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Harnessing AI in the Workplace: Key Trends and Strategic Insights for 2024
The Acceleration of AI in Business The rapid pace of technological progress is undeniable, especially with the recent surge in AI tools like ChatGPT. Artificial intelligence (AI) is driving this transformation, with companies swiftly adopting AI solutions and software providers such as Microsoft integrating AI into their platforms even faster. The primary goal of AI adoption is to: Streamline operations Automate tasks Minimise errors Increase business output The 2024 Work Trend Index, a joint report ...
The Do’s and Don’ts of Data Breach Damage Control: Avoiding Common Pitfalls
Data breaches are an unfortunate reality for businesses of all sizes. When a breach occurs, the immediate response is critical. How a company handles the aftermath can significantly affect its reputation, financial stability, and legal standing. The average cost of a data breach has soared to more than 7 million AUD. Effective damage control requires a well-planned approach, yet common pitfalls can worsen the situation. This article outlines key steps for managing data breach damage ...
Elevate Your Customer Experience: Innovative Technologies Shaping Customer Service
Customer service is fundamental to the success of any business. As customer expectations evolve, companies must adapt their strategies and tools to meet these changing demands. Did you know that 55% of customers prefer self-service options over speaking to a representative? Technology is pivotal in this shift, providing innovative solutions that enhance efficiency, personalisation, and overall satisfaction. So, what technologies can improve your customer experience? Below, we’ll explore several currently transforming customer service options and ...
Work Smarter with Copilot: Enhancing Efficiency and Communication in Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams continues to advance as a central hub for communication and collaboration in the modern workplace. With the integration of AI-powered Copilot, Teams is redefining how businesses can streamline workflows, boost productivity, and unlock new value. Recent updates to Copilot in Teams include: Enhanced agent capabilities Smarter AI interactions New features that enable teams to work more efficiently Let's explore the latest enhancements to Copilot in Teams, including new features and intelligent agents, and ...
Unlocking Success: 7 Ways Small Businesses Can Leverage AI for Growth
Artificial Intelligence is no longer just for big-budget companies. Today, small businesses can access AI tools that enhance operations, improve customer experiences, and increase profits. The emergence of affordable AI solutions has opened up opportunities for small businesses to harness powerful technologies without breaking the bank. This post will explore seven effective ways to use AI to thrive in a competitive market. Streamlining Customer Support with AI Chatbots Many small businesses need more customer service ...
Effective Data Lifecycle Management: Balancing Security, Compliance, and Accessibility
Data is one of a business's most valuable assets, but managing it throughout its lifecycle can be complex. Data Lifecycle Management (DLM) refers to the processes and policies governing how data is handled, stored, and disposed of. As businesses continue to generate and store vast amounts of information, effective DLM becomes increasingly essential. Successfully navigating DLM challenges requires a comprehensive strategy that balances security, compliance, and operational efficiency. What is Data Lifecycle Management? Data Lifecycle ...
6 Essential Steps to Strengthen Your Email Security and Protect Sensitive Data
Email is a vital communication tool for businesses and individuals, but cybercriminals frequently target it. As cyberattacks become more sophisticated, strengthening email security is more important than ever. A staggering 95% of IT leaders report that cyberattacks are becoming increasingly complex, and over half (51%) have already encountered AI-driven attacks within their organisations. By implementing proactive security measures, you can safeguard sensitive information, prevent unauthorised access, and maintain the integrity of your communications. Here are ...
Travel Smart: How to Protect Your Tech on the Go
Travelling with technology is now essential. We depend on our devices for work, communication, or entertainment. However, travelling exposes these gadgets to theft, damage, and loss. Here are eight best practices for keeping your devices safe on your next trip to help you avoid tech troubles. Use Protective Cases Invest in high-quality protective cases to safeguard your gadgets from bumps, drops, and scratches. Choose sturdy, snug-fitting cases. For laptops and tablets, opt for hardshell cases, ...
Tackling Technical Debt: 8 Strategies for a Streamlined IT Environment
Is your software system tangled in technical debt? Has your company’s software system gone from sleek and agile to a tangled mess of shortcuts, patches, and workarounds? Welcome to the world of technical debt. This hidden saboteur accumulates over time, threatening your efficiency. What Is Technical Debt? Think of technical debt as the interest on a loan you never meant to take. It builds up when companies opt for quick IT solutions instead of investing ...
Protecting Your Business: The Importance of Software Supply Chain Security
In today's connected world, the software your business relies on is part of a more extensive network, whether installed locally or used via the cloud. You protect every stage of the process that develops and delivers your software. Each step plays a role, from the tools developers use to how updates reach your system. Any breach or vulnerability in this chain can lead to severe consequences. A recent example is last July's global IT outage, ...
Avoid the Rush: A Step-by-Step Guide to Upgrading from Windows 10 to 11
Windows 10 has been a reliable system, but its time is nearing an end. Microsoft will stop supporting Windows 10 on 14 October, 2025. After this date, there will be no more security updates, patches, or support. Upgrading to Windows 11 is crucial, especially for businesses managing multiple systems. This isn’t just about accessing new features; it’s about maintaining security, speed, and performance. Why You Should Upgrade Now Security Risks Once Microsoft ends support for ...
Empowering Your Workforce: Strategies for a Mobile-Optimised Workspace
In today's fast-paced business environment, adaptability is critical. Modern workspaces extend beyond traditional office walls, allowing employees to collaborate effortlessly from anywhere - whether enjoying coffee at a café or relaxing at home. This is the power of a mobile-optimised workspace, a true game-changer for productivity and performance. Did you know that 51% of employees use company-approved apps when working on mobile devices? Why Optimise for Mobile? The contemporary workforce operates differently. The rigid 9-to-5 ...
Unlocking the Full Potential of Microsoft 365: Essential Settings for SMBs
Microsoft 365 is a robust suite of tools designed to boost productivity and collaboration, particularly for small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs). However, to truly harness Microsoft 365's full potential, it's crucial to optimise its settings. Without doing so, you may find yourself utilising only a fraction of your capabilities. Are you ready to maximise your Microsoft 365 business subscription? This blog post will walk you through critical settings that can elevate your use of Microsoft ...
6 Smart Office Trends Transforming the Modern Workplace
The office environment is experiencing a significant transformation. Sterile cubicles and repetitive routines are becoming a thing of the past. Modern smart offices are now centres of innovation, designed to empower employees, streamline workflows, and enhance collaboration. Technology is at the heart of this evolution, with intelligent features seamlessly integrated into the workspace. But with so many options available, how do you start? Here are the top six innovative office trends worth considering. They can ...
The True Cost of IT Downtime: Why Investing in Prevention is Essential for Your Business
Picture this: you walk into your office on a hectic Monday morning, eager to kick off the week. But something's off. Computers are frozen. Phones are dead silent. The internet is eerily still. Your business has come to a standstill – the victim of an IT outage. It's a nightmare for any business owner, and the initial frustration is just the beginning. Beyond the immediate disruption, hidden costs can severely impact your bottom line. Let's ...
The Future of Task Automation: Turning Challenges into Opportunities for Small Business Growth
Running a small business can feel like a whirlwind—constantly juggling numerous tasks and roles while racing against the clock. What if you could reclaim some of that precious time? Enter task automation: your secret weapon for streamlining workflows and boosting productivity. Small businesses can benefit significantly by automating routine and repetitive tasks, freeing up valuable time and resources. Each minute saved can lead to greater productivity and profitability. This guide will introduce you to the ...
Stay Ahead of AI Security Threats: Best Practices and Partnerships
Artificial intelligence (AI) revolutionises industries by offering innovative solutions and automation capabilities. However, this advancement brings a pressing concern: AI-driven data breaches. As AI becomes deeply integrated into systems, the risks escalate due to the sensitive data it collects, analyses, and utilises becoming a prime target. A recent study on AI security breaches has revealed a stark reality. Over the past year, 77% of businesses have reported experiencing AI breaches, which pose significant threats such ...
Reporting Phishing Attempts: Strengthening Cybersecurity Measures
Phishing has long been a threat, but now, with the integration of AI, it has become significantly more dangerous. Enter Phishing 2.0: more intelligent, persuasive, and increasingly difficult to identify. Recognising and comprehending this evolving threat is now more crucial than ever. Recent studies reveal a staggering 60% rise in AI-driven phishing attacks, underscoring the urgent need for heightened awareness. This trend serves as a stark reminder that phishing tactics are advancing. Understanding how AI ...
Elevating Remote Work Security: Best Practices and Expert Advice
The emergence of remote work has reshaped the contemporary workplace landscape. Traditional office schedules and commutes have given way to greater flexibility. However, alongside this freedom comes a fresh array of challenges, notably cybersecurity threats. Remote work setups frequently expose organisations to vulnerabilities in their data and systems. Seventy-three per cent of executives acknowledge that remote work heightens security risks. Nevertheless, effective risk mitigation is achievable. Below, we provide essential security practices tailored for remote ...
Navigating Technology: Building a Productive and Inclusive Workspace
The era of cluttered desks piled with papers and rows of filing cabinets is over. Today's office spaces are vibrant centres of innovation where technology takes centre stage in driving transformation. Harnessing the right technological tools can profoundly enhance your team's productivity by streamlining workflows and fostering seamless collaboration. Is your company maximising technology's potential? This article delves into how technology fuels productivity in the modern office. We'll examine its benefits and offer insights on ...
Data-Driven Decision-Making: Leveraging Insights for Strategic Advantage
Data serves as the lifeblood of contemporary businesses, fueling insights, steering decision-making processes, and ultimately moulding a company's success. However, managing data can swiftly become overwhelming in today's information-rich environment. With scattered spreadsheets, isolated databases, and inconsistent formatting, a data management nightmare emerges, preventing the effective harnessing of this invaluable resource. This guide aims to chart a path toward data management triumph. It delves into the challenges of inadequate data management, provides a blueprint for ...
Future-Proofing Your Business: The Case for Ongoing Security Investments
Cyber threats pose an ongoing challenge for business owners, with hackers continually evolving their tactics to exploit vulnerabilities in computer systems and networks. Regardless of size, businesses must adopt a proactive cybersecurity approach; regular vulnerability assessments are a cornerstone of this strategy. These assessments systematically identify and prioritise weaknesses in IT infrastructure that malicious actors could exploit. While some businesses might consider skipping vulnerability assessments due to cost or inconvenience or believe they are only ...
Empower Your Team: Harnessing the Power of Microsoft 365 Copilot
What are some key factors that can drive small businesses forward? Efficiency, productivity, and innovation are among them. Microsoft has extended the availability of one of its most dynamic tools to SMBs, which could be a game-changer for growth. Copilot for Microsoft 365 is a powerful new addition to the M365 suite. Initially exclusive to enterprise customers, Copilot is now accessible to businesses of all sizes with Microsoft 365 Business Standard or Business Premium subscriptions. ...
Unlocking the Benefits of Zero Trust Security: Avoiding Common Pitfalls
Zero-trust security is a game-changer in cybersecurity. It breaks away from traditional perimeter-based security models and meticulously examines every connection attempt, ensuring continuous verification before granting access to resources. This approach significantly enhances security and reduces the risk of unauthorised access. According to a survey, 56% of global organisations consider adopting Zero Trust as a top or high priority. While this approach brings substantial security benefits, transitioning to it poses several challenges. Encountering these hurdles ...
Email Protection 101: How DMARC and Authentication Protocols Shield Your Business
Have you noticed the buzz around email authentication lately? There's a good reason for it. With phishing attacks on the rise, email authentication has become increasingly crucial in the fight against cyber threats. Phishing remains a top cause of data breaches and security incidents, making it essential for businesses to strengthen their email security measures. A significant shift in the email landscape is underway, driven by the need to combat phishing scams. Email authentication is ...
Transform Your Business Operations: Unlocking IoT Potential with Expert Help
The Internet of Things (IoT) has evolved from a futuristic idea to a game-changing reality, revolutionising industries and redefining business practices. IoT encompasses a range of internet-connected smart devices, from production line sensors to energy-efficient thermostats. Experts anticipate a continued surge in connected devices worldwide, projected to grow from approximately 15 billion in 2023 to 21 billion in 2026. This exponential growth underscores the need for businesses to be prepared and equipped to integrate these ...
Protect Your Device: Get a Security Checkup Now!
Have you ever seen a video of your favourite celebrity saying something outrageous, only to realise it was completely fake? Or perhaps you received an urgent email that seemed to be from your boss, but something about it didn't seem right. Welcome to the world of deepfakes – a rapidly advancing technology fueled by artificial intelligence (AI) that creates synthetic media, often videos or audio recordings. These creations can look and sound incredibly real, but ...
Securing Your Digital Future: Schedule Your Data Security Assessment Now!
As cyber threats continue to evolve rapidly, it's imperative to stay proactive. Safeguarding sensitive information has become non-negotiable in today's digital landscape. With data security threats growing in complexity and frequency, adaptation is essential. As we enter 2024, we anticipate both promising advancements and persistent challenges in the cybersecurity realm. According to recent surveys, over 70% of business professionals affirm the value of their data privacy endeavours and report experiencing significant benefits as a result. ...
Unlocking Business Software Potential: Expert Support for Optimal Management
Calendars, task lists, and project planning are vital tools in business operations. Many individuals rely on Microsoft's suite of apps to facilitate these processes, including Planner, Microsoft To Do, and Project for the Web. While these tools are instrumental in maintaining workflow efficiency and promoting task accountability, they operate as separate applications. As a result, navigating between them can prove cumbersome, adding unnecessary complexity to workflows. On average, employees find themselves toggling between 22 different ...
Maximising Efficiency: A Guide to Cloud Optimisation
Cloud computing has transformed business operations, offering scalability, flexibility, and cost-efficiency. However, it also brings a challenge known as cloud waste. Cloud waste refers to the unnecessary expenditure of resources and funds on cloud services. For instance, running idle instances, overprovisioning resources, or not using reserved cases are all examples of cloud waste. These services must often be more utilised or optimised to their full potential. Studies show that approximately 32% of cloud spending is ...
