Tag Archives: IT Compliance Service

No Typewriter, No Problem: Mechanical Keyboards Are Back

ImageQuestIf you grew up in the 1990s, you probably remember your first typing class, which either took place on an actual typewriter or an old-fashioned computer complete with a mechanical keyboard. According to cybersecurity service firm ImageQuest, these were replaced in the late 90s and early 2000s by membrane-style keyboards, partly because they are cheaper to manufacture. But, the clicky-clack you remember is back in style, and ImageQuest explains why.

Q: What is the difference between a membrane and mechanical keyboard?

ImageQuest: A mechanical keyboard has a faster response and offers tactile feedback when typing. A membrane keyboard feels a bit like pushing into a deflated balloon filled with sand. Mechanical keyboards are often larger, and they can be fully customized for each user with things like larger letters, lights, and special shortcut keys.

Q: Why would anyone want a louder keyboard?

ImageQuest: It’s easy to wonder why you would not want something completely silent while you work. But, if you’ve ever worked in cybersecurity service, IT, or writing, you know the satisfaction of the feedback from the keys. Gamers, especially, like the quickness and precision of mechanical keyboards. IT professionals across the globe treat them as prized possessions, often showing them off in the office as something to be envied.

Q: What are the drawbacks of a membrane-style keyboard?

ImageQuest: A membrane keyboard has advantages, for sure. However, when you type more than just a few minutes each day, it’s easy to see that your productivity goes down. Membrane keyboards typically offer a less pleasurable tactile experience and, due to the innate design of the equipment, they are actually much less accurate for people who type quickly.

Q: Are there any safety considerations to allowing my employees to bring their own mechanical keyboards to the office?

ImageQuest: There can be, yes. Mechanical keyboards often come pre-equipped with gaming software or additional USB ports. If you are one of our cybersecurity service customers that strictly adhere to our recommended “Zero Trust” security model, you should implement procedures and safeguards that prohibit employees from using these ports or installing software.

Q: Where can I get a mechanical keyboard?

ImageQuest: There are many different ways that you can buy a mechanical keyboard for yourself or for your staff. We recommend Nashville-based Mechanical Keyboards.com, which offers fully assembled keyboards as well as materials that let you build your own.

Curious about the Zero Trust security model? A cybersecurity service expert from ImageQuest can fill you in and help you take control of your company’s digital security. Visit ImageQuest.com for more information.

Q+A on Nashville Cybersecurity Measures You Can Take Now

ImageQuestIt’s true; you never know what you have until it’s gone. Cyber security works the same way. There are a lot of unknowns in the world of cybersecurity and cyberattacks, but here at ImageQuest, we are determined to introduce answers about these critical factors. We have a lot of companies from Nashville asking us all about cybersecurity; we figured answering them here will help provide information! 

Q. What is the first step I should take in protecting ourselves from cyberattacks? 

A. Use 2-factor authentication. As simple as this may seem, it does more than many would believe. Having a 2-factor authentication on any website or extension with a password will help further your security. Most apps and websites have this option to use, and there is no reason why you should not use it!

Q. How can I make sure my home network is secure? 

A. There are a lot of steps to take when securing your home network. The first step is making sure you have a secure firewall to protect your data. The second step is to change the password on your WiFi router after installation from the default password initially on the device. be entirely certain that each of your devices has antivirus software installed. Next, make sure you have the latest personal device security. We recommend a Next-Generation Anti-Virus program, which can help block ransomware and other attacks. Finally, make sure you are updating your devices whenever a new software update is released. Many devices offer automatic updating, which is often installed when the device is turned on and charging. 

Q. How do I build a secure network if I can’t remember all of my passwords? 

A. Password managers. These are becoming lifesavers for both families and businesses because installing these apps creates a password for each website and saves them for you. We recommend two password managers. The first one is 1PASSWORD, which has a yearly rate of $36 for an individual subscription. It may seem expensive, but in the grand scheme of things, if a cyber-attack happened in Nashville, you may be protected because you went to extreme lengths to make sure every password is secure. The next one is Dashlane, also costing around $60 per year with a free option for just one device only. Do your research to find which one will be best for you, your family, and your business. While this option is beneficial, it makes the world of remembering your passwords so much easier! 

Q. My IT team has a ton on their plate, and I’m afraid to add this onto them- how do I make sure I have the top cybersecurity without burning out my team? 

A. We love this one because we can help them out directly. We have worked in Nashville for many years, helping each company thrive in their cybersecurity, and we continue to see it pay off. At ImageQuest, we take pride in putting in the work that some businesses don’t have time for regarding their network security. In today’s world of technology, you cannot afford not to have good protection in your devices. Save the hassle and your companies’ privacy by having ImageQuest help you out today!

ImageQuest

Whether you are building your business or just now realizing the importance cybersecurity is for your local Nashville business, we would be delighted to help you out at ImageQuest. Technology is a complicated, evolving world that challenges us as we seek to protect the information we willingly give each platform we are on. 

Contact us HERE today!

Business and Organization Resilience

ImageQuestNatural disasters, global pandemics, and economic volatility have exposed the fragility of supply chains, healthcare systems, and businesses in general. Organizations have declared their intention to bounce back and rebuild more resilient businesses, but not all of them have the capacity to do so. Very few companies are able to design for, measure, and manage resilience.

Business resilience: Its importance and benefits

Resilience can be defined as a company’s ability to absorb stress, recover functionality, and thrive amid different circumstances. Business resilience is important, now more than ever, because the landscape is evolving at an unprecedented rate. 

