DataVizion’s 2018 Tech Summit kicked off April 9, bringing together industry professionals and technology experts from more than 30 companies.

This year’s theme “Leveraging Next Generation Technology Solutions” focused on the latest in next generation mobility and security and what companies need to do to keep up.

“Advances in technology are shaking up expectations for how every kind of business operates,” Kelly Schrad, DataVizion President and CEO, said. “Technology isn’t going to slow down, so we’re helping our customers not only look how to get ahead of the curve, but also utilize solutions to give them a competitive advantage. “

The day kicked off with a presentation from special guest speaker Dale Cline, the CEO of BlackStratus. Cline discussed the latest in IT security and compliance and what businesses should be on the look out for.

Condall Clegg, the Director of US Channels and Alliances in the Solutions and Technology organization within Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) spoke about how the company has evolved to address changing technology demands.

Breakout sessions from leading technology companies Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company, Fortinet and Nutanix, filled the second half of the day.

DataVizion also hosted a special breakout session on the company’s new managed security services solution, VizionCare Secure.

The day wrapped up a cocktail hour and raffle drawing. Several lucky winners walked away with great prizes such as a GoPro HERO6 and a DJI Phantom 3 Drone startup kit.

A special thanks to our partners and sponsors for helping us put together this event.

View photos from the event here.

Looking back on 2017, it was a big year for major breaches and cyberattacks. The success of ransomware went mainstream, which lead to increasing cases of ransomware attacks.

Now that 2018 is here, we’ll continue to see the development of ransomware attacks, which will deeply impact the productivity and security of organizations. Here are some predictions for additional vulnerabilities in store for businesses this year.

• Political motives on the rise: Expect to see ransomware motives that are for political gain rather than just commercial.
• Increased sophistication: Security solutions will need to adapt faster than ever to keep pace with increasingly sophisticated ransomware.
• Expanded targets: Hackers are no longer just going after big business. While the statistics vary, most show a significant increase in attacks on small businesses.
• Focus on customer data protection: Customers are walking away from businesses that suffer cybersecurity breaches. To thrive, businesses will need to not only stay ahead of evolving threats, but also keep pace with updated regulation and compliance standards.
• Internet of Things (IoT) integration fueling threats: Hackers are finding new ways to get into your network through unprotected devices, including everything from point-of-sale machines and intelligent vending machines to smart home and vehicle devices.

While the concern for cybersecurity attacks will continue to rise in 2018, we're committed to protecting your data and your business. Our VizionCare Secure, Managed Service Security Solution, can dramatically reduce your chance of suffering a severe breach with 24/7 active monitoring.

Contact us today at (402) 327-1880 for more information about VizionCare Secure.

There have been a lot of reports, articles and even conflicting statements in the news about substantial security issues now known as Meltdown and Spectre.

In the simplest of terms, these are two hardware flaws that affects nearly every computer and device out there, primarily impact Intel based computers.

While there is a lot of valuable news information available, we wanted to share some basics with you. Rest assured, at DataVizion we stay ahead of evolving security risks, capacity requirements and performance demands that can impact your business.

What It Is

Cyber security experts have discovered chip design flaws in computer processors that could allow access to your sensitive information such as passwords on computers, servers and smartphones.

Company’s (Microsoft, Apple, Google, etc) that develop the operating systems for these impacted systems are taking steps to release patches that prevent the vulnerability from being exploited by hackers; however, even if all updates are made, many devices will remain exposed.

What It Does

The Meltdown and Spectre flaws may have serious implications for users as it allows hackers to access important information such as passwords or the encryption keys held in a device’s memory.

Meltdown allows a program running on a computer to break into an operating system’s central memory, accessing data it shouldn't be.

Normally, this could be addressed using the software updates being rushed out. However, Spectre makes it possible for a program running on a chip to access data in a separate program, without any need to call on the operating system.

What You Can Do Now

Users should make sure to install all applicable patches once released from Microsoft and/or Apple. Once the patch is released, those customers who are subscribed to DataVizion’s patching services will receive the patch and have it deployed automatically and managed by DataVizion. Any other users/customers will have to ensure that their systems are patched or contact Datavizion for assistance for additional help.

What We’re Doing About It

DataVizion is committed to ensuring our customers have the latest and greatest cyber security protections in place. For questions about this or to learn more about our patching/security services, please feel free to reach out to your account manager.

Today, headlines about IT security breaches read very differently than just worms and viruses of early days. Nation states actors, organized crime syndicates and idealistic “hacktivists” have catapulted cybersecurity onto the global stage.

Complex attack methodologies coupled with sophisticated social engineering has resulted in the grim reality that vulnerabilities exist in every organization, regardless of size. Even worse, is that the average amount of time between a breach and discovery is eight months.