Navigating QR Code Risks: A Guide to Phishing-Resistant Practices
QR codes have become ubiquitous in various settings, from restaurant menus to flyers and posters. They offer a convenient way to access online content by scanning it with your smartphone camera. However, the surge in the popularity of QR codes has brought about a dark side, with cybercriminals exploiting this technology for malicious purposes. Scammers generate fraudulent QR codes, putting individuals at risk of personal information theft, malware infections, or financial deception. Caution is paramount ...
Enhance Your Digital Defenses: Expert Guidance on Microsoft Security Copilot and More
In the ever-changing world of cybersecurity, organisations face daunting challenges. They must process enormous volumes of data while ensuring rapid and effective incident responses. The complexities of maintaining an organisation's security posture add to these challenges, making the need for a solution like Microsoft Security Copilot, all the more critical. Introducing Microsoft Security Copilot—a groundbreaking, AI-driven security solution unlike any other. This tool offers personalised insights, equipping your team to strengthen your network. It integrates ...
Building Cyber Resilience: Schedule Your Cybersecurity Assessment Now
Cybersecurity undergoes continuous transformations, presenting new challenges and opportunities each year. As we step into 2024, it becomes imperative for organisations to stay informed about the prevailing and upcoming cyber threats. Businesses, irrespective of their size and industry, should strategise accordingly. Remaining proactive is crucial for the protection of digital assets. The cybersecurity landscape is on the brink of notable changes, propelled by emerging technologies, evolving threats, and shifts in global dynamics. In the following ...
Staying Ahead in the Digital Race: Expert Guidance for Small Business Success
Staying ahead in the business landscape often involves embracing cutting-edge technologies. One such transformative force, which is both cutting-edge and affordable, is Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI). Surpassing traditional automation and AI capabilities, GenAI has the power to create content, solutions, and possibilities previously unimaginable, revolutionising the online space. For small businesses aspiring to grow and navigate the competitive landscape innovatively, Generative AI emerges as a potent ally. Its capabilities drive creativity and efficiency and open ...
Navigating the Hazards: A Deep Dive into the Risks of Browser Extensions
Browser extensions are now as ubiquitous as mobile apps, with users often downloading numerous but only utilising a fraction. Google Chrome hosts over 176,000 browser extensions, offering users additional functionalities and customisation choices. Although these extensions enhance the browsing experience, they come with inherent dangers that can pose substantial risks to online security and privacy. This article delves into the perils linked to browser extensions, unveiling potential threats and offering insights into safeguarding your online ...
Upgrade Your Defenses: Embracing AI for a Resilient Cybersecurity Future
A constant stream of digital innovations has shaped our landscape in recent years. The interplay between AI and cybersecurity has become crucial, particularly in protecting valuable information and digital assets. As cyber threats grow more intricate, AI stands out as a powerful ally. It equips organisations with sophisticated tools and techniques to proactively combat evolving malicious activities. This exploration takes a deep dive into the latest AI trends. These trends reshape the cybersecurity landscape and ...
Preventing Breaches: The Power of a Cybersecurity Checkup for Your Business
In today's digital era, data is like the heartbeat of businesses—keeping operations, decisions, and customer interactions pumping. Yet, lurking in the shadows of this data-centric world is the constant menace of data breaches. The fallout from a data breach goes beyond the initial hit. It tends to linger, casting a shadow over businesses for years. Surprisingly, just over half of the costs hit in the first year (51%), leaving the other 49% to unfold in ...
Secure Your Smart Home: Let’s Chat About a Security Check
The incorporation of smart home devices has seamlessly blended into contemporary living, providing convenience, efficiency, and connectivity at our disposal. However, a recent investigation has brought attention to the potential drawbacks of these intelligent gadgets, hinting at the possibility that they might infringe on our privacy. While it has become commonplace to welcome these devices into our homes, examining their privacy implications is crucial. In this discussion, we will explore the potential surveillance risks associated ...
How to use AI in your business
Let's be honest – AI can be overwhelming. The hype is everywhere, promising to revolutionise every aspect of business. Every business we’ve spoken to about including AI in their technology wants to do it but doesn’t know how. As a business leader, how do you cut through the noise and strategically leverage AI to achieve tangible results? This blog post aims to be your no-nonsense guide to AI implementation from a strategic perspective. We'll start ...
Strategic AI Integration: Tips for Establishing Effective Staff Guidelines
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a potent tool that elevates your workforce's productivity, efficiency, and creativity. However, its implementation comes with challenges and risks that businesses must navigate to harness its benefits effectively. Businesses must set clear ethical guidelines, often called "AI rules," governing staff interaction with AI. This ensures transparency in the use of AI for handling business data. Employees may only utilise AI with established guidelines, leading to missed opportunities for significant time savings. ...
Defending Your Business: Insights into the Surge of Cyber Threats in 2023
The ongoing battle against cyber threats has reached a critical juncture in 2023. Last year we witnessed an unprecedented surge in data breaches, reaching an all-time high in the US. The numbers for the first nine months of 2023, indicate a trajectory that will likely surpass previous records. In 2021, a record was set with 1,862 organisations reporting data compromises. Shockingly, by September 2023, this number had already exceeded 2,100. During Q3 of 2023, notable ...
Strategies for Success: Upgrading Workforce Technology in Small Businesses
Technology plays a crucial role in enhancing efficiency, productivity, and competitiveness. For small businesses, the modernisation of workforce technology presents both an opportunity and a challenge. Modern technology can empower small businesses, enabling them to thrive in the digital era. However, many of them need to catch up on modernisation efforts. For instance, over 30% of small businesses last updated their systems over four years ago. Several factors contribute to the reluctance of SMBs to ...
Unveiling Vulnerabilities: Why Your Business Needs a Cybersecurity Assessment
Highlighting the significance of cybersecurity becomes increasingly critical in today's digitally-driven era. As businesses rely heavily on technology for their operations, the threat of cyber attacks looms larger. Statistics indicate that 66% of small businesses express concern about cybersecurity risks, with 47% lacking the knowledge to defend themselves adequately. This exposes them to the potential high costs associated with a cyber attack. While the imperative for protection is evident, conveying the tangible value of cybersecurity ...
Embracing Tomorrow: The Transformative Power of Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 boasts an impressive collection of cloud-based productivity tools designed to enhance your efficiency and speed in the workplace. Renowned for its continuous innovation, Microsoft has pioneered the industry. Introduced initially as Office 365 in 2013, M365 was among the earliest all-in-one cloud tools. Today, Microsoft and its business tools stand at the forefront of generative AI technology. Microsoft 365 has integrated remarkable AI innovations within its platform, seamlessly incorporating them into Word, Excel, ...
How much does it cost to migrate to Google Workspace?
How much does it cost to migrate to Google Workspace? Several factors contribute to establishing the cost of a Google Workspace migration suitable for your business. Expenses may differ depending on your existing email hosting, the user count, mailbox quantity, device usage, and the chosen license. In broad terms, migration costs typically fall within the range of $50 to $225 per user. Is Google Workspace right for your business? The Microsoft 365 will indeed be ...
Navigating Digital Transformation: A Strategic Guide to Success
The professional landscape is undergoing rapid transformations due to technological advancements, ranging from artificial intelligence to web3 and the emergence of the metaverse, along with adopting hybrid work models. Technological revolutions reshape workplace communication, collaboration, creativity, and innovation. Join us as we delve into the most influential technology trends shaping the future of work in 2024 and beyond. 1. Artificial Intelligence Revolutionizing the Workplace Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Generative AI are not mere buzzwords but ...
Cybersecurity in 2024: Assess, Adapt, and Defend
Last year, we witnessed a global surge in the cost of a data breach, reaching $4.45 million, reflecting a 15% increase over three years. As we enter 2024, we must stay vigilant against emerging technology threats that can disrupt and harm businesses. Technology's swift evolution presents opportunities and challenges for individuals and businesses. However, not all technological advancements are benign; some innovations threaten digital security, privacy, and safety. This article aims to shed light on ...
The Best Customer Service for an IT Provider
Happy New Year everyone! I hope you got a good break in before the 2024 work year begins. I hope you weren’t hoping for too much sun, as it’s only felt like summer in patches. Our 2023 year finished with a few games of Darts down at Oche on Elizabeth St before heading up to Gingerboy for a banquet for the ages. Earlier in the month, we had our first photo shoot with the team. ...
Unlocking Cybersecurity Excellence: The Power of Password Managers for Your Business
Breached or pilfered passwords pose a significant threat to any organisation's cybersecurity, contributing to over 80% of data breaches. Hackers exploit stolen, weak, or reused passwords as gateways for unauthorised access. Despite ongoing technological advancements, passwords remain ubiquitous in our digital lives, with alternatives like biometrics or passkeys still needing to be replaced. Given this reality, companies face the challenge of securely sharing passwords with employees and facilitating effective password management. In the landscape of ...
Unlocking the Power of Generative AI: A Guide for Small Businesses
The unstoppable advance of AI is reshaping the business landscape. Software companies are swiftly integrating it into various tools, such as Microsoft 365, Salesforce, and more. While concerns about the future of AI persist, its undeniable impact lies in enhancing efficiency. It can generate custom images on demand or draft a company device policy in seconds. Staying ahead in business often involves embracing cutting-edge technologies, even if the future feels uncertain. Enter Generative Artificial Intelligence ...
Empowering Your Cybersecurity: A Comprehensive Approach with Left and Right of Boom
In the dynamic digital landscape, every click and keystroke resonates across cyberspace, contributing to the ongoing battle for data security. Businesses are positioned as guardians and targets, with unseen adversaries harbouring intentions to seize their digital assets. Effectively navigating this challenging terrain requires a two-pronged strategy. Businesses need to equip themselves with a sophisticated arsenal of cybersecurity measures, encompassing both the vigilant guards of prevention (Left of Boom) and the resilient bulwarks of recovery (Right ...
Stay Ahead of the Curve: A Guide to Maximising Microsoft Tools for Work Productivity
Microsoft remains a leader in a constantly evolving tech landscape, pioneering innovations that reshape our digital interactions. The latest update for Windows 11 demonstrates Microsoft's unwavering commitment to excellence. It's not merely an upgrade; it represents a leap into the future of computing. Microsoft proudly labels it as "The most personal Windows 11 experience." Let's delve into some standout features that underscore the significance of this update. Microsoft Copilot: Unleashing Creativity with Your Intelligent Assistant ...
Unlocking the Potential of Microsoft Sales Copilot
"How do you think Microsoft Sales Copoliot can help businesses based in Australia?" was the prompt I used in ChatGPT to see how it viewed the latest AI tool. However, it can’t give an opinion or provide specific information before September 2021. Unsurprisingly, it did provide a list of benefits consistent with my research on Microsoft Sales Copilot and how it would be helpful for Melbourne businesses. AI-driven processes have experienced explosive growth, with software ...
Ransomware Alert: Fake Windows Update Threat
With celebrations of the Pies' victory behind us, no sooner is it horse racing season and attention turns to Flemington. The change from footy to the races brings longer and warmer days, so taking your laptop outdoors for a few moments makes sense. You can enjoy fresh air while checking emails and drinking a short black. It’s easy to get lost in your thoughts in the sunshine. So, when your laptop prompts you to install ...
“Secure By Design” Cybersecurity Practices: Why It Matters
Did you know that last week, cybercriminals hacked a small family-owned builder?[1] Or a small car dealership was attacked due to poor passwords?[2] It's easy to think that cyber threats only exist for large companies like Subway or Dymocks. However, cybersecurity is a critical foundation on which businesses, no matter their size, must rely. The implications of cyberattacks can have far-reaching and long-term consequences that may include significant financial losses, reputational damage, and the compromise ...
The Profitable Path: 18 Sustainable Tech Habits
Over the last few years, the community has discussed lowering emissions and achieving net zero by 2030. The transition to a green energy future is gathering pace as investment in renewables across Victoria takes hold. At the last state election, the government promised a return to the State Electricity Commission (SEC) to help drive down energy prices and lower emissions. But as a business owner or leader, how can you embrace sustainability? Companies worldwide are ...
Top 10 Cybersecurity Mistakes To Avoid
Running a small business in the suburbs of Melbourne may seem a mile away from the corporate buildings that dominate our CBD skyline. You frequently work long hours, often driving in heavy traffic through endless 'big builds' and worrying about cash flow. It's understandable to think you are not a target for cyber crooks looking for their next victim. The media is full of stories of large companies like Medibank and Optus being attacked, not ...
Your Path to Small Business Success: The Tech You Need
The rising cost of living, supply change issues, and a downturn in consumer sentiment are hitting businesses and individuals hard. And running a small business in Melbourne is not immune from economic pressures as we recover from the pandemic. Whether you're a cafe along Flinders Lane, an accounting firm in Williamstown, or a retail store in Armadale, finding a path to small business success can be challenging. However, recent advancements in technology have created a ...
5 Tech Trends Every Melbourne Business Should Know
It’s easy to forget how tech trends have gained traction in homes across Melbourne. Two tech trends that immediately come to mind are smart doorbells and TVs. You might have seen recent footage of Cathy Freeman at the Sydney Olympics in the news. Looking back at that grainy footage you can see how far technology has skyrocketed. Now your TV not only broadcasts incredible 4K pictures streamed on Netflix, but in many cases can use ...
Are Directors Liable for Cybersecurity Neglect?
It's the moment that company boards and their directors have been waiting for. The question of whether directors are liable for cybersecurity neglect looks like it's been answered. During the Financial Review's Cyber Summit in September, Australian Securities and Investment Commission chairman Joe Longo cautioned that company directors could potentially violate their obligations if their firms do not effectively address cyberattacks. This has been hinted at for years, but recent breaches have brought this to ...
Can You Spot A LinkedIn Fake Sales Bot?
