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Sony Pictures Hack Highlights Importance of Cybersecurity

In today’s fast paced and increasingly digital world, stories on companies being hacked are, unfortunately, not unusual. However, as revelations pile up, it appears that a hack perpetrated on Sony Pictures on 11/24 is anything but usual. Attacks like these highlight the importance of maintaining top-notch cybersecurity and Working Nets is here with the details.

What Happened?

Around 11am, Monday, November 24th, emails began to circulate around Sony Pictures employees instructing them to stop using their computers, corporate email accounts, and cell phone wifi access. As the news traveled it became clear that hackers had seized an estimated 11,000 gigabytes of data that may have included personal passwords, financial information, passport and visa info of cast and crew along with info regarding Sony’s IT systems. As Sony began to look for possible perpetrators, even more information was found floating around on the web, including the movies AnnieMr. Turner, and Still Alice, which have not yet been released in theatres. Further investigation into the leaked files turned up employee criminal background checks, salary negotiations, and medical information as well as the script for an unreleased pilot written by Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg. All this information makes the Sony Pictures hack easily the worst corporate hack in recorded history.

How Can I Protect My Business?

Well, you can start by not angering North Korea. Sony has publicly speculated that the attack may be a form of retaliation against the upcoming release of The Interview, a comedy starring James Franco and Seth Rogan wherein they play characters who attempt to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Of course, the likelihood that your business has threatened the DPRK is very low, but that doesn’t mean these kinds of attacks couldn’t happen to you. If your cybersecurity isn’t being professionally monitored and updated, your business could have serious vulnerabilities you might not even know about.

Protect Your Business With Cybersecurity From Working Nets

At Working Nets, we know that handling the cybersecurity for a business while actually keeping that business running can seem impossible, especially in the daunting face of cyber-attacks against much larger businesses. Outsourcing your IT can give you peace of mind and allow you to take care of the things that are important for your company. Working Nets is a Maryland based IT Service and Security company that services small businesses nationwide. We’re always on top of emerging cybersecurity trends and threats so you don’t have to be.

To talk to someone about managed IT for your business, give us a call at (443) 992-7394. We’d be happy to assist you with your professional business networking needs.

You can also visit WorkingNets.com and follow us on FacebookTwitterLinkedIn and Google+

Outsourcing IT to Prevent Cyber Crime

Malware and spyware are a big problem in a world that relies so heavily on technology. Many businesses have the option for buying items online or use some type of server whenever you shop with a credit card. Those who shop with Target or eBay learned about that the hard way in the past year when both companies were breached by hackers. 15 million new malware strains were discovered in the first quarter of 2014 alone. Protecting yourself from malware and spyware has never been more important than it is right now, especially for small businesses. Luckily, we have the answer.

How Does Outsourcing IT Help Protect You?

Let’s start with some figures. The good news is that America is not in the top 10 countries for being the most-malware infected. The bad news is that we’re not in the bottom 10, either. Many computers still get infected with common types of malware, such as Trojans, worms, and viruses. One of the best ways for small businesses to avoid dealing with these problems on company computers is to get anti-virus software and enable firewalls. These are only as good as their updates, though. If users aren’t on top of anti-virus updates and know exactly what types of malware and viruses are prevalent at the time, there’s not much they can do to protect themselves. It’s a lot of work to keep up with all of the malware and spyware on the Internet today. Outsource IT companies make it their business to know what’s going on and how to prevent problems. When you outsource your IT, your network becomes safer and so does all of the information on it.

How Can I Protect My Company from Malware?

There are a few things that you can do to help. The first and most important thing is to learn about what malware is and what it does. The more you know, the better you can fight it. Educate your employees on what is and isn’t safe on the Internet. By outsourcing your IT, you can also block certain sites from employee computers in order to decrease the likelihood of visiting sites that have malware. Doing so will help with computer safety and security as well as productivity. The main thing to take away is to find out everything you can about malware and talk to someone about outsourcing your computer security to a company that exists to protect your company!

Welcome to Working Nets – your virtual IT Department!

At Working Nets, we know that the idea of having your computer hacked is a scary one. Nobody wants to think that their information is out there for everyone to see. Call us today to find out more about anti-virus and anti-spyware software as well as outsourcing your IT. You can reach us at (443) 992-7394 or visit WorkingNets.com today for more information!

You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+.

Source: PandaSecurity