Big Water Tech

🎄 TechTales: Big Water Tech’s Holiday Edition 🎄 Even Santa needs secure IT to deliver the magic! The holidays are a time for giving, joy, and celebration—but even the North Pole isn’t immune to cyber threats. Imagine Santa’s horror if his systems went down on Christmas Eve! Thankfully, the elves at Big Water Tech had him covered. From Rudolph’s GPS firewall to Santa’s Nice List secured with multi-factor authentication, we ensured his operations were ready to sleigh the big night. This holiday season, your business deserves the same peace of mind. Let us help you secure your systems so you can focus on spreading holiday cheer. The Cyber Santa Checklist Just like Santa’s elves check their lists twice, you should too! Here’s how to keep your IT sleigh ready for takeoff: 1. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Firewall Keep your network protected with robust firewalls to guide your business safely through the digital skies. 2. Santa’s Elves = MFA Multi-factor authentication ensures only authorized users access your sensitive systems—think of it as your team of elves guarding the toy workshop. 3. The North Pole Backup Plan Data backup is key to ensuring that even if something goes wrong, you’ll be back on track faster than Santa down a chimney. 4. Phishing-Free Inbox Train your team to spot phishing emails and avoid being on the wrong end of a holiday scam. 5. Cyber Sleigh Bells: 24/7 Monitoring Just as Santa tracks his deliveries, real-time monitoring helps you catch potential IT issues before they derail your operations. Sleighing IT with BigProtect One of our clients, a local retailer, faced a chaotic holiday season last year due to a phishing scam that shut down their systems. After partnering with Big Water Tech and implementing BigProtect and BigView, they’ve not only avoided downtime but have peace of mind knowing their operations are always secure—no matter the season. Tool of the Month: BigProtect and BigView Santa wouldn’t dream of flying without his sleigh tuned to perfection, and your business shouldn’t operate without the best IT tools: • BigProtect: Safeguard your network’s physical edge with centralized firewall, switch, and access point management. • BigView: Get proactive IT monitoring and resolution to keep your systems running smoothly year-round. Pro Tip Corner: “Post-Holiday Tech Check” After the holiday rush, here’s what to do next: • Review activity logs for unusual activity during downtime. • Ensure all systems are up-to-date and patched. • If you’re a BigView client, relax—we’ve likely already done all this for you! As we close out another year, the team at Big Water Tech wants to thank you for trusting us with your IT needs. We’re grateful to be part of your journey and are committed to helping you thrive in the year ahead. Wishing you a joyful, secure, and prosperous holiday season! Unwrap Stress-Free IT This Holiday Season Contact us today to learn how Big Water Tech can support you!

Our elves don’t just work during the holidays—they’re hard at work year-round! Behind the scenes, the Big Water Tech team ensures SMBs stay secure, connected, and running smoothly every single day. From proactive monitoring to robust network protection, we’re here to keep the magic alive for your business. 🎄✨ Because when your tech runs smoothly, your business thrives. 💻 #TechElves #YearRoundSupport #BigWaterTech #CyberSecureHolidays

From all of us at Big Water Tech, we wish you a Merry Christmas filled with joy, peace, and a little extra tech magic! Thank you for letting us be part of your journey this year. Here’s to a safe and prosperous holiday season! 🎄 #MerryChristmas #ThankYou #TechGratitude

Santa’s sleigh might run on holiday cheer, but his network runs on Big Water Tech. 😉 Wishing you a cyber-safe and joyful Christmas Day! What’s powering your holiday fun this year? 🎁🎅 #CyberSafeHolidays #SantaApproved

Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the net, Not a hacker was stirring—our firewalls are set. With BigProtect guarding and BigView in play, We’re keeping businesses safe all the way.

Are you taking a well-deserved break this holiday season? Great! But when it’s time to return to work, catching up on everything can feel overwhelming, right? Not for much longer. Microsoft are introducing a fantastic new feature called “Catch up with Copilot”, making it easier than ever to dive back in after time away. This clever tool will give you quick updates on any new files or folders in your OneDrive. It can summarize changes to documents you’ve worked on, highlight new files that have been shared with you, and even point out any “@mentions” that need your attention. It’s like having a personal assistant to sort through your digital workspace. You can relax during your time off, without worrying that you’ll miss something when you get back. The feature is due to roll out for OneDrive Web early next year and will initially work with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files. You’ll need to have a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence to access it. Will you and your team be using this one? #Microsoft #OneDrive #EasyCatchUp https://lnkd.in/ehGXB2zz