This rising trend of cyber attacks has led us to offer a new managed security service solution, VizionCare Secure. This solution can dramatically reduce your chance of suffering a severe breach and reduce the amount of time between a breach and discovery to minutes.

Our solution provides advanced threat intelligence and the same level of security as the largest companies in the world, all at a low monthly cost. Your data is protected in real-time and meets your regulatory audit and reporting requirements. This includes providing specific compliance reports you’ll need to pass HIPAA, PCI, FISMA and other audits.

To show business just how valuable it is, we offer a free, 30-Day Security Health Assessment for your business. During that time, we will assess your security posture, risk profile and identify potential gaps.

Contact us today at (402) 327-1880 for more information or to enroll in the free assessment.

Southwest Airlines was one of the latest companies to fall victim to what’s been referred to as a “computer glitch” resulting in hundreds of flight cancellations, delays, lots of unhappy customers and a negative impact to the company’s bottom line.

A router breakdown that led to a series of failures in critical technology systems has been blamed. The backup systems in place also failed to work as expected.

Even if you aren’t operating one of the nation’s largest airline carriers, if your company relies on technology (which, let’s face it, is most) a disaster recovery plan is a critical business need. Here are three reasons why:

1. Machines and Hardware Fail

Even the best hardware is not completely immune to failing. That’s where Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) comes in. In the event of a failure, your physical or virtual servers should be backed up by a third party so you can quickly and cost-effectively recover your data with as little down time as possible. In addition, you should be conducting regular network assessments and testing to avoid unreliable redundancy.

2. Human Error is Common

Ever had your computer crash or lost an important document? It happens to everyone. Having a disaster recovery plan in place can ensure you have online data backups that allow you to easily restore your data. In addition, having redundant firewalls, anti-virus, and anti-spyware software can help prevent security breaches that are often the result of human error.

3. Customers Have Little Patience

With the Internet, and especially social media, customers are quicker than ever to voice their frustrations and concerns to anyone and everyone. Those affected by the recent Southwest Airlines flight interruptions are a prime example. It’s not easy to earn a customers’ trust, and any downtime or inconvenience they experience, even if due to an IT disaster is a quick way to send your customers to your competition.

At any time, something unwelcomed can happen and affect your organization's overall IT infrastructure and your company’s bottom line. Call us to learn more about how VizionVault, our disaster recovery service, can help you prepare for the unexpected.

Here are 6 statistics you need to know.

Flexibility, scalability, mobility – the benefits of moving to a cloud-first network go on and on. If you’ve even been considering a cloud-first strategy, you’re probably already aware of at least some of these advantages. But these six key findings revealed in the RightScale 2016 State of the Cloud Report* may surprise you.

1. Security concerns are decreasing.

In past RightScale reports, security has always been the top concern among respondents. However, from 2014 to 2016, security concerns for Enterprise central IT teams, who typically have the most responsibility for security, declined from 47 percent to 37 percent. Is seems as cloud providers and best practices mature, security concerns will continue to decline.

2. Top cloud challenge cited is lack of resources/expertise.

Nearly 32 percent of respondents indicated lack of resources/expertise as their No. 1 cloud challenge, an increase from 27 percent last year. As companies continue to place higher demand on the cloud, the need for technical expertise has grown.

3. Cloud cost management is a significant challenge.

Cloud cost management as a challenge has steadily increased each year from 18 percent in 2013 to 26 percent in 2016. From reducing or eliminating data centers to utilizing flexible capacity, companies have significant opportunities for savings if they know what actions to take.

4. Cloud adoption is on the rise.

This year’s survey findings revealed that private cloud adoption increased from 63 percent to 77 percent, and hybrid cloud adoption increased from 58 percent to 71 percent since 2015. More enterprise workloads are also moving to the cloud – mainly the private cloud – from 22 percent to 31 percent since last year. Overall, 95 percent of respondents are using cloud, up from 93 percent last year.

5. Cloud users see increase in speed.

The survey findings show the two benefits that had the largest increase were faster access to infrastructure, which grew from 57 to 62 percent, and faster time-to market, which grew from 48 to 52 percent. 

6. Cloud initiatives differ based on company size.

The study showed that 2016 cloud priorities differed among Enterprises and SMBs. Enterprises, who generally have a larger number of applications, are more focused on moving more of those workloads to the cloud (57 percent). Small and Medium-sized Business (SMBs) indicated optimizing existing cloud use to achieve cost savings (43 percent) as their No.1 initiative.

Whether you’ve just starting to think about moving some applications to the cloud, have a robust cloud-first strategy in place, or you’re somewhere in-between – we can help. From cost savings to workplace efficiency, our experienced team of technical engineers will help you fully take advantage of all the benefits a cloud-first network can offer. 