LinkedIn has emerged as an invaluable platform for professionals worldwide, enabling users to connect, network, and explore various business opportunities. Since launching in Australia in 2010, LinkedIn has grown in popularity as the preferred way to stay in touch with your business contacts. However, with its increased popularity, LinkedIn is attracting the attention of scammers and fraudsters. Often it's as simple as a connection with someone you know, inviting you to connect via outreach. For ...
Is Your Business’s Cybersecurity Haunted by Hidden Skeletons?
Disney has released its latest movie, Haunted Mansion, in time to entertain the kids during the September school holidays. And if you’re like me growing up in Melbourne, going to see a scary movie wasn’t the only haunted experience you could have. For generations, riding the Ghost Train at Luna Park was terrifying when I was younger. This ride with its ghastly ghouls petrified me…but enjoying a chocolate ice cream on Acland Street afterward was ...
Why Access Management Is Critical For Cybersecurity
It's easy to forget how connected we are both at home and at work. As you leave your car in the station car park and jump on the 7.04 a.m. train to Parliament, you'll likely have already used a handful of cloud-based apps to start your working day - anything from Google Suite to Slack. With the rapid pace of change across digital workplaces, the risk of cyber threats continues to escalate. Poor cybersecurity hygiene ...
Secure Your Business with Cybersecurity Awareness Month
Australians held their breath last month, captivated by the Matildas advancing to the semi-finals at the World Cup. We all watched in awe as their strong defence showed how structured routines are essential for success. Likewise, cybersecurity requires robust defence to protect your digital assets. As you know, defenders block the opponent's advances, intercept passes, and secure the team's territory. In cybersecurity, firewalls, encryption, and intrusion detection systems act as the defensive line, intercepting and ...
Where is the future of work? And how Technology can help your business work from home.
Where is the future of work? Is it fully remote? Is it 100% in the office? Or is it Hybrid? Talking to our clients, it doesn’t appear there is one definitive answer. It’s a matter of what works for your business and client base. We’ll take you through what some of our clients are doing and what are some key considerations to ensure your business has a productive workforce. Can technologies support a hybrid work ...
Data Privacy Laws: Protect Your Business and Customers
Not a month goes by without the clear and present danger of another cyberattack on an Australian business. In the last few weeks, millions of Australians have had their data stolen by hackers attacking Latitude Financial. Many Aussies would be surprised to learn that Latitude Financial held sensitive documents dating as far back as 2005 from the previous owner, GE Capital Finance. Simple, interest-free purchases made at The Good Guys or JB Hi-Fi have now ...
7 Ways to Transform Your Customer’s Digital Experience
"ANZ kills cash…" screams the media as the headline is splashed across news sites and your feed. "Why you soon won't be able to withdraw cash…" Is this the end of cash? Are we all expected to now pay contactless with our smartphones or watches? Well, the move to a cashless society continues to gain pace - with only 27% of all transactions completed by cash post-pandemic. Aside from the convenience of not carrying physical ...
What is Essential 8?
What is Essential 8? The inception of the Essential 8 aimed to foster robust security and operational protocols among Australian government bodies, departments, local councils, and other entities operating in the public domain. Many private enterprises consider the Essential Eight an advantageous starting point for evaluating security measures and establishing a fundamental groundwork for cybersecurity. The custodianship of the Essential Eight is under the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) purview. What are the eight mitigation ...
Microsoft Windows 8.1 Support Has Ended: Now What?
Have you heard of Bankcard? Before VISA and MasterCard, Bankcard was Australia's answer to credit cards. Bankcard dominated the credit card space for several years, with over five million customers at its peak in 1984. But in 1986, a dispute arose between the major banks on whether to include Bankcard in their introduction of EFTPOS. At the time, several banks were actively promoting MasterCard leading to the start of Bankcard's demise. The banks' withdrawal of ...
How we use Business Intelligence (Power BI)
As organisations want to understand their businesses better, more and more conversations are around Business Intelligence or BI. The more meetings we have around BI, the more we realise that outside a specific scope of existing reports and data, owners and management aren't really sure what other insights they need. So inevitably, the question of how we use Power BI or Google Looker in our business is asked. Here is one way we use Business ...
Microsoft Forms: Powerful Way to Survey
I'm sure this always happens to you as it does to me. Your father-in-law sends you an email. He has been out that morning off Mornington, fishing. He's "bagged out" on whiting and snapper and wants to share his haul with you. So in his email, he tells you to check out the attached photo. Except the attachment is missing. Always. So you go back and forth until he works out how to attach an ...
Embrace Threat Modeling for Cybersecurity
Did you know Australians report a cybercrime every 7 minutes? The surging increase in cyberattacks appears to dominate each news cycle. If you feel like it never stops, new data from the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC), the Australian Signals Directorate cyber spy agency branch coordinating our response to cybercrime, supports your view. In the most recent reporting period, ACSC received more than 76,000 crime reports. And there only the cybercrimes Aussies chose to report. ...
Ignite Productivity with Microsoft 365 Copilot
We've all been there. You’re huddled in a meeting room, feverishly brainstorming and sharing ideas. The digital lead passionately discusses tactics to include in the product launch strategy. You try to add your thoughts, waiting patiently for a pause in discussion. Working through new strategies and spending time with your team makes being in the office valuable. And for advocates calling for the end of working from home - the thrashing out of ideas on-site ...
Unlock the Power of ChatGPT (Ethically and Responsibly)
ChatGPT provided this introduction to this article: "As a business owner, you hold the key to harnessing the potential of ChatGPT responsibly. Explore the delicate balance between efficiency and ethical considerations when leveraging AI language models. Gain insights into best practices that promote fairness, privacy, and transparency. Empower your business with the responsible use of ChatGPT, ensuring integrity in customer interactions and maintaining trust in the digital landscape." Does it make sense? Did it make ...
Creating Impactful Dashboards with Microsoft Power BI
It wasn't that long ago that many companies heavily relied on software such as Microsoft Excel to help provide reporting and analytics to manage their business. Working through tabs, filtering data sets and looking at brightly coloured graphs was part of many Monday sales meetings. That's if you had colour toner; otherwise, you looked at monochrome reporting that all looked the same. Thankfully, those reporting days are behind us. Today you can communicate complex information ...
81% Surge in Business Email Compromise: Expert Insights
Imagine you've stepped out for your morning coffee. After a frantic morning of back-to-back meetings, you're in a hurry, so you duck quickly into the café across the street. But, as you go to tap your smartphone to pay, it pings. Another email from your boss. It's marked urgent. Swiping away the notification, you're curious. He is out of town at a conference. As you idly wait, you decide to open the email. Your boss ...
Survive the Unexpected: Small Business Guide
Living in a cosmopolitan city like Melbourne, getting complacent is easy. We have had a challenging few years during the pandemic but living in Melbourne, or Australia more broadly, we are a lucky country. That's not to say we don't have our issues and are not immune from threats ranging from natural disasters to cyberattacks. As you know, Melbourne has experienced two earthquakes in the last few weeks. Fortunately, they have not caused widespread damage ...
Taylor Swift + the Cloud = Bigger than the whole sky
Apologies for the delay in getting this month's newsletter out; it's been a Cruel Summer, I mean Winter. The last time we were this caught up with superstars was when Lady Gaga decided to pose for a photo next to our front door. It's been a crazy end of financial year for us, and the release of Taylor Swift tickets required much attention. Anyone with teenage daughters can attest to this. We've been telling them all ...
3 Proven Ways to Avoid Data Breach Costs
You've undoubtedly found yourself in a fire drill when working in a tall office building in Docklands or along Lonsdale Street. You understand how it feels when you hear the first beep, beep, followed by the whoop, whoop. So you know, by working on the 19th floor... it will be a long way down the emergency stairs to the marshalling point. But here's the thing, practising an evacuation saves lives, and all employees should participate, ...
Employee Monitoring Software: Should You Track Every Keystroke?
As we enter the pandemic's third year, most Melbourne businesses have adopted remote or hybrid working arrangements. So whether your employees are commuting into Southern Cross or logging in from Box Hill, keeping tabs on productivity and morale is a delicate balancing act. The majority of companies across Australia now support some remote work, with statistics showing that: 24% of companies are 100% remote 31% support hybrid office/remote working 45% currently don't allow employees to ...
What can I do to make sure my IT costs remain low without compromising our data and security?
Managing IT costs is crucial for businesses of all sizes. As technology continues to play an increasingly important role in daily operations, investing heavily in IT infrastructure and security measures can be tempting. However, excessive spending on IT can quickly drain a business's resources, leaving little room for growth and innovation. To strike the right balance between cost reduction and data security, companies need to adopt effective strategies that can help reduce IT costs while ...
Is it safe for me to use an open Wi-Fi hotspot?
A client sent me an email from Dubai International Airport. He was very proud of himself as he had worked out how to get onto the Wi-Fi without any support. He even sent me a screenshot of the Wi-Fi connection he was on. I could see straight away it was an open connection, and he was at risk of exposing his data to others on the same Wi-Fi. A quick phone call and we had ...
Ensure your business has a complete backup solution
Over the years, we've received the odd phone call from a prospect. Each time we answer it and hear the question, it sends shivers up my spine. "Our server has died, and apparently, we don't have any backups. Can you help us?" This is the worst-case scenario for a business and a challenging conversation. We want to help, but there's not much we can do. It's heartbreaking. As a business, your data is one of ...
Future Tech Revealed: What’s New at CES 2023?
A quick peek around your home office will uncover a range of gadgets and tech purchases made over the last few years. When we were all stuck at home, you may have invested in new Apple AirPods, upgraded your TV or finally set up your desk with a second monitor to avoid hunching over and squinting at your tiny laptop screen. Perhaps you even put a TV in your home office to watch the footy ...
Virtual Appointments in Microsoft Teams: Beginners Guide
If you’re like me, you will have been spending time over the last twelve months getting back to doing things you love doing post-lockdown. No doubt, if you have been to Melbourne CBD on the weekend, you will see the city is back. Streets are heaving with people, spilling out of bars, restaurants and theatres again. It’s fantastic to see. But one challenge remains - staffing. Especially in the hospitality and entertainment sector. Without enough ...
Fitzroy loses an IT Provider, while Melbourne gains
With a heavy heart, I announce we are leaving our home of Fitzroy after 12 years. One less IT Provider in Fitzroy. The more exciting part of this announcement is that as of June 1, we are moving to our new home in the CBD! From little things… After starting the business around the kitchen table, our (my) first office was a small desk we were able to squeeze into the laundry. When the phone ...
What’s Lurking in Your Home and Putting Your Identity at Risk?
There has been much discussion recently about Melbourne's local councils introducing changes to rubbish bin collections, including the introduction of a new bin for glass. So, many households will now have four bins to sort and put out each week. Depending on where you live, some councils have floated only a fortnightly collection for garbage (aka. the 'red bin'). But for all the talk of sorting, recycling and doing your bit to reduce landfill, no ...
Overcoming App Fatigue: Understanding the Risks
The volume of app notifications and messages we receive daily makes it easy to feel helpless. You'll remember during the lockdowns how much time was spent at your computer on Zoom calls, while your smartphone was reminding you of your next meeting, all the while trying to homeschool. You might have thought things would return to normal. But instead, there continues to be a rise in the number of apps and web tools you need ...
5 Steps For Effective Vulnerability Management
As I sat down to write these tips to manage security vulnerabilities, my smartphone flashed a news notification that criminals had carried out another cyberattack on an Australian company. A financial institution, no less...Latitude Financial. Cyberattacks on major Australian companies dominated headlines in late 2022. But, consider how cybercriminals attacked large organisations like Medibank Private and Optus. With the resources they have to manage their IT securely, how were they still exposed? What does this ...
7 Reasons Your Business Is A Tech Company
Looking back at any TV show or film from 15 to 20 years ago, it is plain to see how advanced our technology has become. For many businesses and companies, the rapid increase in digital tools has created a need to understand an array of systems, software and apps to complete their core function - selling goods and services. So whether you're an accounting firm in Blackburn or a cafe in Richmond, your business relies ...
Lensa AI, Selfy App: Privacy Risk Explained
2010 doesn’t feel that long ago…but in internet years, that’s a millennium ago. So much so, that in late 2010, Instagram launched onto the scene, changing how we view the world. You know, filters on your food pictures, selfies and crafting photographic masterpieces, all with the tap of your smartphone. Isn’t that how smashed avo became a thing? And a rallying call for out-of-touch millennials who were denied purchasing their first home (or so the ...
Cybersecurity Insurance Requirements
If there's one thing that's been keeping me up at night more than the thought of running out of coffee, and what is going to happen to the Roy children in Succession, it's the importance of cybersecurity insurance. I mean, who doesn't love a good insurance policy? It's like a security blanket for your digital assets - except way less cuddly and way more necessary. Lately, I've been talking a lot about how in the ...
Data protection for your business
Instinctively, you reach into your pocket to grab your iPhone. The bride and groom are about to cut their wedding cake as the sun dips behind the hills. You jostle to get into position, ready to grab the photo. Then, raising the iPhone to take a stunning image, it greets you with a blank, black screen. You tap furiously on the screen, forcing the power button to wake it. Nothing happens. Panic sets in. You're ...
Misconfiguration of the Cloud leads to Data Breaches
You're speed walking (... jogging isn't a good idea in the drizzle) up Collins Street towards Parliament station. Quickly you descend underground, heading across the dimly lit concourse towards the Myki ticket gate. You tap your Myki on the reader, and it fails. "Why does this always happen when you're already late home?" You turn to the side and notice everyone is having the same issue. Someone has made a human error, and Myki rejects all ...
Here’s Why You’ll Love Windows 11
Remember when Zoom meetings were the only way to maintain team engagement during a lockdown? You were stuck at home, with endless Zoom meetings back-to-back…looking for anything to break up the day. So once a week, someone would be nominated to help maintain morale (and bust the boredom) by coming to Friday’s meeting with a quick game or fun fact. Sometimes it was more complicated than you thought… Well, Microsoft heard all those pleas for some fun ...
