Holiday Archives - NuTech Services LLC

Dec, 2021

Remember These Tips if You Are Traveling During the Holidays

If you are traveling this holiday season to bridge the gaps created during the COVID-19 pandemic, then you’ll want to take specific precautions about your technology. Here are some of the best ways you can keep your technology secure while you travel from point A to point B, as well as how we can help you do so!

Be Cautious of Your Internet Connections

There’s nothing quite like a secure Internet connection, especially while traveling. Places where many people gather, like airports and hotels, are known to have spotty Internet reputations in terms of the connection quality and the kinds of security measures enabled on them. You can never know what threats are lurking on a network that is not as secure as your in-house infrastructure. When it’s not possible to get work done on your office network, we recommend using a virtual private network to encrypt your connection while traveling.

That said, there are significant differences between consumer-based VPN solutions and commercial-based ones. Some of the consumer-based solutions, like NordVPN, TunnelBear, ExpressVPN, and others are not designed with businesses in mind. These services do, however, lend themselves well for the purposes of traveling, as they encrypt your data when it is sent over Wi-Fi. This extra protection can go a long way when using a public network, but be mindful that the quality will most likely be determined by the price point. Even if they say they don’t store information about you, chances are they do.

We are happy to help you make the distinction between commercial and consumer-based VPNs. Give us a call at 810.230.9455.

Enable Multi-Factor Authentication and Location Services on Mobile Devices

Losing a device can be stressful, especially when you know it’s probably not stuffed down in the couch, outside your house in the yard, or somewhere else close to home. Therefore, you’ll need to take extra measures to protect your data, especially while traveling. Multi-factor authentication and location services can help you keep your device secure and potentially help you locate your device, should you lose track of it at any point on your adventures.

Establish Mobile Device Policies Ahead of Time

If you accidentally misplace your smartphone or another device while traveling (it can happen, airlines frequently misplace luggage, etc.), you’ll want to wipe that data remotely. This is done through device policies, and can be set up for every user on your network who uses their mobile device for work.

That said, losing a device means you lose the data on it, so you don’t want your data all in one place. Ensuring that critical information is always stored centrally on your network in a place that you are sure is getting backed up will mean nothing ever gets lost.

NuTech Services can help you travel safely and conduct business, even while out of the office. To learn more, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Dec, 2021

Give Your Organization the Gift of Technology

Each year we try to come up with a creative Christmas article that ties IT into one of the many holiday fables, but this year we thought we would just forgo the pageantry and talk a little bit about how important our client’s are and what we can do to help take them where they want to go.

Anyone who runs a small business has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the ebbs and flows in business that have resulted from it, and the overall uncertain feeling of “what next?” Many businesses haven’t made it and others are on the brink, even as people have begun to normalize their routines. Our dedication to helping all of our Michigan partners handle this difficult period in stride coming out more prosperous on the other end, is the plan. How do we accomplish this? Let’s take a look:

Keeping a Business Running

The most important part about running a business is that the business is available to sell the product or service, and that in the course of doing so, you don’t often pay for nothing. When your organization’s technology falters, you typically need to figure out how to fix it. If this happens quite a bit, you are looking at significant downtime, potential data loss, and the financial issues both create.

It’s not a good situation.

Our services provide a solution to those problems. First, we assess your network to let decision makers know what systems are mission critical and which ones are less so. Then we remotely monitor critical systems around the clock to ensure that network-connected devices are working as intended. If there are signs of inconsistency, our staff of certified technicians can typically fix the issues before they cause downtime.

What’s more, we provide your staff access to a comprehensive help desk that can help them solve any number of computer-related problems quickly and efficiently. This keeps your team productive, your technology running smoothly, and downtime to a minimum.

There will be times when a network-attached device is not repairable remotely and it will require technical support or replacement. Since our technicians will know before the component fails, we can ensure that you get the repairs/replacements needed before having to deal with large swaths of downtime.

Finally, in order to ensure that a business’ data is secured, we deploy a data backup and disaster recovery service that incrementally copies your data so that you don’t lose much if you need to use it. There are dozens of different reasons that an organization would have to use their backup, so with our BDR service, you get data redundancy onsite, as well as in the cloud, to ensure that any situation in which you may need to restore or migrate data is covered.

Promoting Security

During the pandemic the threat landscape became more dangerous due to the opportunities presented by the many relief programs that have been rolled out. Add this to the increase in ransomware and phishing attacks that were expected, it makes it a constant struggle for most businesses to keep up.

At NuTech Services, we don’t just keep up, we use all of our resources and accrued knowledge to keep our client’s as safe as possible. We can outfit businesses with a myriad of security tools including firewalls, content filters, virtual private networks, spam blockers, and many more.

That’s just the beginning of what we can do to keep your business’ IT secure.

We ensure all of your software is patched and updated regularly to reduce the exploitation of potential vulnerabilities (and to ensure that you have all the new features that software updates provide). Since software is the lifeblood of most businesses, securing that crucial avenue of potential attack can stop a lot of issues, but it won’t stop them all. It’s for this reason that we also work with you to help put in policies, procedures, and training platforms that can substantially reduce your organization’s exposure to today’s worst threats.

Cybersecurity is one of the most critical components of the modern business’ IT strategy, and with the experts we have on staff in your organization’s corner, you will be able to be more effective, more efficient, and see many fewer issues.

Using Innovation

One aspect of our jobs that we find absolutely critical—and our clients find indispensable—is our commitment to knowing how to deploy technology in such a way that it basically pays for itself. Any business owner knows that technology isn’t cheap, but if it is deployed the right way, the return on your IT investments can be massive.

We like to keep our finger on the pulse of technology to find innovative new tools that can really push the needle for your business’ ability to operate effectively. From deploying and managing Internet of Things (IoT) devices, to outfitting your business with high-end tools like document management, to a comprehensive list of communications and collaboration tools that can allow your business to quicken the pace; NuTech Services has access to the knowledge and expertise needed to help integrate it for your business.

You can do a lot with technology, and we can do a lot with clients willing to trust us to do what’s best for their company. We would like to thank all of you for another great year, even if it was one of the most turbulent we can remember. We hope you all have a Merry Christmas tomorrow and a pleasant holiday season.

Nov, 2021

Technology is Center Stage on Black Friday and Cyber Monday

The holidays are rapidly approaching and each year people position themselves to get the best deals they can on all the potential gifts, whether they are gifts to themselves, or to others. Like many other years, bargain shoppers wake up from their tryptophan naps, bundle up, and head out to try and score the best deals they can. Today, we thought we’d talk a little about Black Friday and Cyber Monday and why they are great to get the technology-lover on your shopping list the products they’ll love this holiday season.

Black Friday

Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving and has been the busiest shopping day in the United States for 15 years. Nowadays, most retail stores not only extend their Black Friday deals starting on Thanksgiving (or stay open to start at midnight on the day after), they also give consumers a fair bit of warning of what will be available so that people can plan their shopping experience.

Cyber Monday

Starting years later, Cyber Monday is basically an extension of Black Friday that takes place online the following Monday. Since a lot of holiday shopping is completely online these days, Cyber Monday started at shop.com in 2005, but has grown substantially each year since. In 2020, as the in-person retail economy reeled from the COVID-19 pandemic, Cyber Monday was the largest retail day in history, netting close to $11 billion.

2021 Extends Holiday Shopping

In 2021, the lingering supply chain issues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic have caused many retail chains to not only alter their plans for 2021 holiday sales, but they have also extended a lot of their deals online, effectively making Cyber Monday, Cyber-End-of-November. Most retailers are doing what they can to make sure that consumers have the opportunity to get deals to check the people off their holiday shopping lists.

Technology is Front and Center

Technology is typically viewed as a great gift and in 2021 there is more tech to choose from than ever before. Some of the most popular gifts that you will see on sale after Thanksgiving in the United States include:

Amazon Fire Stick 4K with Alexa Voice Remote

The newest iteration of the popular HDMI streaming media dongle features voice controls through Alexa and is 4K-capable. Starting at $25.

Apple AirPods (Gen 2)

Apple’s popular wireless earbuds. Starting at $89.

Samsung Chromebook 4

With an 11.6-inch screen, this laptop is a good value for people looking for a reliable laptop for everyday tasks. Starting at $129.

Facebook Portal Go and Portal+

The Portal Go and Portal+ are video chat interfaces that integrate with Facebook Messenger. Starting at $199.99.

Of course, this isn’t everything, but if you are in the market for computer hardware and electronics, late November will be a good time to check for deals!

What’s on your holiday list? Let us know in the comments, and make sure you practice safe browsing habits while shopping online!

Dec, 2020

Even Santa’s Workshop Can Benefit from Managed Services

While some places get to take the holiday season off to some extent, other establishments are at their busiest—and as such, don’t have time for any inefficiencies. Let’s meet an employee from such an establishment, located far up north, to learn about how any workplace might benefit operationally from managed IT services.

Taking a sip of cocoa, Trinket leaned back from his computer and let out a long sigh. Here it was, barely after 9:00 in the morning, and his agenda was already impossibly full. Around him, Santa’s Workshop was in full swing, the other elves frantically working to ensure that all the deliveries were prepped for the Boss before the big day came.

Opening his Glee-mail, Trinket made a face as three new messages appeared, all labeled “urgent.” From experience, Trinket was sure that they weren’t.

