GIANT BUSINESSES ALSO USE ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE

 GIANT BUSINESSES ALSO USE ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE

 

Today, Cyber attacks are on the rise in the business world, so keeping data safe is crucial for any business. Most IT directors are aware of these threats; they are aware of it and try to follow protocols that maintain the security of the company in the most effective way possible, something that, due to resources and the lack of these profiles, does not happen in most SMEs.

As the information that a company contains is a very sensitive element, in the insurance world there are insurances that protect us from cyber risks , having economic coverage in the event of an incident of this type. Don't miss our post about best cyber risk insurance in case you want to be up to date with this insurance. Now, being insured does not imply that you do not have to expose yourself to these attacks, for this we are going to see what options we have to avoid risks.

But what is the best alternative for small and medium-sized companies to avoid these threats? Enterprise Antivirus Software is a recommended option for all companies that do not have too many resources and even for those that do not have their own IT department. They offer 24/7 protection against viruses and malware and their installation is very simple.

Cisco, Skylark, Unistal, Cyberops,, the leading company in the world of security and servers, has carried out several studies that indicates that around 40% of companies that suffered a computer attack lost 21% of their revenue. This leads us to a very simple conclusion: being exposed to a cyber attack is something that we should not underestimate.

But do you know which the best Antivirus Software is for your company? What are the characteristics that you should not ignore? Why decide on one or the other? We help you in this choice to make it easier for you to make the decision.

Bitdefender Gravity Zone Business Security:

Without a doubt, this is the best ANTIVIRUS for small businesses ; it is an integrated security solution that includes unified security management and protection for workstations, servers, email, and mobile devices.

The installation process is a bit complicated, but the panel is intuitive and easy to use. Of course, it has a significant disadvantage: it does not track lost / stolen devices, and the file shredder is not included.

The security products are simple Bitdefender . They offer protection you can trust, as it is comprehensive and effective for businesses across the country. Choosing Bitdefender is a rather lengthy installation and configuration process; However, once you have set it up, you are in for a surprise: automatic antimalware, firewall, web advisor, and URL filtering are supported. For those who manage multiple devices, both internally and externally, they will be able to control them remotely, grant access to the app or website (or deny it), and block access to sensitive data.

Your admin panel is easy to use and will show every device that you have protected and the features that you have enabled on each of them. But, not all are advantages: its main drawback is that Bitdefender does not support device location services for stolen laptops or phones and a file shredder is missing; That is why if this aspect is important in your company, you should invest in additional software to avoid attacks.

Bitdefender Endpoint 6.2 scored top marks in an AV-Test 2018 examining “the best ANTIVIRUS software for Windows client business user” in both protection and performance. It only missed a half mark of utility, due to some false detections of legitimate software such as malware during a system scan.

Protegent Enterprise Security (PES)- Activity Reporter:

Protegent Enterprise Security-Activity Reporter is a robust and complete security solution for data security. It comes with,

-Activity Reporter

-Protegent Management Console

Unistal's Protegent Enterprise Security Activity Reporter (with Hybrid Network Support) offers cogent approach in order to monitor all the real-time client machine activity on managed endpoints with Windows Operating System. This helps to monitor your network client machines in an efficient manner by providing total monitoring over Application and Web activities. It is equipped with advanced Management System that provides highly advanced features to manage, monitor and secure endpoints accessing the corporate network. Its monitoring modules provide detailed information of all the activities performed on a client machine to ensure advanced level of security.

 Protegent Enterprise Security-Activity Reporter is developed with an aim to provide high-level security for SMEs and large enterprises.

The Protegent Management Console provides a single administrator screen to deploy, manage & control the features, settings and access user reports and alerts on any unauthorized usage of Protegent Enterprise Security-Activity Reporter. It reduces the administrative workload by centralizing all management activities for "Activity Reporter".

Kaspersky Endpoint Security Cloud - For cloud services:

It is a very complete ANTIVIRUS for the maximum protection of your business . Industry leading technologies will protect you from all possible threats, and its control is very simple through a single management console that will allow you to have everything under control.

This software from Kaspersky is one of the industry leaders, and its commercial solution offers comprehensive protection for small and medium-sized businesses. The software ensures PC and mobile device protection, tight control of your software and browsers, and a robust firewall that blocks unauthorized access to your files. The team regularly updates the software to establish unmatched protection against new viruses and ransom ware, including zero-day threats.

McAfee Security for Business:

This software offers maximum protection and threat detection. This is a great antivirus option that is only available in the cloud, making it ideal for managing remote devices and multiple networks, as well as keeping data as secure as possible.

