grow together. An AI and human partnership in protecting company data will be a powerful combination that allows companies to concentrate on their core strengths for years to come. It’s the best way to detect threats, coordinate responses, and protect valuable company data in a world that contains ever-evolving threats.
Data Collection and AI
Data collection and AI are increasingly important tools for a variety of human tasks. Our use of artificial intelligence is only limited by our imagination, and we’re able to do more with it seemingly every day. Programs are being built that can beat the smartest humans at our favorite games, such as chess and go. Soon it will be driving our cars, cooking our meals, diagnosing our medical conditions, working in law enforcement, and more.
These AIs work on mass data collection, at a scale beyond what most humans comprehend. The definition of data collection is simply gathering and evaluating information from countless sources. But when AI is involved, the scale of the operation accelerates. That AI needs to be able to account for nearly any variable that might be thrown in its direction. When we’re talking about a task as monumental as driving a car, that’s a significant number of variables.
That data collection allows AI to find recurring patterns. From those patterns it can use machine learning algorithms to form its own predictive models in order to establish trends. This is how AI can be used to reduce the number of traffic accidents, or more accurately diagnose our medical conditions. It’s why there is potential to use AI in the law enforcement world to help get criminals off the streets.
But there are massive amounts of data that need to be collected in order to safely incorporate AI to complete these functions.
How Much Data is Needed for AI?
The reality is that there is no perfect answer to that question, and it is heavily reliant on the function that you are looking for the AI to complete. Many will build their early models with as little data as possible to keep it working, for simplicity’s sake. There are complex mathematical formulas designed to let data scientists and engineers know when it is time to stop and when you need to collect more data to make it work.
More data is not always the answer. Sometimes there’s no more data to be had, and the options are to either generate new data points based on what you currently have (data augmentation), or to create new data points using complex sampling techniques (data synthesis).
Data collection is almost always the best option for AI, especially if there’s more data to consider. It will give the model more accurate data points to rely on.
Data Collection and AI: Protecting What’s Collected
Data collection and AI are forever intertwined, and that comes with a new set of cybersecurity risks. Companies using data to build complex AI systems will need to be ever-vigilant at protecting that data from hackers and general data loss. This is especially true in cases where the data collected may include sensitive information.
Practical steps such as using a secure network, backing up data, and making sure your data is password protected will all work to safeguard against data loss and potential cybersecurity issues.
And in the event of a data loss, companies may be tempted to try free software and other popular means to attempt recovery. But that route can often result in more damage. An experienced data recovery company may be their best chance at regaining access to that critical information.
AI and Data Collection for Law Enforcement
AI and data collection for law enforcement go hand in hand. It’s easy to see how the vast collection of data on individuals across the nation can be used to help prevent crime and enhance society’s greater good. Criminals use the same tools as non-criminals: smartphones, laptops, social media platforms. They leave a trail that can easily be mined for law enforcement purposes.
But there is a fine line with this sort of data collection as well. Our law enforcement AI would only be as unbiased as the data it collects. It’s imperative to make sure that the data collected is accurate and fully unbiased.
Establishing Criminal Intent
What people post on social media amounts to circumstantial evidence. It may or may not be an expression of criminal intent. It may or may not point toward resolve to commit a crime. Not all data points will be available, and therefore you’re likely not receiving a complete picture of what happens.
To understand the shortcomings of AI and data collection for law enforcement, it helps to look at another field. Researchers are developing AI to write advertising copy. The copy that is so far being produced currently falls short of the capabilities of a human copywriter that understands how to play on human emotion. The same thing holds true in law enforcement.
Criminal investigations and law enforcement involve more than a simple collection of data points. Eyewitness accounts, 911 recordings, and police body cam footage factor into criminal investigations. The human element is critical here for AI to develop an accurate track record for predictive policing.
While AI and data collection will become increasingly important tools for law enforcement, a human connection will always be vital in this field.
Data Breaches From Police Departments
Law enforcement is not immune from data breaches. As predictive policing and investigation AI are more heavily implemented, police departments will find themselves housing data in larger volumes. This makes them a bigger target for data breaches.
In June of 2020, hundreds of thousands of potentially sensitive files from police departments across the US were leaked online. The leak included 10 years of data from over 200 departments, fusion centers, and other law enforcement training and support resources.
The Los Angeles Police Department was also recently hacked, exposing the confidential personal information of up to 20,000 individuals. Names, dates of birth, email addresses, and passwords were all made public.
Data Collection for Law Enforcement
As police departments collect massive volumes of data to use in their investigations, they will need to safeguard that data and protect the people involved. Data collection for law enforcement will become more prominent in the near future. AI and machine learning will depend on this data in order to enhance the investigatory process. But safeguards need to be taken in order to ensure safety – especially when people may not have willingly given their personal data over. Police departments can back this data up, and work to encrypt it. They can make sure that it is password protected, and only accessed from secure networks.
Any of these steps may work to improve the security of data.
What’s the Difference Between Data Security and Data Privacy?
Data security and data privacy are similar concepts with overlaps, but they are not the same thing. There are several distinctions that are critical for businesses bound by GDPR or California Consumer Privacy laws to understand. The difference between data security and data privacy is in the details of what they mean for an organization.
First, it helps to have a working knowledge of what’s entailed in both operations.
The Difference Between Data Security and Data Privacy
Data security focuses on the protection of a business’s technology and tools, in order to deter cyberattacks. It’s a means to protect sensitive information such as social security numbers, credit card information, or bank accounts.
This is a necessary measure in order to protect your customers and your organization from those who would intend to do harm.
Data privacy involves complying with local and federal laws within and outside your industry that help protect sensitive data. It’s a process to make sure that you are following all necessary measures to protect your customers’ most sensitive data.
More states and countries may make consumer privacy laws in the near future. HIPAA would be an example of industry privacy regulation in health care.
Understanding the Difference Between Security and Privacy is Crucial
Some common data security measures include:
- Multi-factor authentication
- Multi-device management
- Identity management
Without these and other measures in place, the data that you collect could be at risk of a breach. Make no mistake, the data that you collect is likely your business’ most valuable asset. If it is put at risk, your business’s livelihood is also in jeopardy.
Without certain data security in place, you could also be in violation of a variety of data privacy regulations. This could put you in legal jeopardy, and it could become a cause for concern amongst your customer base.
The Role of GDPR and the CCPA in Protecting Customer Data
Businesses that fall under the jurisdiction of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation and the California Consumer Privacy Act are obligated to safeguard the data that their businesses collect. Both laws create a set of consumer rights as it comes to the data that businesses are able to collect about them.
More US states are expected to follow suit regarding the creation of data privacy regulations. It’s certainly in a business’s best interest to protect customer data both from a regulatory standpoint, as well as keeping your customers satisfied.
Data Security and Data Privacy Have a Role in Your Company
The difference between data security and data privacy is in what they mean for your company.
While they are not the same thing, they are certainly interrelated and play a critical role within your organization. Taking proper steps with both can help ensure that you are protecting your most valuable asset. Security and privacy measures are also both important in protecting your customers from catastrophic data breaches after they entrusted you with sensitive personal data.
Security revolves around safeguarding the tools and technology involved in your business. It’s making sure the devices that you use, as well your company website and databases are safe and secure. Privacy is about making sure that you are following the appropriate industry, federal, or local regulations. If your business is not required to meet any of these regulations, it’s still a good idea to do whatever you can to safeguard your customers’ sensitive data.
Are Cyberattacks on the Rise Because of Coronavirus?
Most people are rightly focused on staying healthy at the moment. They’re doing the things that are necessary to keep safe and prevent themselves from getting sick.
But they may need to shift their focus to a different type of virus protection. The answer to the question “Are cyberattacks on the rise because of coronavirus?” is cause for some added precautions.
Companies are expanding their work from home policies in order to keep employees safe and healthy. That increase in remote work can lead to an increase in cyberattacks, as the hardware becomes more vulnerable. It’s not easy for organizations to provide in-person IT support for remote employees or equipment.
Employees can take steps to be more vigilant about security concerns as remote work may be popular for the foreseeable future.
Are Cyberattacks on the Rise Because of Coronavirus? Yes. But Here’s What You Can Do About It.
Use Caution with Email
Cyber criminals will use any means possible to get you to click on their emails and provide compromising personal information. Two-factor authentication can help ferret out the questionable emails.
Internal email scams can be easier to spot, if you check with the sender before responding. When the person that a hacker is imitating says that they did not send the email, you know that it’s a scam. You’ll certainly want to double-check with the sender before you enter a credit card number or send money.
Make it Harder for Hackers
When hardware devices, including your router, are up to date with virus protection, it makes it harder for criminals to access your accounts. Those pesky updates need to be completed when the notifications arise, in order to protect hardware and software from hackers.
You’ll also want to avoid using Bluetooth in public places. Hackers will be able to see exactly what you are doing.
The Importance of Secure WiFi
When you work on a company-owned device, it’s important to only use WiFi that is secured, and has a password. This is of course, a good rule to follow with personal devices, too. These WiFi connections are safer because it’s harder for criminals to gain access. You can also verify with the owner of the network that you are accessing it correctly.
Avoid accessing any confidential or sensitive information from a public WiFi account, whenever possible. A hacker may be able to access anything that you see on the internet.
Remember that Confidential Information Is Still Confidential
You may be working from a remote location. In some cases, you may be on a personal device, instead of a company-issued device. It’s easy to slip into comfortable working habits. But it is important to remember that confidential company information is still confidential.
Personal email accounts should not be used for company business. Employees need to keep track of what they are printing at home. Some of it may need to be shredded after use. If that’s not an option, it may be better not to print it to begin with.
Report Lost or Stolen Devices
A missing device could put sensitive company information at risk. It’s important that employees report any lost or stolen devices immediately so that the company has time to take any necessary precautions.
The Reality of Remote Work
It’s likely the uptick in remote work will be around for the foreseeable future. But it’s important to remember that the answer to the question “Are cyberattacks on the rise because of coronavirus?” is a resounding yes. Therefore, precautions need to be taken.
With the added convenience and productivity of remote work, comes some enhanced risk. And hackers know that more people are using remote (and therefore less secure) devices. It’s important that employees and employers alike remain vigilant about the security risks with some of the precautions above.
The Different Types of IT Security
There are several types of IT security that focus on various aspects of the same goal – to protect an organization’s data. That data can be in a digital or physical form. For example, IT security would encompass all online activity, but also a room full of physical files.
The categories of IT may vary by organization or expert. Below are a few of the key types we can concentrate on.
3 Types of IT Security
Network Security
Network security is simply the interaction between different devices over a network. The role of network security specialists focuses on hardware and software security, as it relates to the network as a whole. The objective is to protect the network from unauthorized access or misuse. When it’s better protected it can provide a more secure work environment conducive to organizational goals.
One method for maintaining proper network security may include monitoring all device logins. This may clue security specialists into irregularities, to flag malicious abuse. When proper protocols for a breach are in place, the threat can be minimized.
Endpoint Security
Endpoint security focuses directly on network devices. It’s critical that only the designated devices are able to access sensitive information or company data. Endpoint security allows companies to understand when an unauthenticated device accesses this key information. Laptops, cell phones, and tablets can all be evaluated. And each new connection increases the risk of the company’s information.
Some ways to accomplish this include:
- Control of privileged users
- Application controls
- Data controls
- Intrusion detection
- Encryption
The software updates for endpoint security measures can be pushed out through the server to each individual device in order to ensure security measures are uniform.
Internet Security
This form of IT security tends to deal largely with the transmission of information. For example, any measures taken to make email communication safer would fall under the branch of internet security. Encryption is one example of a measure that could be taken to make sure that the information gleaned by attackers would remain protected.
Websites with an https at the beginning are usually encrypted in a way that protects the information. Firewalls, tokens, and password managers are additional steps that can be taken.
Bringing IT Together
When you understand the different types of IT security, you can keep company data safer. Your plan may depend on the personnel and resources that are available to you and your organization.
The bottom line is whether you are self-employed, or working as part of a large organization, there are measures that you can take to protect your network, devices, and the information that you send. It’s time to evaluate your processes and determine what steps can be taken to better secure your data.
Technology and Covid-19: Improving Our Ability to Fight Back in the Pandemic
The Covid-19 pandemic is still raging through many American cities, and technology can play a huge role in controlling the spread of the virus. Patients, caregivers, hospitals, and health care providers are relying on both established and emerging technology in various forms. Technology and Covid-19 will be intertwined.
Many of the technologies used to fight Covid-19 will require the collection of data in an effort to provide essential coverage and prevent spread. Privacy and cybersecurity measures can help to protect that data from any additional adverse effects.