* Source: RightScale 2016 State of the Cloud Report reveals results from a survey of 1,060 technical professionals across a broad cross-section of organizations about their adoption of cloud computing.

The DataVizion team would like to extend a sincere “thank you” to all of our customers, partners, family and friends who took time out of their busy schedules to come and help us celebrate our 15th anniversary.

Since we first started back in 2001, DataVizion has grown to become a top provider of managed IT services in the Midwest and beyond. In the past five years alone, we’ve experienced 30% year-over-year revenue growth and quadrupled our staff.

With that kind of growth, we’ve been moving quickly for so many years and our anniversary party provided a great reason to slow down for a moment and enjoy some food and a beer with you all.

Again, thank you to everyone who was able to stop by- we always appreciate your business and your support!

Click here to view the winners of the raffle.

For our clients, who already have a lot of on their plate, it can be overwhelming to keep pace with emerging trends in the Information Technology world. Don't worry. We’ve got you covered.

At DataVizion, we stay on top of the latest IT offerings from our partners to provide a level of service unachievable by many of our competitors. Here are just some of the recent certifications achieved.

David Andersen, Project Engineer, and Ken Cousino, Field Services Engineer, recently passed the Palo Alto Networks Certified Network Security Engineer (PCNSE6) exam. From design and installation to configuration and troubleshooting, David and Ken possess a deep understanding of Palo Alto Networks technologies and can implement the best solutions to fit your needs.

DataVizion has been an Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company, platinum partner since 2014, differentiating ourselves from our peers with the highest level of engineering and commitment to Aruba products.

Ethan Shold, Engineer, became our newest member of the DataVizion team to pass the Aruba Certified Mobility Professional (ACMP) exam. And Mat Lehn, Engineer, passed the Aruba Certified ClearPass Expert (ACCX) exam. We’re now more ready than ever to provide the expert support for any Aruba solution you decide to implement.

So whether you’re looking to increase mobility or implement an entirely new network infrastructure, we have the skills and expertise to help make it happen.

As the need for technology in the workplace continues to rise, so do the attempts of would-be phishers. They’re constantly crafting ways to use fake emails and clever scams to try and gain access to your company’s network or your personal information.

A recent report published by Software Advice, who surveyed employees to explore their awareness of phishing attacks, reveals some startling statistics.

Here are some of the key findings and tips to ensure you and your coworkers don’t fall victim to these scams.

About 39 percent of employees still open emails that they suspect might be fraudulent or contain malware.

Understand the goals of phishing attempts. Fraudulent emails often seek to:

• Infect your computer with spyware that can record your Internet activities or allow hackers access to your computer.
• Obtain and access your personal information such as credit card numbers, passwords and account numbers.

Only 36 percent of employees said they are “very confident” that they could recognize and resist a phishing attack.

Learn to recognize suspicious email. Here are a few tips to start:

• Look for misspellings and bad grammar. Legitimate emails from professional organizations are usually well written.
• Be aware of threats or requests for urgency. Cybercriminals often use threats that your security has been compromised and try to scare you into taking urgent action.
• Don’t click on suspicious links. If you see a link in an email, hover your cursor over it first to reveal the web address. Often it’s a series of cryptic numbers that looks nothing like the company website.

Just 39 percent of employees said they receive ongoing security awareness training or advice at their work more than once per year.

Look for opportunities to learn more about cyber security and share your knowledge.

• Read the news. Sadly, it’s full of stories about phishing scam victims. Share these examples and discuss ways you and your colleagues can avoid similar mistakes.
• If you’re a tech-savvy person, share your knowledge of phishing and network security with those who may not be.

Phishing attempts will continue to evolve. While it’s important to keep up-to-date with the latest in cyber security awareness, it’s also best to have technical controls in place. For more information on how to protect your company’s network or to implement security solutions, give us a call! We’d be happy to help.

When DataVizion was founded in 2001, we were purely a professional enterprise services organization. Over the years we continued to expand, and now — in addition to our services — we offer a long (and growing) list of the latest in technology products and wireless solutions.

In the past five years alone, we’ve experienced triple-digit growth. That meant adding several new team members and, while we enjoy each other’s company, we needed more space. In August, we moved our headquarters to a larger location here in Lincoln, Nebraska, and opened up a satellite location in Omaha.

Growth has also meant the need to update our website and tell you about our new offerings. And, because we love what we do and the industry changes so rapidly, we’re introducing this blog where we’ll share the latest in industry news, technology tips and tricks, security updates and new product features.

Please take some time to browse our updated site and check back often to read our blog. We also invite you to stop by our offices any time. We’ll be happy to tell you more about what we do and how we can help you build a better connection for your organization.