It may be hard to believe, but Windows 7 is now 10 years old. In computer years, that’s ancient, which is why Microsoft will stop supporting the OS on January 14, 2020. 

This means that if you have computers running Windows 7 in your business, you will need to take action before the end of support date. To help you understand the implications of this change for your business, and to jumpstart your planning, here’s a list of frequently asked questions about the end of support for Windows 7.

Every week, new cyber security tools come on the market for small and mid-sized businesses. Tools that previously were only imaginable for government entities and the largest enterprises are now priced at a level at which most businesses can use them to keep their data—and their customers’ data—safe.

Should your business take advantage of these tools? Absolutely. From advanced threat detection to penetration testing and patch automation, these tools can make a huge impact on your business’s security—and your ability to sleep at night.

It’s critical, though, to note that cyber security is not a problem that can be solved by tools alone, or even by the right set of tools, in one fell swoop. True cyber security—security that grows and adapts with your business—can only be achieved with an ongoing process of constantly evaluating the risks your business faces and the measures you are taking to mitigate those risks. 

Unfortunately, email remains one of the most effective methods of attack for cybercriminals. That’s why, as a trusted managed services provider, we want to keep both our clients and the community at large up to date on the latest spam schemes to crop up. Awareness is half the battle in cyber security, and we want to do our part to spread it.

To the point: over the last 6 months, the internet has seen a rash of blackmail spam schemes. The most common of these involve emails suggesting that the sender, a hacker, has hijacked the recipient’s computer and recorded evidence of the recipient viewing pornography. The sender threatens to send that evidence to the recipient’s contact list—unless the recipient sends a Bitcoin payment to a provided address.

So, what should you do if you receive one of these emails? Read on to find out

We’ve all experienced lost productivity due to technical difficulties. Slow-loading computers, bogged-down internet connections, printer issues, and dropped phone calls can turn what should be quick, everyday tasks into long, painful ones.

These issues are frustrating for everyone. But tuned-in business owners know that they’re not just frustrating; they’re costly. Lost productivity translates into fewer sales, less production, longer lead times on key data preparation—all of which ultimately mean a reduction in revenue and profits.

The natural question for business owners, then, is how much productivity—and how much profitability—is your company losing?

At Affinity, we believe that being the best managed services provider for businesses in the Greater Nashville area means striving toward a mission and vision that helps us focus on serving the best interests of our clients and keeping our team excited about their work. At every team meeting, we begin by reading every bullet point in our mission and vision, and discussing ways we have succeeded in—or could do better at—living up to them.

To help us carry this practice with us into our daily work managing, supporting, maintaining, and strategizing our client’s IT, our owners, Sean and Betsy Wright, decided to boil the essence of our mission and vision down into a single core values statement.