Technology and Covid-19: Here’s What is Helping
Telemedicine
The technology needed for effective telemedicine (a computer or phone with video capabilities) has been around for a long time, but with Covid-19, there is a strong motive for implementation.
Telemedicine has already become a viable alternative for patients to avoid making trips to the doctor’s office and receive necessary healthcare from the comfort of their home. It is an option that is readily available to patients and doctors alike.
In a socially distanced world, telemedicine helps avoid putting people at unnecessary risk as they seek all types of healthcare. It’s also a huge benefit under a stay at home order. This allows doctors and other healthcare providers to focus on more urgent cases. More insurance companies should be willing to cover this type of appointment from here out.
3D Printing
The global Covid-19 pandemic is taxing the supply of many healthcare products. Masks and other forms of personal protective equipment (PPE), ventilators, and other equipment have been found in short supply. Instead of ordering and waiting for these products to ship, this has been an opportunity for 3D printers and other members of the maker community to step forward and fill the void.
Even these 3D-printed additions to a common door handle can help prevent the spread of the virus through eliminating common-touch surfaces.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence can be useful in a number of different applications during a pandemic. Doctors and other healthcare providers can use it in early detection of the Covid-19. It can help researchers develop new drugs and treatments for the virus. It can even help hospitals in resource management during a pandemic.
AI can be a useful tool in assistance to human healthcare professionals. It does operate on machine learning however, which requires an abundance of data. This data will need to be safeguarded to protect sensitive information.
Virtual Reality
Virtual reality has already proven to be a useful technology for surgical applications. The da Vinci surgical systems have already shown that. But virtual reality can be used for other applications, too. It’s being used to place medical students in a wide variety of patient situations to help them better develop empathy.
It can even be used as a therapy tool for helping to relieve PTSD in front-line workers.
Conclusion
Technology is an essential tool in fighting Covid-19. There are a lot of ways that technology can help us fight a global pandemic. But with growing applications, steps will need to be taken to ensure the safety of sensitive data and information. An expert data recovery company can help.
Contact Tracing and Privacy – What You Need to Know
How to provide proper contact tracing and privacy measures during a pandemic is a growing concern for the millions of Americans impacted by this disease. While the U.S is experiencing another spike in Covid-19 cases, contract tracing is revving up as another method to manage the disease. Privacy and cybersecurity issues are appearing in the headlines on a regular basis, as we work to track the path of the virus.
The tracing methods being used in the partnership between Apple and Google depends extensively on Bluetooth low energy technology to inform individuals when they’ve been exposed to the virus. The potential success of this application rests on mass participation, and the tech companies involved have the ability to secure that. But privacy questions emerge based on the methods these companies use to secure that type of cooperation.
The American Civil Liberty Union (ACLU), a growing group of concerned scientists, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation have all expressed their concerns over the privacy and cybersecurity issues involved in that effort.
The ACLU’s concerns rest with the potential for overreach, discrimination, and ensuring that participation remains voluntary. These become hurdles that could potentially impact the success of the long-term project.
What Contact Tracing Apps Accomplish
Contact tracing applications can play an integral role in stopping the spread of the Covid-19 virus by alerting people early on to a potential threat. They offer the use of commonplace technology as a means to provide knowledge of a threat early enough to slow the eventual spread. But the ability for that to work, and for the technology to dependably spot potential exposure, relies on people to forgo some level of privacy.
The Bluetooth technology being used would allow for a higher level of individual privacy than an app that is based on individual geo-location tracking. It still works and provides useful information because contact tracing depends on collecting a vast amount of data on the general population.
How that data is stored, and what that data can be used for in the future also needs to be addressed. Congress is considering legislation to ensure that collection stops in the aftermath of the pandemic, and that the data is sunset at this time. But it’s tough to say whether that can be enforced, and whether that will actually happen.
Contact Tracing and Privacy – An Increased Potential for Data Theft
Any time you have mass collection and centralized storage of personal data by the government, you run an increased risk of data breaches occurring. The apps also open individuals up to the threat of phishing scams, ransomware, and other cyberattacks.
The issues and potential threats involved will need to be addressed in order for this technology to live up to its full potential.
Conclusion
The technology exists for phone apps to have a tremendous positive impact in the fight against Covid-19. They can alert people early on to the threat of the virus, and potentially limit or stop the spread of the disease in individual cases. But in order for this to occur, the intertwined link between contact tracing and privacy will need to be addressed.
Questions need to be answered about what will be done with the data after the pandemic, who will have access, and how it will be guarded. If that data can be safely managed, this technology can be an extremely useful asset as we address the pandemic.
Data Recovery for Government
Data recovery for government may be different than it appears.
When you think of certain government agencies, you may picture vast amounts of technology that make them immune to problems such as data loss or cyberattacks. You may picture movies and television shows that depict amazing futuristic technologies, capable of amazing feats, and remaining impenetrable to people looking to do harm.
The movies and television that portray government this way don’t really offer a realistic depiction of reality. The truth is that hackers are advanced, and equipment fails, leaving those with some highly essential tasks still vulnerable to some of the same computer and data loss issues.
Maybe we tend to romanticize this type of government work out of a sense of importance to what some of these agencies do. For instance, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are tasked with keeping American citizens safe.
Many other agencies perform critical functions and are responsible for vast amounts of sensitive constituent data. We often don’t want to picture what happens if anything were to happen to that data. But that reality doesn’t make them less immune.
Local, state, and even federal government agencies are susceptible to data loss and cyberattacks just like the rest of us. Actually, government data breaches can often have higher stakes than the corporate world, because the threats are often larger.
Below are a few examples of some large-scale government data breaches from recent years. Proper practices in data recovery for government may help.
Foreign Hackers Steal the Personal Information of 4 Million
Hackers who were believed to be from China stole the personal information of 4 million American residents in 2015. It was unknown if the information was only federal employees, or if it included government contractors. The data was in the hands of the Office of Personnel Management, and the FBI is investigating.
A Flaw in the US Postal Service Site Exposed the Information of 60 Million Users
For a brief period in 2018, anyone could log onto the US Postal Service website and have access to the information of 60 million users. This included email addresses, usernames, User IDs, account numbers, street addresses, phone numbers, and other sensitive data. There was enough information for someone to pose as the owner of the home and have the mail rerouted.
U.S Voter Database Exposed
A database of 191 million US voters was exposed in the largest government data breach to date, back in 2015. The database was incorrectly configured and left exposed on the open internet. There was personal information left exposed that belongs to users across all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Government Entities Need to Take Precaution
The public sector remains at a significant amount of risk for data breaches and data security. Significant amounts of damage can be done when private citizens’ sensitive personal information is left exposed. It’s important that government IT and cybersecurity officials take appropriate measures to safeguard this data wherever possible. Proper data recovery for government can help.
In the event of lost or unrecoverable data, it helps to contact an expert data recovery specialist.
Work from Home During the Pandemic, and The Risk of Data Leakage
More employees are being asked to work from home during the pandemic, in order for productivity to continue. This new arrangement is predicted to be more widespread, even as we recover from the current health crisis. For many employees, it may be their first time working from home.
They may be asked to work with critical business data on personal devices, or they may be tasked with using business devices on less secure WiFi networks. It’s important for your employees to take the necessary steps to protect company data as they work from home during the pandemic, whether they’re working on your devices or their own.
Unfortunately, not even a deadly biological virus is slowing cyberattacks. Below are some steps that your employees can take to more securely manage data as they work from their own homes.
Tips to Work From Home During the Pandemic
Use Antivirus Software – Updated software and antivirus platforms can help to prevent phishing and cyberattacks. While many platforms update automatically, some require that you manually check for updates. Some may also deactivate their antivirus software in order to maintain faster processing speeds.
But as new malware, viruses, and phishing schemes are developed daily, this is a risk that’s not worth taking. The best thing that you can do is to make sure that your virus protection software is activated and updated, and that it is working to protect your sensitive data.
Keep Backing Up Data – Data backups are the most surefire way to protect your business against data loss. While there may be a minor inconvenience on time, if data goes missing for any reason, you’ll rest easy when you can regain access. This may be as simple as a USB drive, or a cloud backup. An external hard drive could also be beneficial. Google Drive, Dropbox, and Microsoft OneDrive are all viable options for off-site cloud backup.
When you can successfully back this data up, it can minimize downtime following data loss.
Uninterrupted Power – You can buy devices that provide emergency power in the event of an outage, protecting your data from a loss if the power shorts out. These devices are often used in large office settings, but they’re also available in smaller form for personal use. Even if you only gain a few minutes of continued use, it’s long enough to save your work.
Treat Your Technology Well – The lockdown has put a high demand on certain consumer goods, and laptops are no exception. That’s not surprising considering the spike in working from home. With this in mind, it’s important to treat your technology as well as you possibly can. It may be time to change simple bad habits such as eating or drinking in front of the computer.
You may also want to clean the computer from time or get a cooling pad to prevent your machine from overheating. When you do everything possible to make sure that your devices are taken care of, you reduce the risk of data loss.
For those new to the setup, it can be challenging to work from home during the pandemic. But if you follow some of these simple suggestions, you should be able to keep data safe.
Cybersecurity Lessons that Can Be Learned from Covid-19
We’re in the midst of watching how every nation on the globe responds to a significant health crisis in real time, and there are some cybersecurity lessons we can take from this experience. First, let’s take a quick look at what’s happening in the world right now. In certain high-population areas, hospitals have been overrun and the health crisis is playing out in a very real way. The stay-at-home orders were able to limit the spread of the virus in other locations.
As we watch the Covid-19 response play out in real time, there are some natural parallels that can be drawn with cybersecurity and keeping sensitive business information safe during a crisis. These threats have enough in common that they often share a common name: viruses. So, it stands to reason that there could be some cybersecurity lessons from all of this.
Cybersecurity Lessons to Be Found in the Covid-19 Response
Lesson 1: Understand the Correlation Between Convenience and Security
So much of American life is set up in commune with others. We love our sporting events, concerts, festivals, and other large gatherings. We love public transportation, restaurants, and retail. So many of these things are set up for easy access and convenience. They’re part of our comfortable way of life. When there is a health and safety threat, we find ourselves in the position of sacrificing convenience for added security.
It’s the same with running your business.
There is a heavy emphasis on streamlining the workflow. Efficient processes can help speed up necessary tasks and ultimately make your company more profitable. This can pit convenience and security against each other. Minor inconveniences like two-factor authentication or automatic updates can also go a long way in keeping information secure.
Lesson 2: The Importance of Testing
Testing is the method that communities, states, and nations use to understand the depth of the Covid-19 issue within their community. Without this in-depth testing, there would be no way to understand just how deeply rooted the problem is within their borders.
The same rings true with cybersecurity. If you lack the methods to discover what’s been compromised, you’ll never be able to take the proper steps to fix the problem. The adage rings true in both areas: if you don’t understand the problem, you cannot fix it.
Lesson 3: Protect Assets
Certain segments of the population (the elderly and those with another medical diagnosis) fall into the most vulnerable categories with Covid-19. Nations are coming to terms with what it means to protect these elements of the population. Protecting these segments is another of the big cybersecurity lessons from Covid-19.
Certain data sets are more vulnerable to cyberattacks as well. Sensitive customer information, your most important financial information, and other key data points must be protected. The more valuable certain data is to the health of your business, the more valuable it will be to those looking to do you harm.
Lesson 4: Stop or Control the Spread
When you know how a virus (biological or computer) is spread, you know how to control its spread as well. For example, stay-at-home measures, the use of masks, and washing your hands is reducing the spread of Covid-19.
Added security and data backups can minimize the impact of cyberattacks as well. When your cybersecurity is set up to protect your most crucial data, it becomes harder to compromise. These cybersecurity lessons from Covid-19 can help you to understand and better protect valuable data.
5 Easy Steps Small Businesses Can Take to Improve Cybersecurity During Lockdown
Major data breaches are finding their way into the news all the time. Major retailers, credit, and finance companies have had major difficulty safeguarding customer data. Some companies may have limited resources to protect themselves from cyberattacks, but during the lockdown, you may find yourself with more time.
Below are 5 easy steps businesses can take to improve cybersecurity during the lockdown.
Change Passwords for Everything – From email platforms to accounting software, to system logins, you’d be surprised how many different platforms, and therefore passwords, businesses and their employees are entering in a given day. Go through every online platform or piece of software that you may have an account with, and change the passwords. This is a step that can be repeated either every three months or six months for optimal security.
Perform Regular Software Updates – Every time a computer, security system, mobile application, or a piece of software offers an update, it should be completed. Any connection online is vulnerable to being hacked, and one of the highest vulnerabilities is in out of date software.
The very purpose of many of these updates is to reduce vulnerability. Therefore the safest thing you can do is to complete them as soon as they are available.
