Blue Ridge Technology

Ransomware Protection Ransomware attacks can be absolutely devastating to your business. Imagine logging into work one day and there’s nothing left to log into. It’s all just…gone. Locked up and held for ransom by some group of digital thieves. What would you do if this happened to you? Would you have any choice but to pay up? And would that even work? You’d be placing your hope in the “upstanding citizens” that are already committing a crime against to suddenly become honest folks who give you your files back. In other words, ransomware attacks can be existential threats to businesses like yours (any business that can’t operate without its data and/or digital systems). The good news is there’s a tech-forward solution that can keep you safe, even if you do fall victim to an attack. The bad news? Most businesses don’t have that solution in place. Here’s what you need to know about ransomware attacks and your best defense against them — something called immutable storage backu...

Common Passwords A recent report revealed the most common passwords in 2024. Spoiler alert: it isn’t pretty. Every year security firm Nordpass updates its list of the most common passwords. Their list is updated for 2024 (the most recent data complete year), and the results are equal parts depressing and predictable. We’ll cover the most common passwords and what’s wrong with using passwords like them. But first, let’s talk about why this is a real, real-world problem affecting even some of the planet’s biggest businesses. The Latest Victim: McDonald’s McDonald’s recently rolled out an AI hiring bot (we know, probably not your idea of a good time— ours either). Most applicants now have to “talk” to chatbot Olivia as a part of the hiring process. The chatbot collects information from applicants and directs them to various parts of the application process, like a notorious personality test. Security researchers Ian Carroll and Sam Curry didn’t love the idea of millions of applicants fee...

Protect Yourself from Identity Fraud with Digital Security When you read the word “fraud,” certain images come to mind: big businesses, financial firms, sketchy shell companies, pyramid schemes, slick hucksters taking advantage of a nonprofit— you get the idea. All of this seems very far removed from what you do as a small business leader. If your business deals directly with customers (like in retail or ecommerce), you might jump straight to something closer to theft, customers who try to buy from you using fraudulent methods or means. In reality, fraud affects more businesses more frequently than we tend to assume, including small businesses like yours. That’s because it takes forms most people don’t expect and catches small to midsize businesses unprepared. Small Businesses, Big Target It’s tempting to assume that fraudsters will only go after the biggest targets and the most lucrative paydays (like those big businesses and financial companies), not after smaller and “les...

Device Code Phishing Buckle up: this one’s a little bit wild…and a lot bit bad. A new scam has been hitting businesses across the US, even those who have been working hard to shore up their cybersecurity defenses. And when this attack works, the bad guys don’t even need to have a compromised or stolen password. The account or system under attack never even asks for one. We know this sounds just about impossible, but unfortunately it’s a very real threat. Here’s everything you need to know about device code phishing: what it is, why it works without a password, and what you can do to avoid becoming a victim. What Is Device Code Phishing? Device code phishing is a sophisticated form of phishing attack that convinces victims to give up access to their accounts. This time, instead of going after your username and password, the attack tries to convince you to input something called a device code. Once you do, you’ve actually given them access to your account, and they can do all ...

Copilot+ PC A while back some PC manufacturers came out with a new line of PCs and laptops, called Copilot+ PCs. The branding’s a little goofy: the Copilot label is getting slapped on practically everything, and it hasn’t been clear exactly what the unique selling point of these Copilot+ PCs is. They’re built for the era of AI, so they say, but what does that mean exactly? Microsoft is already rolling out Copilot features in all sorts of products and places, and those features work perfectly well on regular ol’ vanilla PCs. Now, Microsoft is starting to differentiate this more clearly: the company recently announced a powerful new capability coming to Windows 11… but only for users with a Copilot+ PC. Let’s talk about the feature first, then about what makes these Copilot+ PCs different. Last, most importantly: has Microsoft finally given you a good reason to upgrade? New Windows 11 Feature: Natural Language Search We’ve all used the search function in Windows before. Someti...

Free Converter Tools Converting Word documents to PDF might seem simple, but security risks lurk behind many online tools. The FBI warns these free converters can be traps set by cyber criminals, aiming to sneak malicious software into your system. The hidden dangers of free converters When searching for a "free converter tool," it might seem like a convenient way to turn a Word document into a PDF. However, many of these tools come with hidden dangers. Cyber criminals use these seemingly innocent tools to install malicious software on your devices, compromising your data security. Online converters can act as a gateway for malware. Personal and business data are at risk of being stolen. The FBI's alert and why you should care The FBI highlights the vulnerability these tools pose. By using insecure conversion tools, your data can be silently accessed, posing a significant risk to your business's operational reliability. This can lead to a breach of customer trust and...

Free, right? Beware! Every so often, you come across some kind of computer task that’s outside of your normal workflow. Something like rearranging pages in a PDF or converting one file type into another. You need to do it quickly, and you don’t have access to or want to pay for expensive software (like Acrobat Pro in our PDF-rearranging scenario). If you’re like most of us, you head straight to your search engine of choice. “Free file converter” or “rearrange PDF pages” will give you millions of results and dozens of services and tools that can get the job done, with varying degrees of success. But watch out: some of these tools could be dangerous for your business. So much so that the FBI put out a recent warning about the problem . Here’s what you need to watch out for. The Problem With “Free”: Somebody’s Still Paying for It The big problem with free (tech) stuff is that it isn’t truly free. Someone, somewhere is paying for it — the question that matters most is who’s footin...