Clicking through them, the Manager of Toy Creation and Assembly was soon proven correct. One of the messages had been sent to the entire North Pole team, despite only being relevant to the Coal Department. Another was an email that he had already responded to days ago but had since deviated from its original purpose and was now debating if the menu for the end-of-season wrap party should include non-dairy milk options and gluten-free cookies.

The only message that had anything to do with Trinket was the request from Sleigh Maintenance and Repair to borrow himself and one of his team members to inspect the sleigh’s wish injector. As it turned out, Trinket’s team was well ahead of schedule this year, so the request could be filled with little issue. He called one of his team members over to him.

“Poppy!”

Poppy jumped up from her seat and bounded over to Trinket’s desk. “Yes, sir?”

“How are you with magical engineering?”

“Pretty good, sir. I interned there for a while before being assigned to Creation and Assembly.”

“Excellent. Come with me, they need a few extra sets of eyes in the garage.”

“Okay!”

Trinket and Poppy set off for the North Pole’s garage, where the Boss kept his famous sleigh and Mrs. Claus kept her less-well-known motorcycle. As they walked over, Trinket couldn’t help but sigh once again.

Poppy glanced at him, concerned. “Everything okay, boss?”

Trinket replied, “Yeah, it’s okay. There’s just a lot piling up on my day that it really doesn’t seem like I should be involved in. I mean, I shouldn’t be venting to you about this, but some of the technology we use just seems to get in the way.”

Poppy nodded. “I know what you mean. I couldn’t figure out why my workstation was running so slowly this morning. Cedar had to come over and help me fix it… and I’m not even sure that it helped all that much.”

They continued walking in silence. Almost hesitantly, Poppy spoke up again.

“You know, I have a cousin who works in a shoe factory, and he says that IT isn’t really a problem for them.”

Trinket snorted. “Yeah, maybe after they’ve invested half of their annual magic into it.”

“That’s just the thing,” Poppy persisted. “They don’t have to. They work with this company called NuTech Services, they’re something called a managed service provider.”

“A managed service provider? What’s that?”

“Well, you know how we usually handle technology issues? We all kind of try to figure it out ourselves, until we need to call someone else in to fix it. Kind of like we’re doing now, for the sleigh?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, a managed service provider handles things a little differently. Instead of us trying to fix problems after they’ve popped up, the MSP keeps an eye on our systems for us, spotting potential issues and fixing them before they interrupt us. According to my cousin, the shoemaking elves managed to up their productivity considerably.

“The MSP has even helped them make their systems more efficient by recommending upgrades and helping them keep up with their updates. My cousin says that the factory is also more secure, to boot.”

Trinket considered it, impressed. “Well, how much does this cost? It sounds expensive.”

“That’s the other thing—it’s a service, so the MSP charges the factory each month. However, that monthly cost covers a lot, so considering what you get, it isn’t so bad.” Poppy shrugged.

“I think I’ll have to bring this up to the bosses. What did you say this company was called?”

“NuTech Services. They’re based in Michigan but since most of their services are delivered remotely, that shouldn’t be a problem. Even if they must make an on-site visit to fix something, their remote operations can save time by giving them a head start.

“They can help prevent viruses and malware, get a better handle on our communications, and help us streamline our processes, too.”

“Not bad, Poppy. I’ll have to bring this up to the Boss before the New Year starts,” Trinket said as they reached the garage. He held the door open for her. “Shall we?”

“Let’s!”

The two elves entered the garage and got to work, as elves do.

Hopefully, this has helped illustrate that everyone needs a little assistance, every now and then. If your business has also seen some IT challenges that it needs addressed and mitigated, give NuTech Services a call at 810.230.9455 to start the new year on the right path.

In the meantime, we hope that your holidays are merry and bright.

Nov, 2020

Don’t Forget to Add These Handy Home-Office Gadgets to Your Shopping List!

There is no denying that gifts are a major part of the typical festivities around this time of year, so it only seems that having some ideas as to what you’d like to receive to share with others is a helpful contribution. As our way of helping, we’ve decided to share a few tech-based suggestions that would find a welcome home in any home office or remote workspace.

Power

To start, let’s go to perhaps the most basic need of any technology user: the energy required to keep their devices on in the first place. Let’s not split hairs—the average home office setup might not have sufficient outlets available for all the devices that need to be powered.

If this applies to you, you may appreciate someone giving you a nice surge protector to help expand the number of available outlets you have while simultaneously protecting the devices you plug in.

In addition to this, there are assorted other power-related solutions available that you might consider adding to your wish list. For instance, you may be using two-factor authentication more often as you work remotely, making your mobile device something that needs to be kept on. A charging station or even a power bank may be a welcomed addition to your tools.

Comfort

Of course, productive work is impossible if you aren’t at least somewhat comfortable. You might want to consider adding a few amenities to your list that help support this goal. This can range from requesting a supportive new desk chair, to a comfy seat cushion or footrest, or even a pair of blue-light filtering glasses.

Honestly, there’s a lot of things that could be added to this list. There are tons of computer peripherals available that are specifically designed to make the user’s experience more suited to their preferences. Really, it’s about identifying what makes you the most uncomfortable throughout the workday and identifying the solution.

If you’re a fan of sipping warm beverages throughout the workday, consider asking for a desktop cup warmer.

Personality

All work and no play make Jack a dull boy, so it may not be the best idea to have a totally austere workplace. One or two small tchotchkes shouldn’t hurt your productivity unduly and can make for a great conversation starter if used in the office. Whether it’s a classic Newton’s cradle or some other perpetual motion device, something to fiddle with to help break up the workday can be valuable to have.

If you happen to have a stressful job, you could even ask for a miniature punching bag to attach to your desk. Fans of golf might ask for the pen set that doubles as a desktop putting green. Really, the possibilities here are endless.

Whatever you do choose to ask for, make sure you share your wish list in the comments to help inspire others.

Remember, while this may have been a sillier blog than we usually share, NuTech Services is always here to help you with your IT management and maintenance needs. Regardless of whether your team is working in-house or remotely, our managed services can give your business the benefits you want it to have. Learn more by giving us a call at 810.230.9455.

Dec, 2019

IT is a Wonderful Life

Parker sat at his desk looking at a business card. He watched the snow fall lightly outside his window. He was the last person left in the office, as he typically was this time of year. He put down the business card and got up and walked over to the large pane of glass that was the only insulation from the harsh, cold wintery night. He placed his hand on the window and felt the bitter cold meet the palm of his hand. He stood there for a minute; maybe more than a minute. He began to cry. He was so angry at how things were going.

It had been a rough quarter at Thatcher-Jenkins. Sales were down as two of the company’s largest clients ceased doing business after they found suppliers that would offer the same services for less. In an attempt to stop the figurative bleeding, Parker had initiated a major overhaul to the management system the company would use. Much of the production staff, who is made up of a lot of people that had been working at the company for several years, found the new technology intrusive to production. Then there were problems with deployment which cost the company some time and a fair amount of capital. The IT staff that was in place at the time simply didn’t have the resources to cover a rushed end-to-end software implementation and their typical workload, leading to production interruptions and other inefficiencies.

So, as Parker stood with his hand on the glass of the window in his office, his thoughts weren’t of the impending holiday, his family, or how fortunate he was; they were firmly focused on the latest bought of downtime that took down production for half a day. Who knows how much money it had cost the company?

The phone rang. He walked back over to his desk, tripping over the exposed wire to his new VoIP phone that nobody bothered to hide. He snatched at the phone.

“Hello,” he answered, angered.

On the other end of the phone was his wife. Mrs. Parker was wondering when Parker would be home. After all, it was Christmas Eve.

“I’m just wrapping up here…Love you too.”

He hung up the phone, glanced aimlessly around his office, and slumped down into his desk chair. He sat for a few minutes before he got up, remotely started his car, put his coat on, shut down his computer, turned the lights off, grabbed his bag, and walked out the door.

As he slowly shuffled to his car, the snow was falling lightly, but it might have been just the ice in the air as it was a little too cold for snow. His car was the last car in the parking lot. This made him feel very alone. He got in the car and slowly drove away.

As he drove past all the houses lit up for Christmas, he started to cheer up. He stopped off at the liquor store to get some brandy and as he was walking out of the store he ran into one of his clients.

“Hey there Parker, Merry Christmas,” the stout man in a black pea coat said.

“Oh, hi there Jack, same to you,” Parker answered as he almost dropped the bottle of brandy he had just bought.

“Whatcha got there?” Jack asked inquisitively.

“We do Brandy Alexanders on Christmas Eve. Family Tradition,” Parker answered.

“Well that’s nice. Look, have a Merry Christmas. Give my best to your family. We’ll talk next week,” Jack said before he scurried away inside the liquor store.

Parker walked back to his car, wondering what Jack meant by the “we’ll talk next week” remark. He sat behind the wheel for a minute, before driving away. The uneasy feeling he had in his office was more like panic as he drove down the street toward his house.

Parker started talking to himself in his car, “What did Jack mean? If his company leaves, I’ll have to lay people off,” At this point he had worked himself up. He popped the top of the brandy bottle and started to take intermittent swigs. He drove past his house to the bridge on the outskirts of town. He parked his car on the side of the road and got out of his car and walked up the bridge.

Traffic continued to go by, but there wasn’t much of it to speak of, being Christmas Eve and all. He walked up to the center of the bridge with the bottle of brandy firmly in hand. He stood up and looked at the sliver of moon that poked out behind the passing clouds. He looked at the river. He took a pull of his brandy and put the cap back on. All of a sudden what seemed like a shadow approached him from the far side of the bridge.