Use a Password Manager – A password manager can help select unique and secure passwords for every site you use and keep track of them for you. It has the added benefit of simplifying this part of the security process for your employees. Many of these programs allow you to securely share passwords with employees as needed.
Delete Unused Accounts – How many times have you or an employee signed up for an account on a platform that you no longer use? These accounts become another way for hackers to gain access to sensitive information. If you’re not actively using a social media or software account, the best thing you can do is to delete it, so that hackers won’t have another way in.
Use Two-Factor Authentication – It may seem like an unnecessary burden at the time, but the sites that ask you to enter the passcode that’s been texted to your phone are the most secure. This added step enhances the security of the site and protects the user’s personal information. It’s relatively easy to activate, it’s only a minor inconvenience, and it’s highly effective at keeping information protected.
Consider VPNs – Open networks with generic and limited security measures become easy to hack for someone with the right experience. A virtual private network (VPN) offers added security, especially if employees might be connecting through public WiFi services.
These Are Steps That Can Be Implemented to Improve Cybersecurity During the Lockdown
Not every small business has the budget to spend tens of thousands on security, and that’s understandable. But taking some simple and affordable steps to safeguard information can decrease the chances of a successful cyberattack. Here are a few additional steps that will take minimal effort on your part:
- Empower your front-line employees to be able to identify and notify you of cybersecurity threats so that proper actions can be taken.
- Update your system to require password changes either every three months, six months, or annually.
- Set your operating systems to perform automatic updates. This will prevent busy employees from putting these updates off for long periods of time.
When you take these added security steps, you can better protect the information that’s vitally important to you, your customers, and the success of your business. This will help you to improve cybersecurity during the lockdown.
The Most Common Causes of Data Loss
We rely on our data extensively. The files, applications, and contact lists that we build can be critical to day-to-day business operation. We often take this data for granted as we use it to build successful companies. The truth is that data can often be lost or stolen. Many companies aren’t doing what it takes to maintain access to this crucial data in the event of a crisis.
Data loss can occur for a variety of reasons. It can be something as serious as hacking or something as trivial as a spill over a keyboard. The outcome is often devastating to the company or individual.
How Companies Lose Data
Accidental Deletion
Old files can clutter desktops and drives. Deleting what we no longer use is an often-used method for staying organized and uncluttered. The problem arrives when you accidentally delete a file that’s necessary to your organization. When you don’t back up the data, this can be a dangerous and damaging scenario.
Computer Crashes or Power Loss
If you are writing a new document or working with existing data, it’s crucial to save the document as you continue to work. If you are working in complex databases or creating new documents your work can be completely lost in the event that your computer crashes. This can cause lost work that can never be recovered.
A power loss can cause a short that renders data unrecoverable. It can lead to mechanical damage within the machine. The easiest way to protect yourself is through automatic and regular backups of your work.
Viruses, Malware, or Hacking
There are many different types of viruses and malware, and there are many people out there with malicious intent. This can impact operational software, stored data, and leave you exposed to a world of problems. Hackers can also cause damage to your digital assets, resulting in data loss.
Large corporations are responsible for extensive troves of valuable and sensitive data – making them frequent targets for malicious intent. Regular cloud backups or removable drive backups can be critical in recovering from data loss. It’s also important to install antivirus software to protect yourself.
Mechanical Damage
Hard drives break down over time. They are composed of many moving parts, and those parts are often delicate. Once you have problems with a hard drive, all of the data stored on that particular drive can be put at risk. A data recovery company may be your best bet at this point to recover any critical data.
Sometimes computers break due to their age, and the typical wear and tear of any product. Sometimes there are manufacturing defects. A computer’s memory can often be affected when a computer is accidentally dropped.
Regular backups protect against hardware defects.
Recover Data by All Means Necessary
As you may have noticed, backing up your data is a critical step in preventing data loss. Once important data is lost, contacting a data recovery company is your best bet in recovering that data. There are free versions of recovery software, but those programs may actually decrease the chances that you recover what was lost. If you’re looking to recover lost data, call us today at (866) 400-DATA.
Data Recovery for Smart Phones
We’re all carrying around computers in our pocket. The information that can be stored by our smartphones, tablets, and other devices is quite remarkable. Think of the music, pictures, and documents that you can quickly access. But with that technological convenience comes another reality to consider.
Smartphones are prone to crash. Their data can corrupt. We also tend to be rough on them through everyday usage. We drop them on the ground, in water, or crack their screens, and break them in new and innovative ways. It’s easy to lose the data that we’ve taken for granted in our pocket.
A lot of people rely heavily on their smart phones, and a broken device may mean inaccessible business data. Photos, apps, and contacts can be inaccessible, creating a whole host of new problems. No one wants to start over with their data. With a little bit of understanding on the device and the issue, they may not have to.
The Location of Data May Vary
Where your smartphone stores data may vary by make and model. Apple’s iPhones store their data with internal memory. The various models use different sizes of NAND flash memory. You can also set your phone up to store information to iCloud or iTunes, Apple’s cloud-based solutions.
Android’s have a similar setup. They have internal memory, often NAND flash. Some devices also contain an SD card. If you’ve lost data it may be stored on this card. The SIM card itself may also have a copy of the data, but this may depend on the amount of memory previously available on the card. Most new Android phones also offer cloud options for data backup as well. Whether you’re operating with an Apple or Android phone, it’s recommended that you use the cloud option to back up critical data to avoid this loss.
How Smartphone Data is Lost
Physical damage caused by the user can result in a mechanical failure. This includes things like drops, water damage, or anything else that can disrupt the mechanical operation of the phone. With hard enough contact, the flash memory chip on the internal circuit board can break, and be rendered useless. Regular wear and tear of an aging phone can also be a cause for mechanical failure. Either way, it can result in missing file structures or links, or if there are faulty memory applications.
The good news is that many times with mechanical failures, the files are simply not able to be displayed. They are often, however still on the memory, and ultimately recoverable.
Recovering Lost Data on a Smartphone
Data recovery software for smartphones can be a risky endeavor. It doesn’t have a high success rate, and it can lead to larger problems, as noted in our recent post, The Hard Truth About Data Recovery Software. If you are looking for your best chance to recover lost data, you may want to hire a data recovery specialist.
Data recovery companies such as We Recover Data can use their extensive tools and resources to help you recover your lost data before it is too late. If you’re looking to recover smart phone data, call us today at (866) 400-DATA.
The Hard Truth About Data Recovery Software
When data is lost, it’s normal to want to take whatever measures are at your disposal to get it back. The problem is that using free data recovery software can complicate your problems and make it harder to accomplish your objectives.
It’s normal for people to want to handle major projects themselves. With the assistance of YouTube, Google, and other online knowledge repositories, the DIY mentality can thrive. It is often possible for people and organizations to save money this way. But with a project as critical as data recovery, you can also make things significantly worse.
There is Little Protection with Software
Downloading a free or cheap piece of software may give you peace of mind. It may help you to feel like you’ve done what you could about a situation. The reality is that you’re still exposed to a host of problems starting with that missing data.
The simple act of downloading software onto your system increases the chances of overwriting, corrupting, or destroying any missing data that you were looking to recover. In fact, some of these software packages include a message in their fine print that suggests you should only use it if there is another copy of the data available to you. In most cases, you’re likely using the software because there is no other version of it available.
Downloading Software Could Be the Very Thing That Leaves the Data Unrecoverable
Your missing data may be exactly where you left it. Data is typically only erased from the drive’s table of contents, meaning it’s actually right where you left it, but there is no visible path for access. At the point that it’s missing, it’s often not yet overwritten.
When you install software, or add additional data to your hard drive, that is when existing data could be overwritten.
You Can Worsen the Condition of a Failing Drive
Adding and running utilities on a failing drive can make it fail faster. The more a drive spins and tries to read bad sectors, the worse the condition will be. Software won’t be able to read data off a drive that has physical failures – that is a mechanical issue. Drives need to be imaged before a recovery is attempted. That way recovery efforts don’t damage existing data.
Software Can’t Diagnose Your Problem
If something is truly wrong with your drive, software won’t be able to tell you. A corrupt drive, or any type of physical failure will be undetectable. A cheap utility software can’t read what is actually going on.
If You’re Panicked About Losing Data, It’s Worth Making an Important Investment
The truth is that no data recovery company would work directly on the original media. If they can’t make a copy and work from that copy, the likelihood of recovery would likely shrink. They understand that running software degrades the drive while reducing your ability to recover.
If you value your data, there is a better, more likely way to recover it. You can contact a data recovery company such as We Recover Data to recover files from your drive. Call us today at (866) 400-DATA.
5 Tips to Avoid Catastrophic Data Loss
There’s a feeling of devastation in the moments after you realize you’ve suffered a significant data loss. When you lose valuable information that your business depends on, it can cripple your ability to function. In extreme cases, it can force a company out of business.
Thankfully, there are steps that can be taken to reduce the likelihood of data loss crippling your organization. With some simple steps, you can avoid data loss altogether, or at the minimum, reduce its impact.
Always Back Up Your Data
Backing up your data on a consistent, regular basis is key to avoiding a catastrophic data loss. This is the act of keeping a copy of your original data on a separate disk media. USB drives, removable hard drives, and cloud storage all offer companies a means to back their data up. If the data is critical to your organization, off-site backups may be the way to go.
Backing up data is an act that may require some discipline. You might have to stop working for long enough to make these backups. But it is an act you won’t regret in a worst-case-scenario.
Complete Your Software Updates
The purpose of software updates is often to protect your system from specific vulnerabilities. Many of these perspective vulnerabilities can be damaging to your data. This is why it’s important to keep up with updates as you are notified. You can also run system checks to determine what software has available updates.
Anti-Virus Software is Critical
It’s important to be proactive in protecting your computer from malicious viruses, malware, trojans, and other problems. When viruses operate in the background they can change or delete much-needed data, causing any number of significant problems. A strong anti-virus program with firewalls can help prevent the spread of viruses through the internet. They offer added levels of security and decrease your vulnerability.
Run Disk Defragmentation Programs
As more programs are used, it can cause an internal mess on the back end of your computer’s hard drive. Disk defragmentation cleans up temporary and unused files. It creates a clean working environment that is less stressful to your machine. This ensures data is organized in a more contiguous manner, that is easier to access in the event of a recovery. It’s recommended to run this every few months.
Practice Good Usage Habits
Protect your network from unknown users. It’s the best way to prevent someone with malicious intent from getting in. When you receive emails with attachments from unknown users, it’s best to ignore them. Make sure that your firewalls are set to higher standards.
Past that, it’s important to continuously save your documents as you make changes to them. This prevents data loss if an application unexpectedly quits.
Prevent a Worst-Case Scenario
As technologies progress, so do the many ways that companies can lose their data. The truth is that many of the crises’ that data recovery companies respond to are preventable. Implementing some of the above tips can help you to safeguard data.
The Growing Need for Data Recovery
Ever since businesses and organizations made the transition to storing important data on computers, that data has had the potential to be lost. Important information is vulnerable to being deleted, stolen, or corrupted. Technology has historically acted in unpredictable and nerve-racking ways.
What has changed is the means that we have to deal with these issues. At the beginning of the computer age, any institution that lost data in this way was likely on its own. They either were forced to move on without the data (no matter how critical), or consult someone with the expertise who might have already been on staff. But that has changed with the advancement of the technology companies use.
Complex Data Systems Lead to Complex Data Problems
The information technology industry has changed the way that organizations operate, and put an increasing significance on the data they cultivate. As data storage technologies advance, it has become increasingly difficult for companies to have a person on staff who knows how to recover data in the event of a crisis. Data recovery specialists began to pop up, as a way to help these organizations recover that lost, stolen, or damaged data.
The first data recovery specialists fielded panicked phone calls from companies in all types of data emergencies. These specialists used proprietary software and tools to help their clients recover their much-needed data.
A Constantly Evolving Industry
Entire companies have sprouted up that focus on providing data recovery services based around constantly emerging technologies. This industry is still a tight-knit industry. There are only a small handful of companies that have the technologies available to meet the demands of the world’s largest companies.
Data recovery companies develop tools and enhanced capabilities based on the potential crises’ that companies can face. Despite this effort, it’s not even always possible to anticipate every type of problem that can occur with every type of equipment before these events actually unfold.
Full capabilities in the data recovery industry require a dedication to both software and hardware recovery methods. It requires an intimate understanding of the latest data storage innovations. These products make it easier for companies to store and access their data, but they often add a layer of complexity to the data recovery process.
A Business Built on Trust
Even though the businesses and organizations that require data recovery help are caught in a desperate jam, they must trust the company that they enlist to help them recover their most important data. They’ll want to know that they are dealing with an organization that has likely seen and solved a similar problem before. They’ll want someone capable of providing exemplary customer service and being sympathetic to the situation at hand.
