NetWorthy Systems Blog

Hackers come in all shapes and sizes, with varied levels of skills to boot. The generic garden-variety hacker will probably only try to hack your email and send spam, or steal your personal information. However, there are much worse threats out there, like APT hackers. This week, we’ll cover how you can spot these wolves in sheep’s clothing.

Grab your tissues, it’s flu season! Just like biological viruses such as the flu can cripple an entire office, digital viruses can cause a lot of trouble for businesses too. Both downtime-causing virus scenarios can be prevented if proper safety measures are followed, like sanitation and cybersecurity.

In today's technology world, a lot of businesses are opting to take advantage of virtualized servers. These offer various benefits, including the ability to consolidate your servers into a neat, controlled package. But according to a recent study by Symantec, virtual servers might not be as secure as once thought. In fact, they might not be any more secure than a physical server.

As long as computer software has existed, it's been plagued by bugs. Like real bugs, software bugs are an infestation and can cause major problems for businesses. When assessing software bugs, one question comes to mind; "After decades of dealing with bugs, why are they still an issue?"

A few weeks ago, a new vulnerability was discovered in the Internet Explorer functionality of SSL 3.0. Due to the encompassing nature of the vulnerability, all operating systems are affected. This makes it a big problem that must be resolved. Thankfully, Microsoft has released a fix to the vulnerability, called Fix It, making it far easier to prevent the vulnerability from becoming an issue.

Everyone has heard horror stories about the spirits of the dead lingering in this world. Every culture on this planet has different beliefs about the nature of these spectral beings. Not much is known about these beings, but people still believe without a doubt that they exist. In regards to technology, ghosts do exist, in the form of ghost servers.

Hackers are mysterious. Not much is known about them - until they get caught, at least. But until the divine hammer of justice is brought down upon them, they will continue to stalk the shadows and wait for us to unknowingly hand over our personal information. What they don't want you to know is that they generally act according to a few particular variables, and that it is possible to avoid their pitfalls.

How familiar are you with the IT equipment owned by your business? If you don't keep detailed records of your equipment and enact security measures and policies, then you're making it easy for theft to occur. We've written a lot about protecting your business from data theft, but it's equally important that you take precautions to safeguard your stuff.

We reported in August that security researcher Karsten Nohl of SR Labs revealed a flaw in USB firmware that cripples the technology beyond repair. At the Black Hat security conference, it was revealed that USB devices of all kinds can be targeted by hidden malware. Nohl refused to release the code used in the research, due to being concerned that it would be used by the wrong hands, but it has been made public anyway, putting the masses at risk.

A new malicious threat in the technical marketplace has just been discovered. The bug, dubbed the Bash bug, or "shellshock," is on the loose for users of Unix-based operating systems, like Linux or Mac OS X. It allows the execution of arbitrary code on affected systems, and could potentially be very dangerous for your business. In fact, CNet is calling it "bigger than Heartbleed."

Major retailers are having a rough time of it these days concerning the security of their customer's financial information. Last December, Target was hit with malware that compromised 40 million customer credit and debit card accounts, and recently, Home Depot was hit with the same malware. What's a connoisseur of mass-produced boxed goods to do?

Keep It Simple Stupid, aka KISS, is a sure way to find success in business. By keeping operations simple, the cost of doing business is reduced, there's less room for error, and more people understand what's going on. Your IT infrastructure is at the heart of your organization, keeping IT simple will help your business kiss many of its problems goodbye!

Crime might pay for those bold enough to do it, but that doesn't mean everyone should. Hackers likely don't take into account the fact that they are costing the world countless millions of dollars in damage only to further their own gain, and their influence can have far-reaching effects on people all over the world, let alone your business.

How your business chooses to store its data is a major decision. You can implement a private cloud computing model and spend more on equipment and maintenance than you need to, or you can save money with a public cloud. Although, in light of the recent celebrity-nude-photo-iCloud hack, is the public cloud secure enough to host your company's data? Let's address this concern and explore your cloud computing options.

If 2014 hasn't been a legendary year for data breaches yet, it certainly is now. Community Health Systems, a hospital network for over 206 facilities across the United States, has been the target of a data breach resulting in 4.5 million records being compromised by Chinese hackers, including Social Security numbers, birthdays, names, addresses, and telephone numbers.

All of the security breaches and vulnerabilities of 2014 sure have made for an interesting year; first Heartbleed, then the Internet Explorer vulnerability, GameOver Zeus, and the Russian password-stealing gang. In light of these events, you really have to ask the question, "how can we fight these threats?" Symantec has told The Wall Street Journal that they feel antivirus technology is "dead."

USB devices have long been a staple of the technology world, but are notoriously vulnerable to exploitation from hackers and malware. As malware grows more and more sophisticated, you can no longer trust simple antivirus scans to protect your business.

Too many people think that their systems are safe from the corruption of hackers and viruses. They're wrong. In order to keep your business safe from all of the common threats found on the Internet, you should think about installing some protective software.

When it comes time to upgrade, many smartphone users will sell off their old device in hopes of making extra cash. However, if the phone's memory is improperly wiped, an experienced hacker can use advanced tools to recover sensitive data off the used phone. Let's talk about how this happens and what can possibly be recovered by a hacker.

Apple's iOS operating system might be well known for its impressive security features, but that doesn't mean that it's invulnerable to all threats. In fact, backdoors may have been located in the operating system, which allow Apple and law enforcement agencies like the NSA to access the devices.