Cloud computing has quickly become a popular option for businesses that want to streamline their operations, reduce costs, and become more flexible. But are you swayed by the idea that cloud services are automatically better for the environment? Could the need to do your bit ‘cloud’ your decision-making? Sorry. Bad pun. It’s true that cloud services have environmental benefits compared …
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Remember 2012, when the analogue TV signal was switched off and we all went digital?
Well now it’s your phone’s turn, and in December 2025, the last old analogue phone service – the PSTN – is due to be switched off forever.
So if any devices in your business currently use the analogue phone system, you’re going to need to make some changes. That doesn’t just mean your landline phone – you may have alarms, lift emergency phones, some card machines (and you don’t still use a fax, do you?)
You have a bit of time to plan, but it’s important not to leave everything to the last minute on this. As we get nearer to the deadline, suppliers will be stretched and you’ll want to allow time to transition to a new system.
Airports, hotels, cafés, even shopping centres, offer public charging points where you can boost your phone or laptop battery on the go.
They’ve been in the news after the FBI recently tweeted advice to stop using them. Crooks have figured out how to hijack USB ports to install malware and monitoring software onto devices as they charge.
The security risk of “juice jacking” was long thought to be more theoretical than real, but the tech needed to carry out an attack has got smaller and cheaper and easier to use. This means less sophisticated criminals are now turning their hand to it.
So how does it work?
If you have business systems that feel like they need bringing into the 2020s, you might be thinking about a major IT project.
And that can mean a big commitment – of time, money, effort and headspace.
Watch our latest video for the three things to get straight in your mind before you involve the experts.
You might already have heard that the UK’s Public Switch Telephone Network (PSTN) is being switched off in December 2025.
This affects everyone.
The old, analogue PSTN can’t keep up with the demands of modern communication, so the switch to fully digital will mark a big step forward.
Put simply, everything will use the internet.
But it’s not just our phone lines that will be affected by the PSTN switch-off. Any equipment that also uses PSTN will stop working too. That could be your alarm systems, cameras, fax machines (yes some are still in use!), even door entry systems and EPOS machines.
You may also need to update your broadband and some of your other hardware.
A major change to your IT infrastructure isn’t something to be planned in a hurry. So if you’re starting to think about ending it with your current systems and bringing your business into the 2020s, there’s plenty to think about before you commit to another long-term relationship.
LinkedIn is introducing new verification features over the coming months to help tackle fake accounts.
The business-focused social platform is a fantastic place to connect with like-minded businesspeople, and to find new employees, jobs and opportunities.
But thanks to this popularity, we’re seeing an increase in fake profiles, created by scammers for more sinister purposes.
Bot-like accounts have been cropping up all over the platform. They’ve been spamming people, tricking genuine profiles into downloading malware, and scamming them into giving away personal data.
LinkedIn holds a huge amount of information on each of its members, including their job history, contact details, professional interests and places of work – all valuable data that a determined criminal could put to use.
We’re fickle creatures.
Windows 11 still feels like a new toy, yet we’ve already heard (reliable) speculation about Windows 12 arriving as soon as next year. And now it’s all we can think about!
What will it look like?
What improvements will we see?
Will there be new features?
We can’t answer these questions with certainty just yet, but there are whispers of new features that could be big news for businesses.
Three in particular have got us excited.
One of the many cool things about the new wave of Artificial Intelligence tools is their ability to sound convincingly human.
AI chatbots can be prompted to generate text that you’d never know was written by a robot. And they can keep producing it – quickly, and with minimal human intervention.
So it’s no surprise that cyber criminals have been using AI chatbots to try to make their own lives easier.
Police have identified the three main ways crooks have found to use the chatbot for malicious reasons.
If you have Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) then you are entering two pieces of information to login to your apps and/or devices. This could be your password and an additional “factor” like your fingerprint, text code to your mobile phone or an MFA app.
Cyber criminals are using ever increasingly sophisticated techniques to guess your password or even bypass security. This means that the more barriers you can put up, the more difficult it becomes for them to break into your systems.
Everyone and especially businesses, should be using MFA as it provides great protection against cyber attacks and other security threats.
Out new guide will tell you all you need to know. And it’s free to download.