The data recovery industry requires companies to be on the forefront of innovation, while being able to build client-centered relationships. This is a tough combination for businesses in any industry to accomplish. But at We Recover Data, we believe that the future belongs to the companies who can master both facets of this industry.
If you have any questions, or would like to discuss your next project, contact us today!
Modern Technology and Data Recovery
Technology over the last decade has brought several forms of data storage. With new methods for data storage available to the public, the data recovery industry is expanding and met with new challenges.
Data is playing an increasingly significant role within organizations. Because of this, data loss is an overwhelming and potentially devastating experience. It’s easy to enter a state of panic over the loss of something that takes on such a central role.
Below are some of the new data storage technologies available to the public, and the complexities they present in the recovery process.
Recovering an Encrypted Machine
Encryption can work directly on hardware devices. It can be a way to secure your data more effectively and protect your safety and security. The algorithms used to secure this data are also increasingly advanced. The challenge is that data recovery requires decryption, which becomes increasingly complex as this technology advances.
Solid State Drive Recovery
The mechanical hard disk drives that we’ve grown accustomed to, contain several moving parts. This isn’t the case with solid state disk drives. Solid state drives work on innovative electronics and advanced algorithms. While there are many advantages to running a system like this, data recovery can become increasingly challenging and time consuming. Data recovery specialists will need to research the algorithms the drive uses in order to restore the lost data.
Cloud Storage Recovery
Many users love their cloud storage device. It opened up a new world of convenience. However, the data is actually controlled by the service vendor in these cases. Many cloud storage vendors don’t want to share their technology specifications, making recovery more difficult.
RAID Data Recovery
New technology such as redundant array of independent disks (RAID) allows users to use more hard drives in the data storage process. This can be a convenient way for businesses and organizations to store increasingly large amounts of data. But it can also present a new set of data recovery issues. Because these hard drives are connected together, data loss in one drive can impact other drives.
Virtualization System Recovery
Virtual reality and other virtualization systems also bring a tremendous amount of innovation to a business. These systems also make data recovery more challenging. When data is lost on virtual disks or virtual machines, it is more complicated to recover than a standard PC. In a virtual environment, one machine may be running several virtual machines. If the hardware on the main machine malfunctions, each virtual machine may be corrupted as well. This scenario can lead to unrecoverable data loss.
Mobile Device Data Recovery
Our smart phones and other mobile devices are capable of amazing things. We can read and write data directly onto these devices through the camera, word processing, and other applications. As they are capable of storing increasing types and amounts of data, recovery becomes more challenging. Corruption is increasingly common on these devices. Data recovery on different types of devices requires different methods.
Hiring a Data Recovery Specialist
The types of data loss mentioned above are becoming increasingly difficult to recover on your own. The good news is a professional data recovery specialist has the technology and expertise to move past some of the challenges presented from these new and innovative technology. If you are looking to recover some crucial data, hire a trusted data recovery specialist to make sure the job is done right.
5 Innovations that Are Changing the World
Technology is changing the way that the world operates at an increasingly faster rate. As we incorporate these new technologies into the world, data storage and recovery will play an increasingly significant role in maintenance and upkeep.
Below are five of the innovations that are quickly driving that change. Many of these technologies are in their early days, and will continue to be applied to solve new and emerging problems.
Crispr
Crispr offers us the possibility of eliminating any genetic disease. It’s a pretty straightforward technology that’s still in its early stages. It works by finding and removing mutated sections of DNA. The technology can then replace what it removed with non-mutated variants.
With Crispr, you can eliminate previously rampant diseases from entire bloodlines. It can be used to eliminate cancer, or mutations like blindness. We’re still at the beginning stages of understanding the capabilities Crispr offers, but the potential is there to help humans live healthier, longer, more fulfilling lives.
Blockchain
Cryptocurrency burst onto the scene in 2009 as a creative use of blockchain technology, but it’s far from the only way this technology can be applied. Blockchain essentially offers a secure public ledger, allowing digital information to be distributed without being copied. It’s the very definition of a democratized system.
It’s a safer way to complete transactions and the business and tech worlds are taking notice. Financial technology, journalism, e-commerce, healthcare, cybersecurity, and logistics companies are finding new and innovative ways to incorporate this technology into their product offerings.
Quantum Computing
While today’s computers are extremely powerful, quantum computing has the potential to push our capabilities significantly further. Computers run off bits of code that come across in a series of zeros and ones, that communicate necessary information. Quantum computing occurs with quantum bits that process faster than what we’re presently used to. This can be a terrific aid in machine learning and AI and result in key data being analyzed even faster. This can help become the engine that drives AI in several different industries.
Companies like Microsoft and Google are investing billions of dollars into the next generation of computing technology, that can make highly accurate predictive models at a fast speed. As this technology progresses, data will play an increasingly heightened role, and proper data storage and recovery considerations become crucial.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence and machine learning thrive on data. It’s essentially the ability to read vast amounts of data quickly and perform desired actions based on analysis and interpretation. This technology will continue to spread across and transform multiple industries.
Large retailers use AI to sort and ship product. Social media companies use AI to moderate comments across a large platform. Banks and credit card companies use it to moderate fraud. Car manufacturers are using it in more and more features as we progress toward driverless vehicles. AI is all around us, and it is changing the way that the world operates.
As technology like driverless vehicles or IoT appliances break down, the mechanic will only be one aspect of fixing it. Data recovery specialists will also be involved.
Virtual and Augmented Reality
Virtual reality is being used as a way to train the workforce. Headsets allow for seemingly real workplace scenarios to occur. It can also be used in pain management, by distracting a patient who may be suffering. It opens up a world of possibilities anywhere where people could benefit from experiencing realistic scenarios.
The healthcare field is already benefited from augmented reality for things like training and performing complex surgeries. There is a lot of potential in this technology being used to increase capabilities. Augmented reality has the potential to become a powerful driver within the tech industry. AR could enhance applications in almost any industry.
Ethics and AI
There are a few leading technology companies with ample resources who are the forefront of developing tomorrow’s most innovative AI. These companies are moving faster than the government can regulate the industry. There are very few laws or regulations on the books to address AI, so that the public has assurance that what they are using is safe.
According to a recent survey from the company SnapLogic, 94 percent of IT decision makers across the US and UK believe that more attention needs to be paid to corporate responsibility and ethics in AI. With advancements being made in autonomous vehicles, healthcare and medicine, environmental technology, and more, it’s critical that AI companies keep the safety of the public in mind. Below are a few steps they can take to create a safer, more ethical AI environment.
Comply with Regulations That Are on the Books
It may be common sense, but the need to comply can go by the wayside in technological competitiveness.
In the US healthcare industry, AI would be governed by Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), or possibly other federal and state laws. If companies have any European customers or employees, they would be governed by General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
It’s critical that companies producing AI follow the regulations that are on the books.
Take Control of Data
Data is the gasoline that fuels AI. It’s critical to make sure that the body of data collected is representative of the body of people who will be using the model. This means that data scientists need to continue to use best practices to serve potential customers.
As technology advances, guarding data is an imperative step in protecting the integrity of your technology. When data is compromised, either through hackers or an inadvertent loss of personal data, the public trust is undermined. It’s critical to have secure firewalls in place, and reliable data backups. It’s also critical to have a data recovery plan in place, in the event that operational data is lost. This may mean understanding when a data recovery company may be your best bet to be able to recover from data loss.
Define and Live by Our Values
As more industries become increasingly automated and autonomous, there needs to be a higher standard than statistical accuracy. AI will be empowered to make an increasing number of decisions that may come into conflict with our ethics and values. For example, machines may be making decisions on a defendant’s innocence or guilt. They may decide who will be impacted most in a car accident. They may be making important medical decisions for us in healthcare.
It’s critical that AI know when to default to human ethics over a purely statistical decision. This requires societies to define and live by their values. The decisions made will ensure that our AI is a tool that works on our behalf, and not the other way around.
AI Is Here to Stay
AI will play an increasingly large role in a number of existing and emerging industries. It will be automating roles that currently require human intervention. As that happens, it’s critical to keep humans’ best interest in mind. By following the steps above, we can create AI systems that are ethical and safe.
Technology’s Positive Impact on Climate Change
Data and technology are everywhere. As we collect more information and more data sets, some of the technology that we create is having a significantly positive impact on the environment and climate change.
Below are some of the technologies that are allowing humans to make a positive dent on this issue. As we discover new opportunities to implement technology, there are more opportunities at our fingertips for change. In the midst of this heavy reliance on information, data recovery can play an important role in this key issue.
Technology Is Positively Impacting Climate Change
Data Storage That’s Out of This World
Data centers scattered across the US make up about 2 percent of our national electricity consumption. That’s an amount that significantly contributes to rising carbon emissions. These data centers spew 100 million metric tons of carbon pollution annually, which is more than the greenhouse gas emissions of 140 countries.
To thwart this problem, there are companies looking to store data on satellites that orbit the earth. These satellites could simplify large-scale international operations, and offer an added layer of security, with data stored on a satellite. When these satellites break down, they’ll not only need highly trained mechanics to fix the issues, but data recovery specialists who can help properly restore the integrity of the equipment.
Smarter Cities
Urban greenhouse gas emissions are significant. Businesses, homes, schools, and hospitals all give off a significant amount of emissions. In fact, these sources are responsible for almost 20 percent of the greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere.
A company called Sidewalk Labs, owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet, is addressing this issue, by examining ways that digital technologies can help with these problems. They’re reexamining things like traffic patterns to eliminate places of common congestion. Other major tech companies around the world have also committed significant investments in how to reduce emissions in urban areas as well.
More Efficient Transportation
Oil alternatives are already on the market, including electric, solar, and ethanol. But part of the hang up with this type of technology is that it’s just not as efficient and widespread as traditional gasoline. For instance, if you need to charge your electric vehicle, it can take hours, instead of the moments spent at the gas station.
A prototype charger for BMW and Porsche vehicles is capable of adding 62 miles of range to your vehicle in three minutes. It may be a while before this type of charger is commonplace, but when it is, electric vehicle ownership will become more convenient.
Food and Agriculture
As the world’s population continues to increase, finding enough sources of meat will become an increasingly difficult challenge. This is especially true because cows are a significant source of methane gas, and agriculture accounts for 18 percent of the total release of greenhouse gases worldwide.
There are companies and investors looking heavily into the possibility of lab-grown meat, and plant-based alternatives. The company Beyond produces a plant-based alternative that is growing in popularity. As the world becomes more and more crowded, technology is finding more efficient ways to feed the increasing population.
Technology as Part of the Solution
As the problem of climate change continues to present itself in different ways, technology and data collection provide new answers. There are companies working hard to solve tomorrow’s most pressing issues. As this data-driven technology advances, there will be new and exciting opportunities for data recovery as well.
Taking Advantage of a Digital Native Workforce
There is a generation of employees becoming involved in the workplace who grew up with technology playing a significant role in their personal life, and in their education. They are not only comfortable with that technology but expect it to be part of the workplace environment. If your company is holding on to more traditional views of technology, it may be time to make some updates and take advantage of what a younger generation of workers can offer.
Below are some of the steps your company can take to take advantage of a strong digital native workforce.
Encourage Good Ideas from Everywhere
Social media networks implicitly encourage conversation and the spread of ideas from the bottom up. They offer a distinct opposite to a more traditional, hierarchical approach. The youngest generation of workers grew up with social media present through every aspect of their lives.
Social media networks provide the groundwork to encourage and foster new ideas. These ideas can be of great benefit to your business. If your company still operates on a more hierarchical approach, it may be time to shift and find ways to encourage new ideas. Involving social media in the workplace can make your youngest employees feel more welcome.
View Change from a Results-Oriented Perspective
To an employee with a more traditional mindset, seeing a colleague constantly on their cell phone during work hours may be problematic. Receiving texts outside the normal work hours may feel off-putting. But this is where it’s necessary to consider overall results. The employee on their cell phone may be handling customer service issues as they arise. What looks like succumbing to distraction may actually be enhanced productivity.
The Cloud and Mobility
Cloud computing is nothing new for young employees. They’ve been using the cloud to store music and photos for a long time, and they are growing to expect that capability from an employer.
A transition to the cloud and mobile apps allows workers to do their job from anywhere. This can allow for more flexibility, and the ability to find effective methods for communicating. It also changes what we think of as the workplace and can provide the infrastructure for a work from home arrangement.
This is an increasingly important arrangement for younger workers and can offer an incentive for workers to remain loyal into the future.
Establishing the Right Tools
Companies need to implement the right set of tools to allow workers this extended connectivity and flexibility. There are a host of SaaS platforms available looking at all aspects of today’s workplace needs.
