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20/03/2007 - Why are we struggling with our workload? -
We are 23% more productive than we were 10 years ago...so why are we struggling to keep up with our workload? Increasingly we hear about work life balance. We all know someone who has gone off sick with stress and companies are awash with complaints about long working hours. What happened to technology making our lives easier and quicker? I bet that if I asked you to clear your desk of all outstanding tasks, it would not only take you all day and all night, but probably weeks. Even though we are now 23% more productive than we were 10 years ago*, the pressure of our workload never seems to decrease, meaning that we get less quality time doing the things we enjoy.This is why many businesses are now looking at how their staff members can work more efficiently. Mobile working is not something from the space age any more. Every day you call businesses and increasingly these people are working at home wirelessly connected to their company.This is real life working practice for many busy professionals who prefer to work around their life rather than live around their work. So what difference would it make to your business if your team worked remotely, but you could still contact them at the end of a keyboard, webcam or phone.People now choose to receive their emails when working from home either on their laptops or mobile phones; they choose to deal with issues as they arrive rather than stack them up for when they are next in the office. How would you choose to work in an ideal world?For a limited period you can request a free copy of “The Non-Technical Guide to Saving 1 Hr of your Working Day” from Tartan Information Solutions who have recognised that you can have the best IT equipment in the world, but if you can’t use it then it can be more of a hinderance. The guide is written for non- technical business people who simply want to save an hour. What will you do with the hour that you save? To request your copy visit www.tartanis.co.uk/onehour
20/03/2007 - eCommunication –The challenges & threats -
eCommunication – The challenges & threats faced by today’s businesses We all have to communicate and we want to communicate faster and more efficiently. So we embrace the available technologies that are supposed to make life easier for us – aren’t they? However, once we start communicating electronically through email or via internet online applications, we leave ourselves and our businesses vulnerable to malicious threats. These threats present themselves through the increase of spam or junk email arriving in our inbox each day, to spyware running on our computer systems and potentially stealing our valuable data, to phishing for our confidential passwords to unlock our online bank accounts. Unfortunately, this is the reality in today’s computer age but before we throw in the towel and go back to paper – let’s look at these threats and see what we can do to protect ourselves and our businesses. The dreaded SPAM! Email is now an indispensable business tool and its use is forecast to continue to grow. However, the amount of junk (spam) which arrives in our inbox each day is also increasing. SPAM is considered to be the virtual curse of the 21st century. Statistically, 70% of all email traffic is spam. Anyone who uses email will probably receive spam. The majority of these junk emails look like adverts and cause considerable cost and irritation in the time to delete them. Sometimes they can be more lethal, when they contain viruses or are used for criminal purposes. How many do you get a day? It’s not uncommon for people to get hundreds or thousands of junk email messages every day! Spammers become more and more sophisticated to be able to get the email addresses of their victims: they create special spam bots, whose sole task is email harvesting, i.e. visiting sites and automatically collecting email address, which they find there. They then use your email address to spam thousands of email users and you get the undeliverables and the grief. Another harmful and common type of spam is phishing. Phishing is an increasingly common type of spam that can lead to theft of your personal details such as credit card numbers or online banking passwords. Phishing is becoming a progressively more common form of online theft by tricking users to hand over control of their online accounts, including eBay accounts, through forged emails and websites. The spam mail and website looks authentic so it’s easy to be caught out. Spyware (basically software which spies on you!) installs itself onto a user's computer by stealth, subterfuge and/or social engineering and sends information from that computer to a third party without the user's permission or knowledge. Spyware installation requires some sort of user action but can be installed on your computer without you knowing by opening emails which spyware encoded somewhere within the message, through a virus, by visiting a ‘dodgy’ website, by clicking through on pop-ups or graphics and by using peer to peer (p2p) websites for sharing music or video files. The main Spyware threats you should be aware of are:- • Password and information stealers – steal passwords and other sensitive personal information. • Keyloggers – monitor keystrokes with the intention of stealing information such as passwords. • Banking Trojans – monitor information entered into banking applications and banking web forms. • Backdoor Trojans – can contain any of the above functionality, including the ability to allow hackers unrestricted remote access to a computer system when it is online. • Botnet worms – create a network of infected computers, configured remotely to work together to carry out any of the above functionality. • Browser hijackers – reduce browser security settings and/or modify browser settings with the intention of redirecting users to automatic download sites. • Downloaders – install other, potentially malicious, programs without the user’s knowledge. How do I know if I have spyware on my computer? There are many pc tools and programs available to allow you to scan your system to check for known threats and then safely remove them. Your pc running more slowly than normal is one indication that you may be infected. Network performance can also suffer as a result of a spyware attack as the software places extra demands on the system. For a business, this can mean disruption and decreased productivity while the software remains undetected and extra resources are spent on finding and clearing up the problem. Protecting against spyware There are many things you can do to protect your business against spyware threats. A good place to start is with the basics:- - Educate your users – ensure all users understand the need to be cautious when opening attachments, downloading and installing software.