CEO Sends You a Text Message: Fake or Real? Here’s how to avoid being scammed
Imagine you’re walking down Hardware Lane at lunch and suddenly receive a text from your CEO asking for help. The text says they are doing customer visits in Northcote and discover a colleague hadn’t provided the promised gift cards. As they are standing there with the customer, embarrassed, they ask you to pop into Woolies, purchase six $200 gift cards, and text the details immediately. They promise to reimburse you the cost when they return ...
Zoom Phone freed us from sharing Mobile numbers
Late last year we boldly decided to remove our mobile phone numbers from our email signatures quietly. For a business that is so focused on customer service, removing it could be seen as counter-intuitive (pun intended). However, my argument is it will make for a better customer service experience and streamline support queries. We’ve been able to achieve this because we’ve moved our business phone system to Zoom Phone. Zoom Phone is the business phone ...
Protect your business online banking account
Step into the ANZ Bank branch on the corner of Queen and Collins Street in Melbourne to reflect on the glory days of banking. Do you remember a distant time when you would line up to withdraw your wages? Or when the Bank Manager knew your name and helped you with a home loan. This branch is what many Melbournians dub the 'gothic bank'. It would not look out of place as Gringots in the ...
Warning: 500% increase in mobile malware. (Here’s what you need to know)
What is the one thing you notice when you get on a tram, walk down Bourke Street Mall or sit in a cafe? Everyone has their heads down, with a little glow on their face from their mobile phones. Next time you walk down the street to get lunch or a flat white, count how many people you pass with engrossed in the long scroll. It shouldn't surprise you. Or will it? Either way, internet ...
What do U-Haul, Marriott and Optus all have in common? Data breaches
You can hear it before you see it. Thunder claps violently, shaking you... Out the window, you see dark, ominous clouds building over the western suburbs. It's always the way that the heavens open up as you head home. All day you've been putting off updating your password. You know you need to do it today. Otherwise, you'll have IT on your back, forcing you to change the next time you log in. And it's ...
7 Critical Tech Checks Before Travelling
So, that's close. Way too close. The spray is washing up on your face as the boat bumps its way forward over the rapids. Up close, the Rhine Falls are spectacular. Water rushing down over the rock wall and the sheer power of the Falls makes you feel uneasy. The boat continues to tack around the base. You feel nervous. But you know they say, live in the moment. So you're snapping away, even diving ...
The metaverse to change doing business in Melbourne
“Colling-wood…Colling-wood… Colling-wood…” The atmosphere is euphoric, and the crowd is pumping. The Pies lead by 6 goals deep in the third quarter. It's been scrappy, but it's great to have footy back at the 'G. Melbourne is back…well, the traffic certainly is…as it was gridlock on Punt Road trying to get the ground. So maybe it was easier to sit back watching Fox Footy instead sitting high in the sky in the Ponsford Stand with ...
Microsoft unveils powerful upgrades for Teams
What's your favourite venue for a conference or event? Crown? Hyatt? MCEC? Or somewhere in Docklands? Aside from the speakers and networking opportunities, many conference attendees will remember the food during the breaks. It's funny to think for all the time, effort and planning that goes into an industry event or conference, for many employees, it will come down to what's on offer for lunch. If you ask your team members and colleagues, you will ...
These Data Privacy Trends Will Impact Your Business
You know what it's like when you have a new neighbour move in. Questions you ask yourself. Do they have young kids? Any pets? Will you all get along? And like most people, you want to respect each other's right to privacy. But if you live in the outskirts of Melbourne, that can be easier said than done. With Melbourne's rapidly growing population and housing estates bursting at the seams, land availability continues to be ...
4 Steps in detecting a fraudulent email
Your accounts team holds the purse strings of your business. Money flows in and out of your business thanks to this hardworking team. With so much responsibility, a small mistake can mean a high financial and reputation cost to your business. In the last three months, the accounts team of 2 different clients have paid out fraudulent invoices totalling over $75,000. In the last year, that figure is well over $150,000; in the previous four ...
Melbourne Business: Get the inside scoop on what’s changing in cybersecurity insurance
Yikes, $17.55 for a packet of sliced cheese. I mean, lettuce topping out at $11 a few months ago was crushing for the average family grocery bill. It made Taco Tuesday suddenly very expensive. I don't know about you, but cabbage is not a mouth-watering swap for iceberg lettuce. Covid, supply chain issues, a war in Ukraine, then floods have all shattered the price of everyday food on the Coles and Woolies shelves. With families ...
Microsoft Viva helps your business align purposeful goals
Fed Square is bursting at the seams with green and gold Socceroo fans. Flares are flying in all directions, and police are battling to contain the surging crowds, but for the most part, the focus is on the big screen beaming football from Qatar. The excitement for this game has been building for days. Melbourne is pumping, and the jubilation of the Socceroos advancing this far in the World Cup is thrilling. Finally, after the ...
How PowerBI Can Help Your Business Make Better Decisions
Every six months, we email our clients a business survey. We do this to ensure our IT recommendations align with their business goals. One of the critical questions on that survey is in the format of finish this sentence. I could do my job better if I knew... I love this question. It makes everyone pause and consider this carefully. We're so busy doing our day-to-day tasks, we forget to step back and consider how ...
Protect Your Business: Cybersecurity Attack Trends to Watch in 2023
Every. Single. Year. Or so it seems. The West Gate Bridge outbound is shut down to one lane after Boxing Day. So the traffic snarl starts long before the bridge out on the Monash before the Burnley Tunnel. Bumper to bumper, no matter how early you hit the road on the 27th, it's always the same horrendous experience. The sun dances across the dashboard; finally, Spotify is not trying to sell you something for Christmas. ...
Work from Home Tax Deductions 101: How to Claim IT Expenses and Maximise your Savings
As the world of work continues to evolve, more and more employees are finding themselves working remotely. At Intuitive IT, we recognise the many benefits that come with this arrangement, including increased flexibility, reduced commute time and improved work-life balance. First, however, it's essential to understand the tax implications of working from home. We will dive into work-from-home tax deductions and how they relate to IT support. By understanding the deductions available to remote workers ...
7 Zoom Phone (VoIP) Tips to Skyrocket Productivity
You're feverishly tapping your fingers on your thigh. Looking down at your smartwatch. Notifications and reminders keep alerting you to the next meeting, email, missed calls… You’ve been waiting what seems a lifetime in the brightly lit food court. The bloke in front is ordering black bean beef, honey chicken, and rice. The server heaps spoonfuls onto the plastic plate, buckling under the weight. Time is ticking away. It's 1.28 pm. Your next Zoom meeting ...
7 Essential Tips for a Safer Home Security System
"Everybody needs good neighbours…next door is only a footstep away '..." Now, unless you've lived under a rock for the last 37 years, you will have seen at least some of the iconic TV soap Neighbours. Landing on the box in 1985, Neighbours launched in a far simpler time. When sharing a cuppa with Mrs Mangel or beer with Jim Robinson between mowing the lawns was the norm. Melbourne in the 1980s was centred around ...
Outstanding customer service in the IT industry
Happy new year everyone! I hope you are well-rested and ready to tackle 2023. We finished the year on a high with our Christmas Party and a race around the track in Go Carts. James was the winner on the day, dominating the heats and finals from start to finish. Our team also grew by one, with Jai Raghuvanshi joining our team as a trainee helpdesk analyst. Jai (pronounced Jay) recently graduated from Swinburne, where ...
Keep Your Company Secure Without Frustrating Your Employees
Ham. Prawns. Oysters. Hold on, does your mother-in-law eat oysters? Your sister is bringing her new partner. Why does Coles keep running out of glacée cherries? Hold on, is it going to boiling hot on Christmas Day or a washout? Who is going to Queen Vic on the 24th to get the seafood? Maybe it is easier to get it locally? Your mind is spinning. It’s a stressful time. We have all awakened from a ...
5 Microsoft Teams Tips to Boost Productivity
You know there has never been a better time to work remotely. Think about it for a moment. Imagine a pandemic had rocked Melbourne in the early 2000s. Back when we used dial-up internet, mobile phones were the size of a brick and your work was done at your desk. And probably with a desktop computer chained to the floor. Let's not forget we were still sending faxes… Now, let's say your boss made the ...
Conditional Access: Here’s What You Need to Know
You only need to pick up the newspaper or watch Tamara on the 7 pm news to see how much coverage recent cyber attacks in Australia have received. It is easy to pass judgement that hackers are more cunning. Or is something else at play? Here's the thing, you've walked past desks with post-its taped to the monitor. How often is that post-it note a colleague's password? It's astonishing that this still happens in offices ...
Is a Technology Infrastructure Review on your Santa List this Christmas?
“Um…well…that’s interesting. The room falls silent. Shock. Did that happen? You thought it was the most wonderful time of the year. Or it was when you walked into the room. But there is always one joker in your team that thinks their gift is hilarious. While everyone around you is opening up thoughtful gifts like the latest Jamie Oliver cookbook… a pair of scotch glasses, or some Happy Socks…. you're staring at some tea towels. ...
Melbourne Business Owners: 7 Things You Must Know When Buying a Computer
Tripadvisor. Google Reviews. Facebook. OpenTable. Compare the Meerkats. From booking a restaurant to a holiday and buying a new TV, you have more content to sift through at your fingertips to make a buying decision. It's easy to make informed decisions on your next meal, trip or flick. But with so many reviews, opinions and guides, how do you know what to trust? For example, choosing between a restaurant in Flinders Lane versus riverside dining ...
5 Proven Tips for a Successful BYOD Program
"There." You reach back and hand your 5-year-old daughter your iPhone. "Listen, just put on ABC Kids and watch Bluey…so I can…concentrate…this traffic is horrendous." The local council had filled the potholes, only for them to fall apart again. But truthfully, the roads are hidden obstacle courses currently. And peak hour is your new nightmare with traffic back to pre-pandemic levels. Just navigating in the wild, wet weather and bumper-to-bumper crawl along Dandenong Road, you ...
AI leaps forward with Chat GPT
AI technology is advancing at an incredible rate, and it is becoming increasingly difficult to tell the difference between content that is generated by AI and content that is created by humans. AI algorithms are now able to generate highly realistic text, images, and even videos that are indistinguishable from those created by humans. This level of sophistication allows AI to perform a wide range of tasks, from generating personalised responses to customer inquiries to ...
7 Apps Improving Customer Experience for 2023
"C'mon, let's go into the City for the day…" Those words rang in your ears as you watched your mother shuffle along the queue. She was slowly moving the trays forward. The china plates rattle as if they are destined to smash. And the smell of lunch drifting through the air. The mouth-watering food selection...roast of the day, sandwiches and cakes. And the highlight was a frog in the pond. Red jelly, of course. The ...
5 Must-Know Ways to Secure Your Endpoints
Biggest hack in history. Hack reveals the fragility state of cyber security. Customers scammed no longer use their passports. These are a few recent headlines screaming for your attention in the Herald-Sun. And no doubt, it's been a terrifying few weeks for online security for many Melburnians. Did you know that your iPhone can check security risks with a password? (Settings > Passwords > Security Recommendations) So seeing I'm suggesting you do the check, I ...
Protect your business from Insider Attacks
You've always liked Mark. Often you would run into him grabbing a flat white in the cafe downstairs. He was friendly enough and worked on a different floor, and like you, he followed the Dees. And he was thrilled with their first flag in fifty-seven years. Mark works in digital marketing, looking after Meta ads. You know, the ones that seem to follow you on both Facebook and Instagram. But over the last few years, ...
Microsoft Viva Sales Promises to Transform Your Customer’s Journey.
(What does it mean for you?) How often are you standing in the queue for self-serve checkout and wondering where all the staff have gone? Both Coles, Woolies, and soon Aldi offer self-serve checkouts. Like most people, you probably drop into the supermarket on the way home from work. It's always busy. You’ve decided to do a quick Woolies run to grab something for dinner. It probably happens more often than you like. So juggling ...
9 Essential Things You Must Do When Employees Leave Your Business
For decades, Flinders Street Station has played an integral role in Melbourne's life. The hustle and sounds of peak hour in the city. People rush about and look down at their screens. Everyone is going in every direction, converging on the corner of Flinders and Swanston. All in the mad scrambled to get into the office. And many times, made plans for that night with workmates, friends or loved ones. Catch a show at the ...
Why Zoom Phone (VoIP) has killed voicemail forever
Incredibly, VoIP, video conferencing, or Zoom Phone usage has surged by over 210% during the pandemic. I mean, at one stage, everyone was on Zoom Phone calls or talking about how they had another Zoom call coming up. As you walk around Melbourne now, catch up with your mates for weekend barbie or walk the dog along Elwood foreshore, it's hard to believe we were trying to do all these things on Zoom. Remember in ...
The Cybersecurity lessons your business MUST learn from the Optus hack
I recently listened to a live stream event from Cyber Security Connect, discussing what businesses should do and know following the Optus Data breach. The event was streamed live from the Land Forces Exposition in Brisbane and was chaired by Phil Tarrant - Director of Cyber Security Connect. His two guests were Major General (Ret'd) Marcus Thompson, AM, PhD, who is the Inaugural Head Information Warfare for the Australian Defence Force and Adam McCarthy, CEO ...
Microsoft Defender: Protecting you at work, home and the beach
You can sense the excitement in the air. The footy is back at the MCG in September. Where it rightfully belongs. The Melbourne Show is back with overpriced show bags, carnival rides and a few farm animals to balance it out… Melbournians are free in Spring for the first time in three years. As the city streets and gardens bloom in the warming Spring weather, your mind wanders to weekend getaways. Or longer summer holidays ...
What is an MSP? And what to look for when choosing one.
Managed Services Provider (MSP) (Dry and dull) definition of an MSP OK, let's start with the textbook definition of an MSP, thanks to Gartner. A managed service provider (MSP) delivers services, such as network, application, infrastructure and security, via ongoing and regular support and active administration on customers’ premises, in their MSP’s data center (hosting), or in a third-party data center. What is an MSP in English? An MSP will manage and maintain your IT ...