“Not the Christmas Eve you planned on having, huh Parker?” the voice said as he came into the light. The man was short and older than Parker. He had a wool cap and jacket on.

“Who are you? How do you know my name?” Parker asked.

‘My name is Gary and I know all there is to know about you,” he said, “What are you doing up here?”

Where only moments before had Parker been engulfed in self-pity, now there was only fear. He moved away abruptly, but didn’t say anything.

Gary kept after him.

“Can I have a drink?” he asked.

“What the hell are you doing out here?” Parker demanded as Gary reached for the bottle of brandy. Gary stopped moving toward him.

“Please?” Gary asked.

The three or four drinks that Parker had were now starting to kick in. He extended the bottle and Gary took it, opened it, took a drink, and handed it back in rapid succession.

“So, Parker, what are you doing out here on Christmas eve?” Gary asked rhetorically.

“I’m not sure that’s any of your business,” Parker replied.

“Were you planning on jumping off of the bridge?” Gary asked abruptly.

Suddenly, Parker realized that maybe he had gone up there to do just that.

“I don’t know,” Parker replied, “Sometimes I feel like everyone that depends on me would be better off if I wasn’t the one making the decisions.”

“Well…There is a way to find out.” Gary said as he rushed at him. Parker, still clutching the bottle of brandy, sidestepped as Gary dove off the bridge into the river. Shocked, Parker dropped the bottle, took off his coat and ran to the other side of the bridge and jumped in after Gary.

As he hit the nearly frozen water, it sent a shock through his entire system. He grabbed Gary, who was thrashing around in the current and dragged him to the bank of the river.

Both men lay on the frozen bank of the river. Gary begins to laugh. Incredulous at Gary’s levity, Parker started to yell at him.

“What the hell do you think you were doing?!” Parker started, freezing and soaked, “If I didn’t jump in after you, you would have surely died!”

“Don’t be so sure,” Gary said, “I am your guardian angel, you needed to stop feeling sorry for yourself in order to know what it is that I know.”

“Guardian angel? You are touched, man!” Parker yelled as he got up and started making his way back toward the bridge.

‘There are no such thing as guardian angels. You are a crazy old man who just had his life saved by someone who didn’t feel like living ten minutes ago.”

“Parker, many people depend on you, and feeling sorry for yourself will never get you to where you want to go.” Gary said, scrambling after him.

“Look, friend. I’m going home. Tonight is Christmas Eve, and I need to be with my family…Not sopping wet listening to a crazy man.”

Gary stopped following him.

“I may be crazy, but I am here to tell you that you can’t lose hope,” Gary shouted after him, “We will meet again soon.”

Parker made his way back to the bridge, picked up his jacket and his bottle of brandy and started back to his car. He opened the door to his car, but before he got in looked around for Gary. He was nowhere to be found. With mixed emotions Parker got in his car and returned home.

—

When Parker returned home, he found a strange car in the driveway. He walked in the front door, still wet from his time in the river, only to find his IT administrator standing in the foyer of the house waiting for him.

“Where have you been?” the man asked

“What are you doing here?” Parker answered as his wife walked in the room.

“We’ve been hacked,” The IT admin started, ”I’ve got the team at the office now doing everything…wait a minute, why are you wet?”

“Yeah, what happened to you?” Mrs. Parker asked.

“What do you mean we were hacked?! I just left the office an hour ago!” Parker said helplessly.

“Yeah, Harold and Matt are at the office right now and Brett will be there soon. We should go.” The IT admin said.

“Wait a second, mister, you aren’t going anywhere before you tell me why you are sopping wet.” Mrs. Parker said sternly.

“I saved a man from drowning, Jewel, but now I really have to go down there to make sure we aren’t going to lose everything. Pete, let me get changed.”

After getting changed quickly and assuring his wife that everything is going to be okay, he rode to the office with Pete. Pete was the IT administrator for Thatcher-Jenkins. He had been working there for the past seven years and was Parker’s right hand man when it comes to IT. He had hired Pete at 23 to work in his IT department after Pete had been released from jail for hacking.

Pete was the son of one of Parker’s wife’s best friends and agreed to take him on as a favor, but had come to depend on his computer skills.

“What do we know about the hack?” Parker asked as they were driving.

“You know as much as I do right now, but when we couldn’t get a hold of you, I came right to your house. Your wife was worried.” Pete said.

“The craziest thing happened to me tonight. I was on the bridge and some crazy old guy came up to me and jumped in the river. I had to jump in after him so he didn’t drown.” Parker continued, “I had never seen this man before, but…”

“He knew who you were?” Pete said in Gary’s voice. Parker looked over and it was Gary driving the car, not Pete.

“What is going on?!” Parker bellowed with fear.

“Don’t be afraid, Parker. I am your guardian angel and I’m here to show you just how important you are to the people in your life.”

“Stop the car! Stop the car!”

“I’ll do you one better.” Gary said as he swerved off the road and into a building.

—

Parker woke up in his bed, but his wife was nowhere to be found. He jumped out of bed and ran downstairs, but the house was different. It wasn’t decorated for Christmas, it was like you would find in on any other day. He opened the front door and it was snowy and the streetlights had the Christmas ornaments hanging from them. As he stood in the doorway of his house, he noticed a well-dressed man walking down the unkempt sidewalk that ran perpendicular to the road. As the man got closer, he recognized him. It was Gary.

“What the hell have you done?! Where is Jewel?! Where are my kids?!” Parker yelled as Gary, now dressed in a top hat and a flawless waistcoat made his way up the front sidewalk in front of Parker’s house.

“Who are you and what have you done with my family?!” He continued as Gary walked past him into the house.

“I told you that I would show you just how important you are. Get dressed, it’s time for a tour.” Gary replied.

“I’m not going anywhere with you.” Parker adamantly stated.

“The faster we can get through this, the faster you will be allowed to go back to your old life.” said Gary.

“I hate my old life,” Parker yelled.

That’s when Gary said, “It’s up to you to change it.”

—-

Parker got changed and got in the driver’s side of the car.

“Good, you can drive. I’m a terrible driver, “ Gary said sarcastically, “Let’s head over to your office.”

“What am I, Ebenezer Scrooge? Are you a ghost sent here to teach me a lesson?” Parker asked before starting the car.

“Nothing like that,” Gary started, “I’ve told you already, I am your guardian angel and I am here to show you just what life would be like for the people you care about if you weren’t a part of theirs.”

“Do you know how crazy this is?” was Parker’s retort.

“It’s no more crazy than your feelings of loneliness and frustration.” Gary said.

“Things just haven’t been going well at work. We’re trying to put in this new system and its messing with production.” Parker started, “There’s really very little I can do about it, either. We’ve lost two of our biggest accounts and trying to modernize is costing us a fortune. The world isn’t the same now as it was when I started working there. We may not have any choice but to lay off some people. It’s a really bad situation.”

“It could be worse,” Gary said as they took a left onto the industrial park.

Parker’s demeanor changed and immediately got more hostile.

‘What the hell do you mean it could be worse?! People depend on me to make good decisions and I’m letting them down! Don’t you get it?!”

“Oh, I get it,” Gary began, “but I know things could be worse. Just look at that.”

At this moment they came upon the Thatcher-Jenkins offices; or, more like where the Thatcher-Jenkins offices should be. The building, which sat just off the river at the north end of the industrial park was vacant. There were pieces of plywood over several of the floor-to-ceiling windows that lined the second-floor facade. The parking lot was unplowed, so when Parker opened the car door and got out, he crunched through the layer of cold-tempered snow.

“What the…” Parker trailed off as he crunched through the snow toward the building.

Gary got out and shouted after him, “I told you things could be worse.”

Parker turned around and glanced at him, “What is happening?”

Gary flashed a smile, “This is what happens if you aren’t the one making the decisions. 56 jobs are gone. The place boarded up and left vacant.”

Parker started back to the car.

“Where am I, then?” he asked sternly.

“Well you’re right here, of course. Get in, and I’ll show you more.” Gary said.

Parker got in the car and they made their way out of the Industrial Park and drove toward downtown. As they drove down Main street Parker noticed his wife, Jewel. She didn’t look like herself, however. Instead of the well-manicured woman, she was wearing a heavy wool coat, a wool hat with matching mittens and standing in the doorway of George’s Hardware ringing a bell. She was taking in donations for the Salvation Army.

“She always loves to help people,” Parker said as he started to roll down the window. They drove on by, causing Parker to watch her in the driver’s-side mirror until she was no longer in sight.

“She’s wonderful, but her life is nothing like her life is with you,” Gary said, “Without you, she marries, but has a miscarriage and gets divorced. She never has the family that you two have created. She suffers each day with the loss.”

Parker started to tear up. Gary reached in his topcoat and grabbed a handkerchief and offered it to Parker. Parker took it, and blotted his eyes as the town passed them by.

“Where are you taking me now?” Parker asked helplessly.

“We have a couple more things to see before you make your decision,” Gary responded.

“What decision?” Parker asked several times. Gary gestured him to keep course. They came to a stop in a parking lot in front of Ophelia’s Diner, on the east edge of town near the interstate highway.

“Park the car here.” said Gary.

“Why are we stopping here? I’m not hungry.” Parker inquired with desperation in his voice.

“Good,” Gary said, “because we’re not going in.”

Gary led him around the side of the building to a camper that was set up about 50 feet behind the restaurant.

“What the hell is this?” Parker asked.

“Something you’ll need to see.” Gary responded.