Enforce a User Policy – enforcing a robust, company-wide internet policy to prevent unauthorised downloads, and implementing passwords to prevent unauthorised access to desktop computers. Use technology – install the latest browser and operating system patches, ensure that browser security settings are set correctly and deploy up to date security software.
Unfortunately, running 1 spyware program doesn’t seem to be a catchall and detection and prevention is more successful when multiple programs are installed. These programs must also be kept up to date with the latest files to combat any new known threats. Prevention is always better than cure You can protect yourself and minimise the volume of spam you get. Once you have started to get spam, it is almost impossible to stop it other than by changing your email address. However, you do have rights! Is there anything I can do from a legal point of view? The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR)covers unsolicited direct marketing messages sent by a range of electronic methods, including phone calls, faxes, emails and texts. Depending on the type of communication, different rules apply. If you are a sole trader, partnership or have an individual email address then businesses can only send you direct marketing messages by email if you have given them explicit prior consent or where you have an existing customer relationship. However, if you are a Limited company then they can email you without prior consent. In all cases senders of marketing emails cannot conceal or disguise their identity and must give you an easy way to opt-out and not send you any further marketing emails. If you need to, there is also a way you can complain. The Office of the Information Commissioner is responsible for enforcing the PECRs. For more information go to the following website – http://www.ico.gov.uk. If you receive spam in the UK, the content of which you find to be deceptive or misleading – whether or not it is unsolicited – you can complain to the Office of Fair Trading (http://www.oft.gov.uk) or to your local trading standards department. Hints & Tips. 1. Keep your Systems up to date. Always ensure you are running the latest internet browser and security updates. 2. Install a reputable anti-virus/anti-spam software package. Appropriate software is available for businesses who own a network and are running servers and pcs and for those who may only have desktop pcs. 3. Don't reply to spam. Don't reply, even to unsubscribe unless you know and trust the sender. Answering spam just confirms that your email address is live. 4. Use the junk email filter. This is a feature which is included with your MS Outlook email program 5. Block images in HTML messages that spammers use as Web beacons. A Web beacon can be a graphical image, linked to an external Web server that is placed in an HTML-formatted message and can be used to verify that your email address is valid when the message is opened and images downloaded. 6. Turn off automatic processing of meeting requests and read and delivery receipts. Spammers sometimes resort to sending meeting requests and messages with delivery receipts requested. Responding to meeting requests and read and delivery receipts automatically makes you vulnerable to Web beacons. 7. If a company uses email messages to ask for personal information, don't respond by sending a message Most legitimate companies will not ask for personal information in email. Besuspicious if they do. It could be a spoofed email message meant to look like a legitimate one. This tactic is known as "phishing" because, as the name implies, the spam is used as a means to "fish" for your credentials, such as your account number and passwords that are necessary to access and manipulate your financial accounts. If the spam is from a company that you do business with — for example, your credit card company — call the company, but don't use a phone number provided on the email. Use a number that you find yourself, either through directory assistance, a bank statement, a bill, or other source. If it is a legitimate request, the telephone operator should be able to help you. 8. Limit where you post your email address Be cautious about posting your email address on public Web sites, and if possible remove your email address from your personal Web site. If you must list or link to your email address the best thing to do is hide the address using 'character entity evasion' in your MAILTO command. Your webmaster should be able to do this for you.