McAfee business users will have comprehensive protection that will be able to stop malicious activity before it reaches the network through desktop PCs, laptops and file servers. You'll also get robust email and web protection with URL filtering, spyware protection, and vulnerability scanning to find potential threats on your network.

But how do you do it? McAfee does this by conducting daily IP vulnerability scans and providing reports that offer advice on how to best eliminate the potential hazard. Additionally, McAfee Security for Business will be able to set policies and view detailed reports, all from its integrated online dashboard.

However, not all are advantages: Performance: While McAfee offers a good level of protection, you may find that your PC or laptop slows down quite a bit. Precisely, this issue caused McAfee Endpoint Security to lose a performance mark in an AV 2018 test, although it received an overall rating for both protection and performance. You may need to lose some speed to improve your security - McAfee will have to face himself and see if he's up for it.

Now, you know the BEST ANTIVIRUS that your small or medium business can hire. Each one has advantages and disadvantages, but I have tried to clarify most of the doubts that may arise when making the best decision for your company.

 

 

Benefits Of Using Good Antivirus Software

 Benefits

Of Using Good

Antivirus Software

Antivirus software is a data security utility that is installed on a computer system for the purpose of protecting against viruses, spyware, malware, rootkits, Trojans, phishing attacks, spam attacks, and other online cyber threats.

What about ANTIVIRUS?

Antivirus software, as its name suggests, is a program that works against a virus. It detects or recognizes the virus and, after detecting the presence of the virus, works to remove it from the computer system. Antivirus software works as a prophylactic so that it not only removes a virus, but also prevents any potential viruses from infecting your computer in the future.

Why do you need Antivirus Software?

A system without antivirus is like a house with an open door. An open and unprotected door will attract all intruders and burglars into your home. Similarly, an unprotected computer will end up inviting all viruses into the system. An antivirus will act as a closed door with a security guard for your computer defending against all malicious intruder viruses. So will you leave your door open to intruders?

What harm can a virus do to your computer?

In case your computer is attacked by a virus, it can affect your computer in the following ways:

·         Slow down the computer

·         Damage or delete files

·         Format the hard drive

·         Frequent computer crashes

·         Data loss

·         Inability to perform any task on the computer or on the Internet

Antivirus software is like a bright ray of light in a world full of dark viruses. The number of advantages they offer are innumerable. Some of the most outstanding advantages are:

Protection against viruses and their transmission

Antivirus software primarily performs a prophylactic function. It detects any potential viruses and then works to remove them. Keep in mind that all of this is done primarily before the virus comes to damage the system. So this means that most viruses are countered before they damage your systems. An antivirus can fight many viruses in a single day without your knowledge. Avast and Norton are some of the most popular antivirus programs available on the market these days.

If a virus has attacked your system, it can potentially transfer it to your friends, family, and networks. So if you want to protect your computer system, as well as the computers of your acquaintances, consider getting an antivirus .

Block spam and ads

If you take a quick survey of how viruses enter your victims' computer systems, you will be surprised at the proportion of viruses that use pop-up ads and websites to enter their computers. Pop-up ads and spam websites are one of the most commonly used gateways for viruses to infect your computer and then damage your files.

Software like Protegent Internet Security Software works against these malicious websites and ads that contain viruses by blocking their direct access to your computer network.

Defense against hackers and data thieves

Hackers often use a malware or virus program to gain access to their victim's computer. They install malware on the computer without the victim's knowledge. Hackers do this by sending malicious emails to victims. So the hacker can easily hack into your desired files and programs.

After that, they can use the victim's data according to their will; they can erase it or damage it and steal it to demand a ransom later. Antimalware such as Malwarebytes put an anti-hacking block in place or perform regular scans for the presence of any hacker or hacking-based programs on the computer network. Therefore, antivirus software provides complete protection against hackers.

Ensures protection of removable devices

Think about how many times you have transferred data to and from your computer using removable devices like USB. Countless, right?

You may have experienced a slowdown of your computer or a computer crash after connecting a friend's USB. Have you ever wondered why that happened? This is because the USB or removable device served as a transmission device for a virus. So should you stop using removable devices because you never know which USB might contain a virus?

Do not! Just get antivirus software that will scan all removable devices for potential viruses to make sure no viruses are transferred.

Protect your data and files

Antivirus software monitors all files that enter your system. All those files are scanned for any quirks or malice. Viruses can easily spread to your network via infected files, and these, in turn, can damage your data and files. You may even suffer the total loss of your valuable data at the hands of such viruses. An Avira solution The software ensures that your data and files are adequately protected.