They approached the camper. There was the faint smell of cigarettes and muffled noises coming from inside. Gary walks up and knocks on the door. After some rustling and audible muttering, the door swung open. The man standing in the doorway was Pete. He had a two-day stubble and had a cigarette hanging out of his mouth.

“What do you want?” Pete said, not taking the cigarette out of his mouth.

“Pete?!” Parker asked aloud. Pete looked as if he hadn’t bathed in a couple of days and was wearing a cook’s whites, but no apron. He wasn’t wearing shoes.

“Yeah. Do I know you?” Pete said with a twinge of hostility. The men just stood there and stared at each other for a minute at which time Pete had had enough.

“Well, I’m busy,” Pete slammed the door, leaving the other two men standing in the snow.

“Let’s go,” Gary said as he began to walk back to the car.

“I guess he had a rough time of it.” Parker said trailing after Gary, “Jewel got me to hire him after he got out of jail. I guess without me all his talents would have been put to waste. He’s one hell of an IT guy. He’s been with me for years; I was about to make him CIO.”

The two men reached the car and Gary got in and started it up. Parker looked back at the camper one more time and got in the passenger seat.

“I think I get the point,” Parker said softly when they were driving back toward town.

“Yeah, people depend on you, but I have one more thing to show you,” Gary said.

“Why don’t you just take me back?” Parker demanded.

“That’s not the way it works, Parker,” Gary responded, “Like I told you, you are here. I can’t just take you back. I’m just your guardian angel.”

“I understand why I’m so important now. I have you to thank for it.” Parker admitted.

“You need to see one more thing.” Gary said as he drove.

Parker was silent. As he watched the town drift by, he realized that it was getting late in the afternoon and it was starting to get dark.

“I’ll be able to pick up where I left off, right, Ghost?” Parker asked.

“I’m not a ghost and you are not Ebenezer Scrooge. If any of this helps you, it will be on you to get back to the place where you can make a difference.” Gary said.

“But how do I get back?” Parker asked helplessly.

“You’ll see,” Gary said, “the decision will be yours.”

Just then they arrived at the supermarket. Gary got out of the car and told Parker to follow him. He walked into the store and went to the aisle where you’d find Thatcher-Jenkins best-selling product. Gary pointed at the shelf. There were no products from Thatcher-Jenkins, just twice as many from their biggest competitor Capra Industries. Parker shook his head and smiled.

“Now you are ready,” Gary said with a smile, “Let’s go.”

They returned to the car and drove across town to the bridge in silence. Gary parked the car in the same place where Parker had parked it, what seemingly was a day prior, but that’s not the way this works.

The men walked up to the place on the bridge where they had first met. Gary reached in his coat and offered Parker an unopened bottle of brandy.

“Now go home to your wife.” Gary said.

“Thank you, angel.” Parker said and extended his hand. Gary didn’t shake his hand, he tipped his cap and abruptly walked away.

—

Parker drove home fast, much faster than he normally would have. Once he got home, he jumped out of the car and ran inside. Without taking off his shoes and coat he ran into his family room to find his children sitting on the couch playing on their tablets. His heart was filled with warmth, he made his way to the kitchen where his wife was.

“Oh, Jewel,” is all he said before he wrapped his arms around her.

“Wow, is everything okay?” She asked him.

“Everything is great. I love you so much.” He said to her stepping away and looking her in the eyes. He kissed her.

He placed the bottle of brandy on the counter.

Confused, Jewel asked, “What happened to you?”

“I just had a long day and I’m happy to be home.” he said.

Parker didn’t think about work for the whole next day. It was the longest he had actually relaxed in years. He spent the holiday with the people he loved, happy, and feeling as if anything was possible.

—

When he returned to work on the day after Christmas, he got there extra early. He noticed the NuTech Services business card that he left lying on his desk, so he went ahead and called Pete into his office. He was determined to find solutions to his business’ IT overruns.

“You asked for me, Boss?” Pete said as he walked in the open door.

“Yeah, Pete, shut the door.” Parker demanded. Pete walked in nervously and stood behind the chairs that were in front of the Parker’s desk.

“Have a seat,” Parker started, “Pete, over the Christmas holiday I had some harsh truths to face. It’s no secret that we’ve been having some technology problems lately and if they keep up, we’ll likely have to lay some people off.”

“Okay, we’re doing all…” Pete started before Parker interjected.

“I’m not blaming you, Pete. Like I said, I had some harsh truths to face. One of them is that I have to take a step back from the technology end of the business. My demands are some of the main reasons we’re having problems. I called you here to promote you, Pete. You’ve done one hell of a job for us and I was wondering if you would like to join the management team as CIO?”

Pete’s face was filled with surprise and pride, “How would it change the job I have now?”

“Do you want it, Pete?” Parker pressed.

“Yes, sir.” Pete responded.

“Wonderful, you are the right man for the job. The first course of action that you need to focus on is getting the resources in here to get our new system in place and get the people trained up on it. It is essential to the future of our company, and I think you are up to the challenge.”

“Thank you, sir.” Pete said earnestly, “I think the first thing we should look at is getting NuTech Services in here to help us cover our regular management while we finish the deployment.”

“Pete, if it’s in the budget, it is your call now. I’ll call a staff meeting later today to announce your promotion.“ Parker answered. “For now, though, I have some things I need to attend to.”

Parker walked around the desk to shake Pete’s hand and walked him out of the office. Once Pete was gone, Parker walked over to the window and put his palm on the glass. He hadn’t felt this proud in some time.

—

I’m glad to announce that Pete’s plan was implemented the very next day. The following week, NuTech Services did their first assessment, and soon after took over the management and maintenance of the computing infrastructure and network. For several months, Thatcher-Jenkins’ IT technicians, led by CIO Pete, implemented a system with NuTech Services supporting their technology. Now the two companies are full-time collaborators, and Thatcher-Jenkins continues their steady growth.

If you enjoyed this take and think that NuTech Services can breathe some new life into your business’ technology strategy, give us a call at 810.230.9455 and one of our expert consultants can tell you how we can help you. Happy Holidays.

Dec, 2018

An IT Christmas Carol

The IT guy, Jacob left last month: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. He left without an exit interview, and he didn’t seem very pleased with the way the situation played out. You could never tell if Scrooge cared or not. His demands have never wavered. He expected perfection and when mistakes were made, they were approached as catastrophic affronts to the sustainability of the business, even if that wasn’t the reality.

Scrooge, not missing a beat, and never altering his demanding demeanor, laid the responsibilities that were, up to last month, Jacob’s, at the feet of poor old Bob; with, the expectation that Bob would be able to produce more. Bob was ever the diligent worker, and he never complained, regardless of how much unwanted attention and responsibility was forced onto him. As the holidays approached, Bob was looking forward to the respite from work, even if it was for a day. He was going to spend time with his family. You see, Bob’s daughter Grace fell ill and since Scrooge didn’t believe in offering benefits, the burden of keeping her well fell on Bob’s shoulders.

Just as he did the best that he could for Scrooge, he did the best that he could for his family. The problem was that Christmas is tomorrow and there has been no mention of him getting the day off. At about 1 p.m., after he had eaten the soup his wife had made (the same soup he had been eating for five consecutive working days), he went to Scrooge.

“Mr. Scrooge, I was wondering if I could have the day off tomorrow for Christmas?”

“No, Bob,” Scrooge answered immediately, “We just can’t afford it if you missed any time. It’s not fair or convenient to the business for you to miss any time.”

“But Mr. Scrooge,” Bob pleaded, “My wife is making a roast and I am hosting Christmas.” He went on to observe that it was only one day a year.

“Bah! Humbug.” Scrooge crowed, “It’s a poor excuse for picking a man’s pocket every twenty-fifth of December! You’d better be here in the morning, or you can find yourself another job.”

Bob, not wanting to put his job in jeopardy dejectedly answered, “Yes, sir.”

Bob went back to work and toward the end of the day, Scrooge emerged from his office, put on his coat and meandered over to Bob’s desk with a box. He stopped, placed the box on the desk and placed his hand upon the box.

“Bob,” Scrooge started, “I was thinking about your request for time off, and I wanted to tell you that since Jacob left, we just can’t have anyone missing any more time, so just tell your family to come after you get out of work.” Bob was upset, but said nothing.

“I’m headed to my club, I need you to stay tonight and install this new router.” Scrooge tapped the box, “I’m having trouble streaming in my office and want this installed and working before you leave for the day.”

Without saying goodbye, the old miser walked out the door and shuffled up the street toward his car. Bob felt crestfallen. He knew his brother and his family would be at the house when he got home, but not wanting to disobey Mr. Scrooge’s demands. He stayed until just after 8 p.m. making sure that the router was installed properly and that it did, indeed provide Mr. Scrooge’s office with the wireless signal he demanded.

After he finished with the router, he locked up the office and meandered down the street toward his car. Since Scrooge has kept both parking spots in front of the office for himself, Bob had to walk a half a mile to the parking garage. As he made his way there he went into the store to buy his family their Christmas roast. Knowing he wouldn’t be around to enjoy the company of his loved ones, he could at least get a beautiful roast.

He started pricing the meat and realized that he couldn’t afford a roast that was big enough for eight people. He checked his balance, and when the numbers came up on the screen he felt like he wanted to cry. He picked up a small roast and a large chicken, paid, and left for his home.

