Zoom’s 90-Day Security Plan

On April 1, 2020, Zoom announced that it had a 90-day plan to address the numerous security concerns and criticisms that had plagued many users. The crux of the issue was that Zoom links were commonly being shared on social media… effectively opening these meetings to anyone who could find that link. As a result, the concept of “Zoombombing”—unauthorized users hijacking meetings and sharing offensive content—was born.

After numerous attacks were waged against organizations of all kinds, Zoom saw that it needed to make some changes. Therefore, on April 1st, the company announced that it would be pausing any new features to focus specifically on those related to the platform’s security. These include:

• Passwords are now required to access all meetings
• Waiting Rooms (a space where a meeting’s guests had to wait to be approved by the host) are enabled by default
• The default settings only enable the host to share their screen

Furthermore, Zoom’s acquisition of Keybase has enabled them to incorporate end-to-end encryption. Other internal changes are also now in place including a bug bounty program, deeper penetration testing, and other security improvements.

Some Brief Controversy

However, Zoom has not escaped all criticism as it has made these changes. In June, CEO Eric Yuan shared that the end-to-end encryption feature would be exclusive to paying users. Once users and security advocates alike spoke out about this policy, Zoom quickly walked this policy back. While it is still rolling out this capacity, and it may interfere with some other features, Zoom is also actively planning for the future with its next improvements already planned out.

So, is Zoom Safe to Use?

Compared to where it was? Absolutely. However, you may still want to take what you plan on communicating into account when deciding whether to use Zoom for certain conversations, just to be safe. Erring on the side of caution is always the better option when your business communications are involved.

Whatever your business’ technology needs may be, Patriot Tech Services Inc. can help you find and implement the solutions to fulfill them. To learn more about what we have to offer, give us a call at 877-874-4629 today.

The fact is that everyone has those devices that they use once in a great while, whether they’re for personal use or for professional purposes. Consider a video camera: for many individuals, it only comes out at birthdays or events, and oftentimes, the same can be said of those that businesses keep on hand.

However, the batteries that power video cameras—and a great many other devices, for that matter—simply weren’t designed to sit idly by and go unused for long periods of time. The battery could see its life diminished, or even explode.

With that in mind, consider how many rechargeable devices you have that you haven’t touched for some time, and the potential risk that’s just sitting there.

How to Safely Store Rechargeable Devices

Whenever these devices are to be stored for extended periods of time, the recommendation is to do so with them hovering at about 50 percent battery life. They should be taken out and refreshed once every three to six months and should always be kept someplace cool and dry.

If the battery hasn’t been used in some time, make sure to double-check that it isn’t damaged before you try to use it. If it turns out to be time to dispose of it, you need to ensure that you are doing so properly.

On the topic, devices like smartphones, laptops, and tablets follow a few different rules. These devices will only lose potential battery life after being completely expended and recharged around 500 times. Furthermore, they can be left plugged in without damaging the battery or contributing to the 500-recharge limit.

Why Should a Business Care?

We’ve already gone over the potential risk that all your personal devices could potentially pose. Now, take a moment to consider how many devices are stored in the office, and how much these devices could cost to replace.

To avoid this expensive circumstance, you need to be sure that your technology is properly maintained so that you have it when you need it. It also doesn’t hurt to have somewhere to turn when it does need repairs or replacement. Turn to Patriot Tech Services Inc. and our team of experienced professionals. Find out what we can do to benefit your business’ technology by calling 877-874-4629.

Why Doesn’t IT Like Me?

If you’ve read this far, chances are that you are what an IT professional would call an “end user,” which is just someone who uses technology to accomplish their goals. Let me ask you something: how many end users would you assume have the same level of technology experience as an IT technician?

Naturally, very few end users have this level of familiarity… otherwise, there wouldn’t be any need for the IT department. As a result, the end user is more susceptible to security issues and threats—the very things that IT is trying to minimize. Looking at it this way, it is understandable that IT might occasionally be frustrated.

While we certainly know better than to try and make you an IT expert over the course of one blog, we can give you some advice to help you avoid such issues and thereby give your IT resource a bit of a break. This is a win-win, because the less time an IT professional spends cleaning up messes, the more time they can spend improving your business processes.

Seeing as it is currently Cybersecurity Month, let’s review a few troublesome tendencies that the average end user slips into that could create issues so that these habits can be broken.

Clicking on Everything

Links are a funny thing. If I were to include a link in this blog, there’s a fair chance that you might automatically click through it out of habit. Even if I expressly told you not to click through it, many end users would click through it anyways.

Let’s test this theory.

The danger here is simple: cybercriminals know how tempting it can be to click on a link, how automatically so many of us tend to do so. This is why the use of misleading links is such a major part of a phishing strategy—basically, the “made you look” of cybercrime. Rather than bringing you to the page you anticipated, a phishing attack might install malware, or create a fraudulent lookalike page to steal whatever data you input.

One of your users falling for a phishing attack is all it could take for a cybercriminal to bypass your network security, so it is important that your team knows why clicking links is more dangerous than they would expect. Make sure that, before clicking, your team members hover their cursors over any links to confirm where they will go, and when in doubt, to not click.

Installing Unapproved Software

Similarly, the “Install” button can be very tempting for an end user. The problem? That helpful-looking online application or browser add-on could easily subject your network to compatibility issues and security threats.

Considering this, you should insist that—unless a program is sourced from an operating system’s official marketplace, or your IT department has already vetted it—a user should never install anything. Ideally, they wouldn’t install it anyways, relying on IT to properly supply and configure the solutions needed for the job.

Poor Password Hygiene

Few other best practices are as frustrating for an IT technician to repeat as the guidelines for proper password creation and management. As the current standard in identity authentication, it is beyond important for you and your users to comply with assorted password rules and requirements, such as:

• Using a different one for each account
• Avoiding common password combinations and conventions
• Keeping them private, instead of sharing their passwords
• Memorizing them, instead of writing them down

If these practices are not followed, your business is essentially inviting in security issues, which IT then must deal with.

You may consider making IT’s job somewhat simpler by implementing a password management solution. This piece of software saves all a user’s passwords in an encrypted vault that is only accessible by using a single master password. This ensures that the user always has access to their necessary passwords when they need them, while also reducing the number they need to remember to one.

That way, there’s no longer any excuse for slacking in their password hygiene, and your business’ security benefits as a result.

A cyberattack is leveraged against a business just about once every 39 seconds, so you can’t afford to have your users short-change the defenses you have in place. IT has enough to worry about without this contribution. Patriot Tech Services Inc. can help you out with our managed IT services, taking over some of their responsibilities and helping them to accomplish their goals.

To find out more about the managed services we offer and their operational benefits, reach out to us at 877-874-4629.