This year has been extremely tough for many people and businesses. Thoughts go out to those who are suffering directly, but we are also mindful that the pandemic has/is affecting all our customers in some shape or form.
The Coronavirus pandemic has raged on, and while many of our customers have adopted remote working technologies, we have been keeping a close eye on the world of cybersecurity.
Cybercriminals are always active, but they have used the COVID19 pandemic to further their goals with more Phishing email and direct attacks against home workers and the remote working environment. As we head towards Christmas, many of the traditional holiday attack vectors (such as fake parcel-tracking or order confirmation emails) are being used to try and infect computers, steal data and passwords, or both.
TTG has a robust infrastructure, and we use many of the tools we recommend to our customers to try and avoid being caught out ourselves. As an IT Service Provider, we know that we're even more of a target than the average SME and therefore we take great care to protect not only our customers but ourselves as well.
Multiple layers of tech help keep us safe when we are working, and staff education and training help strengthen that robust approach.
We use industry-leading firewall protection to protect our perimeter networks. These not only block unauthorised incoming traffic but also scan the content of both incoming and outgoing data looking for threats or patterns of unusual behaviour.
On the desktop, we use a commercial End Point Protection system (aka Anti-virus) that's always on guard and is updated in real-time for emerging threats
Our email system scans incoming email for likely spam, phishing and targeted attacks and works in concert with the other protections to try and catch-all.
And our Remote Monitoring and Management systems, that allow us to keep an eye on our customer's technology, and provide remote support are kept automatically up to date and scan those systems for signs of trouble.
Of course, all our system and staff logins are protected with 2 Factor Authentication, so if something does slip through the net, its wider access is blocked by being unable to log in to services and servers without the 2FA "6 digit" code.
With over three Ransomware attacks worldwide per second, equating to 239,897 attacks every day, we cannot let our guard down.
If you want to discuss any aspect of your cybersecurity defences or have a question, do please get in touch.
What's coming up in 2021...
Starting in January 2021, we'll be rolling out more protection and offering additional solutions to our customers, and we'll be contacting them shortly.
For the third year in a row, TTG has been awarded as one of Britain's Top-50 IT Support companies. Receiving the award on the 7th of December, Darrin Salt, our MD said "I am immensely proud of our continued status as one of Britain's Top 50 Best Managed IT Companies – confirming what we've believed for a while. Congratulations to our whole team, whose drive, expertise and excellent customer service clearly stand us apart from our competitors." You can read more about the win here: https://thetechnologiesgroup.com/3rd-win-2020/
2021 will be a year of automation. TTG already deploys a variety of systems and tools from helpdesk through to accounting. In the first quarter of next year, we'll be continuing to look at ways to not only improve efficiency but ensure that our customers get even better service without losing the human touch that makes TTG a favourite. If our staff are not having to deal with back-office admin, they'll be freed up to deal with enquiries and look after our clients needs more readily.
One of the new features we are planning to launch is called "HelpDesk Buttons", so if an IT Crisis hits, our customers can summon help, literally at the press of a button. The service also gathers diagnostic data so that we can assist you more quickly, without having to ask questions or request screenshots of error messages. If you are not yet a customer and would like to know more about our support services, do please get in touch.
In other news, TTG will be expanding its support offering to include helpdesk and telephone support in the evenings. With remote workers and our entrepreneurial customers working irregular hours, we feel this will be of excellent service. Operating up to 11 pm, our helpdesk, email support and remote support options will all be available. We'll be contacting our customers early in the new year with more details on this service.
And finally, I'd like to thank our customers, my team, our suppliers, business partners and everyone who has helped us in the last twelve months. There is light at the end of the tunnel, and 2021 is looking more promising. Can I wish you all seasons greetings and a happy new year, I look forward to speaking with you all soon, and in the meantime, please stay safe.
