You are in the midst of running down the stairs and you slip and fall down the entire the entire flight. You gash your head and lose consciousness. As you come to, you notice people standing over you. A person hands you a towel for your head and says, “That was quite the fall, but you look to be okay.” So, you take him for his word, right? Wrong! You go to the hospital to see a professional where they can check you out, make sure nothing below the surface is wrong, and give you stitches for the gash across your forehead. You make sure that a professional has the chance to confirm that you are not in any danger. If it makes sense to see a doctor after hitting your head, wouldn’t the same logic apply to issues in other domains? Shouldn’t your IT infrastructure be handled with the same care? Technology is too unique and sensitive to not assure that it is checked by professionals.

To pay or not to pay, that is the end-user's question. When the situation calls for whether someone should pay up in a ransomware attack, our IT expert, Jeff Groby suggests not. People who decide to pay the ransom can actually end up doing more harm than good. You are putting a big target on your back when you pay up by letting the cyber criminals know you're willing to pay. We joined the crew over at The Big 550 KTRS for Tech Talk to chat about polymorphic ransomware in theme with our topic for National Cyber Security Awareness Month!

Practicing strong email safety goes beyond using a good password and being cautious about opening a message that looks spammy. Malicious emails are looking more and more like the real deal every day. This practice is called phishing. Before we can help you to keep your eyes peeled for phishing attacks, it's sensible to explain the nature of those domains for people who have not encountered the term in the past. Phishing is a straightforward concept many hackers will use to steal email and account information by tricking individuals into handing over their details.

Adding smart technologies to your home has increasingly grown in popularity in recent years, and so have the mounting security-related issues that follow. Whether you use a home monitoring system, a smart thermostat, high-tech baby monitors, or something else, the need to secure your technology is crucial. Our IT expert, Jeff Groby, joined the crew at The Big 550 KTRS to talk about smart home security for Tech Talk on the Guy Phillips Show last week. This technology can make life easier, but it's only as good as the security you have set up around it.

Ransomware is the leading cyber security threat in 2018. In a recent podcast, Hal Lonas, CTO of the security software provider Webroot, offered a succinct explanation of how ransomware has flipped the security threat paradigm on its ear. “It used to be that the bad guys wanted data because it was valuable to them,” he said. “With ransomware, they’re essentially asking: ‘your data isn’t valuable to me, but how much is worth to you?’ It’s scary how smart it is.” New types of ransomware will continue to surface. Hackers are constantly modifying ransomware code to evade detection by defense technologies, such as security software. This year, we’ve witnessed a surge in “polymorphic” malware, which is malware that changes automatically to appear unique to different endpoints. Security software often fails to discover these variants. To decrypt files, hackers typically demand a ransom in the form of bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies.

In 2004, the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security launched National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) to educate Americans about online security. NCSAM is observed each October and is an active effort to educate end users about the different areas of cyber security including safety at home, work, and overall best practices. Online security isn't the job of just one person, it's a collective effort for each person that uses the internet. The SumnerOne's Solutions Team has worked together to create a great month's worth of tips and education to spread awareness.

Last Friday on our weekly Tech Talk segment on The Big 550 KTRS our IT expert, Jeff Groby, joined the show to talk about two-factor authentication. Guy Phillips started the show out with a bang, by letting the listeners know that his PayPal account had recently been compromised. Luckily, Guy was notified and was able to take action before the criminal got away with a few hundred dollars worth of technology! Securing your accounts is something that we always talk about on Tech Talk. Guy's negative experience is just another reminder of why it's so important. One great way to secure your accounts is through using two-factor authentication, Jeff came geared up and ready to talk about the added level of security.