entrustIT Insights (28)

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News and Insights from the entrust IT Group

the network went down when someone stepped on a crack in the sidewalk

How would your Independent School cope with 22 hours of ICT Downtime?

Originally posted on 12 June 2017 In the wake of British Airways catastrophic IT Failure which left so many passengers stranded at airports at the start of half term, I thought it would be timely today to talk about disaster recovery. As anyone who has ever experienced network downtime will know, it is amazing how crippling an ICT system failure is to a school, and how far reaching the consequences can be. Not only does an outage create classroom and administrative operational chaos, it can also have serious consequences for the school’s reputation, particularly where there is loss of critical data such as pupils’ coursework, or a breach of security around confidential pupil data. Interested in finding out how educateIT could help improve your schools disaster recovery? Download our FREE White Paper >> Whilst many schools I talk to tend to associate ICT downtime with large events such as fires or floods, the reality is that the majority of ICT downtime has much more mundane causes which can include hardware failures, loss of power, cyber security breaches (such as ransomware attacks) and software failures. And in many cases the downtime is considerable, with the EMC Global Data Protection Index 2016 study showing that the average length of unplanned downtime was 22 hours. Indeed the situation seems to be worsening this year, with ICT downtime caused by ransomware attacks in particular often running into a week or more. And while many of us can work around a short system outage, when such outages are extending into days or even weeks there can be a serious impact on the school’s operations and reputation. As such, it is critical that the senior leadership team have a thorough understanding of their risk management processes and contingency procedures around network resilience, backups and disaster recovery. So is it enough to have a disaster recovery plan? Sadly I fear not. I’m sure BA had a disaster recovery plan, but how well did it work when it was used in anger? For many schools, I find the disaster recovery plan that was put together some years ago and has sat in the fireproof safe ever since, without testing or updating. My experience is that this document needs to be constantly evolving, as our use of technology in education has moved on apace, and what was an acceptable recovery plan a couple of years ago may now be totally inadequate. In addition, our systems are constantly changing, with software updates and security fixes being installed on a regular basis, all of which can impact on the technical success of a recovery. In order to ensure ongoing relevance, I always recommend that schools continually re-assess and test their plans around resilience, backup and disaster recovery, against the operational needs of their school and their changing use of technology. Some points to consider would include:-

5 workplace trends that will shape the future

The workplace is constantly evolving to meet the needs of both employees and employers. We are all familiar with the ‘traditional’ way of working, whereby staff work 9-5 in an office under a manager’s direction and each year, receive a performance review.

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How Windows Virtual Desktop modernises legacy apps with Office 365

Every business that has been trading for a few years has that one piece of software they cannot live without. Perhaps you have used it for many years and it hasn’t been updated for a while, but you simply cannot run your company without it – losing or changing it would simply be too much of a headache. Unfortunately, if this is accurate in your business, you will know that this makes it difficult for you to upgrade your IT environment. Are you looking to give your business a productivity boost? Learn how Windows Virtual Desktop solves common business problems >>

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Unlock new capabilities with Microsoft Teams.

Collaboration and teamwork play a crucial role in the success of any business. As employees are becoming more independent and the culture of remote working rises, the use of collaboration tools in the current work environment have really taken off; teams are now able to work together and achieve goals without being physically present together in the workplace.

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Traditional analogue phone lines are coming to an end: What's next?

When Alexander Graham Bell invented the very first telephone in 1876 he changed the world. For the very first time, it was possible to hear somebody’s voice even if they were many miles away. The telephone exploded in popularity. Three years after its invention, there were almost 49,000 telephones in the United States. By the turn of the 20th Century that number had increased to 600,000. At some point in the middle of this decade, the number of active telephone subscriptions even grew larger than the number of people on earth! If you are looking to upgrade your telephony, VoIP could be the answer. Learn more about what common business problems it solves here >>

How you can keep your data safe in a world full of threats.

In today’s modern world, data is king. In 2017, data toppled oil as the new most valuable commodity. As with any valuable resource, there are always individuals that wish to steal or harm it. The story is no different with data. Computer viruses are by no means new, but in recent years the sophistication and frequency of cyber-attacks has grown exponentially. Well publicised attacks such as WannaCry in 2017, which shut off NHS trust hospitals across the country, serve as reminders of this reality. Interested in learning more about how Managed Services can free up resource and reduce the risk of cyber attacks in your business? Learn more about the problems they solve here >>

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Fraud Alert – Schools targeted with Ransomware

Originally posted on 23 January 2017

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Why your staff are your biggest cyber security threat...

Thomas Reid, a trained Scottish philosopher once said in his Essays on the Intellectual Powers of Man, 1786, “A chain is no stronger than its weakest link”. The same is true for cyber security in business, where you are only as strong as your least informed employee. Cyber-criminals will prey on the most vulnerable, and that is your employees.

genius is 1 percent inspiration, 99 percent budget allocation

Getting the best value from ICT Budgets in Independent Schools

Originally posted on 9 January 2017 With ever increasing demands for new and improved technology in independent schools, it is easy for ICT to become a bottomless money pit. Naturally, every school wants to use technology to enhance the learning environment, equip pupils for the digital world that they will be living and working in, as well as ensure that the school is keeping up with its competitors and using technology in a way that will serve to attract further pupils to the school. The bursar however, has the unenviable job of trying to balance all these laudable ambitions against a limited budget!

5 Ways To Encourage A Culture Of Collaboration In Your Workplace

Whether you’re a global organisation with 50,000 employees, or a startup with 5 employees, strong communication and collaboration is crucial to achieving goals and the overall success of the business.