Heads up: Cyber criminals are using yet another new trick to steal business data. This time, it involves something called SVG files. SVG (or Scalable Vector Graphics) files are different from typical image files like JPG or PNG. Instead of being made of tiny pixels, SVG images are created using lines and shapes defined by code. They’re commonly used in web design, because you can resize them without losing image quality. But they’re now being used by scammers to carry out phishing attacks, where they pose as a trusted person to trick you into sharing sensitive information. SVG files can contain hidden code including scripts that run when the image is opened. Scammers can use this to create fake login forms or redirect you to phishing sites. The SVG files are disguised as innocent-looking email attachments. Some mimic official documents or spreadsheets, prompting you to click and unknowingly download malware (malicious software). These files often slip past security software because they don’t behave like traditional image files. If you receive an email with an SVG attachment, it’s a red flag – especially if you weren’t expecting it. Unless you’re a developer who works with SVGs regularly, it’s safer to delete emails containing these attachments. If you need more advice on how to help protect your business from scams like this, my team can help. Get in touch. #Malware #SVG #CyberSecurity https://lnkd.in/gWGHTfGy

If you’re fed up with having to mess around with printer drivers every time you want to print something for your business, you’ll love this announcement from Microsoft. Two big updates are coming to Universal Print, making it easier than ever to manage printing in your business. First up: Universal Print now supports macOS in public preview, with full availability due this month. This means employees using Mac devices will be able to use printers in your business without needing special drivers or setups. Mac devices are also getting further support with a new Universal Print app, which allows people to print directly from their favorite Mac applications. It’s the second update that’s undeniably the best, though. Microsoft are releasing “Universal Print anywhere” (otherwise known as “pull print”), also in public preview. The new feature will let you and your team print from any location and securely release print jobs to any printer within your business. Admins can also set rules, like limiting color printing or controlling the number of copies that can be printed, helping you to manage costs and maintain security. These updates simplify printer management for businesses. They remove the need for print servers and make printing more accessible across different devices. With support for major printer brands and a more unified experience for employees, Universal Print is becoming a must-have tool for businesses today. Ready to simplify your printing? We can help you get set up, get in touch. #Microsoft #UniversalPrint #TimeSaver https://lnkd.in/eMJHCgMJ

Cyber criminals have found another way to try and steal your business data. This time, they’re making realistic-looking websites for fake tools that claim to generate AI images and videos. The websites include realistic touches like cookie banners, which trick you into thinking they’re safe. The fake AI tools are designed with one goal: To infect your computer with malicious software, otherwise known as malware. For Windows, this malware is called Lumma Stealer; and for macOS, it's called AMOS. Once the malware is on your computer, it secretly collects your data from browsers like Chrome or Edge. It can steal anything from passwords to credit card details, which are then either used by the scammers or sold on illegal online marketplaces. If you’ve accidentally downloaded this malware, or any other malicious software, you should treat all your passwords and sensitive data as if they’ve been compromised. To help keep your business safe: • Avoid downloading software from untrusted sites or random ads • Use unique, strong passwords for every account (and change them if they're compromised) • Enable multi-factor authentication for sensitive accounts like banking or email AI can help your business in lots of different ways, but always make sure the apps you use are genuine before you download them. If you’re worried about malware or need guidance on the best AI tools for your business, my team can help. Get in touch. #Malware #CyberSecurity #AI https://lnkd.in/d6QRGcmT

We’ve all heard of the iPhone and Samsung Galaxy… but what about Amazon’s Fire Phone or the HTC Facebook Phone? No? These quirky gadgets are just a couple of examples of how innovators have tried – and sometimes failed – to use wild ideas to stand out from the crowd. Today’s most popular smartphones are all about sleek design and smooth functionality. But there was a time when companies seemed to just throw crazy concepts at the wall, hoping something would stick. The Fire Phone, for instance, came with a 3D-style parallax display that no one really asked for. Meanwhile, the Facebook Phone made Facebook your entire home screen, whether you liked it or not… Another weird and (not so) wonderful smartphone idea was the OnePlus 7 Pro, with its James Bond-style pop-up camera. Then OnePlus did it again with the 8 Pro’s accidental X-ray filter, which was swiftly disabled once people realized its potential for mischief. Also, let’s not forget the bulky dual-screen Kyocera Echo – or the LG Wing phone, where a second screen flipped out like a holy cross. Or the “build your own phone” DIY attempts, like Google’s Project Ara and Motorola’s snap-on mods, which expected us to want to endlessly customize every component of our phones. If you haven’t heard of these, it’s worth checking them out online. To be fair, while these experiments may have flopped, they were still born out of bold creativity. Innovation comes with both risks and rewards. Just think about all the ideas that have worked out. As business owners, it can be a fun lesson in trial and error, right? Sometimes it’s the strange ideas that lead to a breakthrough, and sometimes they’re just good stories to tell. Did you ever own any of these devices? What smartphones do you and your team use today? #SmartPhones #FailedIdeas #Innovation  https://lnkd.in/eveD-XBN