An IT Support Blog from London

Exemplary support for the compliance mission in the finance sector

Businesses operating in regulated sectors need access to technology that supports the compliance mission. When it comes to Professional Services organisations, technology and service providers need to be exemplary in helping to discharge regulatory obligations. Here we highlight how HTL Support provides the solutions to help accountancy firms get the best from technology while meeting compliance and following best practice.

Don’t fall victim…

One of the most serious risks originating from the Internet to businesses and domestic users is the threat of phishing. Phishing is a form of fraud where a cybercriminal attempts to trick the recipient of a message into revealing information such as login credentials or account information by masquerading as a reputable entity or person, typically in an email, but it can be attempted through other communication channels.

A victim receives a message that appears to have been sent by a known contact or organisation. An attachment or links in the message may install malware on the recipient’s device or send them to a malicious website designed to trick them into divulging personal and financial information, such as passwords, account IDs or credit card details.

You then find your personal or business bank account has been raided or your credit cards used to purchase luxury goods. Here are 10 ways to prevent users in your business from being tricked by phishing emails.

IT security and systems availability

IT security is one of the biggest concerns of our time. It might be identity theft from individuals or the hacking of business and corporate networks on an industrial scale by unscrupulous nation states trying to obtain commercial IP or military secrets. Whatever the threat, securing networks against attack is high priority for IT teams.

Besides viruses, malware and hacking, if we look at other factors that impact operational availability of business dependent IT systems, then there are a range of issues which need to be addressed.

Server status and Windows Services, disk space and database sizes are all factors that could  influence a business-critical failure. Storage and back up, the availability of network devices, satellite offices and websites are all hugely relevant.

Commoditised services and low value

In these days of highly competitive marketplaces, customer satisfaction is often the key to business success. Generally we can say a customer is satisfied when the service received exceeds or at the very least matches expectations. But what shapes our expectations?

Quite often it is determined by the concept of ‘value’.In today’s competitive market places commoditisation leads to lower quality services. If the price is appropriate to the service level then the value perception may be seen as reasonable or adequate. However, when the cost outstrips the level of service, then the value perception is likely to be poor. Ultimately, we expect to get what we pay for.

Big benefits from eliminating servers

Hosted desktop is one of the most interesting cloud-based services on offer to businesses that want to obtain better value. However, many are uncertain about what Hosted Desktop provides.

Essentially Hosted Desktop lets the business eliminate servers, their software and related hardware, and management requirements such as storage, backup and antivirus. You can read more about hosted desktop by following the links to other information on this website at the bottom of this post.

Benefits of BYOD difficult to ignore

Traditionally, businesses discouraged and even prevented employee-owned devices being used in the workplace for accessing company data and services. This was especially true of larger businesses or those with compliance requirements to meet.

Strong business case using outsourced services

Last year saw no let-up in the anxieties over cyber security. Criminal enterprises seem able to distribute malware via email to steal identities unimpeded by the international cyber law enforcement authorities; hackers continue to crack open customer databases of businesses as diverse as TalkTalk and Ashley Madison. It is a necessity for any business on the internet to be able to effectively defend against today’s agile threat environment.

The legal profession and exemplary compliance practice for data

HTL Support specialises in providing technology solutions for the professional services sector. Perhaps above all others, the legal profession needs to demonstrate exemplary practice. Poor practice may have very serious consequences measured in a currency that exceeds the value of mere money.

Safe Harbour renegotiation by the end of January

Following the EU ruling that rendered the Safe Harbour agreement invalid last October 2015, in November Sataya Nadella (the current wearer of Bill Gates’ big Microsoft CEO shoes), announced investment in UK data centres as part of a $2bn European cloud infrastructure development plan.

Strong business case using outsourced services

Service providers of technology solutions are a necessity for today’s businesses. Even if an organisation has technical expertise in-house, it’s impossible to operate without service provision from an external company. It may be internet connectivity; offsite data backup; or cloud applications; but it simply isn’t feasible for an organisation to be self-sufficient and operate in complete isolation.