Applications like Slack, Trello, or Basecamp are establishing their own means of connectivity. They offer a way to fight back against inner-office silos and make information more readily accessible on all fronts.
Attracting the Best Talent
The key to long-term success for any company is the ability to attract the best talent of tomorrow. The way to do that is through making the workplace appealing to a younger generation of digital native employees. Are you doing everything you can to make your culture and environment as inviting as possible?
Revenue Generation and the IT Department
Traditionally, the IT department has not been viewed as a revenue center. The projects that they work on consume part of the budget, but the department has not traditionally been expected to generate money for the company. As the sales and marketing processes increasingly rely on technology, that reality is starting to shift.
More businesses are expecting their IT department to add to the company’s bottom line, which is shifting the focus of the role for many chief information officers. Let’s look at some of the increasingly common ways that IT departments are starting to produce revenue for their companies.
Revenue-Producing IT Projects
IT departments across the U.S. and globally are becoming larger. When they bring on new people, they tend to benefit from more creative ideas. These IT departments are taking on an increasing amount of projects in addition to internal business infrastructure. It also becomes easier for decision makers to approve this expansion when the IT department becomes a source of revenue.
Below are some of the types of projects that have transitioned IT departments into the profit game.
Chat-Bots – Artificial intelligence chat bots can enhance customer service and have the potential to close more sales. These tools have the power to make the customer experience more seamless every day. IT departments are a crucial part of implementation and support.
eCommerce Websites – The IT department has the ability to capitalize on the technology necessary to capture more leads. They can put a stronger infrastructure in place for a higher level of sales.
Mobile Apps – Mobile apps can deepen a customer’s relationship with a company. The customer is making the commitment to reserve sacred home screen smart phone space. Every interaction holds the potential for revenue generation.
Data Collection Tools – The IT department can take up the task of data collection in order to streamline services. They can develop the necessary reports that will impact the decision-making process.
Monitor Internal and External Technology Use
In the process of developing revenue-producing IT projects, it’s important to monitor and understand how technology is being used both internally by employees, and externally, by customers. Technology helps to create a more efficient work environment. It can help younger employees feel involved in company culture, and a part of the decision-making process.
It can also help you to engage with customers more frequently, and meaningfully. Technology such as mobile apps can be used to strengthen customer relationships and increase interactions. The bottom line is that the right technology can strengthen your company’s image on more than one front.
Has Your Company Made the Transition?
It may be time to reconsider how your IT department is viewed within the company. With these strategies in mind, IT can become part of the revenue generation cycle, or to provide a foundation of revenue support for other departments.
IT departments can grow and prosper as they learn how to add more value for the company and its customers. When these departments are viewed as revenue generation centers, they can more justifiably expand, and draw higher salaries for their contribution.
When Your Company Needs a Digital Transformation
Digital transformation as we’re referring to it, is simply the integration of technology into all aspects of a business. It’s a term that can be overgeneralized, but some specific actions can have a fundamental impact on your company culture and transform how you operate. Digital transformation impacts a business’s culture, the operational process, and the customer experience.
Your business may still find itself in a situation where you’re looking to rethink outdated operating models, or to become more agile in the way you address the customer experience. You may be looking to better match the productivity of competitors, or generally looking to experiment with technology more.
This is when a strategic digital transformation can be highly beneficial.
Guidelines for a Successful Digital Transformation
Whatever your purpose, a successful digital transformation requires a process and a plan. Below are some guidelines for getting started:
- Communicate the Vision – Employees may become anxious when change is in the air. Be as specific as you can regarding the changes, and make sure to communicate expectations. Reinforcing your company’s mission and how this new technology can help will work wonders when it comes to putting everyone at ease.
- Foster Learning – Make sure that your employees feel comfortable learning the new technology. Make it easy for them to understand how it works, and how it helps productivity. Employees may be more receptive when they understand how it fits in with the larger picture.
- Listen – Make sure that you listen to your employees, find out what they are working on, and any opinions they may have regarding the new technology. They may have some valuable input on how to implement upcoming changes.
- Take Your Time – You can test technology changes on small jobs, before going all in. See what a new process does to company culture. See how it improves productivity. Make sure that you’re not needlessly overcomplicating your employee’s lives.
The Benefits of Digital Transformation Speak for Themselves
When digital transformations are successfully implemented, the benefits are astounding. Below are just a few:
- Increased Profits – When you find creative ways to use data and implement new technology, it can have a tremendous positive impact on the bottom line.
- Engaged Employees – When employees have more direct ways to communicate, and they are provided with current business data, they are more inclined to participate.
- Set the Industry Pace – Many businesses are obsessed with keeping up. When you are on the edge of digital technology, you can set the pace instead of worrying about what the other guy is doing.
- Improve Customer Experience – Improved access to data and the most efficient digital technology can improve the customer experience.
The Time to Start Is Now
Whether your company is highly successful or struggling to keep up with the competition, the time to undergo your digital transformation is now. A successful digital transformation will allow you to remain productive, and utilize technology for optimum results. It can help you make better use of the resources that you have now.
These are things that should appeal to any business no matter what stage you are in. It pays to be making the most of your technology.
Signs Your Hard Disk Is Failing
Data loss comes in a variety of different packages. Sometimes it occurs out of the blue, and there were no signs of impending doom that could have been headed. Other times, temperamental equipment may be trying to tell you something in advance. What appears as a narrow escape could really be a sign of worse events to come.
Below are some of the common signs of hard drive failure that should not be ignored. Sometimes they can be confused with the effects of malware, but whatever the case, it’s time to address the issue.
A Clicking Sound
Sometimes there is an audible clicking sound made by the head of the hard drive. This can be caused by an inconsistent power supply to the drive, or physical damage.
Access Denied Prompts
If the computer gives you pop ups denying access to various partitions on the drive, it may be a sign that the drive is failing. This can be a sign of loose connections in the drive, or corrupted storage. Either way, the hard drive may be failing at this point.
Repeated Crashing
The hard drive may simply crash more frequently on an older computer. But those increased crashes can also be a sign that the hard drive is about to fail. When you get to this point, the disk may completely stop working altogether at any point.
Sector Not Found Prompts
When your computer is warning you that sectors of the hard drive are unavailable or not able to be found, it’s time to have it repaired.
It’s Time to Bring Your Computer to a Professional
Computers are similar to any other major appliances, or to your health. If you are consistently experiencing concerning symptoms, it may be signs of a larger problem. When you ignore these symptoms long enough, something worse, such as a hard drive failure resulting in data loss, can occur.
There are other common issues that can happen with your hard drive that are less serious and aren’t necessarily a threat to the data that you’ve accumulated. If you are tech savvy and understand how to perform basic hard drive maintenance, you may be able to take care of some of these issues internally before involving a computer repair expert or a data recovery specialist.
Reformatting the Drive
If an external hard drive’s format isn’t compatible with the computer, you may need to reformat the drive. It’s helpful to back up any information being stored on the disk somewhere else, and then follow the prompts under the “My Computer” icon to reformat.
Updating Drivers
A hard drive may malfunction because of the drivers. Resetting the drivers can help. On a PC, you can go to the device manager, and right click on the device to find the “update drives” option.
The Disk is Full
If you’ve accumulated a lot of data over the years, this is a real possibility. Your system may run slow at this point, and it can cause the drive to malfunction. All that needs to be done to fix this problem is to delete old, unnecessary content. Keep in mind that photos, videos, music, and large graphics will take up the most file space.
Disk Defragmentation
When a disk is routinely partitioned, it becomes fragmented. PCs have an option under the system tools to defragment the drive to restore some usable space to the computer.
Don’t Ignore Computer Problems
When you ignore routine computer problems, it’s a sign that something more serious is wrong. If you’ve tried any of the above fixes and they didn’t work, it may be time to bring your computer in to have the hard drive repaired.
Common Customer Mistakes in Data Recovery
When a disaster jeopardizes the security of your company’s information, it takes a well-written and routinely tested data recovery plan to keep your organization running. It’s important to keep backing up your data, but those backups need to be used to quickly restore your operating environment. Downtime will have a significant cost to your organization. The more that you can do to minimize downtime, the better.
It helps to make sure that your data recovery plan is tested, so that everyone knows their role in the event of a data loss. Below are some of the common mistakes we see as organizations attempt to restore their data.
Keeping It an IT Matter
The employees who use the missing data the most are the ones who will be most impacted by a data loss. They’re also helpful allies as you work to recover lost information. They can give you input on the most crucial data within your organization, and in testing your recovery plan. They can help you rank the most crucial information in day-to-day usage.
Creating a Data Recovery Plan and Not Testing It
Data loss creates organizational stress. When you develop a strategy for dealing with fires or tornados, you would test that too, to make sure that employees knew what to do. The same is true for a data recovery plan. Make sure that those who rely on the data understand what to do when it’s not readily accessible. Make sure that everyone across the organization understands their role in the recovery process.
Not Taking Advantage of Available Technology
Manual on site backups serve their purpose but may not be enough to get you through a data loss. They also rely on employees to set aside the time to back their information up, instead of an automated process. Cloud technology with automated backups offer a safe way for organizations to store data off site. There are flexibility and cost measures to this approach that make it an advantageous data backup method.
A Failure to Revisit Your Plan
Your organization is a fluid enterprise. The employees who handle your data change. The technology around you changes as well. For these reasons, it helps to review your data recovery plan on a regular basis to make sure it accurately reflects your organizational interests.
Not Enough Contingency Planning
What happens if your on-site backups were impacted by the same disaster that impacted your top level of data? It’s crucial to remember that Plan B can be impacted in the same way that Plan A was. As you develop a data recovery plan, make sure that you think through multiple scenarios. Now, it’s true that you can’t plan for everything, but a thorough approach to planning will help keep you more secure in the long run.
Your Organization Can Avoid These Mistakes
Like anything else, it helps to know where the data recovery pitfalls are. Understanding what not to do is important. After you have a data recovery plan in place, test it and include the appropriate employees for the process. By being thorough now, you’re in a better position to withstand whatever the future may hold.
Data Recovery for Healthcare and Hospitals
Human error, technology failures, and weather can all throw a kink into an established routine.
This makes data recovery for healthcare a necessity. It’s an industry where lives literally depend on the availability of plentiful information. Data recovery plans help employees to understand what to do when that critical data isn’t immediately accessible, and how to regain access.
Problems can arise without warning, and when they do, it’s good to have a data recovery plan in place.
Eliminate Unnecessary Risk in Your Healthcare Organization
When there is technological downtime in a healthcare facility or a hospital, lives literally hang in the balance. Organizations lose money. Depending on the particular risk facing your organization, HIPAA compliance and patient records may also be placed at risk.
Putting a detailed data recovery plan in place can help you to eliminate much of this unnecessary risk. Organizations may not always want to factor this type of planning into their annual budget. But if you’ve ever faced data loss or a similar technology crisis, you understand the jeopardy this can place your organization in.
When There’s No Data Recovery Plan in Place
Healthcare service can slow down considerably when your front-line medical staff doesn’t have access to patients’ medical histories. It’s hard to maintain a high level of service when staff and patients both become frustrated with the process. Data recovery plans can help you to have a plan in place when the electronics and technology we depend on are rendered inaccessible for unanticipated reasons.
When real-time care information is placed in jeopardy, and employees are working without access to patient records, the quality of care is also at risk. For example, think about a patient who needs a new medication. This would mean that doctors and nurses would not have access to their other medications to monitor interactions, or a proper dosing schedule. This is all crucial information in the context of care.
The Importance of a Data Recovery Plan
A proper data recovery plan is an insurance investment in your organization’s future. Not only will it help protect your patients, it will help you maintain HIPAA compliance, and can help you keep your reputation safe as you deal with sensitive information on a moment-to-moment basis. (Consider what happens if sensitive patient information is left exposed.)
Regular testing of the plan, on at least an annual basis (if not more frequently), can help ensure that your organization can survive a data crisis.
If your organization is missing important data, it’s important to understand that there are recovery options. While recovery software imposes additional risks, an experienced data recovery company may still be able to help you extract missing data off the software in question. If you have any questions, or would like to discuss your organization’s situation, contact us today!
6 Common Data Recovery Myths Busted
For most people, we sit down at the computer, we power it up. We click on our file and take for granted that it will open, showing us the data that we need to complete whatever tasks need completion at the time. Eventually, the process may not work the way that you expected it to. A file may be lost, damaged, or corrupted. When that occurs it’s important to understand how the data recovery process works.
Below are six popular data recovery myths that we hear about quite a bit.
Data recovery software can be used to reliably recover just about anything.
This myth can be particularly dangerous when it comes to recovering valuable business data. This software can and often does cause permanent damage to the hard drive that prevents a complete recovery. It also may not be able to recover the data in question.