Power up your PC

Think of two computers side by side. One suffers the consequences of a virus attack, such as slow processing speed and frequent crashes. The other is protected by antivirus. Which of the two will have better speed?

The one with secure antivirus. This is because that computer has no problems because the antivirus has stopped the virus before it can cause real damage. Some antivirus can even remove and delete useless files from unknown sources to free up disk space, increasing the speed of the PC.

Firewall protection against phishing and spyware attacks

A firewall, in general, monitors the incoming and outgoing traffic of your computer network. When combined with antivirus, firewall protection double-checks every file or piece of data that you send or transfer from your computer over the Internet to another network.

The same is true of files and data that you receive from an external network. You can unintentionally open a frankly malicious website or email and then fall victim to a phishing attack. A phishing attack occurs when attackers specifically target your login credentials, credit card information, or any other personal information / details. Such an attack can result in substantial financial loss or personal loss. Two-way firewall protection against Antivirus Software like Avast blocks and removes such emails or files that may damage you in any way.

Limit access to websites to improve web protection

Accessing unauthorized websites can expose your computer system to various cyber threats, including spyware, hackers, ransomware, etc. These threats can put your data and files at risk. Antivirus software limits your access to the web to restrict your activities on unauthorized networks. This is done to make sure that you only access websites that are safe and harmless to your computer system.

Watch the children

The biggest headache for parents in these advanced times is that their children can openly access anything on the Internet, be it good or bad.

A parent cannot always keep an eye on what their children are doing on the computer. And they can't educate their kids about the good and bad network all the time because kids are easily annoyed. Antivirus software can be the solution for such worrying parents. It can provide a monitoring tool through which you can monitor your children's activities in a safe but efficient way. Antivirus software provides you with adequate records of your children's activities. ESET is one of the most prominent antivirus that offers parental control.

Protect your password

Protect your valuable data and accounts with a password, and then believe that your data and accounts are protected. But what if someone steals your passwords with a virus?

The password thief can later blackmail you into ransom or use your password to access confidential information. Besides using antivirus, you can also think about using a password manager for added security

Economic

Most Antivirus Software is quite profitable. The monthly or annual packages offered by antivirus manufacturers are inexpensive. If you consider the variety of services that come with the premium antivirus package, you will surely think that the cost they are offering is much lower.

On top of that, if you are on a tight budget and don't want to spend money on buying the premium version of antivirus, then you can get Free Antivirus Software.

Is Your Computer Better Without Antivirus Software?

A virus attack can cause as much damage as forcing you to buy a new computer because your old computer has been damaged beyond repair. Not having a protection mechanism for your computer system is like inviting viruses onto your computer by providing them with a clear and accessible entrance.

Do you ever want to damage your computer with your own hands and of your own free will? If not, get antivirus software as soon as possible so that you can use your computer without the constant fear of being the victim of a virus attack.

 

Top Practices for Cyber- Security with Antivirus Software

 Top Practices for Cyber- Security with

Antivirus Software

According to various studies in the last four years, attacks to steal information from companies have increased 46%, and in Mexico 60% of companies have problems due to internal information leaks. With these figures, without a doubt, one of the main concerns of owners, investors, directors and employees of companies is to take the appropriate computer security measures to protect business data.

Here is a list of the best computer security practices that every company should follow:

·         Employee awareness and training. One of the main risks for companies' information is the careless practices of their workers when using the Internet. These practices include opening emails with malicious programs, use of free WiFi that can compromise the transfer of information and even the loss of storage devices, smartphones or tablets that contain relevant information or company passwords. For this reason, it is important to sensitize and train them on good practices in the use of the Internet and devices.

·    Make reliable backup copies of all relevant information. The information of companies can not only be threatened by theft or malware, but also by events such as floods or fires, in either case it is advisable to have backup and a recovery plan. These backups can be done on external devices, from hard drives to specialized servers.

·     Have your own server. It is recommended if more than five computers are used in the company, as it reduces the risk of file loss.

·      Installation of antivirus and antispam. Depending on the size of the company, there are different products on the market that are adapted to the needs and budget of each one. These serve to prevent malware that can delete or damage files, phishing or theft of access codes, among others. Its installation is recommended on all computers that contain or send information.

·       Encrypt information. It is quite common for smartphones or tablets to be lost or stolen and, so that the information they contain is not accessed, it is important that it is encrypted.

·  Set strong passwords and change them regularly. The passwords to access computers, emails or files must be strong passwords, that is, they must be difficult to decrypt. The use of common names, relevant dates or birthdays should be avoided, preferably they should be alphanumeric and be changed periodically.