9. Disguise your email address when you post it to a newsgroup, chat room, bulletin board, or other public places. For example, you can give your email address as s0me0ne@example.c0m by using the number zero instead of the letter "o." This way, a person can interpret your address, but the automated programs that spammers use cannot. 10. Use multiple email addresses for different purposes It can be very effective to set up one for personal use to correspond with friends, family, or colleagues, and use another for more public activities, such as requesting information, shopping, or for subscribing to newsletters, discussion lists, and newsgroups. This will also allow you to see which address attracts the most spam. 11. Review the privacy policies of Web sites When you sign up for online banking, shopping, and newsletters, review the privacy policy closely before you reveal your email address and other personal information. Look at the Web site for a link (usually at the bottom of the home page) or section called "Privacy Statement," "Privacy Policy," "Terms and Conditions," or "Terms of Use." If the Web site does not explain how it will use your personal information, think twice about using that service. 12. Watch out for check boxes that are already selected When you buy things online, companies sometimes add a check box (already selected!) to indicate that it is fine to sell or give your email address to other businesses (third parties). Clear the check box so that your email address won't be shared. 13. Don't forward chain email messages Besides causing more traffic over the line, forwarding a chain email message or jokes might be furthering a hoax, and you lose control over who sees your email address. If you find this is a problem in your company it is possible to prevent forwarding of email messages. 14. Don't contribute to a charity based on a request in email Unfortunately, some spammers prey on your good will. If you receive an appeal from a charity, treat it as spam. If it is a charity that you want to support, find their number elsewhere and call them to find out how you can make a contribution. |
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5. Block images in HTML messages that spammers use as Web beacons. A Web beacon can be a graphical image, linked to an external Web server that is placed in an HTML-formatted message and can be used to verify that your email address is valid when the message is opened and images downloaded. 6. Turn off automatic processing of meeting requests and read and delivery receipts. Spammers sometimes resort to sending meeting requests and messages with delivery receipts requested. Responding to meeting requests and read and delivery receipts automatically makes you vulnerable to Web beacons. 7. If a company uses email messages to ask for personal information, don't respond by sending a message Most legitimate companies will not ask for personal information in email. Besuspicious if they do. It could be a spoofed email message meant to look like a legitimate one. This tactic is known as "phishing" because, as the name implies, the spam is used as a means to "fish" for your credentials, such as your account number and passwords that are necessary to access and manipulate your financial accounts. If the spam is from a company that you do business with — for example, your credit card company — call the company, but don't use a phone number provided on the email. Use a number that you find yourself, either through directory assistance, a bank statement, a bill, or other source. If it is a legitimate request, the telephone operator should be able to help you. 8. Limit where you post your email address Be cautious about posting your email address on public Web sites, and if possible remove your email address from your personal Web site. If you must list or link to your email address the best thing to do is hide the address using 'character entity evasion' in your MAILTO command. Your webmaster should be able to do this for you.
9. Disguise your email address when you post it to a newsgroup, chat room, bulletin board, or other public places. For example, you can give your email address as s0me0ne@example.c0m by using the number zero instead of the letter "o." This way, a person can interpret your address, but the automated programs that spammers use cannot. 10. Use multiple email addresses for different purposes It can be very effective to set up one for personal use to correspond with friends, family, or colleagues, and use another for more public activities, such as requesting information, shopping, or for subscribing to newsletters, discussion lists, and newsgroups. This will also allow you to see which address attracts the most spam. 11. Review the privacy policies of Web sites When you sign up for online banking, shopping, and newsletters, review the privacy policy closely before you reveal your email address and other personal information. Look at the Web site for a link (usually at the bottom of the home page) or section called "Privacy Statement," "Privacy Policy," "Terms and Conditions," or "Terms of Use." If the Web site does not explain how it will use your personal information, think twice about using that service. 12. Watch out for check boxes that are already selected When you buy things online, companies sometimes add a check box (already selected!) to indicate that it is fine to sell or give your email address to other businesses (third parties). Clear the check box so that your email address won't be shared. 13. Don't forward chain email messages Besides causing more traffic over the line, forwarding a chain email message or jokes might be furthering a hoax, and you lose control over who sees your email address. If you find this is a problem in your company it is possible to prevent forwarding of email messages. 14. Don't contribute to a charity based on a request in email Unfortunately, some spammers prey on your good will. If you receive an appeal from a charity, treat it as spam. If it is a charity that you want to support, find their number elsewhere and call them to find out how you can make a contribution.
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