XFER Blog

Let me ask you something: say you had promised to protect someone, keeping them safe and healthy. Would you want them to actively partake in risky—and in many cases, completely avoidable—situations? Of course not. So, why would a business’ insurance provider want to provide coverage if that business did nothing to prevent a cybersecurity event?

They wouldn’t… and as a result, many providers are establishing minimum safeguards and compliance requirements to help protect themselves. Let’s go over what these safeguards are so that your safety nets will be there when you need them.

Collaboration with external vendors is a necessity. From software and cloud services to marketing and logistics, vendors are crucial partners that enable your business to operate and compete. This often requires vendors to access your business' sensitive data. Without proper controls, granting this access can expose your company to significant risks. Let's take a look at why vendors probably don’t need access to all of your data.

Two things are invariably true in the modern business landscape: technology will play an integral role in operations, and obtaining this technology will require a relationship with vendors and service providers. As such, anyone seeking to run a business successfully must interact with these external parties and enter into business contracts.

This needs to be handled carefully, so while we aren’t offering legal advice, you should follow a few practices before and during the negotiation of an IT contract.

Running a business is like juggling flaming torches while riding a unicycle, blindfolded. You’ve got employees, customers, operations, and, of course, vendors. Vendors keep the gears turning, but if you’re not careful, those relationships can turn into a never-ending headache that eats up your time, money, and possibly your sanity. So how do you make sure your vendors work for you, rather than the other way around? Here’s how to get the most out of them without losing your mind.

How many vendors are you managing? Probably quite a few. Now, think about how much time you spend on each one. What if you could reduce that time to almost nothing? We have some great news for you.

HP has been taking steps to disable any ink cartridges that they didn’t produce from working in their printers, much to the disapproval of users everywhere. Let’s go over what this means, both in terms of the backlash as well as what it means for your business.

Apple has long been a key part of the technology industry, producing quality hardware year after year. Although Apple tends to produce sleek and high-end hardware running its proprietary operating systems, these devices are far from perfect and were especially controversial at certain points in the past.

In the technology news sector, you’ve probably noticed a trend where Patch Tuesday makes headlines at least once a month. This is generally the day when Microsoft issues patches and security updates for its many different technologies, and it’s important for your IT department to know when Patch Tuesday falls each month.

Any successful business likely has some kind of relationship with at least a few vendors as it likely depends on their services and available technology and supplies. Having said that, it can be truly challenging to juggle all these providers. How is it that this challenge can be overcome?

Do you know what you are supposed to do with electronics that are no longer of any use? Let’s quickly go over the process of properly disposing of electronic devices and the steps that make up the procedures involved.

2020 has been filled to the brim with adversity and just as we’ve mercifully arrived to the end, the largest and most brazen cyberespionage attack ever has been carried out. Today, we’ll tell you what we know about the attack, what problems it caused, and what we should learn from it going forward.

When you need something done that requires a level of skill or experience or knowledge that you don’t have, what do you do? Generally, you call in someone who has the required skill, experience, or knowledge that is required. Your business’ information technology strategy should be approached in the same way. As we continue our series on how managed services can make a business more efficient, we’re considering consultants.

As technology has become a greater part of today’s working environment, the need for a business to have somewhere to procure the requisite devices from has increased. This is why many businesses serve as vendors, the go-between for the producers of these devices and the businesses looking to purchase them. For obvious reasons, these vendors are essential to the success of many businesses.