·         Risk analysis and creation of contingency plan. Before any emergency happens, it is best to carry out a risk and vulnerability analysis, know the strengths and weaknesses of the equipment, the internal network, the servers, the Internet connections, etc. Knowing the risks and weaknesses, it is easier to make decisions regarding the security measures to be implemented and the protocols to follow in the event that company information is compromised.

·   Protecting the information of a business means protecting the operation of the business. Its protection also allows you to avoid or reduce financial losses that can take years to recover, or the damage can be so serious that it causes your total disappearance.

 

Every day we like to buy online more. Probably these days many of us make an online purchase. Taking advantage of the discounts we will sit down with our good morning coffee and just when we enter our favorite e-commerce boom! we find that it is blocked: it does not open, it cannot be bought, the prices do not keep any logic. What happened? They have probably hacked the online store where we wanted to make our purchases. Precisely today? It is no coincidence, cyber criminals know the importance of these dates, and they take advantage of it to carry out their threats more effectively.

 

This situation, which could be experienced by all companies that sell online, is also applicable to other companies, since they may find themselves blocked without knowing what to produce, where to invoice or where to send orders.

 

The Internet security worries me how can I protect my company?

From O ller Brokers we would like to recommend a series of good practices that should help reduce the chances of impact of an attack and increase the security of your company on the Internet. IMPORTANT, the involvement in this belongs to ALL team members.

 

We rely on 3 basic aspects:

 

1. Organization and Team: the human factor is decisive in the majority of claims and that is why the entire staff, including external parties, must be trained in good practices to guarantee Internet security. These should be:

·      Strong passwords, of at least 8 characters combining uppercase, lowercase, numbers and symbols.

·      Do not leave passwords in sight written in a post it on the screen; that happens more than we think.

·         Keep antivirus and programs updated.

·         Do not open unknown attachments.

·         Caution when using USB and other storage devices.

·        Be wary of emails that suggest a change in a provider's current account, or requests for transfers from our General or Financial Director. Do a double check with a phone call.

·     Avoid connecting to public wireless networks with work devices. If you ever transmit confidential information, or do it via vpn.

 

2. Technology: luckily we have a range of tools that help us to be less vulnerable:

·         Antivirus and firewall.

·         Filtering tools.

·         Analysis of downloads and other suspicious actions.

·         Use an information encryption tool to exchange confidential information with customers or suppliers.

·         Use a secure erase application when disposing of old computers.

 

3. Recovery capacity: it is essential to strengthen it to return to full rhythm in the shortest possible time:

·         Daily and independent backups.

·         Periodically check the proper functioning of these backup copies.

·         Continuity plan including a crisis management procedure.

In this last point, the insurance sector can help increase the resilience of the company. Basically the sector has responded to the current threat with a cyber risk insurance that includes a fantastic crisis management system in which by contacting a 24 × 7 line, a team of experts (computer forensics, legal team, communication and PR, etc) that together with your IT staff will resolve the situation in the shortest possible time to return to the scene immediately before the attack. Read our latest post on cyber insurance to find out what they are and what they cover. 

 

 

Concept After Removal of Computer Viruses by Antivirus Software

 Concept After Removal of Computer Viruses by Antivirus Software

Information is part of the assets of a company and must be protected. In this instalment we will talk about antivirus, its evolution and its main characteristics, and which one we should choose in our business to feel as safe as possible.

And why “as safe as possible? Am I never going to be totally sure of being protected? No, unfortunately the answer is no. The protection of computers is a competition between two sides: those who try to use our computers to do harm and those who try to defend us. Unfortunately for us, those who protect us are almost always one step behind those who try to harm us. Although ANTIVIRUS companies have their research department to develop a cure before someone realizes that the vulnerability exists, most of the time they act reactively: once the difficulty is raised, they look for a way to solve it.

Starting at the beginning: What is a virus?

Those who had to name the malicious programs that try to get into our computers used an analogy of something everyone knows: a disease. Diseases that are transmitted by contact between humans are carried by "viruses", hence the common way of knowing them. Although at first they were ways of making jokes or gaining popularity for having managed to enter some difficult site, later they sought to do even more damage or steal sensitive information.

Evolution of viruses

The first known virus dates from 1987 and was called BRAIN. All it did was modify the index of the hard drive, making the system unusable. The first Antivirus Software was released in 1988, aimed purely at disinfecting and protecting systems from BRAIN and other similar threats. From here it may get complicated, but I will try to be as clear as possible.