When Bob got home, his entire family was there. The sadness he was feeling melted away and the Christmas spirit that had escaped him returned with aplomb. His brother’s family had arrived a few hours before and so, after tucking their children in for Christmas, the adults sat around the Christmas tree telling stories and laughing, stuffing stockings, and putting out gifts. Bob didn’t know exactly how to explain that his boss wouldn’t give him the day off, but waited to reveal this sad truth for after the pleasantries of the evening were finished.

As he got ready for bed he shared the news with his wife.

“That Scrooge is a real piece of work,” his wife proclaimed.

“He’s a real piece of something,” Bob returned.

The couple talked about it a bit more, said goodnight, and went to sleep.

—-

Scrooge, was sitting alone, as was his custom at a table in his club’s bar. His scowl was a solid deterrent to keep people away. He sipped his scotch and water and sat there watching the television that was mounted above the bar. The financial news was on. As the stock prices raced by and the attractive, yet muted 30-something gave the audience the recap of the money that had been made and lost during the day’s trading, his concentration was broken.

All of a sudden a man was standing, drinkless, in front of his table. “Hello Mr. Scrooge.”

“What?!” the ill-tempered codger snapped.

“Merry Christmas.” the man said joyfully.

“Bah!” Scrooge responded sharply.

“My name is Fred Rappuhn, and I’m with NuTech Services, and it’s come to my attention that your IT administrator, Jacob, is no longer with your company. I was wondering if you had a few minutes to talk about how my company can help you manage your…”

Scrooge responded, “Let me stop you before you go any further. I wish to be left alone. I don’t know how you know my business and I don’t care, I’ve got it handled.”

The conversation went on like that for a few minutes and Fred Rappuhn left his card on the table and wished Scrooge a merry Christmas. Scrooge predictably scoffed at the sentiment. In solitude he finished his drink, paid the bill with no tip, and left the club.

When he got home, he locked the door behind him and put on his dressing gown and nightcap. Just as he was getting comfortable in his bed, he heard a tapping, which he ignored. A minute later a banging came from the front room. He got up to investigate, grabbing his cane. Discovering nothing, he returned to his bedroom, only to find Jacob sitting at the small writing desk he had up against the far wall.

“What the hell are you doing here?!” Scrooge said aggressively.

“I’m not here, Mr. Scrooge. I’m not. I am a figment of your imagination.” Jacob stated matter-of-factly.

Scrooge charged at him and swinging his club to accost the intruder only served to break the lamp on the desk.

“How now!” said Scrooge, “What do you want with me?”

“Much” Jacob replied, “but first I have to see that you believe in me.”

“Believe in you?” Scrooge said, “Humbug, I tell you! Humbug!”

Just then Jacob let out a wail that got Scrooge’s attention. He then asked Scrooge to check his account balances, and after a little back-and-forth, Scrooge placated the spectre. The look on Scrooge’s face was of pure terror.

He began to plead, “Mercy, dreadful apparition, why do you trouble me?”

“Your life is tied to your business, Scrooge, but your repulsive avarice has left you exposed; left it exposed.”

Jacob walked up to a terrified Scrooge. “Hear me! Tonight you will be haunted by three spirits.”

“Three spirits?” Scrooge asked, terrified.

“Yes, without their visits you can’t expect to understand the danger your belligerence has caused.”

Just then, the room was silent. Scrooge was horrified. He turned every light on in his house and turned on the television. After at least an hour of trepidation, he finally started to get tired, and even though his home was lit up like a jack-o-lantern on Halloween, he dozed off on his sofa.

—-

“Wake Up!” the spirit shrieked.

Scrooge arose from his peace-less slumber quickly and alertly. He took a swipe with his cane, but was rebuked by the large ethereal man standing before him. The ghost was around six-foot-four, but had a golf shirt embroidered with Scrooge’s company’s logo on it tucked into a pair of khakis. Its hair was seemingly an ethereal mist that looked like there was smoke coming up from his glasses. His eyes were ominously white behind thick black glasses.

“Are you the Spirit, sir whose coming was foretold to me?” Scrooge asked.

“I am. I am the Ghost of Christmas Past.”

“Long past?” asked Scrooge who was trembling with fear.

“No, man, your past,” the spirit returned

The spectre put his hand on Scrooge’s reluctant shoulder and led him to the door of his home. Instead of opening the door, they traveled through it only to find on the other side a vision. The vision was of Jacob talking with Bob. They were talking about how Jacob had went to Scrooge, and asked him to consider getting on a firewall installed on the business network.

“You would have thought I asked him to go steady,” Jacob started, “He screamed at me and told me that if I don’t do my #$%^*& job and stop coming to him for money, I won’t have a job to come to.”

“I remember that. He was asking for too much money!” Scrooge said defiantly.

The spirit said nothing and put his hand on Scrooge’s shoulder again. They walked back through the wall they had just come through and this time it was a school. It seemed to be sometime in the 1960s. There was a little boy who was trying to open a padlock with paperclips.

As the lock sprung open, Scrooge growled, “Tommy Hulse!”

The boy opened the locker that was being protected by the padlock and took out a small bag.

“It was him!” Scrooge screeched. He got emotional and explained that he had brought his dad’s watch into school the day before Christmas and he had kept it in the bag. When he returned to the locker that day, it was open and his father’s watch was gone.

“I bet he skinned your hide,” the spirit said arrogantly.

Scrooge, despondent, looked at the spirit, “He died soon thereafter.”

“My time is running short, Scrooge. Let us go,” the spirit said, as he put his hand on his shoulder and walked through the wall.

He was back in the front room of his house. No one else was there. He called out to the spirit but nothing answered. Just then there was a banging coming from the bedroom. He went to investigate and there was a larger spectre standing in front of his bed.

“Scrooge!” the new ghost bellowed. Scrooge turned around and shut the door, only to turn around to see the giant ghastly man. This spirit was nearly seven-feet tall, his head was covered in a hood. He couldn’t make out any of his features, except two glowing eyes that seemed to puncture a hole through him.

“Scrooge! I am the Ghost of Christmas Present.”

“No! No more hauntings!” Scrooge plead. The ghost lifted his right arm and snapped his ethereal fingers. The snap was the loudest noise the miser had ever heard.

Scrooge, who had closed his eyes to avert his gaze from the newest spirit, opened them and found himself alone in a dark room.

‘Where am I?” Scrooge called out. No answer.

He noticed a light coming from an adjacent room. He made his way toward it. As he entered the doorway he could see the ghost standing over what looked to be Jacob, his former IT administrator. Jacob was typing at a computer.

‘Come, Scrooge,” the spirit said in his baritone tenor.

Scrooge walked over and looked on the screen. It was indeed Jacob, he was typing in a chat on his computer. He began to read:

When I bailed on old man Scrooge, I left a hole in the network. Tomorrow, I am going to go in and put this ransomware I just purchased. When he gets back from his Christmas break, he’ll have a surprise waiting for him.

“What is this? What is ransomware?” Scrooge asked the spirit timidly.

“I can’t tell you that, but I can tell you that it is not good for you or your company.” The ghost replied.

“Tell him to stop! Tell him to stop!” Scrooge began pleading.

“No one can hear you, Scrooge.” The spirit said as it walked out of the room.

Scrooge followed, but as soon as he got into the next room, there was no one there. He turned around and seemed surprised to be in his office. He walked through his office door to see the spirit standing over Bob’s desk. Bob was sitting at his desk working away, gently sighing every once in a while and checking his phone repeatedly. All of a sudden his desk phone rang.

“Hello.” Bob answered.

“Merry Christmas to you too…Mr. Scrooge needed me to work today, so I am…Well I have my brother and his family…She’s doing well…It’s okay…I’ll think about it…Have a merry Christmas.” Bob hung up the phone and went back to doing what he was doing.

“He’s a good worker.” Scrooge admitted to the spirit.

“You just couldn’t give him the day off for Christmas?” the spirit asked directly.

“I…I…We’re so short-staffed as it is…” Scrooge stammered. Bob’s cell phone rang.

“Hey…What?!…I’ll be right there,” Bob stood up with a panicked look on his face. He put his coat on and walked out the door without turning his computer off.

“Where is he going? Where is he going, spirit?” Scrooge plead.

The spirit again snapped his fingers and the pair were standing in the waiting room of a hospital. Bob was standing at the desk filling out paperwork. A doctor came up to him and started to talk. Bob’s face succumbed to the pain of the situation.

Scrooge started in, “What is it? What has happened? Tell me what has happened, please?”

The ghost looked at Scrooge with his searing red eyes and said, “His little girl is ill, Scrooge. I’m sure you knew that.”

“Yes…Yes, but what has happened to her?”

The spirit lifted his arm again. SNAP.

The pair were on the front lawn of Bob’s house. A car pulls into the driveway. Bob’s wife got out of the passenger seat. She had clearly been crying. Bob got out of the front seat and made his way around the car. His wife muttered something to him while he opened the back door of the car. Bob lifted his tired and weak daughter out of the car seat and followed his wife in the house.

“Not very Christmasy,” the tall spirit said, mocking a relieved Scrooge.

Before Scrooge could say anything else there was a huge bang and he was back in his home. Feeling tired and emotional, Scrooge sat down on the settee in his front room. He sat there in contemplation for a few minutes. He was worried about the virus that Jacob was going to unleash, he was worried about his business, and about Bob and his family. He realized that he hadn’t treated these people with a lot of respect. Just as he was coming to the conclusion that he had to do something about it the room filled with a blinding light.

Scrooge couldn’t see a thing. All of a sudden there was a high-pitched scream that startled him further. He started to plead:

“Please spirits, no more! I have learned the errors of my ways! No more, I beg you!”