Security Vulnerabilities: Doesn’t it sound exciting? (But essential for all businesses)
Lining up. Queueing. Waiting. Call it whatever you want. But queuing must surely be one of the frustrating things we must do. 9/11 brought enhanced airport screening, which is now commonplace across Melbourne at significant events. Think the footy, Formula 1, tennis and even, at times, conferences. And the pandemic only aggravated it more with QR codes and a Covid marshall needing to check it. For many, they are just going through the motions. You're ...
How to avoid a crippling cyberattack on your business
What do Lygon Street, Toorak Road and Barkly Street all have in common? How are these Melbourne communities tied together? No matter where you find yourself, each of these villages is a thriving and bustling local community. Ask any Melbourian where the best place to eat a roast pork Bahn-mi with crispy fried crackling is. They'll say Footscray. (Actually, some locals will challenge that. Instead, they will suggest you head southeast to Springvale.) What about ...
7 Microsoft 365 Amazing Secrets You Are Probably Not Using
Do you know some of Melbourne's hidden secrets? An underground cheese cellar discreetly located under Spring Street? Or, if you were looking for some mid-week drinks? You can quench your thirst at one of the secret bars in "a laneway off another laneway". And perhaps the most magical secret of all…a room dedicated to magic and its' history at the State Library. Melbourne is full of hidden gems to explore. But it's only when you take the time to learn from ...
Internet Explorer Support Has Ended. Now What?
What's more Melbourne than a green and gold W-class tram heading up St Kilda Road past the Arts Centre? The W-class trams were like a long-lost friend. They greeted you while strolling along Melbourne's tree-lined streets and boulevards for decades. They carried Melburnians from the footy at the 'G... ...down to Acland Street and out to Coburg. As the years wore on, the trams showed their age with braking problems. Finally, in 1992 the W-class ...
Are you the next Optus? Don’t be a data breach villain
The Optus data breach has highlighted to the general public the importance of cybersecurity blah blah blah "here he goes again talking about cybersecurity..." Yes, I am. With a cybersecurity attack occurring every 39 seconds, we need to continue to talk about this because have you considered what data you hold on your customers? However, I'm not discussing this breach with you as the victim. Instead, I want to highlight some questions about how you stop ...
5 Crucial Digital Workplace Mistakes You Need To Know
Finding a seat on the 7.19 am city loop service to Ringwood seems to be a distant memory for most workers. Once, you struggled to find car parking at the station. And hurried towards the platform. Hoping the heavens didn't open on you in your suit. Of course, if you did find a seat, you'd share the next hour in the packed carriage as the train lurched towards the city. You would wrestle to open ...
Here are 6 Technology Tools You Must Stop Using Now
Things that were once staples of our lives continue to change. For example, take food. Melbourne is the foodie capital of Australia. And you have to look no further than the MCG to see how Melbourians have changed their food habits. Even at the footy. Once, you would sit in the Ponsford Stand eating a Four'N Twenty pie with tomato sauce, watching the Dees take on the Hawks (Go Hawks!). Now, your hunger competes with ...
5 Must-Know Critical IT Policies for Melbourne Business (Small and Big)
You stop stone cold. The streets stand still, and to your right… you're face-to-face with a tram. Somehow you've held on to your piccolo. Even though you're sweating bullets. But the tram driver looks at you and shakes their head. You look back…mouthing "I'm sorry", taking a step back. It drizzles (how Melbourne) as you look around the deserted Bourke Street mall. DJs have moved to one side, but the rest of the mall is ...
5 Powerful Tips to Organise Shared Cloud Storage
Is there anything more Melbourne in the summer than the Australian Open? Balmy summer nights, roof open on Rod Laver Arena and watching the worlds best go head-to-head. Melbourne Park is renowned for hosting the best grand slam globally. But it hasn't always been that way. When premier John Cain moved the Aus Open to Flinders Park, he faced fierce opposition. He turned a public park into a place for a tennis tournament. However, the ...
Prevent costly mistakes with Microsoft Productivity Score
The idea of a four-day week or working remotely by a beach may sound bliss. But it wasn't practical for many businesses until we found ourselves locked down. Businesses and employees adapted quickly to remote working and using digital tools. And suddenly, doing a Zoom meeting from a cafe in Kew or talking to coworkers on a walk around Albert Park lake was the norm. As Melbourne workplaces adjusted, managers started to look for ways ...
5 Critical Steps You Must Do When Your Mobile Phone Is Missing
You're sitting in a taxi, frantically checking your pockets, your bag…where did you put it? Then, suddenly, it dawns on you. As your plane levelled at 35,000 feet, you slid your smartphone into the seatback pocket. But now you are cruising home along the Monash Freeway (sorry, crawling along the Monash). And you can't believe you have left it onboard. It's 2022, and no one wants to go to an airport. Tullamarine is no different. The ...
Remote Workers Targeted for Reply-Chain Phishing Attacks
Ding, you've received an email from your bank about last Sunday's brunch in South Melbourne. How good were the smashed pumpkin and poached eggs with pesto oil? And washed down with a Magic. So why is the bank emailing you on Tuesday morning? You read the email. As a precaution, the bank wants you to change your password due to increased fraud in South Melbourne. You click the link and change your password. And as ...
How Often Do You Need to Train staff on Cybersecurity Awareness?
Phishing training is a critical component of cybersecurity awareness in businesses across Melbourne. But the following scenario is unfortunately all too common. Your staff have completed their annual phishing training, which teaches employees how to spot phishing emails. As a result, you're feeling good about it and expect your people to be extra vigilant. That is until about 5-6 months later… when your company suffers a costly ransomware infection due to an errant click on ...
How Using the SLAM Method Can Improve Phishing Detection
Phishing is usually the number one topic to cover when it comes to cyber security training for your staff… and for a good reason. Over the past few decades, phishing has been the primary method for cyber attacks on businesses and individuals in Melbourne and the wider world. For example, phishing emails often launch ransomware attacks, credential theft, and database breaches. Phishing has remained an ever-present threat simply because it is effective - scammers continually ...
What is SMS Spam and Phishing (Smishing)?
How many random text messages do you receive today, as opposed to a couple of years ago? For most Melbournians, these text messages are much more frequent in 2022. This SMS increase is because retailers and similar businesses have decided it's more effective to bypass your crowded email inbox and text you directly! They probably urge you to sign up for SMS alerts for shipment tracking and sale news. The medical industry is doing something ...
Increase your Home Network Security; to protect your business.
Did you know that the typical home now contains an average of 10.37 devices connected to the internet? The number of internet-connected devices in the house has been growing enormously over the past decade. Homes across Melbourne contain a wide range of phones, laptops and tablets… but half of that average figure consists of IoT devices. IoT stands for Internet of Things. Essentially, that means any other type of 'smart device' which connects to your home ...
Notebook battery-saving Life Hacks
Laptops (or Notebooks) are great because you can use them anywhere, thanks to the internal battery. However, once your notebook starts getting a little older, or you’ve spent too much time at the cafe, and there’s no power point in sight, battery life becomes a problem… Laptop owners often neglect battery health, and as your battery's lifespan gets shorter, you’ll probably wish you had it serviced earlier. Thankfully, there are several things you can do ...
Intuitive IT Business Apple Mac Support
After a whirlwind July, we’ve entered the last month of winter. The days are noticeably longer, and the idea of spring doesn’t seem like a pipe dream. If you’re one of the five people that didn’t travel to Europe during July, then you’ll be like me, hanging out for the warmer weather! One of my favourite new technologies is Dall-e-2 (pronounced Dali). You provide a text prompt, and the AI behind the scenes will generate four ...
5 Ways Microsoft 365 Can Enhance Your Hybrid Office
"Hybrid office" is a relatively fresh buzzword you'll hear used in offices all across Melbourne. A hybrid office means a workplace that caters to a mix of office-based and home-based employees… and now, it's the reality for many Melbourne businesses. This article published by Melbourne University in 2020 predicted that more businesses would have to adapt to hybrid or flexible post-pandemic. Moreover, this study, also by Melbourne University, showed that 70% of people working from home would ...
Which form of MFA should you use?
Melbourne business owners: don’t be complacent! Digital credential theft has been happening all over the world and you are no exception. This form of theft is the reason behind most cases of data breaches in the last few years! So, what is credential theft? Credential theft occurs when someone steals your password to important cloud-based data and other business processes. It is one of the fastest and simplest ways for a hacker to infect your ...
Should You Invest in a Second Monitor?
Imagine this: you are enjoying a nice cup of coffee and croissants from Lune (yum!) while sitting at your desk and enjoying the view of the Melbourne skyline from your office. Then, you look at your monitor and realise you have a mighty task of sorting out tabs/windows currently open. It gets worse if you must split the screen into two for two apps so that you can see both beside each other. Oh! What ...
Beware! 5 Types of Mobile Attacks That Breach Your Phone
Smartphones, iPads and tablets have become an integral part of life and are preferred by people to access the web/apps or communicate with others. These devices have become so popular because of their portability, they can connect to the internet from anywhere! In Melbourne, one of the most used apps is the PTV, which has live updates about trains, trams and buses. Every morning, people are seen using it to get an ETA on their ...
8 Signs Your Computer is Infected with Malware
Malware consists of viruses, trojans, adware, spyware, ransomware, key loggers, etc. These are applications that run malicious code and are used by hackers to steal valuable data. It is often not easy to identify malware unless you are familiar with some of its typical signs. If a computer on your office network is infected and it is ignored, in no time the malware infects all the computers on the same network. This is because malware ...
Protect your business from Tax Time scams
Happy New Financial Year to everyone! We sure hope it will be a happy one. We’ve found the last 12 months more difficult than we initially thought. It was all meant to be rainbows and happy times as we emerged from lockdown. However, we discovered business was reluctant to spend and commit and the cost of business rising, combined with the effects of the “Great Resignation” have caused consternation among business owners we’ve spoken with. ...
Should you Switch to Microsoft Edge?
Making the right choice of a browser is an important decision. Most applications these days are cloud-based and generally accessed through a browser. But which Browser is right for you and your Melbourne-based business? The Internet Explorer browser led the pack around a decade ago, but with that browser now retired, Chrome has dominated the charts for many years. But just because one browser is currently at the top does not mean it will remain ...
4 key reasons to automate your business
During April, Intuitive IT was working hard on creating more efficiencies and automations in the business. In doing so, we thought it would be a good idea to share four key reasons to automate your business. As a Melbourne IT support company, we have access to skill sets that make the process of developing automation a lot easier than most. You would think that this would mean we're running a Jetsons-like world of bots and ...
Automation for Business to save time and money
Save your staff time and money by automating mundane tasks I wanted to start this month’s update by talking about an internal case study in automation and give you a real-world example of how a very small manual task once automated can provide a very big decrease in costs. This is something small business owners should be talking to their IT provider about regularly. Manual tasks within business cost time and money. Automation through the ...
Register your .au domain
Hi everyone auDa, the administrator of Australia's .au top level domain, has announced that .au direct domain names - like intuitiveit.au - will be available from 24 March 2022. As of the week starting 14th Feb, TPP Wholesale will begin taking pre-registrations for .au direct domain names. Successful pre-registrations will be applied by us on your behalf for registration on the 24th of March. What this means is if you own a .com.au domain, you ...
Build automations
I wanted to show you something that we’ve done internally at Intuitive IT to make our lives easier. A special thanks to Gabriel Trintinalia who built this for us. Late last year we moved to hotdesking in the Intuitive office. With hybrid working now the norm, we found being spread out across the office to be counterintuitive. When you do come into the office, you want to make sure that you’re sitting with your team ...
Microsoft 365 Price Increases
Hi everyone We’re now past the “Happy new year” phase of the new year, and Larry David would be pleased it’s all over. So one month in, Microsoft has made a long-expected announcement. But first, something I’m very proud of, and we can build something like this for you too!! Microsoft is announcing changes to their pricing for Microsoft 365. This updated pricing is the first price change since they launched 10 years ago. The prices ...
Switching to a new IT Company? 5 things to look for
When you're in need of an IT company, it's important to do your research. Not all companies are created equal, and some may not be the best fit for your specific needs. Here are five things to look for when selecting an IT company: Choosing the best IT firm may be a difficult task. There are several criteria to consider, and it's critical to ensure you pick the ideal business. Note: If you're a Melbourne ...
Google Workspace (G-Suite) Free-Tier users forced to migrate or pay up
Google is pulling the plug on its G Suite legacy free edition that dates to 2006. It announced the free offering no longer will be available starting July 1, and current users must upgrade to a paid subscription for the newer Google Workspace by May 1 to maintain their accounts and services. Google is requiring users to upgrade to paid Google Workspace subscriptions. This change will be effective starting July 1 2022, and current users ...
Cybersecurity insurance premiums have skyrocketed
Happy new year to you! Hope you had or if you’re lucky, still having a good break. If you are still away from your computer, then don’t read this email now. Instead, take a look at it when you return. I’ll still be here to pester you about Cybersecurity insurance on your return. Yes. We’ve tried to stop beating the “better Cybersecurity” drum too much, but I’m afraid we’ll never really be done with it. ...
Christmas IT Support 2021
1 Week until Christmas There is only 1 week until Christmas, and today the Intuitive IT team winds down for a summer break. I hope the weather is obliging. We’ve pushed all new project work to the new year and we look forward to getting it started once we’re all back on deck. I hope you, your team and your families enjoy the summer break too. It’s fair to say the last 19 months have ...
Understanding the cost of computer failure to your business
Have you ever had this kind of a day? It starts early; very early. You've been lying in bed, and it's still dark outside. You are building that mental to-do list. "First, I need to do x; then I can get onto y. Yep, that's a good plan," you say to yourself. In the shower, "oh, I mustn't forget to do z". OK, good, you are sorted. You make your coffee, sit at your computer ...
Replace your aging computers
November marks our first month sans Eden. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank him for his 10+ years of service, and he certainly deserves a long and uninterrupted break. Michael has some big shoes to fill but that’s ok, I think it will be a perfect fit. November also marks the start of another Movember campaign and Intuitive are right on board. Here’s a link to our donation page. Like last year, our ...