Reformatting a drive permanently deletes all data.
When you reformat a hard drive, it typically removes the file from the table of contents, leaving it in the same space. In many cases, when data is lost due to reformatting, it can be recovered by data recovery specialists.
When data is deleted, it can never be recovered.
This myth is complicated. It can vary from system to system. But the way that most hard drives work is that when a file is deleted, the space that file occupies is marked as available for new data. It isn’t truly deleted until the hard drive writes over it as it downloads new data.
If you can get the hard drive to a data recovery specialist before it writes over the lost file, you may still be able to recover what was lost.
Data recovery fixes the hard drive in question.
Data recovery specialists are able to restore a hard drive to the point where data is recoverable. But it’s rarely in a dependable state after that. The data that we recover is often copied to another device of their choice when it is returned.
Professional data recovery can be cost prohibitive.
Like any other service, you are paying for professionals’ time. Other factors including the circumstances around your data loss, how much data needs to be recovered, and the expertise of the recovery company can factor into the cost.
You must determine what the lost data is worth to your company as well. It may be more costly if you are forced to replace this information.
Any lost data is recoverable.
It’s not uncommon for data recovery companies that want your business to make extreme claims about their service. But the fact remains that the circumstances around your data loss will determine whether your data is recovery. For example, with physical damage to the hard drive, or the use of data recovery software, the chances that data is recoverable decrease dramatically.
Do Your Research Before Hiring a Data Recovery Specialist
Your data is critical to your ability to run your company. Before you trust the task of recovering it to anyone, you owe it to yourself to do your research. Make sure that the company is honest, and that they are not making promises that can’t be kept. It’s crucial that you can trust the company that is working to restore your valuable data.
How AI Can Aid with Data Recovery
How AI Can Aid with Data Recovery
Managing your company’s data backup process is more important now than ever. With more monetary value placed on data and information, hackers are more motivated than ever to attack and exploit it for their own gain. They may be using technology and developing new ways to damage your infrastructure and access your information.
Artificial intelligence can assist in backing up and securing your data in new ways. It can be a valuable asset when it comes to recovering or maintaining control of that data.
Automated Data Backups
New technologies are emerging on a regular basis that automate data backups. These programs can be trained to operate within the requirements of the business to ensure that data is always being backed up behind the scenes. These AI programs make automated backups more powerful and efficient and allow businesses to focus on activities that are more central to their mission.
Machine Learning Improves the Process
AI can collect information on a wide variety of viruses and malware. It can eliminate time-consuming research and understand and detect abnormal occurrences. All of this leads to a system that is better able to protect the user. It is an effective tool in fighting phishing, spamming, and threat analytics.
Versatility
Machine learning and AI improve at their tasks quicker than their human counterparts – an attractive benefit when it comes to cybersecurity and data recovery. It’s an effective means to protect your valuable data. AI can become a powerful defense against more sophisticated attacks.
Responding to an Incident
When disaster strikes, AI can analyze the data faster and in more depth than a team of your most reliable employees. AI can also make fast recommendations based on that data to ensure that you respond to the incident that occurred in the most effective manner possible. AI may be able to assist in the data recovery process as well, by performing tasks such as reinstalling networks.
Recovering Technological Assets
The network configurations behind cloud computing can be largely overwhelming. AI can be a tremendous asset in the event of an outage, or other form of data loss. AI systems are being trained to monitor a technology system and intervene when risks or failures are being detected.
Why AI is a Necessary Aid
As businesses continue to grow, and the need for data continues to expand, AI can play an integral role in safeguarding that data. The need for backup systems, constant system analytics and monitoring, and response aid will only continue to rise in the near future. Businesses are also being required to abide by more regulations when it comes to the safekeeping of data. As the demands continue, AI provides a more efficient way for them to keep pace.
AI can automate the attacks against us. As hackers and those looking to exploit data have more powerful tools at their fingertips, it makes sense for businesses to use these same tools to maximize their protection.
5 Common Scenarios that Lead to Data Loss
We all depend on our computer and the data that it holds to the extent where we take it for granted. We tend to assume that the information we collect, that helps us with day-to-day business activities, will always be there. But data loss is more common than we realize, and for those of us who run businesses, this can be a significant problem.
Below are five common scenarios that can lead to data loss. You can minimize their impact by creating data backups on a regular basis. If the hardware is old or the data isn’t critical to your operation, you can try to run recovery software in an attempt to access your data. But that path comes fraught with risk. If the data is valuable and the loss is significant, you’ll have more success by talking with a data recovery company.
Common Ways Data Loss Occurs
Accidental Deletion
We all want a clean working environment, and that desire may carry over to our desktop screens and file storage. Sometimes we might get a little carried away and delete a file that we needed while we’re attempting to declutter and clean up.
If we don’t have a backup, and we delete the wrong file, that scenario can present a real problem. Accidental deletion is frustrating, but it does happen.
Viruses or Malware
As businesses and organizations gather larger amounts of data, hackers find new ways to attack that data every day. The more valuable it is to you, the more potential value it might have in the wrong hands.
The damages can vary greatly depending on the virus, but when hackers go after business data the threat can be serious. If there is serious monetary value attached to the data that you hold, the threat of viruses or malware needs to be taken seriously.
Smartphone Device Corruption
We’ve come to depend greatly on the computers in our pockets, but they are susceptible to risk, as well. Photos, music, and other files kept on smart phones can be lost or damaged. There may be deletions, formatting problems, or hardware crashes. Any time your phone is dropped or submerged in water, your data is at risk.
The good news is that file recovery programs can work on your phone as well. But for the highest success rates, you’ll want to contact a data recovery specialist.
Physical Damage to the Computer
If the computer fell or was hit by something, or it is otherwise physically damaged, you run the risk of data loss. If that physical damage extends to the hard drive, that can likely impact the ability to call up certain files. In other words, your data is likely damaged, too. If the computer powers up, you might be able to run some data recovery programs on it and see what happens.
Power Failure
Power failures carry risk on multiple levels. First, there is the risk that anything you might be working on at the moment is lost or damaged. Second, a change in voltage can damage any number of computer parts and cause lasting damage. Creating regular backups can help reduce the risk of data loss in the event of a power failure.
The Technology Industry’s PR Problem
When the internet and social media companies were in their infancy stages, trust and optimism were high. The public had positive outlooks on what the future might look like with new technology reshaping the world. Today, that same level of trust simply isn’t there.
Companies that struggle with privacy issues struggle with their image, and rightly so. The urgency to remedy any privacy issues is high for this reason. Consumers expect to be able to use services without having data sold to third parties or stolen. But this year, the word “techlash” took off, and Oxford Dictionary defined it as the strong and widespread negative reaction to the growing power and influence that large technology companies hold.
Presidential candidates are making technology an issue by calling for the breakup of some of the industry’s larger companies. Big names like Bill Gates, Elon Musk, and Mark Cuban are warning people that artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human species. All of this means that Silicone Valley and the tech industry in general no longer benefit from the public’s blind trust.
Social Media Companies
Consumer trust in social media is still at a significant low, following the 2016 presidential elections. Concerns rise as a handful of these companies gain a stranglehold on massive amounts of consumer data and what might be possible with it.
Trust remains a significant issue for Facebook, Google, Amazon, Twitter and other companies that work hard to collect massive amounts of data. Google compiles data from every search. Amazon is compiling data every time you use Alexa. All of it is done behind the scenes, and the public may generally remain skeptical about how much of it actually benefits users.
The Tech Industry as a Force for Good
Tech companies need to proactively earn back the public trust now, so that they can get on with solving the problems of tomorrow. A lack of trust now could significantly impede their efforts in the long run as they face developing new technologies.
For example, more can be done to safeguard the use of data while keeping users’ best interests in mind. Tech companies can do more to place the greater good of their communities above their profit line. This may mean finding other metrics to measure success other than time on site.
Blockchain, AI, autonomous automobiles, IoT, the cloud, mobile technology and other new developments carry with them a significant amount of promise. It’s easy to see how these developments can replenish the public’s optimism. But at the same time, fears on issues such as automation or the threats of AI need to be addressed.
From an ongoing PR perspective, users need to be able to realistically trust that they won’t be leaving themselves vulnerable as they use these services. They need to be able to trust that using these new products won’t leave them exposed in the long-term.
How Technology is Changing the Workforce
It was only a few decades ago that companies handled everything in an analog fashion. If you wanted to conduct a meeting with a valued client halfway across the country, you needed to purchase plane tickets. Important documents needed to be printed, and keeping track of meetings, agendas, and to-do lists required significant effort, and good old pencil and paper.
The workplace has significantly changed over the last few years, and technology is leading the way. Communications and logistics have been simplified through software, apps, and modern tech advances. Technology has led to significant advancements in:
- Communication
- Task performance
- Management
- Outsourcing
The Internet and modern technologies have allowed businesses to double-down on their goals while operating in a much more efficient manner.
Below are Some Ways Technology Has Helped in the Workplace
Enhanced Communication
Email is a prime communication tool. It can provide written documentation relating to specific projects and more. Smartphones, social networking, chat apps and more have revolutionized companies’ internal communications. Video chats through apps like Skype, Google Hangouts, or Apple’s FaceTime have made it possible to be remote and visible at the same time.
This opens the door to making remote work an easier possibility, keeping employees happier at the same time. It makes long-distance client and customer relationships even easier. Technology allows for people who may not be inside the office to remain in the loop when necessary.
Staying Organized
Technology eliminates the needs for massive stacks of paper. It eliminates the need for a mess of notebooks, daybooks, calendars, and more. Mobile apps and project management software can help keep your organization efficiently on track. It can promote responsibility, accountability, and highlight what needs to happen for timely project delivery.
This kind of software programs and apps can increase quality and efficiency – meaning that you simply just get more done.
Productivity is Key
Modern productivity software helps organizations track all aspects of execution on a daily basis. It allows companies to track progress and better understand what needs to happen internally in order to meet specific goals and deadlines.
Improving Security
Businesses require a higher level of security to ensure safety and efficiency and technology plays a significant role in this process. Hardware and software add enhanced data encryption so that only the right parties are able to view sensitive materials. Fingerprint and facial recognition each add additional levels of security.
Companies now require additional software and algorithms to protect sensitive data and prevent it from being lost or stolen.
Enabling Remote Work
Millennials want the freedom and flexibility that comes with remote work. Studies are showing that companies can benefit greatly from allowing their workforce this benefit – and with technology it’s easier.
You can create a powerful, interconnected virtual workforce all aligned with the organization’s goals. Cloud technology, video conferencing, and instant messaging all help companies coordinate with their workforce no matter where they are located.
Conclusion
Technology has changed the look and feel of the workplace from just a few short years ago. Organizations that fully leverage the freedoms and conveniences that come with enhanced technology will put themselves in a position to succeed in the future.
Addressing the IT Skills Gap
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there will be 1.3 million openings for IT professionals by 2026. At the same time, there will be roughly 60,000 computer science graduates from universities per year – leaving a significant skills gap in the information technology field.
The shortage will be driven by a lack of workers with the right skills, but it’ll also be driven by advancements in technology that institutions have not kept up with. We live in a world that is increasingly automated, and hundreds of thousands of patents being filed on an annual basis.
Vast amounts of data – beyond anything previously comprehensible – are being collected to write AI algorithms and program self-driving cars. There are CEOs and visionaries actively working to enter the space tourism business, with an eventual goal of colonizing mars. When it comes to the future, the best technological minds will work on problems that only existed in fiction just a few short decades ago.
It’s tough to expect traditional education systems to be able to keep up with outright futuristic problems. Producing skilled workers who can pursue tomorrow’s problems will be tough, even if curriculums are written and rewritten annually. This type of pressure makes it hard for colleges to dependably produce the type of worker who can serve in high-paying tech roles.
Because of this there are tremendous opportunities for the right type of worker, but they will have to be responsible for their own education.
An Increasing Number of Jobs in Tech Don’t Require College
It used to be that a college education was necessary for any job that paid more than $100,000 in a given year. But with this growing demand, there are developers, programmers, and database administrators who didn’t attain a college degree before they were hired.
Employers can no longer rely on a computer science degree from a major university to provide information that will remain current years into the future. Employees who stop learning new skills and keeping up with advancements in technology will risk falling behind and becoming obsolete.
Employers Can Double Down on Their Workforce
It’s important for organizations to invest in their workforce and create a culture that reinforces life-long learning. It’s important to encourage employees to pick up new technology and become the driving force of innovation within your company. Leading tech companies like Google go as far as encouraging employees to work on personal projects at work – leading to further innovation.
Companies could think about creating and furthering an employee development plan and helping to provide the books, articles, blogs, and videos that will drive learning within the organization.
