Computer Repair

The Top 10 Tech Mistakes Small Businesses Make (And How To Avoid Them): Pt 3

Published on: February 15th, 2012

Continuing our series on how small businesses can avoid common tech mistakes, Part 3 follows up on our discussion of Inadequate Power Protection and Illegal Software in Part 2 and digs into Mistakes #5 & 6: Inadequate Training and Weak Security.

Mistake #5: Inadequate Training

Training is a significant issue for small businesses. This is particularly true for organizations that don’t possess their own training department and thus struggle to maximize software programs, applications and technology capabilities. It is estimated that most office workers understand less than 20% of the available features in the software packages they use. This causes significant inefficiencies as processes and tasks that could be completed in seconds using the automatic features of software programs are performed manually instead.

Here’s a real world example:

A Computer Troubleshooters office helped maintain high-powered computers for a firm that included 12 highly talented engineers and a single administrative assistant who prepared all of their quotes, proposals and estimates. While the admin was on vacation, a Computer Troubleshooters’ technician was called to assist in locating a critical proposal spreadsheet that the admin had prepared a few weeks earlier. The document was urgently needed, but could not be found on the admin’s PC.

Ultimately, it was discovered the administrative assistant only maintained one proposal spreadsheet. Each time a new proposal was needed, shejust typed over the single file with new information (thereby losing any record of previous proposals). Further, she didn’t know how to perform calculations inside a spreadsheet, and all sums and totals were figured manually using a hand calculator.

Like many small business employees, she was entirely self-taught, so while she knew how to function in her job, her limited skill set meant she was working harder than she should have in order to produce results that were less than they should be.

Mistake #6: Weak Security

Increased threats from malicious software and viruses are a daily reality for all PC users, and security is of paramount concern. New vulnerabilities in the Windows operating system are identified almost weekly, and the same is true of other software products and hardware devices. Without up-to-date security applications, firmware updates and operating system patches, your small business is vulnerable to attack.

Hackers write and distribute malicious programs that regularly attempt to access your computer and:

• Steal and/or delete your business data.
• Steal and/or delete personal, confidential or proprietary information.
• Corrupt your PCs and render them inoperable.
• Compromise your computer’s security and turn it into a zombie system that launches attacks on other computers.
• Turn your PC into a robotic system that sends tens of thousands of unsolicited email messages a day.

Most small businesses are unfamiliar with the steps they need to take to properly protect their systems and data against these attacks. Computer Troubleshooters can assist your organization in locking down its network, securing its systems and hardening every aspect of its technology operations. Typically, we recommend small businesses adopt the following security best practices:

• Use strong passwords on all systems and software.
• Update Windows systems with the latest security patches and hotfixes after professional testing proves the updates reliable and appropriate.
• Update applications and software programs with the latest patches and hotfixes as they become available.
• Deploy trusted hardware-based firewalls and confirm they are properly configured.
• Secure all wireless networks by leveraging the latest encryption technologies.
• Install and configure reputable antivirus and antispyware applications, and confirm that they regularly update and scan systems for infections.
• Do not permit antivirus and antispyware applications to expire.
• Prohibit the use of peer-to-peer file-sharing programs as Kazaa and LimeWire.
• Discourage employees from clicking or opening any attachments received within email messages from unknown and untrusted senders.

Computer Troubleshooters assists organizations in training staff on the skills they need to make the most of their software investments, and in identifying and resolving weaknesses in computer security protocols. Both of these critical tech mistakes can generate significant costs to recover from, but addressing both preemptively can bring significant benefits to your small business.