A silhouette emerged in the light.

“Come,” it screeched.

Witless and afraid, Scrooge complied. The spirit was no more than a shadow that moved independently through the ether like bolts of lightning.

Scrooge followed the spirit into the light and emerged in front of a Best Buy. There were giant “Christmas Sale” banners hanging from above the revolving doors. Scrooge walked into the store where he was confronted by himself. He was wearing a Best Buy shirt and tan slacks, staring aimlessly across the vast expanse of the retail establishment.

From the side he spotted Bob walking up to his likeness.

“C’mon Scrooge, get to work,” Bob said as he walked by future Scrooge. He was older than he was by a few years and looked malnourished and feeble.

“No! This can’t be! I am an old man. I cannot work retail!”

As future Scrooge made his way toward the warehouse modern Scrooge followed. Two younger workers were standing near the loading dock as the Scrooges approached.

“What’s the matter, Grandpa? Don’t remember where you should be?” one of the young men said as the other laughed.

Scrooge looked around helplessly as the two younger men continued to snicker and jest.

Just then the light returned, covering everything. It brought Scrooge to a grave marked “Here Lies Scrooge”. Sensing his mortality Scrooge began to wail:

“Stop! Spirit, no! Oh no! Your nature intercedes for me, and pities me. Assure me that I yet may change these shadows you have shown me, shadow! I will live an altered life!”

The light returned and Scrooge woke up. He wasn’t on the settee or in the front room, but his bed. He leaped from the sheets.

“I don’t know what to do! I am light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, I am as merry as a schoolboy, I am as merry as a drunken man. Merry Christmas to everybody!” Scrooge cried laughing aloud. Without getting dressed he grabbed his coat and rushed out onto the street. Dawn was just breaking. He saw a young man walking on the sidewalk, he stopped him and asked, “What’s to-day?”

“Why today is Christmas, sir!” the young man replied.

“It’s Christmas day? Of course. Merry Christmas to you my fine fellow.” Scrooge said with enthusiasm.

“A merry Christmas to you, too, sir,” the man replied and walked on.

Scrooge, went back in his home and started making calls, the first call he made was to Bob, telling him to take the day and spend it with his family; and, that he was going to get a significant raise. The next call was to Jacob, who didn’t answer, but Scrooge left a voicemail that said he was sorry and would like to make it up to him. Finally, he called NuTech Services’s Fred Rappuhn to tell him that he would be happy to learn more about how he could keep his IT safe and make his business more efficient.

From all of us at NuTech Services, we’d like to wish you a very merry Christmas and the happiest of holidays!

Dec, 2018

As 2018 Ends, Mobile Cyberthreats Won’t

Mobile devices have made conducting business much more convenient, as the right application can allow transactions to be made from anywhere you may be reading this blog. However, this increased accessibility has come with a price – threats to mobile security – which requires any business to be aware of the state of cybersecurity, especially concerning mobile devices, now and in the foreseeable future.

The Now:
It’s the holiday season, which means that many will find that themselves traveling, either to visit family and friends or to seek out more agreeable climates. However, business being what it is, many will also still be trying to get work done during their travels.

Thanks to the incredible capabilities of the mobile devices we have today, this is made much easier. A business that leverages cloud solutions offers mobile users an exceptional amount of maneuverability, and the popularity of Bring Your Own Device policies have made it so that the resources needed to accomplish work goals are never too far away. Yet, this access is a catch-22, as it also means that data can be easily lost, far from the business’ location and the protections it should have in place.

Resultantly, there are a multitude of ways that a cybercriminal can come into possession of your data, either personal or professional. Fortunately, there are some ways to help prevent this from happening as well.

Public Wi-Fi is Too Public: When out in public, you’ll want to avoid connecting to public Wi-Fi networks when shopping or accessing sensitive information. We all know that hunting for the best deals is made much easier when you can look up prices online, but you’ll want to use your data instead. Public signals make hackers’ jobs that much easier with their typically insufficient security standards.
Charity Good, Charity Scams Bad: These phishing variants can come in via all avenues, but very commonly take the form of calls and text messages. A scammer pretends to be working for some charity, but in actuality, just wants your money and data for themselves. If you receive what you believe to be a charity scam attempt, you’d be wise to do some research into who is asking for it before handing over your data, payment information or otherwise.
Charge Carefully: Whether you’re at the airport during a layover and trying to eke a few more minutes out of your device, or you’re deal-hunting online as you’re wandering the mall, you need to make sure you’re being smart about how you’re keeping your device charged. Many attackers will hide attacks in charging stations, waiting to strike whomever connects.

The Then:
Of course, these hacks and threats aren’t going to end after the holiday season is over. Moving into 2019, the above threats are still going to be just as large of a problem, along with many other threats. Much of this will be in part due to our reliance on mobile devices.

Hackers will still be able to intercept data exchanged on an unsecure network, more devices will become outdated and insecure (you may want to peek at some of those holiday deals for an upgrade), and yes, more people will enable these threats through uninformed decisions. You need to make sure that your business isn’t influenced by threats like these.

NuTech Services can help. Get your business a holiday gift by calling 810.230.9455 and speaking to us about our managed IT services.

Dec, 2017

Technology Has Influenced a Few Holiday Traditions

Everyone has their own holiday traditions, and Christmastime is no exception. Some might stick to more traditional roots, while others focus on more contemporary trends to create a Christmas culture that changes with each passing year. Many of these newer traditions have been molded from modern technology solutions, so let’s celebrate both new and old holiday traditions by looking at how technology has changed them.

Holiday Cards
Today’s technology has largely replaced physical holiday cards sent over postal. Social media is one trend that makes it easier to stay connected than ever before, allowing you to keep friends and relatives up-to-date on the major happenings. The annual occurrence of a holiday card is less important due to this, and younger generations simply prefer to communicate online than physically or in-person, making snail mail a moot point.

Automation
The holidays are stressful. There’s no getting around that fact. You need to properly prepare for the celebrations, as well as organize any get togethers that your family hosts. Of course, real life doesn’t just disappear during the holidays, so you’re essentially trying to juggle additional responsibilities on top of others. Technology helps you automate tasks so that you can get more done during the workday. Some tasks, like grocery shopping and even paying bills, can be automated to an extent, allowing you to spend more time preparing for the holidays.

Shopping
Nowadays, retail and commercialism are a part of the holiday season. Gift-giving is a deep-seated tradition that makes people feel good about themselves. With the advent of online shopping, shoppers are capable of finding gifts without going to the physical location of a retailer, allowing for less travel and fewer headaches, while overall, providing a larger variety of available goods and services.

Stores are even taking matters into their own hands, allowing for a better consumer experience as a whole. Online price tracking lets users find the best deals in any store, and smart shelves can be used to find out if an item is even available in the first place. Near-field communication, or NFC, can be used to help shoppers finish their transactions in the most convenient way possible.

Online shopping is flourishing, and the holiday season is when it’s most successful. There are even browser plugins that help shoppers locate the best deals around. Discount codes are used as an incentive to get online shoppers to double-down on their purchases, and retailers introduce countless other bargains and sales to make the holiday season “the most profitable time of the year.”

What are some of the other ways technology has affected the holiday season? Let us know in the comments. All of us at NuTech Services wish you a happy holiday season and a wonderful new year.

Dec, 2016

Tip of the Week: 6 Tips to Avoid Getting Scammed This Holiday Season

The ingenuity of criminals knows no bounds, especially when it comes to the holidays. You’d think that scammers would be merciful during this time of peace on Earth and goodwill to man. Nope. This is when they step up their scamming efforts, which means you need to be ever vigilant.

Here are six scams to be mindful of this holiday season.

Be Careful Where You Donate
The holidays are a great time to make end-of-the-year donations that you can deduct from your taxes. Unfortunately, scammers know how to play on people’s heartstrings and they’ll set up fake charities with slick online websites in order to scam you out of money that should be going to help others.

To make sure you’re giving to a legitimate charity, AARP recommends, “Before donating to a charity, make sure it is registered with the Secretary of State and ask how much of the money goes to the charitable fundraiser and how much goes to the charitable purpose.”

Be Wary of Fake Gift Cards
Often used as a gift for the person who “has everything” or as a small supplement to be given besides a larger gift, gift cards are a very popular gift to give. However, gift cards are also a vehicle for scammers to use. For example, how often do you see great deals on gift cards on online auction sites? As it turns out, those “great deals” are very likely for stolen, worthless cards.

The easiest way to avoid this sort of scam is to only purchase gift cards from a trusted, licensed merchant. Also, if you’re purchasing the card at the store it’s for, ask the cashier to check the balance of the card so you don’t get scammed into buying a bogus card placed on the rack by the thief.

Be Sure to Track Your Packages
The holidays are crunch time for parcel delivery services. For thieves that may lack hacking and technical skills, simply walking up to a front porch and stealing a package is an easy way to make some fast cash. They may even have zero use for what’s in the box, but that won’t keep them from walking off with your goods, just in case there’s a chance that it contains an item of value.

To prevent this risk, when you order a package make sure that your signature is required in order to receive it. This will prevent the package from being left on your steps for a thief to easily grab. Also, remember that you can have the package delivered to your work address if nobody will be at your house to sign off for your package.

Watch for Credit Card Skimmers
Some thieves even have the know-how to steal data from your credit card using skimming devices at ATMs and other POS devices. Therefore, it’s preferable to shop with a credit card over a debit card, and there’s a lot to be said for cash being a secure way to pay for things. Also, look closely at the device before scanning your card. If it looks like it’s been tampered with, then you’ll want to alert store management.