6 Biggest Questions About Windows 11 Answered
Microsoft’s latest operating system is now available to all Windows 10 users. However, before you jump and start upgrading you better read this first. Windows 11 is here. It's been six years in the making and Microsoft has just released the latest version of its operating system — Windows 11. In a time when computers and technology play a more central role in human lives, tech companies are scrambling to deliver the best user experience ...
It’s Time! Migrate your Phone System to the Cloud with Zoom
Many of your business applications have already migrated to the cloud, such as CRM, HRIS, cloud storage, and other productivity solutions. Cloud computing has provided enhanced flexibility, agility, and access to advanced functionality and innovation for these applications. Next up in your cloud migration strategy is moving your outdated on-premise PBX to a cloud service. As you evaluate your upcoming digital transformation initiatives, consider the benefits of moving to cloud communications. With the flexibility to ...
What is a Cybersecurity Audit?
...And the Four Tips for Running One Antivirus software alone won't make sure your business' network is secure. To get a complete picture of your security strategy, you need a cybersecurity audit. Earlier this year, we launched our Cybersecurity resilience audit. A traffic-light report for businesses in Australia to quickly identify how well they are protected against a Cybersecurity incident. However, we thought we'd take the time to explain what goes into an audit and ...
5 Ways Zoom Phone Enables Mobility, Business Continuity
Businesses relying on a legacy on-premise PBX as their primary business phone system face unique challenges now that employees are working remotely. Odds are, these employees were not able to take their office phones home. But legacy, on-premise phone systems by nature make supporting remote users difficult. Oftentimes there are limited options available for remote administration, and support for end-user desktop and mobile apps leave much to be desired. When they are available, mobile applications ...
Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2021
This October marks the 17th annual Cybersecurity Awareness Month. Although we should be thinking about Cybersecurity every month (I know I do) it’s great there is a formal event of such magnitude to keep us engaged between the AFL finals month and Movember! ;) Please keep an eye on our socials for tips and tricks related to securing your business and increasing your Cybersecurity Resilience. So long (for 3 months), and thanks for all the ...
Why On-Premise Phone Solutions Fall Short in Supporting Remote Workforces
With most on-premise and legacy PBX solutions, the use of a desk phone relies on being hardwired to the PBX and PSTN networks. But these outdated phone systems weren’t built to accommodate the large remote workforces that we’re seeing today. Companies that don’t support a bring-your-own-device environment are extremely challenged right now in four key areas: Security: The inability to secure these devices and workflows puts confidential company information at risk with each call, creating ...
What is Managed IT Support?
What is Managed IT Support? Managed IT Support may be a term you've heard about, and you're wondering, "Why does my IT support need to be managed"? That's a very good question. This is usually the first question we get when we talk to prospects. So what is it? Managed IT Support or Managed IT Services is a service that allows you to offload all or part of your IT Support to a Managed Services ...
Ransomware Detection for free
This month we'll talk about how we included ransomware detection for free on our new managed services plans, welcome a new member to the team and lockdown, lockdown, lockdown. In last month’s update, I wrote “August sees Melbourne emerge from lockdown…”. Well, that was short-lived. The struggle is real everyone. We hope you are able to make the most of your exercise time and are staying in contact with loved ones. If there’s anything we ...
Save money on Azure cloud hosting
This month we're discussing how you can save money on Azure cloud hosting, literally saving thousands of dollars, our website and new domain watch list service. August sees Melbourne emerge from lockdown (and then head straight back in), Queensland extends theirs and NSW continue with theirs. Having been there now six times already, our hearts go out to all of you in lockdown and homeschooling or even isolating. It’s a tough road. On the plus ...
Reasons to switch your IT Support Provider
If you're reading this article, something isn't right with your current IT support provider. Sorry to hear that. Most businesses are very loyal to their IT provider so something has gone very wrong or it hasn't been right for a while now. Once you've read through this article, hopefully, you'll be ready to make the call if you should switch your IT Support provider. Should you change your IT Support provider? Before you jump ship, ...
What’s the cost to outsource IT support?
How much to outsource Managed IT support? There are a few elements you need to understand when pricing IT support. Each business is different, and you must find the right package that suits your organisation and needs. Costs can vary based on the response time you expect on tickets if you need after-hours support, how important security is and, of course, the number of staff members you need to support. But generally speaking, support costs ...
Protect against CEO email fraud
In this month's update, we discuss why you need to upgrade your Anti-virus to detect advanced threats, protecting your business against CEO Fraud, a self quoting tool for migrating to Microsoft 365 and fun and games inside Intuitive IT. June is always a time of reflection for us at Intuitive, as it would be for most businesses. 12 months ago most of us had just entered a second lockdown. Today, it appears some of us ...
How much does it cost to migrate to Office 365?
Last Updated: November 11, 2024 Understand what goes into pricing a Microsoft 365 migration Please note: Office 365 is now called Microsoft 365 and that’s how we’ll refer to it here on in How much does it cost to migrate to Microsoft 365? Many factors go into determining the price of a Microsoft Office 365 migration that will work for your business. Costs can vary based on your current email hosting, the number of users, ...
Privacy Awareness, Apple Products and Cybersecurity
Hi all, To our Melbourne clients, welcome to lockdown 4.0. The rest of you, we are so jealous. I don’t expect this lockdown to be a long one, but wish you all the best with home-schooling! Victoria is back into #lockdown from 11:59pm tonight. So although we’ll be working in our trackies, we’ll be working as per normal. Stay safe Melbourne and we’ll see you on the otherside. pic.twitter.com/IsPOjeoHoR — Intuitive IT (@intuitiveit) May 27, ...
Outsourced IT or Internal IT team?
A client of ours, one that we've been supporting for close to 10 years recently came to us with a question. They have a business of about a hundred staff, with six locations around Australia, with their head office located in Melbourne. They had a national IT manager who was an internal staff member and an IT assistant who helped out with some of the onsite issues in the Melbourne office. To complement their IT, ...
How to digitally sign documents
Updated: 8th November 2022 Please note that HelloSign rebranded to Dropbox Sign on October 25th 2022. The functionality remains the same but there have been some UI updates. The article below has replaced all instances of HelloSign with Dropbox Sign Forget printing, signing, scanning and emailing forever. Signing documents has still got to be one of the most antiquated processes in business these days. In the last 10 years, we've moved forward in so many ...
Intuitive IT launches Cyber Resilience Audit
Want better cybersecurity but don't know where to start? Start here Cybersecurity, cyber resilience, malware, hackers, data breach, change your password. It's never-ending, and it is becoming more and more prevalent. The risk to businesses is growing day by day, and it's important that every business has an understanding of where they sit with their cyber resilience. What will happen to your business if you have ransomware on your network? What will happen ...
4 ways to reduce your Cybersecurity risk
Do you have these systems in place? Hi everyone, Hope you all had a good long weekend and thanks to all of you who took the time to respond to my email last month about ‘clean-desk’ security - I’d recommend providing something similar for your staff to get the message out there! Continuing with the security message - last week saw two major cyber incidents. One on the Nine Network which prevented live TV broadcast ...
Quick security quiz
Can you pick what's wrong with this picture? It has been a while since we’ve had a security quiz, and this one is really quick - what’s wrong with the picture below? Whoever’s answer is most accurate will be crowned Intuitive IT’s inaugural security champion - please note this is an honorary title only but will greatly increase your chances of winning ‘Client of the Year’ at our annual awards night! Finally, to our ...
Australian Government vs Google
Who will win? Happy belated new year - I hope you were able to take a bit of a break and are back and feeling refreshed. Thanks to my colleagues doing the hard yards, I was able to do just that! Thank you, Michael and Yener! One of the big stories in tech last month was/is the ongoing stoush between the Australian Government and Google. In short, the government wants Google to pay for news ...
Intuitive IT’s brilliant Customer Service score
We couldn't be prouder Welcome to 2021. I think a lot of people were hoping that ticking over to the new year would be we would leave a horrid 2020 behind us. That may be true, the issues we faced last year are still with us, but hopefully will not be as difficult. From Intuitive's perspective, our year ended on a very positive note. Our yearly survey was a great success. We recorded our highest ...
Reputation hit caused by hack, not the hack itself, caused business closure
Well, we’re almost at the end of this year like no other. It has been a tough one for all of us, and I’d like to say a personal thank you to you and your business for your support throughout the year - without you we wouldn’t be here. More generally, all of the team here at Intuitive IT are both privileged and grateful to be in the position that we are, but equally, I’m ...
Intuitive IT does Movember again!
With the restrictions in Victoria finally and thankfully easing we can start thinking about returning to office-based working. As part of this, there are sure to be plenty of devices that haven’t been turned on for quite some time. Not only will these devices be well behind on their security updates, given the work that has gone on behind the scenes at Intuitive IT over the last six months we need to ensure our management ...
Intuitive IT teams up with KnowB4
To enhance our security awareness platform and simulated phishing attacks Yet another month of lockdown and another month of Stage 4 lockdown for us Melbournians - you know it’s getting desperate when your only weekly outing is going to the supermarket and you actually get excited about it. On the bright side, it has given us a chance to build out on some of our service offerings. Over the last month, we’ve partnered with security ...
(Hopefully) happy financial year
The new financial year is here, and it is definitely the most uncertain I’ve ever seen, probably up there with the most uncertain anyone alive has seen. Now more than ever, having your business running as efficiently as possible is of paramount importance, and that starts with having the right processes and systems in place. More often than not when we say ‘systems’, we are talking about computer-based systems (like it or not) - and ...
COVID-19 is IT Support’s Best Friend?
Hi all, Another month of lockdown and I think I’m getting Stockholm syndrome - COVID-19 is just misunderstood, it only wants to be friends; really good friends. Who needs the outside world when you have a pair of ugg boots and a heater for company? On a more serious note, there are a few short items I’d like to go through today - firstly, with lockdown restrictions easing, some staff returning to ...
Treat Covid-19 as an opportunity
How technology can be an opportunity and not a threat during Coronavirus Hi all, It’s now clear that the COVID-19 pandemic is going to leave a long term, if not a permanent mark on how businesses do business (and society in general operates) going forward. This month I want to talk about what we’re doing at Intuitive IT to streamline our business systems. We’re using this uncertain time as an opportunity to ...
Intuitive IT releases Virtual Site Visits to combat COVID-19 isolation
We can now sit with you, virtually Never before has so much changed in the world between two monthly summaries. I know that the news and media, in general, is wall to wall pandemic at the moment, and adding to that may only increase the overload, but there are a few things from an IT support and IT services point of view that are worth considering for your business that I’d like to highlight today. ...
Now you’re working from home because of COVID-19; work better from home
The last 10 days have been about getting your team setup from home. Now it's about making it work for everyone As I mentioned last week, we've been busy helping you set up your staff to work from home. Even though those requests are still coming through, they have reduced in number and the focus is now shifting to the next issues of having a remote workforce. For Intuitive IT, the biggest issue we face ...
Working from home because of COVID-19? Hackers will soon follow
Working from home is a given now - but it doesn't mean we need to compromise security As you would imagine, our helpdesk team has been inundated with calls this week, as we try to get your workforce up and running from home. We're pleased to say that because most of you were proactive and saw this need coming, we've been able to manage the workload and get the vast majority of you up and ...
Be proactive about business continuity – COVID-19
Can your business continue if staff can't come into the office? I wish I could tell you what is a beat-up and what is legitimate at the moment when it comes to the Corona virus, and without adding to unnecessary panic, it is a good time to consider some important Business Continuity questions for your organisation. COVID-19 has highlighted the need for businesses to consider their Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) and Business Continuity Plan (BCP). ...
Deleted items are for..deleted items
This month I have a really simple message - no security issues to scare you with, no fancy new technologies that will make your business run more smoothly. It’s an email I thought I’d never have to send again, but alas, it’s something that has cropped up twice in the last month. So, without further ado: Never, ever, store important emails in your ‘Deleted Items’ folder! This folder is designed to purge itself at regular ...
The end of Windows 7 is now
Number one on the list of IT priorities this month is the end of support of Microsoft Windows 7 devices - these machines are now unsupported and are a security risk to your business. If you’ve been putting off replacing or upgrading, now is the time! Next on the list - there is a lot of doom and gloom coming from my monthly posts. Hackers are stealing my data, robots are stealing our jobs, my ...
Our 2019 NPS results are in
Hi all, Welcome to 2020! It sounds like it’s the age of flying cars and transporter technology from Star Trek. It sounds like it should be the end of poverty and perpetual world peace thanks to all the technology enhancements we’ve made. Isn’t science fiction grand? Back in the real world, we have real problems to deal with. We are in a constant struggle to keep our defences strong against individual and state-sponsored hackers. The ...
Protect your Office 365 against hackers
It’s already the last monthly email of the year - it feels like it has gone in a blink. I just want to thank you for making what we do here at Intuitive IT possible, without you and your staff we wouldn’t be here! Have a wonderful break, and best wishes for the new year. Now onto serious matters - if you use Office 365 you need to back it up! Please watch this short ...
New Office Macro Virus – Emotet
Hi all, This month there are a few items on the agenda and as per last month, I’m going to try and keep the IT security side of things brief! Firstly, on security - the holiday period is always the busiest time of year for scammers. Please let your staff know to be extra careful when opening emails, especially ‘unexpected’ package delivery notifications, and as always, get in touch with us if anything doesn’t look quite ...
Microsoft ending support for older OS Jan 2020
Hi all, The last few monthly emails I’ve been sending out have been dedicated to IT data security - this is and will remain one of the highest priorities. However, there is more to IT than just security! There are a couple of important things I would like to mention this month. Firstly, in regards to Microsoft desktop operating systems. Microsoft will end support for Windows 7 on the 14th of January 2020. This means ...
Hacker attempts on the rise against Aussie businesses
Hi all, This month has seen another huge spike in data breaches - specifically Office 365 accounts without two factor authentication enabled. These exploits are generally achieved using sophisticated targeted phishing attacks and fake login portals. On that note, I feel it’s time for another security quiz (the last one was very popular)! Point out the difference between these two login pages, and also which one is the real deal - as per the last ...
