10 Cyber Security Awareness Tips
There’s so much information out there about hacks, threats and cyber security in general that it can be natural to feel overwhelmed and fatigued. You understand that the consequences of leaving your business exposed are severe – but at the same time, you don’t know where to begin to address them. You may even have a security strategy, but you’re not sure how well it would stand up to the…
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What Has Pharma Learned from the Merck Cyber Attack
If you had to make a list of some of the most pressing issues that we’re facing as a society, cybersecurity would undoubtedly be right at the top. Cybersecurity is a pressing issue to pharmaceutical businesses in particular, for a significant number of reasons. In 2017, one study revealed that about 54% of companies experienced one or more successful attacks that compromised data and/or their larger IT infrastructure at some…
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Should You Hire an onsite Jr IT Support Specialist?
If I had to make a list of some of the most common questions I get when speaking to customers with high urgency needs is, “should I hire a junior IT staff?” would undoubtedly be right at the top. It happened to me again, just this morning when I was on a conference call with a prospective client and we were attempting to preliminarily forecast their technology needs. This particular…
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The Era of the VCIO: What Is It and Does It Really Matter
As someone with several decades of experience as a managed services provider under my belt, I’m often struck by how quickly technology continues to change the world around us. Thanks to IT, entire industries have been disrupted over the last few years to the point where they barely resemble the initial functions from where they were originally created. This is very true of organizations operating in high tech spaces, but…
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IT Compliance Management: The Strategic Approach to IT Compliance
I was talking to a prospective client the other day and the subject of DFARS/NIST DoD compliance came up. Obviously, cyber security is one of the most pressing issues of our age and when you’ve got the Department of Defense watching over you, that’s a pretty big deal. I asked him a little bit more about what he was currently doing to maintain that compliance, and his response made my…
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Controlling the Cyber Security Costs: Why It’s a Lot Easier Than You Think
One of the common themes that’s permeated a lot of the meetings I’ve been having with both current and prospective clients lately can all be summed up in a single word: security. These chats may not, however, be taking the shape you probably think they are. Yes, cyber security is critical and it’s an issue that is only getting more pressing as time goes on. But I’ve also found that…
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Attention CFOs: Reduce Your Information Technology Expenses Now
The other day, I was having a conversation with a friend of mine who also just so happens to be a Chief Financial Officer (CFO). As is the case more often than either of us would like, our friendly chat quickly turned to business. He asked me how some of our clients budget their capital expenditures for IT, since they’re oftentimes large, up-front investments that are meant to be used…
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M&A Due Diligence: Are You Preparing for an Acquisition? Don’t Forget About Your IT
Being at one of the leading IT services firms in Boston, Cambridge and the greater New England area, one of the major things that excites me every day is the fact that we often find ourselves in the epicenter of biotech and pharma innovation in the modern era. In addition to helping break new ground in terms of healthcare technology, that also means that we often find ourselves dealing with…
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IT Compliance: What You Need to Know about GDPR Compliance
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a regulation requiring businesses to protect the personal data and privacy of European Union (EU) citizens for transactions that occur within EU member states. Every company conducting business within the EU will need to comply to these strict new rules by May 25th which will likely cause concerns and heightened expectations for security teams due to the broad, yet stringent nature of the GDPR requirements.
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What Has Changed From PCI DSS 3.1 to PCI DSS 3.2?
The Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) has published a new version of the industry standard that businesses use to safeguard payment data before, during, and after purchase. PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) version 3.2 replaces previous versions in addressing the growing threats to customer payment information.
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Cyber Security Policy Starter Kit:
10 Critical Policies That Every Company Should Have in Place