The IT skills gap is a significant problem that the industry will face for years to come, but it doesn’t have to grind your organization to a halt. There are several ways that employees and employers alike can work to alleviate its effects.
How Technology Addiction Impacts Our Lives and What We Can Do About It
In a crowded movie theater. Right before bed. When we’re supposed to be listening to family. It doesn’t matter where, or when. We check our phones compulsively because we think there might be something positive there for us on the other side – something life-changing.
That thought shoots dopamine and other feel-good chemicals into our brain and a habit is formed. The designers of your favorite tech hardware and apps know this and they build in ways for you to consume more content, and spend more time on their platform. They do this through variable reinforcement, much like a slot machine. Too little reward, and you stop trying. Too much reward and you won’t pull the lever as much.
Now think of those notifications on your phone. When the ding goes off, or when we see a little red bubble, we feel almost obligated to check and see what the message is. The quest in technology optimization is to find the right ratio to keep you coming back for more, and it’s working.
Americans on average check their phones more than 52 times a day. College students can spend upwards of 9 hours a day on their cell phones. Addiction activates the reward sensors for the brain and pulls us out of the present moment. It starts in the first few moments after we wake up and it nags at us until we go to bed. There are precious few moments during the day considered too sacred to check your messages.
An overuse of phones and other modern technology can leave you feeling anxious or depressed. It can make you feel extremely distracted and restless. Long term, it can contribute to obesity, or give you severe eye problems.
What Can You Do About It?
We assume you like your phone. It’s pretty amazing harnessing the power of your desktop computer right there in your pocket. You don’t have to ditch it at all to keep usage in control, but instead set up certain boundaries.
Understand Your Usage – It takes some awareness of what your phone and technology habits are, to be able to break them. How many hours a day are you on the phone? Apple is now keeping track of your screen time for you. It can help to review this on a daily or weekly basis.
Optimize Your Tech for You – You can shut off all unessential notifications. You can move the most distracting apps to the furthest screen back on your phone, so they are that much harder to access. You can delete them off your phone entirely. Set up your phone to be an asset to your productivity, and not a distraction.
Meditation Can Help – When you can train your attention, you can more easily control it. Meditating for 10-20 minutes a day can help you learn how to train your attention in this way. If you need a little assistance to get started, apps like Headspace, Calm, or Buddhify can help.
Set Up Boundaries – Another way to take back control over your attention is to set intentional boundaries. You can choose to keep your phone in a different room at night, or designate regular “phone free” times in your home.
Technology addiction is an increasing phenomenon. These actions can help you to take back your attention and become more intentional with your time and productivity.
What Technology and Digital Diplomacy Look Like in 2019
Diplomacy has traditionally been defined as direct communication between one government and another. Public diplomacy came into being with the advent of the radio, and Nazi Germany using this technology to speak to the populations of neighboring countries. Governments have used technology to take their message to the world (and the foreign public) since that point.
Technology always plays a role in diplomatic capabilities. The telephone, television, and now computers have all played their role in how governments conduct their business both internally and externally with other governments.
While digital diplomacy, or Twitter Diplomacy, may seem like a new phenomenon, both go back further than the current administration. The U.S. State Department created a task force on eDiplomacy (the same idea) in 2002. Since then, Britain, Canada, and other foreign powers have taken up their own eDiplomacy policies and initiatives.
In 2012, a global communications firm discovered there were 264 Twitter accounts for heads of state and other institutions across 125 countries. That number will only likely continue to rise as the platforms further engrain themselves into everyday life.
The Tools of Digital Diplomacy
With an expected 5.7 billion smart phone users in 2020, digital diplomacy makes communication with the whole world instantaneous. That includes foreign leaders and the foreign public as well.
Social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter also have a nearly universal familiarity. Those who don’t use the platforms will likely become aware of any governmental or political messages through nearly instant news media coverage.
Examples of Positive Digital Diplomacy in Action
There have been several examples of digital diplomacy being used for good over the last few years as well. For instance, in May 2018 French President Emmanuel Macron hosted the Tech for Good summit, with 60-plus technology leaders, to talk about how it can be used for the common good within issues like education, labor, and diversity.
Representatives from Facebook, Microsoft, IBM, Uber, Salesforce, Stripe and other major tech firms participated in the conversation.
The UN also recently released a report that collaborative efforts to force major terrorist networks off of popular social media channels have been largely successful. While groups such as ISIS may not be as prevalent on Facebook or Twitter as they once were, the report does state that they are using smaller, less monitored sites to share materials. But this trend is a step in the right direction.
Canada’s G7 Summit last year used Snapchat to expose younger audiences to the event. They used a social media platform that is primarily youth based in membership to open up the conversation to younger audiences in a way that otherwise may not have been possible.
As time progresses, diplomacy and digital diplomacy may become redundant terms. Technology and social media allow corporate messages to permeate large International audiences and it only makes sense that government would take advantage of these tools for the same purpose.
We’re moving into an era where access to mobile, online communication is nearly universal. World leaders have the ability to use this new connectedness to connect with the general public in a positive way.
Tech Companies and Privacy Law
When we write a message to another party and send it, we traditionally expect that message to remain private. Likewise, we expect to maintain control over personal data and where it is collected, stored, or used by another party. We do not expect third-party involvement when we hand our data over online.
Every day, these expectations are increasingly challenged. Laptops, smart phones, tablets, watches, and IoT devices add to the complexity of digital privacy as they grow their platforms and offer users more convenience and service. The number of smart devices will more than double from 2017 to 2020, according to Forbes.
It’s already increasingly difficult to opt out of this web of digital transparency, where data breaches and hacking are increasingly prevalent. Trust in companies like Facebook, Google, and Amazon is increasingly down. While there are tremendous social benefits to all this technology, all you have to do is flip on the news to understand that there is a cost.
What’s Being Done to Protect Consumers?
Europe introduced General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in May of 2018, as a way to provide consistent protection of consumer and personal data across all European Union nations. It takes steps like requiring subject consent for data processing and anonymizing the collection of data to protect privacy. It also requires data breach notifications, and safety in handling the transfer of data.
GDPR was designed to safeguard the handling of EU citizens’ data to better protect its residents. Any company that handles EU data is subject to regulation of this law, regardless of their location.
The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) is set to come into law in January of 2020. It gives consumers the right to tell businesses that they cannot collect information about you, your children, or the devices that you use. The law will hold businesses responsible for protecting data and personal information.
Could a US Federal Privacy Law Happen?
While it’s sometimes tough to imagine much being done, there are signs of agreement between Democrats and Republicans that something needs to happen in the wake of Facebook’s role in the 2016 election.
An FTC task force is studying anti-competitiveness within the tech industry. State lawmakers have been looking into Facebook data collection methods. There are also drafts of various data protection bills that have floated their way through congress.
The climate has clearly changed following multiple data breaches from large American corporations, that expose consumers’ personal data. The role that Facebook played in the 2016 elections has also caught legislators’ attention. In the past when this subject has come up, the focus has been on putting the burden on consumers to take initial steps to protect their data. That focus is shifting to put more responsibility on the corporations that handle consumer data. It may be hard to keep consensus within Congress on this issue, after the California law comes into effect. It can also be hard to maintain any level of agreement through a split congress.
But there is always a chance that something could happen in a small window.
Optimizing Technology in Education
While technology can play a significant role in the classroom, it’s important to optimize it to help realize the outcome you are looking for. The use of technology should be carefully weighed against education goals.
In other words, screen usage may not be appropriate in every circumstance. But it is an incredibly powerful tool when it is used to promote technological literacy in today’s students. It’s quite impossible to predict what the job market may look like for today’s grade school students.
But we can help give them the skills they will need to communicate, design, create, manage, evaluate information and solve problems in today’s world. This isn’t a new concept, it’s just that it’s advanced along with modern technology. As access to home computers increased in the 1990s, schools need to keep up with it.
Teachers in previous generations maintained that students would not be able to walk around with a calculator in their pocket in adult life. The idea is that they would need advanced math skills to make up for this. Now, we walk around with the answer to nearly every conceivable question, including math, in our pockets. The question becomes how to optimize technology for the classroom and the educational experience for this reality.
Robotics companies have developed curriculums for literacy, math, and science. These companies are also exploring ways to help students apply higher level thinking to life’s problems. All of this seems to benefit students in their educational experience. But there are plenty of downsides to technology that device usage must be weighed against.
The Problems with Tech in Education
Technology itself has an addictive power to it. In fact, the average American adult spent two hours and 51 minutes on their cell phone every day in 2017. The argument is that developing curriculums that are unnecessarily technology-intensive reinforces these patterns.
There are other common problems with technology-based curriculums. For instance, when teens are in front of a device, they may be tempted to use social media sites instead of listening to the teacher and following along in class. For this reason, it helps to have firewalls set up to prevent usage of social sites in the school.
Enhanced tech usage can also result in network overload. Twenty-plus students in any given classroom surfing the web at one time can place high demands on a school’s infrastructure. When you factor multiple classrooms in a building doing the same thing, it’s easy to see the demand this can create.
Students May Not Always Have Pure Intentions
Increased technology usage can also put your network at increased security risk. You may find increasingly cunning older students who attempt to gain access to administrative servers. You may also have students more prone to cheat by looking up the answers on their own.
Carefully Weigh Technology Usage
It’s impossible to predict what the job market will look like for today’s youngest students, but a steady stream of technology will likely be part of it. Exposing children to today’s technology can no doubt help, but it needs to be done cautiously.
Experiments with one-on-one technology and other initiatives can help. When districts experiment with these ideas, they can factor in feedback on the go to create a stronger, more beneficial technology plan. It is possible to instill a technological literacy in a responsible way that will help students for years to come.
The Pros and Cons of Elearning
Elearning is everywhere. It’s popping into K-12 curriculum, gaining prevalence in colleges and universities, and it is an increasingly popular way to learn job skills. It’s even a growing way to learn new personal development skills.
Simply put, elearning offers a way to access educational materials through technology, outside of a classroom. In K-12 it might be something as simple as taking home a device for the evening. In the college or professional environments, it entire curriculums may be found online.
Technology offers a wider access to materials and can turn education into a more convenient experience – one that can be accessed from anywhere. While it offers tremendous advantages, it’s not for everyone. There are pros and cons to this style of learning.
The Advantages of Elearning
- Improved Access – Institutions that offer elearning programs gain access to a larger number of students. Students in turn gain access to larger amounts of information, that can be accessed from nearly any physical location. Both sides gain a tremendous advantage because of this.
- Easy to Use – When the platform is easy for students to use, it can streamline the whole process and improve learning results. This is important when students pay a significant amount in tuition costs to participate in the course. It’s also important when a company is depending on their employees to learn valuable course information.
- Customization – Elearning courses can be tailored to fit the needs of the institution or the company. There is a certain amount of flexibility built in, to meet students’ needs. Students can learn at their own pace without having to worry about the technology itself becoming a distraction to learning.
- Lowering Costs – When elearning is taking place outside a classroom setting, the costs can be significantly lower. There are no textbook or equipment costs, unless you are providing the technology to learn on. This can be a tremendous advantage for companies offering an elearning program to thousands of employees.
The Disadvantages of Elearning
- Incompatible Learning Styles – For some people, the classroom setting is precisely what makes the material click in their minds. They may favor a more hands on approach, or at least benefit from a teacher who is present to explain the information. It may be harder for them to pick up the information based on what they read over a device screen.
- A Lack of Social Interaction – For some, the best part of school or work is being in a room of peers. It may be a difficult adjustment to learn solely from an online platform.
- No Team-Building Benefits – Whether students are part of an academic classroom or your company’s department, creating a learning environment is inherently a team-building exercise. Students and coworkers learn to interact with each other in a cohesive manner that works to the benefit of everyone. This component is missing from elearning, which is more isolated.
- It Requires Self Discipline – When required learning can be done from the comfort of your own home, it is mixed into a world that is full of distractions. Students may be tempted to move on to other activities instead of sticking with the coursework. For this reason, elearning requires a strong dose of self-discipline to stay on task.
Elearning platforms should be carefully thought out to factor in both the advantages and disadvantages of the medium. For instance, if the material is more engaging, it may be more likely to hold students’ attention.
Elearning programs can have a tremendous advantage, but make sure the nuances are carefully considered before the program is implemented.
Student Success Software Helps Colleges and their Students
When you purchase a book on Amazon, data comes into play. The company obtains your email, payment information, and follows your viewing history to show you more ads of similar books, or other product that you might want to purchase later.
It should be no surprise that data factors into significantly larger investments as well, such as a college education. Over the last few years, universities have enhanced their data collection efforts to streamline the student experience and help them to maximize their investment. When new sources of data are collected and analyzed it can flag issues and help keep students on track.