Spam and scam emails costing your business money
Hi all, This month I want to talk briefly about spam, scam and other malicious email. Here are some stats of note: 10% of all cases logged in our system in the last month were spam, scam or malicious other email related, more than double any other single issue. It’s great that staff are being proactive with these rather than taking a gamble and clicking links! But also highlights what a problem this really is. ...
Introducing your IT Score to your monthly reports
Hi all, As I mentioned in last month’s report, I attended the 2019 AusCERT cyber-security conference where we learnt about current initiatives to help protect your staff and business data. It made us reflect on our current reporting, in particular, your monthly “traffic light” IT report. When we first developed that report, our intention was to easily highlight the key areas in your IT environment that need your attention. When we started generating ...
1st security tip – Get a password manager
Hi all, Last week I was lucky enough to attend AusCert 2019, which is one of the biggest IT security conferences in the country. There were plenty of valuable takeaways which we’ll be recommending and implementing over the coming months. One of the keynote speakers (Mikko Hypponen from F-Secure), who has over 30 years of IT security experience, was asked the question ‘If there’s one thing that anyone can do to be more ...
Move your backups to the cloud to save your business money
Manual procedures around backups are a risk to your business data Hi everyone, Last month I touched briefly on backups, and this month I’m going to go into a little more detail as to why you should have them for all business-critical services. I’ll start by telling you a story - this happened last month to a company (they aren’t a customer of ours) who called us for help. They had their company files stored ...
Why you should use two-factor authentication
Hi all, Welcome to April - the days are getting shorter, the mornings are getting colder, and the data breaches are getting more frequent. Coincidence, or something more sinister? In any case, last month I wrote about data breaches at MyFitnessPal and MyHeritage - this month we have 8fit and Houzz - they just keep on coming! And there are many, many more. These are the ones that have affected our client base. We can’t ...
Intuitive IT gain Dropbox Business Certified Administrators
Last month, Intuitive IT had two of its team qualify for the Dropbox Certified Administrator certification. This qualification has only recently been launched with Australia and New Zealand partners given the chance to be the first to attain this level of certification in the Dropbox Business. Intuitive IT sent two of our staff to the training course held in Sydney which finished which an exam. The certification covered topics which ranged from basic sharing, through ...
5 key ideas to embrace when building an Intranet
There comes a time in the growth of any business when the question gets asked: "Do we need an intranet?". Just like any technology, the answer will vary depending on the business. It's a question we get asked regularly. Actually, the question we get asked first is "How do we build an intranet?". The thing is, there many more questions you have to ask of yourself and your business before we get to the design ...
NPS Score for 2019 – Seventy-five percent of our customers rated us a 9 or 10
Hi all, Welcome to the new year (better late than never!) - if you’re back at work, I hope the break was refreshing, and if you’re still away don’t worry about reading this blog post today! Thank you to all who filled out the annual surveys - both the long form and single answer queries had some great information and excellent feedback and I’m really proud that the vast majority of the staff we support ...
We increased security and built great systems in 2018.
It has been a very big year for Intuitive IT. Managed Services On the Managed Services side, we’ve had more cases logged than ever and more staff on the helpdesk than ever. Solved 4,615 tickets in 2018! That's 1,439 more tickets than we solved in 2017. Created an internal dashboard for our helpdesk staff to view key stats. It's cast on our TV screens in the office Implemented the monthly data breach alert for our Proactive and Fully ...
Your apathy towards security is a massive risk to your business
As per Yener Adal's blog post last month, during the month of October, we ran our initial data breach awareness campaign. The results were interesting, disappointing and more than a little concerning - here’s the overview: The initial campaign logged 16% of the currently active accounts in our helpdesk system had a single or multiple data breaches associated with it Of these, we had a 19.88% response rate to the issue, which means almost 20% ...
Dropbox Business Panel – Q and A with Dropbox Migration experts
On Tuesday 23rd October 2018, Ingram Micro held their Go Infinite Summit in Melbourne. Ingram Micro Cloud Summit 2018 Australia is a targeted and focused Cloud event, designed to help partners understand disruptive technologies and trends in the world of cloud computing. On the agenda was a Dropbox Business seminar, where Dropbox discussed the great collaborative and security features in their product. As part of the seminar, I was invited on stage to discuss Dropbox ...
Helping our clients with automated data breach notification
Early last week I received a call from a friend who was worried about a scam email he received. Initially, I thought “what’s the big deal?”. How bad can a scam email be? Just mark it as spam, delete it and move on. He went on to explain that the scam message informed him that they had access to his computer and information on it. They “proved” this by stating they had his ...
Mobile friendly website design is a must for your business
Hi all, This month I want to talk about mobile devices, and how you can take advantage of them - mobile is big business. Apple, the most valuable company in the world acquires over half its revenue from its mobile sales, and there are over 19 million mobile devices in Australia alone, that’s pretty impressive (or crazy) given we’ve only got 25 million people. What that means is a lot of eyes and a lot ...
Spear phishing – an issue in user education, not IT Support
Everyone knows about email spam, and email viruses and malware. We can implement robust anti-malware/anti-virus systems to mitigate against these in most cases. However, a term you may have heard, ‘phishing’, is not so easy to mitigate. Phishing is the fraudulent practice of sending emails pretending to be from reputable companies or individuals. The aim is to induce the recipient into revealing personal information such as passwords and credit card numbers. These can be very ...
Dropbox Business Partner Intuitive IT becomes Select Partner
Intuitive IT has recently gained Select Partner status with Dropbox in the Dropbox Business Reseller Program, which is intended to provide Resellers with further training, systems, access to Solutions Architects and tools necessary to deliver an enhanced customer experience to its customers. Select Partner status is granted to Resellers who are dedicated to cloud solutions implemented with the Dropbox Business offering. Moreover, Select Partners have shown how Dropbox Business can be implemented via best practice ...
Switch your computers to SSDs and save your business thousands
Hi all, In Australia, another financial year has finished, so hopefully, the bean counters can all take a well-earned rest for a bit and stop harassing us about invoices for a couple of weeks! As part of our end-of-financial year process, we take audits of all IT equipment across our fleet and also that of our client bases. One thing that stands out is end-user devices (laptops and desktops) out of warranty. In some cases, ...
Notifiable Data Breaches, GDPR and why they’re important to your business
Hi all, This month I’m going to raise two similar new pieces of legislation that Australian businesses should be aware of. While they are not strictly IT related - their importance transcends any particular business unit. The first is the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme, which has been in force since the 22nd of February this year. The second is the EU General Data Protection Regulation which will apply from the 25th of May 2018. Below ...
Got an SLA on your network? Great, but you need redundancy too.
Hi all, This month has been a real anomaly for unscheduled network outages across a range of carriers and service providers. Not only that, but the network support technicians are spread really thin as they’re working through the backlog of new year’s service provisioning tickets. What this all adds up to is if a service breaks, it’s taken substantially longer than usual for a resolution this month. What does this mean to you, you might ...
Why our hiring process is different
We do our own hiring here at Intuitive. It's a process that's been revised and refined over time and we're pretty happy with our results! When we put together a job ad, we include a "non-standard" set of questions at the end of the application. Here it is: How To Apply (IMPORTANT - not just the standard process!) Your attention to detail and your genuine desire to assist customers in solving their IT issues is ...
Give your IT Support company lead time
Monthly IT Support Update - February 2018 Hi all, We’re now well and truly back to the post-holiday levels of activity. How do I know this? Traffic is terrible, kids are all over public transport again, and the phones are ringing off the hook! It’s not all bad though, those lucky uni students are still on break for a few weeks! All this talk of timing segues nicely into my topic for this month - ...
Intuitive IT receives 81 for NPS!
Monthly IT Support Update - January 2018 Hi all, Welcome to 2018! I hope that the break was pleasant for you all and that if you’re back that things aren’t immediately hectic! Thank you to all who filled out the annual surveys - both the long form and single answer versions had plenty of responses this year, which made my little IT heart skip a beat! The single answer NPS (Net Promoter Score) survey is ...
May your IT be stable, and to all a good night!
Monthly IT Support Update - December 2017 Hi all, As this will be the last monthly IT summary for the year, on behalf of the Intuitive IT team I’d like to wish you all a relaxing holiday period and may all your IT services remain stable! Firstly, just a reminder of our reduced hours over the break - they are as follows: Friday 22nd December - Early close @ 1:00 PM 25th and 26th December ...
What are the priorities for IT support tickets?
#Urgent? - When to use priorities in your IT Support tickets Monthly IT Support Update - November 2017 Hi all, Firstly this month, I’d like to give you some ‘refresher’ information regarding our Help Centre, which we use for handling your IT support cases, and storing all our general and client-specific documentation. You might not realise that you and your staff can all log in to this portal - it contains a history of all ...
Social Engineering, it will never happen to me. Think again
Monthly IT Support Update - October 2017 Hi All, This month I’m going to touch on a subject that I’ve written about in the past, unfortunately, the issue isn’t going away and is only getting more sophisticated - that issue is social engineering and it can result in the loss of sensitive information, money, and potentially the reputation of your business. What is social engineering? It manipulating people into performing an action or divulging confidential ...
Where is the sweet spot when replacing your staffs’ devices?
Monthly IT Support Update - September 2017 Hi All, Following on from last month’s report on BYOD devices and their benefits and drawbacks, this month I’d like to provide some information on some best practices if your business provides devices to staff, as this still represents the vast majority in the SMB area at present. Arguably, the most important aspect of managing your business IT devices is inventory and asset reporting, knowing who has which device, ...
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) – The argument for and against
Monthly IT Support Update - August 2017 Hi all, For those of you who work on the financial year, I hope it was a successful one! I can tell you that we’ve been flat out here at Intuitive IT and that there is a very fine balance between busy and too busy (not that everyone agrees there’s such a thing as too busy)! This month I thought I’d discuss the trend of BYOD (Bring Your ...
Your IT Inventory – access is granted
Monthly IT Support Update - July 2017 Hi all, Following on from last month’s updated report format, this month I’ll be continuing expanding on your recommendations. An important aspect of managing your IT environment is knowing what hardware and software you have, and I know many of you have your own inventory systems, whether it’s just as simple as a spreadsheet, or a more complex function built into your ERP system; knowing what you have ...
A single indicator for the health of your IT infrastructure
Monthly IT Support Update - June 2017 Hi all, Firstly let me say thank you to those who responded to last month’s email. I really appreciate the feedback and will do my best to include all your recommendations in the future. One of the recommendations was to have a really easy to understand gauge of how well your IT systems are working. Obviously, the current monthly reports include this, but you do have to trawl ...
Help me help you. Help ME help YOU
Monthly IT Support Update - May 2017 Hi all, Over the last few years, I’ve written many articles summarising hopefully relevant topics, ideas, and technologies every month. The general format has changed over time, but the message has tried to remain consistent; to provide you with information that aims to offer options for growing your business by streamlining IT processes and recommending appropriate, proven technology. This month I’m going to do something a little different ...
All laptops created equal…, right? Wrong.
Monthly IT Support Update - April 2017 Hi all, Given that last month’s email was a bit depressing with the whole automating our livelihoods caper, I thought I’d go back to some IT bread and butter this month to mellow things out. We’ve had a few queries recently about the cost of hardware and software - specifically, why there is such a pricing disparity between consumer and business desktops and laptops. When we send through ...
5 IT Friendly Pranks for your April Fools Day
Autumn is setting in here in Melbourne, that means that April Fool’s day is just around the corner. We wanted to get you ready for a pranktastic day, without getting into too much trouble. So here are our top IT 5 pranks to support you (That probably won’t get you in trouble) in having some fun on April 1st. First things first, a bit of a disclaimer: Picking on people is not cool, don’t use ...
I for one welcome our new computer overlords
Monthly IT Support Update - March 2017 Hi all, Last month I touched on AI as a technology that will make a difference in the near future, this month I’ll be going into a little more detail as to what exactly this means for businesses. There are advantages and disadvantages, not only for your business but yourself and society in general. Computerisation and automation of various jobs and even entire industries are going to drastically ...
IT trends to look forward to in 2017
Monthly IT Support Update - February 2017 Hi all, Well, 2017 is well and truly underway and it’s looking to be another big year in IT. There are going to be a few major areas to watch and take note of this year. I’ll give a brief overview of these below, as well as what they could mean for your business. Social media presence There were and still are plenty of organisations that believe social ...
Intuitive IT nails IT NPS with 77!
Monthly IT Support Update - January 2017 Hi all, I hope you all had a good break and welcome to 2017! Here’s hoping this year will a productive one for everyone. Firstly I’d like to thank those of you who took the time to fill out our annual survey. The results were overwhelmingly positive, and our rating has improved from 70 last year to 77 this year. The industry average for IT is around ...
Christmas 2016 Helpdesk hours
We are pleased to inform all our customers that Intuitive IT will be keeping the helpdesk running during the Christmas period. The helpdesk will be operating under different hours so please refer to the information below. As always, monitoring of your key systems and services will continue to be 24/7 and any critical issues will be addressed in the timely manner you have become accustomed to as an Intuitive IT customer. If the helpdesk is ...
IT Support holiday hours and…Sloths. Wait, what?
Monthly IT Support Update - December 2016 Hi all, Well, it’s the last monthly email for the year, and as promised six months ago, it’s time for the annual Intuitive IT questionnaire. Clients will receive the link to complete the survey via email. If you could take a few minutes to complete the questions therein it would be much appreciated. We’ll also be sending out the annual satisfaction survey in the next week or so, it’s ...
IT Risk Management – What you need to know
Monthly IT Support Update - November 2016 Hi all, This month I’d like to talk about IT risk management. Traditionally, for the majority of businesses, IT risk management has been an afterthought, or not thought about at all. However, with most businesses almost complete reliance on technology to function, realistically it should be front and centre on any well thought out business strategy. IT risk management covers a range of areas, but its primary goal ...
