Washington Works Blog

Over a quarter of all data breaches target small businesses, and the cost of a breach can be devastating. To protect your business’ data and infrastructure, small businesses need a combination of effective technology tools and well-planned strategies. Here are some key steps your business can take to safeguard itself against digital theft.

Cloud computing, particularly Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), has become an essential tool for businesses of all sizes. Hosted software offers numerous benefits like anytime-anywhere access, scalability, and hassle-free management of hardware by the provider. In today’s post, we’ll share a few practical tips for working with cloud computing more effectively.

If you’ve spent any time online, you’ve likely encountered ads popping up while you’re trying to read articles, watch videos, or scroll through social media. While some ads can be helpful, many people find them disruptive or invasive, which is why ad blockers have become popular.  Have you ever wondered how exactly ad blockers work? Let’s break it down.

We live in a world where technology is central to everyday life, yet unfortunately it does not last forever. Eventually, your smartphone, laptop, smartwatch, or other device will reach its end of life, or EOL. This is when the manufacturer stops supplying critical updates—including security.

Artificial intelligence is a hot topic nowadays, making data an even more valuable resource. After all, AI platforms rely on data to function.

Due to this, many platforms and services collect data from their users to feed these algorithms. LinkedIn was recently discovered to have started doing so—by default—without informing users or updating its terms of service. 

In business today, technology plays a big role. Unfortunately, by using technology, each individual has to make security considerations. This is because there are more cyberattacks today than ever before. To keep business rolling effectively, today’s workers must carefully consider and understand their role in their organization’s cybersecurity initiatives. In today’s blog, we look at four ways they can do just that.

Cybersecurity is a major part of business computing today, mainly because there are so many threats. Cybersecurity professionals and network administrators must innovate to confront these threats. This month, we thought we would review three of these innovations to give you an idea of what is being done to help businesses handle the rough-and-tumble cybersecurity landscape. 

Downtime is easily one of the most prolific reasons small businesses take in less money than they otherwise could, making it an existential threat to many if a certain threshold is met. Making a bad situation worse, there is no shortage of reasons a business may experience downtime. Let’s examine some of these causes to better understand how to minimize this universal issue.

Whether you like it or not, the password is the most important part of your cybersecurity policy. That’s saying something with all the tools and strategies out there designed to keep unauthorized users from accessing your accounts. Maybe they aren't the most comprehensive security solution, but they are by far the most frequently used and there are some things every user should know to help them build successful passwords. This month, we’ll go into four things every computer user should know about building strong and reliable passwords

Nobody likes the thought of the device they rely on daily suddenly dying, leaving them without a phone, a laptop, a smartwatch, or whatever the case may be. This is why it is important to stay conscious of when these devices are due to reach their end-of-life date, or EOL, when the manufacturer will no longer support them or provide crucial updates.

Fortunately, there’s a resource that makes this monitoring far easier to manage.

Everywhere you look on the Internet, there’s a scam, threat, or other malicious entity. 

Okay, maybe that’s not 100% true, but the possibilities are nearly endless for hackers. They’ll hide spyware, adware, and even ransomware online, so you must take measures to ensure that your devices and business are safe.

Businesses face numerous challenges, many of which arise internally. Whether your business is dealing with cybersecurity threats, unhappy customers, or unreliable suppliers, leaders must navigate every threat. Among these, internal issues can often be the most disruptive. In this blog, we'll focus on two critical employee-related challenges that can significantly hinder business operations.

Cutting costs on IT while maintaining the security you depend on requires a fair amount of consideration. One of the most effective ways to maintain security and manage IT costs is through the use of cloud services. The problem is that there are horror stories surrounding data security in the cloud that persist even as a larger and larger percentage of people and businesses use the cloud for their computing needs. This month, we take a brief look at how the cloud serves to cut down their computing costs. 

When you run a small business, there is a tendency to dream big. You think of expanding rapidly and finding success instantly. Unfortunately, this is probably not the reality. By keeping your expectations realistic, you can find that you will find consistency. In today’s blog, let’s take a look at how any manager or entrepreneur can keep their expectations realistic. 

If you work on a computer often, you’ve almost certainly been told to clean your cache. It usually amounts to clicking a button on a login screen or in the user settings. In today’s article, we will tell you all about cache and how to clean it on your iPhone and Android device.

Professional services include a lot of the “experts” people depend on. Today’s professional services firms rely heavily on technology to enhance efficiency, client service, and overall operations. This month, we thought we’d go through four technologies professional services firms depend on. Let’s get into it.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming the technology landscape, and mobile devices are at the forefront of this revolution. As smartphones and tablets become increasingly powerful and sophisticated, they are becoming ideal platforms for running AI applications. This trend is driven by several factors, including:

We haven’t been shy about how essential data backups are, simply because there is always the chance that your business will encounter some form of disaster… but, what if something interferes with these backups?

This danger is one reason that immutable backups are utilized. Let’s go over what this means, and how it helps.

Of all your business’ potential cybersecurity vulnerabilities, one can more easily bring your organization to its knees than any other… but if this vulnerability is addressed correctly, you could instead see considerable benefits.

Of course, the vulnerability I’m referring to is your team itself. Human error, in its many forms, can easily leave you vulnerable if you aren’t careful about preparing yourself and the rest of your staff to act with cybersecurity in mind.

The NSA—the National Security Agency of the United States of America—are pretty well-known for their digital prowess. Therefore, when they provide a list of practices to help keep our increasingly crucial mobile devices secure, it only makes sense for us to listen.