Don’t Fall for Bogus Deals
Finally, it never hurts to rely on some relatively timeless shopping advice: if an offer sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Before completing any purchase that seems like the deal of a lifetime, make sure you at least familiarize yourself with all of the terms, and consider the ones that probably aren’t mentioned. No deal is worth risking your financial future for.

Be Safe Online
Finally, there are plenty of scams to be found online. The best way to avoid getting taken by an online Grinch is to follow best security practices. These include:

Before submitting any sensitive information, look for the padlock icon in the address bar, along with HTTPS at the beginning of the URL.
Only shop on websites that have a good reputation.
Avoid using public Wi-Fi when shopping online.
Avoid using your debit card online. Instead, use credit cards and gift cards.
Be skeptical of unsolicited emails in your inbox, especially when it comes to fake invoices and bogus shipping orders.

By avoiding these six scams you can shop with confidence this holiday season. It’s also important to keep in mind that these scams are utilized by thieves all year round, so you’ll want to always be looking out for them.

Have you fallen for any of these scams or encountered any of them while shopping? If so, share with us your scam story in the comments.

Oct, 2016

Monsters aren’t Real, But Ransomware Sure Is!

Halloween is a time when creatures like ghosts and goblins are celebrated rather than feared. Even adults use the holiday to lighten up and enjoy themselves, as they’re well aware that the monsters so often seen and heard about in stories are fictional. Unfortunately, the fact remains that there are monsters hiding in plain sight all around us, playing on the fears and misfortune of others–namely, hackers.

It’s pretty unlikely that a child will wander to your front door this Halloween dressed as a hacker (we like to picture them in ski masks and black sweatshirts). Yet, the digital assets of your business, like your website and network infrastructure, could very well be visited this Halloween–or any day. While there are preventative measures to keep these threats at bay, like firewalls and antivirus, there are other tactics used by hackers that aren’t as obvious as a “trick or treat!” at your doorstep. We’re talking about specialized spear-phishing attacks that have a much greater chance of making it through your security and defenses.

Cyber extortion is a major problem that businesses have to deal with, primarily due to the fact that, when used properly, it is difficult to detect and protect against. Hackers tend to use fear tactics for their cyber extortion schemes, since it’s a particularly effective way to incite irrational behavior, like forking over cash. Their methods are akin to the likes of blackmail and deception.

These methods work in a similar manner to ransomware. Most ransomware will use encryption to lock down files on a victim’s computer, preventing them from opening it until a decryption key is issued. The key is obtained when the user pays a fine.

The concept is to capitalize on the victim’s panic. In their haste to recover their files, they will pay the fine using an untraceable cryptocurrency, regardless of how irrational the request. Their fear of losing data outweighs the price that’s been put on it. In particular, businesses need to be wary of losing mission-critical data. In the majority of ransomware cases, unless an organization has their data backed up, they’re out of luck and won’t be able to retrieve their data without paying the fine. Now that’s scary!

Recent ransomware hints at another sickening trend in the form of an ultimatum; hackers will steal information from businesses or individuals, and then threaten to release the sensitive data on the Internet unless a payment is made. Hackers will often do this if they’ve accumulated a large cache of valuable information. While they may not do anything with the stolen data, there’s no guarantee that the hackers who buy the data won’t make good on their threat. In order to prevent this from happening, the asking price is usually between $250 to $1,200.

IC3, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, received a significant number of reports indicating that users who had data stolen through high-profile data breaches received extortion emails demanding that they pay a fee, or suffer the consequences. This data includes personally identifiable information, like Social Security numbers and birth dates, as well as financial information. In some cases, hackers also claim to have obtained photos, emails, and other valuable files that could have disastrous effects on the victim’s personal life.

Keep in mind that there’s almost no way to guarantee that hackers have obtained files unless they’re willing to show you proof. They could just be blowing hot air and hoping that you’ll be willing to believe them. This is why it’s important not to immediately pay a ransom, as there’s no guarantee that you’ll even get the decryption key from the hacker.

Basically, you should never act irrationally due to a ransom offered by hackers. Remember, fear isn’t going to save your files. All you’re doing is further proving to the hackers that their tactics work, and the money you fork over is probably going to be used to keep their hacking agenda going. Don’t give them the satisfaction of watching you squirm.

To prevent becoming a victim of a hacking attack or cyber extortion attempt, give NuTech Services a call at 810.230.9455. We can help you assess your choices and implement preventative solutions to keep things like this from happening in the future.

This Halloween, be safe and make sure to celebrate what looks scary (but really isn’t), instead of finding yourself in a situation that’s actually scary, like being blackmailed by a hacker.

Oct, 2015

The Wolfman is an Executable Virus and 3 Other Monster/Malware Comparisons

It’s the time of year when we reflect on scary things. For an IT company, it doesn’t get much scarier than an organization’s network getting slammed with a malicious computer virus. There are a variety of really bad viruses out there, each one with its own unique ability to cause some scary results. The way we see it, each computer virus is kind of like a classic monster.

An Overwrite Virus is The Fly

What an overwrite virus does: Deletes information in the infected files. In this case, the infected files would be rendered totally or partially useless. Additionally, the only way to effectively rid a system of this virus is to delete the file, which would cause the original content to be completely lost.
Why The Fly is an overwrite virus: Before The Fly was a monster, he was a scientist who successfully developed teleportation technology. Unfortunately, during a teleoperation test run involving the scientist, a fly found its way into the teleportation pod, causing his DNA to slowly become overwritten with fly DNA. This turned him into a hideous monster. He was no longer useful as a productive scientist and the only way to stop his reign of terror was to “delete him.”

An Executable Virus is the Wolfman

What an executable virus does: An executable virus is a nonresident computer virus that stores itself in an executable file and infects other files each time the file is run. Until the file is executed, it remains dormant–until a predetermined command activates it. Activating the file could require something simple like opening a specific program, or even a remote activation by a hacker.
Why it’s the Wolfman: The thing about the wolfman is that he’s an average dude during the day, and even during most nights when the moon isn’t full. All the while, he’s out mingling in the real world like a normal person and nobody’s the wiser. Then, the full moon happens, his werewolf side is activated (or “executed”), and he goes on a path of destruction. This is what the an executable virus does; it sits dormant on your PC, waiting to be remotely activated by a force that’s beyond your control.

Botnets are Zombies

What a Botnet does: A botnet is programmed to spread its destructive malware to other systems. This, in turn, creates more bots, and these systems bond together into a botnet. These entities can mask their presence and creep into your system disguised as everyday Internet traffic. It can then proceed to collect as much information as it needs to spam you, steal your company’s data, or overwhelm your system and shut it down with a DDoS attack.
Why it’s a zombie virus: A zombie virus spreads from person to person by completely taking over their body, forcing them to do something that they wouldn’t normally do–eat brains. This, in turn, only serves to spread the virus and create even more zombies that want to devour even more brains. Botnets have the capability to take over your company’s computers in the same zombie-like way.

Ransomware is an Alien Conquest

What Ransomware Does: Once a computer is infected with a ransomware like CryptoLocker, the virus will encrypt the files on the computer. It will then lock the user out of their PC and demand that you pay the hackers money for an encryption key. Additionally, CryptoLocker displays a clock that counts down. If the clock hits 0:00 and the hackers haven’t received their money, then all of the PC’s files will be deleted.
Why Ransomware is Aliens: Ransomware like CryptoLocker is one of the nastiest viruses that we’ve seen, and it actually combines a variety of different viruses. Therefore, we’re going to chalk this one up to aliens. One reason for this association is because there are so many different types of aliens that attack Earth in so many different ways. When it comes to aliens, we see two common themes that coincide with ransomware, 1) The complete takeover of our planet (like the complete takeover of a PC), and 2) the abduction of people (which is similar to the abduction of a user’s data). Even though alien races don’t seem particularly interested in exchanging their human captives for Bitcoins, we feel like we can still make a connection because some hackers have been known to delete a user’s data even after the user has paid the ransom–now that’s scary!

Mutants, werewolves, zombies, and aliens, all of these fictitious monsters are nothing compared to the scare you’ll receive if your business were to be hit with any of these viruses. To prevent scary viruses like this, you need a proven network security solution in place like NuTech Services’s Unified Threat Management appliance, and you need to have a data backup solution that allows you to recover a version of your data before your files were infected. Call NuTech Services today at 810.230.9455 to implement these solutions and take the fear out of computing!

May, 2015

Star Wars Has Shaped Our Technology More Than You Know

It’s been a full 38 years since we were introduced to the Skywalker family in the first Star Wars film, “A New Hope.” The science fiction franchise has become such a cultural phenomenon that it even has its own holiday, celebrated galaxy-wide every May 4th (May the 4th be with you).

As an IT company, we’ve always been fascinated with the futuristic technology seen in Star Wars. After watching any one of the six Star Wars movies, viewers can’t help but walk away from the experience with questions like, “How long until we get cool starships and laser blasters?”

Even though we’re still a long ways away from having pod racing replace Formula One, our society has made some great strides over the past four decades to look more and more like Star Wars. In fact, you might remember that, at the height of the Cold War, the United States went so far as to consider using Star Wars-like space lasers.

The influence of Star Wars can most dramatically be seen in the technology we use every day. Take computers, for example. Every year they become more capable of doing more tasks, especially mobile devices. In fact , if you tried explaining today’s smartphone to someone from 1977, they would probably think it to be straight out of science fiction.