At the beginning, all viruses came directly in an executable file (ending in ".exe") and by double clicking on our desktop we installed it. They came in the form of email attachments with messages like "Pay attention to this" or "Open immediately." They generally came from known senders, appealing to user trust to install new programs on computers. If we did so, it would forward that same email to our entire address book with the same original attachment and thus it was continuously replicated.

Fortunately, it was easy to correct. A small cultural change and this form of infection practically disappeared. At this time almost all of us instinctively repeat the phrase "I should never open files from people I don't know", but even without knowing this, Windows has a protection so that no program is installed without the double authorization system. First I have to click on the program to install and then give it administrator authorization to do it.

Additionally, Antivirus Software have a constantly changing list that filters potentially dangerous files by name and extension. Modern antivirus also analyze the lines of code of the programs that we will install and will allow or not allow us to complete the process if they do not find anything suspicious.

Complicating things: worms, polymorphs, and Trojans

As you can imagine and may even have suffered, hackers and malware generators did not sit still and began looking for more creative ways to infect computers. The "worms" ("worms", as they are known in English) are programs that are installed surreptitiously and do not generate any noticeable change, but if they leave an "open door" for the hacker to have access to our computer or can use it as a springboard to attack other systems. Then came the "polymorphic" versions, which changed as they infected systems, making their filtration or deactivation much more difficult.

And as in the Trojan Horse metaphor, viruses known as "Trojans" are programs that mask another program inside. They arrive in a familiar format, generally from people we know or in programs that have minimal but often imperceptible alterations, and they install two things instead of one when we run them.

There are more types of viruses such as "hijackers", "zombies" and "macro viruses", all with the intention of giving access and control to another person on our team and who can use it as a dissemination or attack tool.

How do we protect ourselves?

There are different types of Antivirus Software, the main difference we could make is that some are free and others are paid. In the case of the free ones, the best known of this time are Avast, Avira, Bitdefender and AVG. While they use the same search engine as their paid version, they cut back on functionality and have a lot of trouble detecting new or variable threats (such as polymorphic viruses).

Generally, the changes are made "in cascade": companies will first update their database of paying customers and then that of free customers, giving priority to those who pay for the service.

To buy or not to buy the Antivirus?

First of all it is good that they know that although a few years ago it was enough to install a single program, today it is necessary to combine three functions: antivirus + anti-spyware (spyware that will send our data and preferences to whoever created it) + anti-trojans. So we have to analyze which brand offers us more features or complement it with additional programs.

In the case of a personal computer, where perhaps the most we can lose is program reinstallation time and a few photos from this year's vacation, it usually makes no difference. We must be careful with the pages we visit and emails with links that we do not know, but otherwise we will be well protected.

Very different is the case in our company. Here we not only have to protect business continuity and avoid unnecessary reinstallations and failures, but information is important and we must keep it as secure as possible. As we already said, you have to install several Antivirus Software (one with a paid search engine is suggested) and some complementary programs to complete the missing functions.

In addition, it would be logical to add perimeter security to the network with a firewall ("firewall", as it is known in Spanish). These programs can be installed on our own computers, be part of the antivirus that we hire or directly purchased as additional hardware. Its main function is to filter the traffic that enters and leaves our network, guaranteeing a wide level of effectiveness in the early detection of threats.

As I mentioned earlier, there may be paid versions of antivirus that have a firewall. It is a matter of analyzing the prices and services offered and making a decision according to the benchmarks (specialized analysis) that can be found on the internet.

Advantages of having an Antivirus

·         We will be almost completely insured against potential threats to our equipment, our network, and our information, which will improve our productivity by eliminating service calls for equipment failure.

·         By protecting our information, that of our company and our customers, we can guarantee that no one can use it to commit illegal acts or scams on our behalf.

·         We will avoid providing our personal data to dangerous pages, which would lead to unwanted electronic purchases and problems with our lines of credit.

Some useful tips and recommendations

·         Antivirus: Always use recognized brands. Evaluate if you are going to install a free or paid antivirus and do a Google search to analyze its performance on computers similar to yours and see if it is necessary to complement it with some other software to close a door that the main program does not close. The main antivirus brands are (in alphabetical order and not personal preference): 360, Avast !, AVG, Avira, Bitdefender, Kaspersky, Norton and Panda.

·     Anti-spyware: Generally, paid antivirus has this option active, but if it doesn't exist, they must choose a complementary option.

·         Deleting cookies and security: There are programs that delete personal information from our PC that can be used to generate user profiles. The best known is CC Cleaner, and it is recommended to install it.

·         In any case, it is advisable to consult a specialist who will advise you on the best option based on your equipment, its use and the information to be protected.