Continue reading Business and Organization Resilience

Nashville Cybersecurity Service Recommends Running Security Response Drills

ImageQuest Digital security is important for businesses of all sizes and in all industries. However, those that fail to plan for a data breach or other cyber incident are risking their businesses. Nashville-based cybersecurity service ImageQuest says those that have plans but failed to test them with practice drills could be no better off than those with no plan at all. In light of many recent data breach events, we reached out to ImageQuest. What we learned was that it’s best to practice what you’ve prepared.  

What Is A Security Incident Response Plan?

One of the first questions we had for the cybersecurity service provider was what, exactly, a Security Incident Response Plan is. They told us this is simply a planned series of events that a company’s leadership and IT staff would take in case of a digital compromise.

This plan is put into place to both protect a company from financial losses and to ensure that its clients’ data remains safe.

Tabletop Exercises

A cybersecurity incident response plan does not look the same for each business. However, the cybersecurity service tells us that all companies can benefit from running what’s called tabletop exercises. This is a chance to test the efficiency and effectiveness of the response strategy. More importantly, it gives business leaders a valuable opportunity to identify weaknesses in the plan. 

Weaknesses that tabletop exercises can shed light on include when steps are taken prematurely and must be reordered. It can also pinpoint additional company executives or contacts that must get involved.

Why So Important?

Cybersecurity service advisors from the Nashville company use the following example of a potential cybersecurity incident at a large accounting firm. We will call it Acme Accounting. Imagine this scenario:

You are an executive at Acme Accounting. You’re coming up on tax filing season and are consumed with work on multi-million-dollar client projects. Suddenly, you are interrupted by your IT manager, who tells you one of your vendors has experienced a data breach. You realize immediately that this means that your clients’ sensitive information may have been compromised. You have planned for this, so you are not that worried.

Unfortunately, you have never practiced your plan. Shortly after your IT Manager’s alert, you realize your plan does not work as envisioned. You are now scrambling to decide what to tell your customers while simultaneously trying to figure out how to deal with the problem. Now you must figure out how to mitigate damage for the affected clients while retaining the trust of your entire client base.

Had your management team simply taken the time to run a series of security drills, you could have avoided your current state of panic and corrected the gaps and mistakes. You would have known exactly what to do, when to do it, and who within your organization would lead each step of your response plan.

A Better Way

ImageQuest’s cybersecurity service offerings can help businesses in Nashville and beyond create and practice their Security Incident Response Plans. This may include everything from how to save data in the critical first moments to what to say to your clients when it is time to issue a statement. By running routine drills, your workers will be ready to handle the unexpected.

It may not be possible to prevent every security incident. But our conversation with ImageQuest has helped us better understand that having a plan in place and practicing each step of that plan before a disaster occurs is the best way to prevent serious ramifications.

If you are looking for a cybersecurity service in Nashville, Louisville, or Bowling Green, visit ImageQuest online at ImageQuest.com or call 888.979.2679 for more information.

ImageQuest Explains The Many Layers of Cybersecurity

ImageQuest
When it is time to protect your business, it is dangerous to have too little security. This is especially true as it relates to your and your customers’ sensitive data. A single breach of your systems can result in significant financial losses, reputation damage, even business bankruptcy or closure. But there are ways to avoid this situation. Keep reading as ImageQuest offers information on how a layered cybersecurity service plan can stop intruders on the path to your data.

Q: What does it mean to have layered cybersecurity defense?

ImageQuest: This simply means to have multiple levels of protection in place. A well-implemented cybersecurity service plan for a Nashville business will focus on three areas: prevention, detection, and response. Each of these aspects of your business’s digital security works on a different level to give your business comprehensive coverage.

Q: Can you explain how to prevent online security threats?

ImageQuest: Specific to businesses, the first step is to ensure that your employees are trained in ways to both spot and avoid cyber attacks. As part of our cybersecurity service, we offer Nashville businesses Security Awareness training. This covers a broad spectrum of policies and practices that put your employees in a better position to keep your company safe.

Another important facet of prevention is ensuring that your systems remain up-to-date. A consistent patching strategy can help fill gaps where hackers might see an easy opening. There have been many incidents over the last decade of major attacks happening because businesses failed to apply the most recent security updates to their operating systems. The 2017 “WannaCry” ransomware attack is a good example that affected FedEx and other large corporations.

Q: What is the next step?

ImageQuest: Beyond prevention, there is detection. Detecting a cybersecurity threat is in itself a layered strategy. It includes things like IP access restrictions, multiple log-in attempt block out, and multi-factor authentication. ImageQuest’s Nashville-based cybersecurity service experts can use these tools to identify areas of your business’s strategy that needs to be upgraded or changed to meet current needs. Cyber threat detection is one of the best ways to alert individual employees as well as your IT department to potentially malicious access attempts.

Taking your detection strategy even further, ImageQuest’s managed detection and response program utilizes the latest advances in artificial intelligence coupled with the knowledge of expert security engineers to monitor for threats around the clock. Our Security Operations Center (SOC) in Nashville specializes in proactive cybersecurity service methods to stop attacks before they happen.

Q: How can I mitigate damage in case of a breach?

ImageQuest: How you respond to a security incident is essential to your business. The final piece of the cybersecurity puzzle is to implement procedures that allow for a swift response. Keep in mind that the sooner you take action, the less likely your business will be adversely affected.

ImageQuest can help you implement incident documentation procedures that allows you to track exactly what happened that left your business vulnerable in the first place. This is important because it gives you an opportunity to access real-world data that can lead to significant improvements in your security operations. Having a consistent incident documentation procedure is looked upon favorably by regulators.

No matter how many security measures you have in place, your company should routinely practice how an incident will be handled. ImageQuest’s experts can walk you through your entire cybersecurity infrastructure and help you better understand how your organization’s actions might affect your stakeholders in the event of a security incident. By testing your processes now, your systems and employees will be better able to respond quickly and efficiently under the duress of a cybersecurity emergency.