It may be for this very reason why Android nicknamed their product “droid.” In Star Wars, droids act as the ultimate personal device, capable of doing virtually any and all tasks asked of them by their humanoid counterparts. Modern smartphone manufacturers pride themselves with just how many different tasks users can accomplish with their mobile devices, but how close are we to actually having our “droids” be as helpful as the droids from Star Wars?

To get to the bottom of this, let’s take an in-depth look at everyone’s favorite Star Wars droid, R2-D2 (sorry C3PO).

Over the span of six movies, R2-D2 has shown much versatility, surprising fans of the franchise with new tricks in each episode (think how much of a game-changer it would have been if R2-D2 could have used his thrusters in the original trilogy). To get an accurate understanding of what all R2 can do, we turn to the Internet’s authority on all things Star Wars, Wookieepedia:

R2-D2 was a diminutive droid, standing 0.96 meters tall. He rolled on three legs, one of which could retract into his body, and had a silver and blue domed head. His white, blue, and silver body housed many arms, sensors, and other apparatuses, many of which were not readily seen by the typical humanoid eye. This often made the droid seem like a box of tricks, unexpectedly pulling out some previously unseen but very much needed device at a critical moment.

Features of the R2-series astromech droid include (bolded are the tasks that we can do on our modern “droid” devices):

Rocket booster
Cable gun
Oil injector
Claw arm
Fusion cutter
Holoprojector / Recorder
Internal comlink
Periscope
Electric pike
Propeller
Hidden lightsaber compartment with ejector
Fire extinguisher / Smoke Screen
Small Saw
Air Cannon
Crashmat
Lariat
Submarine Mode
Collapsible Umbrella
Flea Remover
Distracter
Headdress Detangler
Droid Deactivator
Computer Interface Arm
Charge Arm (electric shock)
Life-form Scanner
Breakdance Mode
Polarity sink
Water pump/hose
Inflatable mattress
Media copy / storage disc drive
Jukebox
Small red “tongue” ribbon
“Confetti-creation device”
Lubricant Application Arm
Motorized, all-terrain treads
Power recharge coupler

As great as the ‘droids are that we carry in our pockets, we’ve still got a long, long way to go before we have personal devices that can do everything that this “extremely well put-together little droid” can do. However, despite this technological shortcoming, it’s still amazing that we’ve come as far as we have over the past 38 years. Who knows, maybe within the next 40 years we’ll finally have lightsabers.

We can’t know for sure what the future of personal technology will look like, but one we do know, if everybody gets their own R2-D2 unit, NuTech Services will be available to provide technical support. May the 4th be with you!

Images courtesy of the Walt Disney corporation.

Apr, 2015

The Latest and Greatest in IT Automation Solutions

If you use the Internet, you’re aware of how heavy a presence cats possess. You can hardly navigate the web without seeing a hilarious cat meme, or four. Rather than admit that the human race is obsessed with these furry companions, what if the hairballs are using the Internet themselves and instigating a complete technology takeover? This just might be the case, according to new research.

While the domestic cat is known to chase after anything that even remotely resembles a bird or mouse, it would be foolish to label this spastic behavior as unintelligent. In fact, cats used to be worshipped as gods and deities in ancient times, and for good reason. New research has proven that our feline friends have superior intelligence that dwarfs even that of the brightest intellectuals in history.

Now, the innovative technicians at NuTech Services are putting together what we call a new automated IT solution called the Office Cat Technician (OCT). We’ve reason to believe that the domestic housecat can perform exceptional IT maintenance and tech support.

Cats Have Impeccable Memories
IT technicians have countless methods that need to be committed to memory. Troubleshooting tech problems requires an immense knowledge that comes with years of experience, and not everyone can provide this kind of expertise.

Unlike other critters out there, cats have the ability to recall almost their entire life in the blink of an eye. It’s been proven that cats can recall events up to ten years prior, and judging that the past several years have been full of technical innovations and advancements, it’s reasonable to assume that cats have knowledge of all technology built during this time. After all, cats have grown alongside this technology and coexisted with it. This innate ability to command and operate technology is exclusive to the current generation of domestic cats, and their knowledge will only improve with age.

Curious Like a Cat
One of the greatest behavioral traits that an IT technician can have is to be curious. This means that they dig deep to find the root of a problem, and to understand how something works down to its base level.

Similarly, cats are well-known for their curiosity. If you’ve ever observed a member of Felis catus, you’re aware of the lengths they’ll go to to observe something new. If you get a house plant, you can be sure that the cat will knock it over in order to get down to the “root of the problem.” When a cat knocks over a glass of water, they’re merely contemplating the concept of gravity, rather than being a complete jerk. You can expect a cat IT technician to be just as curious about technology. They’ll snoop around and dig deep to find the source of your tech problems.

Cats Are Fiercely Territorial
The IT technician works tirelessly to make sure that no unauthorized entities enter their domain. This includes keeping the business’s network as secure as possible from outside threats, and restricting access to particular parts of the network. This is a trait seen in cats, as well. They don’t take kindly to foreign creatures entering their territory, and they’ll try to eliminate the threat through intimidation methods, or if need be, force.

Still aren’t convinced that a cuddly kitty can make a big difference for your office? Give NuTech Services a call at 810.230.9455 to find out more about how an Office Cat Technician can assist your business’s operations.

Disclaimer: NuTech Services isn’t liable for any damages caused by the Office Cat Technician solution, including: chewed or frayed cords, destroyed technology, medical bills caused by allergic reactions, smelly carpets, and more.

Happy April Fool’s Day from all of us at NuTech Services!

Mar, 2015

Got Big Plans for World Backup Day? You Should

Internet users today are a little spooked, and for good reason. Stories of major hacks seem to perpetually be in the headlines. A hack attack can lead to stolen or compromised data, which is why backing up data is a crucial piece of every business continuity plan. For this purpose, World Backup Day 2015, March 31st, is an important day.

The goal of World Backup Day is to have everyone in the world back up their data. In fact, there’s even an official website for WBD where you can take a data backup pledge and then share it on social media. “I solemnly swear to backup my important documents and precious memories on March 31st.” Ultimately, the point of WBD is to get everyone to consider how often they back up their data so that they will implement measures to do it more frequently.

One important aspect about WBD is that it highlights the need to back up all of your data. Business owners in particular need to take this message to heart because they have a tendency to spread out important business-related files across their personal devices, like their home PC and smartphone. This is a dangerous move, due to the fact that a business owner may have an efficient data backup solution for their company’s network, but not for their personal data. If something were to happen to their personal device that compromises its data, and the only copy of a business-related file was on the lost or stolen device, then the company would experience a major setback. This is why it’s crucial for all of your data to be backed up, not just the data on your company’s server units.

In honor of World Backup Day, here are two recommended backup solutions for your personal data backup needs.

An External Hard Drive
One popular consumer backup solution is the external hard drive. These drives can be found at virtually every electronics store and at an affordable cost of around $100 for a whopping one terabyte of storage space. 1TB should be plenty for the average computer user’s personal needs; it’s enough space for approximately 750,000 MP3s or photos, or 230 movies.

The Cloud
The versatility of the cloud provides consumers with a host of computing options, including data backup. Popular consumer cloud backup solutions include Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, Apple’s iCloud, and much more. All of these services are offered at affordable rates. The cloud is proving to be the preferred backup solution to the external hard drive because it allows users to automatically backup and sync all of their devices, which is much more convenient than having to take time and connect a device with a hard drive.

However, one aspect about consumer cloud solutions is that, while they’re great for personal computing needs, they fall short when it comes to serving the data needs of businesses. NuTech Services’s cloud computing solution is designed to fit the computing needs of enterprises like your own. Plus, we can take the time to safely integrate your company’s cloud solution with your personal devices.

Backup and Disaster Recovery from NuTech Services
There is no greater way to honor World Backup Day than getting the ultimate data backup and recovery solution for your business, BDR. NuTech Services’s BDR solution can be customized to specifically meet the needs of your business, and it’s easy to manage. In fact, BDR automatically backs up your data, meaning that you won’t have to oversee the process or even remember to do it. Essentially, if enough businesses implement BDR, then World Backup Day would no longer be a thing, since no one would ever need a data backup reminder. As sad as that would be to no longer have a WBD, it would be worth it if it meant that all of the world’s data would be secure.

So, what are your plans for World Backup Day? If you’ve got BDR, then this day is cause for celebration because you’ll feel good about your data being secure. To celebrate World Backup Day with NuTech Services’s BDR and cloud computing solutions, give us a call at 810.230.9455.

Dec, 2021

Be Cautious of Your Internet Connections

Enable Multi-Factor Authentication and Location Services on Mobile Devices

Establish Mobile Device Policies Ahead of Time

Dec, 2021

Keeping a Business Running

Promoting Security

Using Innovation

Nov, 2021

Black Friday

Cyber Monday

2021 Extends Holiday Shopping

Technology is Front and Center

Amazon Fire Stick 4K with Alexa Voice Remote

Apple AirPods (Gen 2)

Samsung Chromebook 4

Facebook Portal Go and Portal+

Dec, 2020

Nov, 2020

Power

Comfort

Personality

Dec, 2019

Dec, 2018

Dec, 2018

Dec, 2017

Dec, 2016

Oct, 2016

Oct, 2015

May, 2015

Apr, 2015

Mar, 2015

Other Pages

Quick Links

Newsletter