5 Spooky Problems that Scare the IT Department
Update, Halloween 2022 This blog from the incredible mind of Ben Taylor, our senior helpdesk officer was written as a bit of a joke back in 2016. What I didn't realise was how popular it was going to be. We also seem to get a spike in traffic to it leading into Halloween. Coincidence, I think not... Credit for the illustrations also goes to Ben. Thanks for putting time and effort into this. Now you ...
Document Management – The holy grail of IT
Monthly IT Support Update - October 2016 Hi all, This month I’ll be writing a little about efficient document management. There have been a number of studies done that show on average staff can spend up to 15% of their time looking for files/information. There are three main problems associated with traditional file storage systems: Information is often siloed If a staff member creates a process or procedure and there’s no formal way of storing ...
The benefits of a good night’s sleep
We have a wealth of experience gained over the years, supporting Melbourne based companies with IT solutions and technical support. And no matter who we talk to, one issue we run into time and time again is that of the dreaded Slow Computer. It’s something everyone hates dealing with! There are numerous causes of a slow computer. More often than not, we find that the computer has been powered on for long periods of time. ...
Your business needs IT security. Period.
Monthly IT Support Update - September 2016 Hi all, There’s been a lot of activity in the news recently about data security, IT software vulnerabilities and hacking in general. iPhone malware, census fail and government department infiltration have been hot topics in the last few weeks. This month I’d like to explain what this all means for businesses. You may think that because you don’t handle top secret government information that you will not be ...
Disaster Recovery is not equal to having backups.
Monthly IT Support Update - August 2016 Hi all, This month I’d like to talk about disaster recovery (DR). I know some of you may have heard the term, and some of you already have a DR plan in place. For those that don’t, this summary is for you. Simply put, DR is a set of policies and procedures to allow for the continuation or recovery of services in the event of a natural or ...
We now accept Credit Cards
Monthly IT Support Update - July 2016 Hi all, Welcome to the new financial year, hopefully, it was a good one and the coming one will be even more prosperous. Over the last few months, a commonly asked question has been whether we take credit card payments. The feedback has been taken on board and we can now accept these payments, either for CapEx purchases or recurring OpEx transactions. We’ll look to develop a payment ...
4 (Melbourne-centric) qualities for your IT Support Company
You’re a Melbourne based business, so you have specific needs when dealing with your IT support provider. Now at first glance, you may think it makes no difference if my business is based in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Broken Hill or Manag-anag West. My IT needs will be the same where ever I’m based. You may find, however, there are certain things that a Melbourne based IT provider can give you over the competition. Here are ...
Have I Been Pwned? LinkedIn password breach worse than reported
The last week has seen a disconcerting trend of social networking data breaches, culminating in the largest leak of email addresses and passwords of all time. If you created an account with one of the social networking sites LinkedIn, Tumblr, Fling or Myspace between 2012 and 2013 your data could very well have fallen victim to afoul. However, all the reporting of this security issues misses the bigger issue. The fact that passwords are reused again ...
3 services to move to the Cloud
2016 has heralded in a new phase for the ‘cloud’, it has quickly become one of the decade's most defining technology within the industry, developing from a trivial IT buzz-word, into a point of unavoidable prominence. A good few months ago I composed a blog post entitled ‘3 Myths of Moving to the Cloud’, which detailed some common misconceptions many individuals hold surrounding the cloud and stated with a clear viewpoint that perhaps the cloud ...
Don’t let hackers take your business data. Lock that door.
One of our pillars of IT management in network security. We've always made it a priority to ensure our clients make sure their server is protected, because being connected to the internet is fraught with danger. So when we saw this post, "Criminals target small businesses with poor server security" from “Stay Smart Online”, a government initiative, we decided to help spread the word. We are also offering up our time for FREE during the month of ...
What is SEO?
A quick Google of the term ‘SEO’ will result in over 372,000,000 hits. That can be intimidating to anyone, especially those businesses who want to be “found on Google”. With many articles awash with abbreviations, algorithms and acronyms, they don’t make it easy for you to comprehend the importance of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). We’d like the change that! Here’s our simple What, Why and How of SEO we hope will remove some of the questions you ...
One password for everything? Really?
Let’s talk about passwords. No, wait. Don’t leave! Passwords are important. Boring, but important, and I think it’s about time we talked about them a little. You see, on my daily commute into the office, I decided to catch up on some news and I happened across an IT article in The Sydney Morning Herald that caught my eye named “Ten tips to declutter your digital life”. “Oh”, I thought, “this could be interesting!” What ...
Why your server backups are so important.
I am furious. Out and out outraged. I can’t believe it still happens but it does. I was reminded of it again yesterday. Why so mad? Because it gives IT people a bad name and it’s soooo easy to fix. It shouldn’t even be an issue. TEST. YOUR. BACKUPS. Backups are important right? Right. Talking about backups is boring right? Right. But each and every business owner needs to read this and make sure that ...
Amendment to the Online Privacy Bill
We read the online privacy amendment bill so you don't have to. Just take a minute to stop and think about all the private data that’s been correlated about you and your activities in the last week, month or year. Amazingly, in just a year it could fill thirteen 32 GB iPads! Nowadays, most of us would not think twice about giving out our home address, telephone number or even bank account details to companies ...
5 things you didn’t know Office 365 could do for your business
Everyone knows about Office 365 hosting your business data, but it's more than just a great place to host your email, calendar and contacts. Here are 5 things Office 365 can help with your business that you may not know about. Office on all of your devices Did you know you can get Office on your smartphone and tablet? Editing Excel documents on your phone may be cumbersome but you do at least have the ...
3 myths of moving to the cloud
Without a shadow of a doubt the current buzz word for SMEs when discussing Business IT is the "Cloud". The cloud does carry some positive connotation. It's meant to be cheap, your data is accessible from anywhere in the world and everything is managed for you. Sounds fantastic right? The fact of the matter is, when it sounds too good to be true it generally is. Don't get me wrong, the cloud has some great ...
8 ways to get more out of your IT department
When it comes to IT, the question most medium size businesses are asking themselves is "how do I get the best out of my technology and IT department?" Below is a list of some of the things management should do to ensure that your IT is given, and giving you the best chance of reaching your business goals. Stop ad hoc IT projects Nothing derails your business technology initiatives like an unplanned IT project requested ...
Intuitive IT launches new website
Intuitive IT has launched its fresh new website which encompasses a range of new features. Key changes include the website being built in a responsive format, meaning visitors can now easily view the website on PC, tablet or mobile! Also included in the new website are details of the true scope of services we are able to offer our clients. Although not new to our offering, strategic IT management is fast becoming an increased priority ...
Time to move away from classic email hosting
It’s time. You've been thinking about it for a while now as you've seen other people search and find emails from their phone that date back decades while you can’t receive the email from your client that was sent this morning. It’s your email hosting and you know it. It’s old and clunky and doesn't give you all the features you need. Well there is a very simply solution for you and your business. It’s ...
Important Update: Very Destructive Malware in the Wild
Hi all, Please be advised that there is a very destructive piece of malware doing the rounds at the moment. There are a few things that make this one more dangerous than normal: It doesn’t have a specific attack vector (how it gets into your system) - it may be an email attachment, a link in an email, a compromised or malicious website, or it may reside on a USB key someone may give you. ...
Ebola Phishing Scams and Malware Campaigns
After a disaster like the Ebola outbreak of West Africa, phishing emails and websites requesting donations for bogus charitable organisations begin to appear. Users should be aware of potential email scams and phishing attacks regarding the recent Ebola disaster. Email scams may contain links or attachments which may direct users to phishing or malware-laden websites. Intuitive IT recommends that if you would like to donate to the fight to contain Ebola, please go directly to ...
Is your UPS smart enough to protect your servers and data?
The following is a case study of a new client that joined Intuitive IT recently. The company is an architectural firm located in Melbourne and employs 5 people. They had 3 servers and a UPS. Their previous IT provider had installed the UPS over 3 years ago. Recently, this company suffered a power failure and the UPS kicked in. However, it wasn't a smart UPS which means that the servers did not begin the process ...
Telstra Mobile claims account due in 2 days is overdue
For 2 days now we've been on the phone with Telstra trying to get data access back put on a mobile with no success. This story actually starts a week ago when the mobile was going overseas and in order to avoid the exorbitant data charges ($15,000 per GB) we barred the data plan. The phone came back into the country on Sunday and on Monday we rang Telstra and asked for the data to ...
Mobile Phone Health Scare: The Whole Story
There is no doubt that mobile phones have become an integral part of today’s society, with their abilities to surf the web, email, hold complete music libraries and much more. However these devices that we carry around with us all day and night may cause more harm than we would have imagined. The cancer research department of the World Health Organisation (WHO) recently released a report that stated mobile phone users may have a higher ...
The 2011 Budget and What It Means for Australian ICT
The 10th of May, 2011 saw the official announcement and release of the 2011 Federal Australian Budget by the federal Treasurer Wayne Swan. Below is a list of all the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) projects that were announced, as well as a list of spending cuts on ICT projects that were announced in previous budgets. Based on the estimated costs of the entire ICT project funding announcements, investment into Australian ICT has slowed - ...
Fix: “The User Profile Service failed the logon. User profile cannot be loaded.”
A client of Intuitive IT was recently trying to log into their computer. It took an excessively long time to login and when it did it seemed to have been reset to default, with all of their custom settings gone. Their e-mail was no longer set up on Outlook Express and the icons on their custom desktop icons had all disappeared as well. They contacted Intuitive IT with the problem and one of our technicians ...
Our New Home
On Tuesday the 8th of March, Intuitive IT left its long standing home and moved into the bustling and trendy heart of Fitzroy. A minutes walk from Brunswick Street, where we frequent to get our caffeine fix. Moving into the Hive Studios building came out of necessity as Intuitive IT has continued to grow since it's inception and simply out-grew our previous office. Hive Studios is a shared professional workspace with a community atmosphere. The lower ...
Android Market Malware Scare
On March 4th, reports were released that Google had removed 21 malicious apps from its Android Market. These apps were malware aimed at getting root access to the user's device, gathering a wide range of information and acting as quietly downloads more malicious code to the device without the user knowing. Since then, Google now says that there were actually 58 dangerous apps removed from their Android Market, all created by the entity Myournet. The ...
How to Plan and Execute the Perfect Office Move
A business without its computers and phones up and running is losing money, so the project needs to be well managed to reduce the amount of downtime. Early Planning - Ensure you tell your suppliers at the earliest possible time the move is occurring. Get the account managers to scope out the new premises and ensure your services can be transferred to the new location. - Make sure your disaster recovery plan is up to ...
Future trends of the internet
Since I've been at Intuitive IT, I've started looking towards the future. What's the next big thing? What's the word going to be Tweeting and Facebooking about? Well, I recently stumbled across a blog that might have a bit of insight into the digital trends that we may all face in 2011. From the benefits of social media in the Small Business market, to the use of Smart Phones to improve efficiency. This blog ...
New Vulnerability in Internet Explorer
Microsoft has warned that its Internet Explorer browser is at risk of a newly discovered vulnerability. The company has yet to develop a permanent fix for the security hole but does have a temporary fix that prevents hackers from exploiting a hole to install malicious scripts. To view the official Microsoft security bulletin, click here. You could be at risk simply by visiting an infected website. To apply the fix, please click this link. You ...
Linking Facebook to the Correct Business Page
Intuitive IT has recently hired Koray Adal to become the company's Marketing and Public Relations officer and with that, have discovered a glitch in the Facebook universe that we are here to resolve for you today. When Koray was at home, updating his Facebook, he tried to add Intuitive IT to his Facebook employment information. It was then that he realised that Facebook was unable to actually find the correct Intuitive IT business page and ...
Intuitive IT helps build Queensland flood appeal website
From late yesterday afternoon to the wee hours of this morning, we were feverishly working away on our computers building the Victorian Restaurants Unite, Queensland flood relief initiative. Our goal was to have the website available for registrations by the time it's brainchild, Alastair Dobbs made an appearance on ABC 774 Melbourne radio this morning. The website is aimed squarely at the hospitality industry of Victoria, asking restaurants to donate a percentage of their takings, ...
New look Intuitive IT Website
Today we launched a new look for our website. With a cleaner interface, font change to Century Gothic and modified colour scheme, I think the site has increased in readability and professionalism. In addition to the above we've also included the following: Added links to our social network pages Added both the support and sales phone numbers to the top of every page Removed flash based components so the site appears correctly on iPhone and ...
Tool to check (and fix) your Facebook privacy settings
Facebook privacy issues are just dominating internet issues at the moment. Because of the convoluted and confusing way Facebook has designed the privacy settings it is hard to tell what is secure and what isn't. Luckily the people at http://www.reclaimprivacy.org/ have created a tool that will show you how your private information is shared and then allow you to fix it. Fixing it can be as simple as clicking a button or just checking to ...
Best Business Laptop is MacBookPro – Linkedin experts
So the time arrived for me to purchase a new laptop. I’ve been using a MacBook Pro (early 2008 model, the model released just before the first uni-body) I have to return the laptop to one of my clients that was allowing me to use it. Thus the need for a new laptop. I thought I’d do some crowd sourcing and ask the LinkedIn.com experts to see what they thought the best business laptop is. ...
First impressions of Microsoft Security Essentials
I take issue with a company that creates an operating system, and then creates a security product to help keep said operating system safe. The focus should be applied to fixing the operating system, not creating separate software to remedy the situation. I am of course speaking about Microsoft, their Windows operating systems and their Live OneCare suite of security products which you had to pay for! That's right, you pay for an insecure operating ...
5 ways to secure yourself online
Securing yourself and your private information on the internet is fast becoming a very hard thing to do. This is especially the case if you consider yourself a novice or intermediate level user. The following tips should help you in securing your computer and personal information on the internet. 1. Anti-Virus Software Ensure you have anti-virus software installed on your computer. Anti-virus applications are relatively inexpensive these days so there is no excuse for not ...