An Example Student
Let’s say Lisa has declared herself as a nursing major and is taking all sorts of science courses that she needs as prerequisites to begin the program. She’s been really struggling with her Introduction to Biology class this semester, and without a tutor she is in jeopardy of getting a D.
Lisa’s always been a strong student, and she fared well at science in high school. The situation may have more to do with being a freshman in college and her newfound independence. The student success software that the school now uses flagged an overall trend that may be of interest to Lisa, and her advisors. It flagged that 62 percent of the students who score a C or lower in this particular class end up later failing out of the nursing program – a fact her advisors were not otherwise aware of.
Now, Lisa’s teacher and advisors can help her do what’s necessary to bump her grade up and keep her on track for her long-term academic and professional goals. In short, student success software serves as a powerful early warning system, but that’s not all.
Improving the Student Experience
Student success software helps universities to graduate more students, and helps the students pick majors that are well-suited to their interests. In Lisa’s example, another potential outcome would be that she could pick a different major better suited to her interests, if she so desired. Maybe she’d perform better in a major that didn’t involve a science background.
According to this article from Inside Higher Ed, Georgia State’s system helped generate 52,000 face-to-face meetings between students and advisors for a variety of issues, such as students signing up for the wrong course, or earning a low grade in a required course.
Access to Vast Amounts of Data
Colleges and universities have access to incredible amounts of personal data on students between email, web, and social media usage, and of course academic performance. The universities that are seeing the most benefit out of student success software are finding ways not to drown in this huge amount of data.
They are instead using it in targeted, insightful ways to improve a handful of important metrics. As all this data is collected, organized, analyzed, and managed, it is critical for universities to store and maintain it properly. In a worst-case scenario, it will be important for them to understand that they can work with data recovery companies to regain access to key data.
5 Unusual Ways Your Data is Being Collected
Many people may think that they are being cautious with their personal data. They may understand not to give out too much personal information on their social media accounts, and never give their social security number over the phone.
But what they may not understand is that private information can often be collected without their knowledge. Below are five unusual ways that data can be collected on private individuals, that they may not suspect. Companies often use the technology that’s available to them to attain customer data without their knowledge.
5 Ways Your Personal Data is Obtained Without Your Knowledge
In Store WiFi usage – Many companies that offer in-store WiFi use it as a way to collect customer email addresses. This may be fairly well understood. Stores can do more than that, however. They can also track your online activity within the store. They can see if you’ve gone to Amazon, or other competitive sites to do product or pricing research. Your internet service provider can see your online activity.
GPS Tracking – It’s common for the company associated with the app you just downloaded to store your location information. The same companies that are criticized for storing this data are the same companies that are thanked when their application helps people locate their missing phone. People also become thrilled when we have the option to use certain location stickers on our social media pictures.
Your cell phone may be giving away your location at any given time. It’s a good idea to check your settings to make sure you understand the data that’s being collected by the apps that you’ve downloaded.
Cookies – It’s a word that’s commonly thrown around online but not as commonly understood. People may not understand the level of tracking that takes place for Amazon to be able to run Facebook ads for your recently viewed products. They may not understand that it requires tracking for you to not need to login every time you use the same websites.
License Plate Readers – These readers are small enough they can be placed on any piece of highway infrastructure (or in police cars). They can take thousands of pictures per minute and record the time and date that a car was seen. This information goes to a database and stored by police departments. Private companies can collect data this way as well. Many people may not know that there may be a record of everywhere they’ve driven.
Signal Tracking – Retailers can use your cell phone signal to track your path through the store. They can use this information to offer you deals and customize their offerings. It helps them to understand the path you’ve taken and the products that you’ve looked at along the way.
Conclusion – While many people in the general public may be aware of the pitfalls of social media and data collection, some of the other methods may fly under the radar. Sometimes private companies can collect data in underhanded ways. This information is generally used by companies to better target their offerings.
Big Data and Healthcare
The last decade has seen a significant spike in the amount of data we generate in just about every activity. The ways in which we analyze this data and understand it have also expanded. One industry where these trends have had a significant positive impact is in healthcare.
The ability to improve our health through technology all starts with what we carry around in our pockets on a daily basis.
Smartphones and Health Data
Our smart phones contain the tools we need to emphasize prevention over cure. We have applications designed to store massive amounts of health data, and applications that can turn our phone into a pedometer that measures how many steps we take in a given day. There are applications that serve as a food journal, tracking our daily calorie intake.
Wearable health technology such as Fitbit or Apple Watch have also seen a tremendous rise in popularity. At some point, physicians may be able to access this technology to understand their patients’ fitness and dietary habits.
The technology that we use on a daily basis to understand our own health has significant potential on an individual and group level. It could also be used to understand the health habits of various demographics.
Machine Learning
Mayo clinic, CVS, and Apple Watch all have a strategic partnership with IBM’s Watson. This partnership offers patients an added layer of diagnostic help and preventative care. New medical insights can be gained through the analysis of real-time data.
Blockchain
The same technology that brings cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin to life could potentially improve access to patient records. It could also provide added levels of security to sensitive patient data.
Telemedicine
More physicians are coming on board with the idea of remote appointments and telemedicine. This offers patients the added convenience of not having to make a trip into the office, and instead receiving remote care.
Smart Toilets
All jokes aside, smart toilets use can collect data to calculate measurements such as your BMI, blood pressure, and blood sugar levels. These markers can help you determine when there is an anomaly and you need to see a doctor. You can think of it as a toilet’s version of a check engine light.
Your toilet might be able to provide diabetics, women looking to conceive, or the general health-conscious population with a tremendous amount of insight. While many of these toilets are still significantly pricey, for those looking for fast analysis, the investment may be worth it.
Conclusion
Big data has a tremendous potential to advance healthcare and provide better patient insights. It’s important for healthcare companies to understand the role that data can play in user experience. When IT experts and data scientists can collaborate with those in the medical field, the potential to improve human well-being will skyrocket.
Access to new amounts of health-related data can continue to revolutionize the healthcare industry for the future.
Technology and Disaster Relief
From 2005 to 2014, more than 700,000 people died as a result of a disaster. The American Red Cross responded to more than 242 disasters in the United States alone in the year of 2017. This resulted in more relief provided than the previous four years combined.
From earthquakes, to floods, to hurricanes, billions of dollars in damage occur annually. Technology and data now play a key role in the response to these disasters, helping emergency response, and the challenges faced in the aftermath. These efforts help save lives.
Below are some of the ways that technology helps.
The Role of Big Data
Technology helps to collect personal and medical data, the geolocation of roads, survivor tracking and more. With the proper analyzation and use of this data, officials are more easily able to conduct rescues, provide aid, and kickstart the process of recovery.
Crisis mapping software allows users to apply geotagged reports from email, SMS, and tweets on top of digital maps. This can help emergency personnel develop a real-time picture of the situation on the ground. Social media can help complete this picture, giving both rescuers and the general public a clear idea of how and where to focus rescue efforts. Partnerships between non-profit organizations and social media companies make data analyzation and communication between all stakeholders easier in an emergency.
Big data plays a key role in making sure vital resources such as food and water are adequately distributed, reaching larger audiences faster.
Drones and Disaster Relief
Dozens of drones were released in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in Houston. These drones can spot people in need of immediate help, without putting a rescue team in harm’s way. They can often operate faster in these averse situations than people would. Large enough drones can also provide rescue ropes and life jackets in areas that rescuers may not be able to easily access.
Drones can also be used to assess the levels of devastation and predict how long certain areas may be impacted.
Smart Phone Applications
Nearly everyone has a smart phone, making it one of the most effective tools for enhancing rescue and recovery efforts. The Apple health application can provide needed medical data for medical personnel. There is also an official FEMA application that can aid them in their rescue and recovery efforts.
Social media also helps in amazing ways. In addition to alerting the proper authorities to your situation, it can also help in reuniting loved ones, or locating lost pets.
Early Modeling
We often like to give weathermen grief, but the truth is forecasting and weather modeling has come a long way, even over recent decades. Hurricanes can be predicted days, sometimes more than a week in advance. Advancements in weather modeling, GIS data, and other predictive technologies can give local authorities the head start they need in proper planning.
Technology as an Aid
While it does seem like the number and severity of natural disasters keeps rising, we have more tools than ever to minimize their impact. Technology can provide tremendous aid, helping both the rescue and recovery.
The Power of Easy to Use Data Tools
Collecting data won’t have much of an impact on your organization without the ability to analyze it. The right software and tools can make all the difference in the world and prevent you from sifting through mountains of numbers in an un-productive manner.
The key is to make sure that your data tools are making analysis easier and not more complicated. Here are a few things to consider as you go about selecting the right program for your organization.
Understand Your Need
It’s important to have a firm understanding on your software requirements. This includes the types of data you are looking to evaluate, and what type of results you want. It means having a well-thought-out plan and knowing how the data fits in to organizational execution.
This can help you better articulate your criteria to stakeholders and the software companies during your search.
It’s important to know what tasks you want the software to perform. You’ll need software that can handle the quantities and types of data that you are working with. Make sure you think ahead, with a specific idea of the projected growth of your data set. If you’ll have larger amounts of data in the future, that’s important information to consider now.
Industry Standard File Formats
If a data software program uses a proprietary or non-standard file format, compatibility with other software, machines, and networks will quickly become an issue. You may find it impossible to exchange data within your organization.
Other divisions in your company may use different software formats. There’s no value in analyzing data when you can’t easily share the results with others. Compatibility issues can also prevent you from being able to analyze other corporate data.
If you need to save large amounts of data, the ability to save in a binary format will also help.
Ease of Use
You should be able to quickly import data from other locations when you start with new data analysis software. You should also have access to a spreadsheet, or basic data entry form that you can use for keyboard entry. It can take time to learn the advanced features on a large program, but the basic functions should be intuitive.
You Should Still Probably Have a Basic Understanding of Data Analysis
The power of computers and software applications have made data analysis immeasurably easier and more convenient over the years. Complex processes can be performed at the push of a button. But there’s no arguing with the fact that someone who knows how to analyze the information in front of them will harness a lot more power.
Anyone can click a few buttons and perform some basic functions. But without a strong foundation and intimate understanding of analysis, you may not get the most out of this information. You wouldn’t expect the electrician to fix a burst pipe. It can be unrealistic to expect someone within your organization who doesn’t have a data analysis background to get the most insight from the numbers.
Make sure you take in the complete picture as you consider new data analysis software for your organization. The tools you use for this job will go a long way in determining how successful you are in meeting your objectives.
The Seduction of Data
For many, pouring over data to receive an up-to-the-minute update on how your business is performing can be addicting. They need this data to make informed decisions, but the types of data they pay attention to is critical.
For instance, it’s important to steer clear of vanity metrics that don’t really give you much information about how your business is performing. That can be website traffic, page views, or social media likes and shares. These metrics don’t give us any insight on how to improve our business.
Now, if a business chooses to look at website conversions and social media referrals, those data sets may have more impact on the financial health of your company, and how it can grow. When you pay attention to the right data, it can have a tremendous impact.
Clean, Unbiased Data
It helps to define the type of data that might be useful to your company. The more specific you can be, the better. It also helps to understand who will be in charge of managing specific metadata. Problems in communication within the c-suite can lead to companies collecting too much data, or redundant data sets.
You can use automation techniques to collect this information, and save your staff a tremendous amount of time. Putting in your work early to keep the data organized can make it easier in the long run.
How Much Data You Analyze Matters
It’s critical to understand when a dataset is large enough, and extraneous data points hold no bearing on the results. Experimenting, and adding data incrementally can offer insights on when this is the case. Companies can also set limits and only collect the types of data that they will need to analyze down the road.
Our increased ability to collect data hasn’t been matched with an understanding of how to filter it. As the mountain of data gets larger, it’s no longer as easy to mine it for the most useful information – unless you know exactly what you’re looking for. When you have clear control of your objectives, it’s easier to look for the proper supporting data, but it doesn’t always happen in that order.
Companies can also do more to map out the data that’s already within their confines. This can present a clearer picture of who has access to what. This step can prevent multiple employees from within a company purchasing or working with the same data sets, and reduce organizational redundancies.
The Human Touch
Data is an excellent way to remove the footprint of human bias and emotion. It can help detect patterns and establish factors we’d otherwise never consider. But human input is still critical in the decision-making process. Humans can detect nuances and see multiple steps into the future.
The evolution of data and machine learning is powerful, but it’s that human touch that can truly drive innovation. Situations may arise where a data-driven recommendation may need to be overruled. The numbers may work against what we know about human interactions. What we do with the numbers still requires a higher level of creativity.
Evaluating data without any regards to the end plan can be counterproductive. But refining your organization’s approach can make a significant impact on your efforts.