Directive Blogs

Every day, your small-to-medium business handles sensitive information: customer names, credit card details, employee records, and vendor contracts. This data is valuable, not just to you, but to the hackers and regulators who are paying attention. The old idea that "only big companies get audited" is completely outdated. Data privacy compliance has moved from a niche legal issue to a core operational requirement for every SMB owner and manager.

When you send an email internally, the basic expectation is that it'll be read and addressed. However, in the chaotic environment of a busy business—especially for smaller teams juggling an immense workload—emails can, and do, slip through the cracks. If your team relies primarily on email for communication, a reliable email archiving system is a necessity to prevent lost messages from creating a disaster.

Have you ever noticed the curb cuts at intersections? Initially designed for wheelchair users, they also help parents with strollers, travelers with rolling luggage, and delivery drivers with hand carts.

This is the “curb-cut effect”—a design choice made for a specific group that ultimately benefits everyone. Your website can, and should, have the exact same effect.

An accessible website doesn't just serve users with disabilities; it creates a better, more welcoming experience for every single visitor.

Cybersecurity is non-negotiable for protecting your business. While your awareness as a business owner is key, your employees are your first line of defense. Implementing effective cybersecurity training is crucial, but how do you make it stick?

For businesses, one of the scariest threats out there is that of compliance fines for not holding up your end of the bargain with your customers’ data. But what goes into compliance, and what does it look like? We won’t be digging into the nitty-gritty of what these specific regulations require; rather, we’re performing a broad analysis of what businesses should be doing to ensure compliance, regardless of the protocol or the industry.

Many market analysts and industry experts foresee an increase in the cost of hardware. We recommend that you take matters into your own hands to dodge the price hike and purchase your new IT now before it costs you more to do so. The implementation of any proposed tariffs could impact the market as early as February 2025, so we wanted to discuss what you should consider when purchasing new hardware today.

Artificial intelligence, or AI, has upended the way that we discuss technology in business, society, and individual everyday life. While we mostly focus on the benefits of the technology, there are many downsides to consider as well. That’s what we’d like to discuss today; how AI has a dark side to it that potentially requires regulation.

Would you feel safe staying at a hotel that, instead of unique locks, each door used the same key as all of the others? Probably not—because if someone got in, they could take whatever they wanted. That’s similar to how old-school cybersecurity worked. Once someone got into a company’s network, they could access almost everything, making it easy for hackers to steal information. But today, many businesses use a better security framework called zero-trust security. In today’s blog, we discuss what zero-trust security is and why it’s safer.

Let me ask you something: would you trust a bank that locked its doors for the night but left all its cash in a big pile in the middle of the floor? Probably not—after all, if someone managed to get through the doors, nothing would stop them from helping themselves to the funds inside.

This is effectively how cybersecurity once worked, with the presumption that if someone had access to a network, they had permission to access any data on it. Fortunately, many businesses have made the switch to a better approach, known as zero-trust security.

One of the many tasks undertaken by the United Nations is to protect human rights around the globe while also working to create more sustainable and climate-friendly development. As such, the UN has recently taken a healthy interest in the development of artificial intelligence, hoping to develop guidelines that allow us to get the most value out of AI without creating more significant problems.

A business’ compliance with the regulations it operates under is a huge issue that many inside your organization won’t understand but has to draw some attention. Let’s look at some of the variables that go into compliance to outline just how important it is.

The business landscape is ever-evolving, and in today’s tech-driven world, having the right IT consultant by your side is not just an advantage—it's a necessity. Whether you’re a small mom-and-pop shop, a non-profit organization, or a larger business in Oneonta, New York, the expertise of a skilled IT professional can be the cornerstone of your operational success. From computer support to comprehensive IT solutions, the right technology partner can transform the way you do business.

In this guide, we’ll navigate the path to finding the best IT consultant in central New York that aligns with your organization’s needs, ensuring compliance and technological efficiency.

Local small and medium-sized organizations are commonly targeted by cybercriminals simply because they let their guard down. A lot of local business owners seem to think “Hey, I’m just an accountant in Oneonta, or I’m just an insurance company in Sidney, or I’m just a realtor in Cooperstown, why would hackers want to target me?”

And the answer is right there. On top of that, the sheer number of avenues that cybercriminals have to cause damage to a business is staggering. Let’s take a look at some of the more recent threats we’ve been seeing over the past two months.

Compliance is a critical element of many businesses’ requirements, with pretty severe penalties as a consequence if the prescribed standards are not met. Even more importantly, most compliance requirements and regulations are put in place for the welfare of not only the business, but its clientele as well. This makes it critical to know which apply to your business, and how to meet them fully.

While the word “audit” can easily be a scary thought for businesses, there are certain cases where an audit serves an organization’s direct benefit. Take, for instance, the ones that occur internally to identify and correct security issues and vulnerabilities. These audits are not only a positive endeavor for businesses; they’re extremely important to carry out.

Let’s talk about why this is and review a few standard practices you should prioritize as you go about this process.

Your business is likely subject to certain compliance laws and regulations depending on the type of data you collect from your clients or customers. Today, we want to emphasize the importance of your business considering regulation and compliance when managing its data and IT resources, as without doing so, you run considerable risk.

Perhaps predictably, the word “insure” has roots that tie it closely to “ensure,” as it is meant to ensure a level of security after some form of loss. Nowadays, that loss often pertains to data, making cyber insurance an extremely valuable investment for the modern business to make.

However, in order to obtain this kind of insurance, businesses commonly need to meet some basic requirements. Let’s go over some of these requirements now.

It was a busy weekend for hackers and several local organizations as two hospitals and a New York state casino were hit with cyberattacks. This caused quite a bit of chaos for everyone involved, including patients, hospital staff, and a nursing home that all had to struggle through the attack.

The United States Federal Trade Commission’s mandate is to prevent fraud and promote consumer protection in today's interconnected world, where the digital landscape continues to evolve at a rapid pace. The FTC recognizes the importance of safeguarding consumer information and has implemented their Safeguards Rule as a means to ensure that businesses protect sensitive data from unauthorized access and misuse. Let’s take a look at the Safeguards Rule and what you need to know about it in regard to your business. 

Cybersecurity is important. Scroll through a few pages of our blog and you’ll see article after article talking about threats and ways to make yourself and your business less vulnerable to cyberthreats. As an IT professional, however, I’d be so much happier if the state of the world didn’t require such a massive effort just to protect oneself and we could just talk about cool stuff you can do with modern technology all the time!

But alas, strong cybersecurity is crucial to virtually any organization, and it’s becoming even more important by the month.