MSPNetworks Blog

Small businesses seemingly always need to take a long look at the way they do things because they need to be as efficient as possible to carve out a market share. This often means using technology to make everything work. There are many different types of technologies that can help any SMB build more efficient operations, but the two we will outline in today’s blog, are two technologies that are probably doing the most to help SMBs improve. 

Artificial Intelligence 

AI is all the rage today, but unlike a lot of the IT that businesses try, AI is here to stay. There isn’t a technology that has more promise that is already on the market today, and sure, the effectiveness and costs of the technology are pretty variable, but there are some pretty stark benefits for businesses. Here are three ways AI is being used by businesses:

Customer Service Automation

There are several ways that a business can use AI to make their customer-facing processes more attractive and efficient. One of the most prevalent at the time of this writing is through the use of chatbot technologies. Chatbots are AI-powered systems that can handle routine customer inquiries, provide information, and even assist in the purchasing process. This technology not only enhances customer experience by providing instant responses but also frees up human resources for more complex and revenue-generating tasks.

Data Analysis and Insights

Being able to acquire information that allows for better insights and decision-making is one of the great benefits of the digital age. With AI, these platforms are getting better. AI can analyze historical data to identify patterns and trends, helping businesses make informed predictions about future outcomes. This can be applied to various aspects, such as sales forecasting, inventory management, and identifying market trends.

Process Automation

AI can give businesses the ability to automate repetitive tasks and streamline workflows. This includes automating data entry, invoicing, and other administrative processes, allowing employees to focus on higher-value tasks that require creativity and critical thinking. The more you can automate, the more unburdened your staff is.

Cloud Computing

You probably are already quite familiar with cloud computing. Most businesses utilize some type of cloud resource whether that is tied to its data backup, its email, or some other complementary computing resource. Many organizations don’t, however, truly understand the benefits they could be gaining from using the cloud for their organizational computing needs. Let’s look at three major benefits of cloud computing. 

Cost Efficiency

Cloud offerings feature the pay-as-you-go pricing model, allowing organizations to pay only for the resources they consume. This eliminates the need for large upfront investments in hardware and infrastructure. Cloud providers also operate on a massive scale, which enables them to distribute costs across a large customer base. This results in lower per-unit costs for services, making it more cost-effective for organizations compared to managing their data centers.

Scalability and Flexibility

One of the biggest benefits of cloud computing is the on-demand resources it provides. By providing the ability to scale resources up or down based on demand the cloud can deliver the amount of flexibility and scalability they need. This flexibility allows businesses to respond quickly to changing requirements, ensuring they have the right amount of computing power and storage at any given time.

Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery

Finally, one of the most important uses of cloud computing is protecting the integrity of an organization’s IT infrastructure. Business continuity is a big part of ensuring that any would-be operational problem your business could run into, and has actions that remedy those problems enough to continue operations. 

The first way that cloud computing influences data redundancy is through the data backup systems. One of the best practices when rolling out a comprehensive backup system is to have a reliable offsite backup. Backing up your business’ data to the cloud is quite possibly the best way to do it. Another way the cloud helps is through its integrated disaster recovery options. In the event of a natural disaster or other disruption, organizations can quickly recover their data and applications, minimizing downtime and ensuring business continuity.

Technology is a big part of doing business in today’s digital world. Other technologies such as the Internet of Things and blockchain present new ways to accomplish organizational goals. If you would like some help determining how to deploy innovative technologies for your business, give us a call today at (516) 403-9001.

Artificial Intelligence is beginning to sweep over modern computing and it can present some stark benefits for a business. AI has been deployed in various ways to help streamline your operations. Let’s look at five ways AI is helping businesses be their best.

Customer Service Chatbots

Many small businesses use AI-powered chatbots to handle customer inquiries and provide instant responses. These chatbots can answer frequently asked questions, assist with basic problem-solving, and even guide customers through the purchasing process.

Data Analytics and Insights

AI tools help small businesses analyze large sets of data to extract valuable insights. This can include customer preferences, market trends, and promoting decision making that results in operational efficiency. By understanding patterns, AI can help business owners make informed decisions, while learning more as more data is incorporated. These insights will presumably give leaders the information needed to make solid business decisions.

Personalized Marketing 

AI enables small businesses to create targeted and personalized marketing campaigns. By analyzing customer behavior and preferences, AI can automatically recommend products, send personalized offers, and change the way a business communicates with existing customers.

Inventory Management

Small businesses often struggle with managing inventory efficiently. AI can help by predicting demand based on historical data, optimizing stock levels, and automating reordering processes. This ensures that businesses have the right amount of stock to meet customer demand.

Cybersecurity

Small businesses are increasingly using AI to enhance their cybersecurity measures. AI algorithms can detect and respond to potential security threats in real-time, helping to protect sensitive data and prevent unauthorized access. This is crucial for maintaining customer trust and compliance with data protection regulations.

These are just a few examples, but the possibilities are vast. AI continues to evolve, offering small businesses extremely innovative solutions that work to improve the way they do business. If you would like to learn more about how AI fits into the business world and can work wonders for you, give us a call at (516) 403-9001 today.

Technology can be a huge benefit or an annoying hindrance for a business. It really depends on how it is maintained or used. Just like the PC in the 1980s, Internet access in the 1990s, and the advent of social media over the past decade or so, there are a couple interesting technologies that, if properly used for business, can bring substantial value for workers, customers, and the organization as a whole. Let’s take a look at three of them.

Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality (AR) offers businesses various opportunities to enhance operations, engage customers, and improve efficiency. Here are a few ways AR can be used by businesses.

• Product Visualization - Customers can try out a product or view it in an environment outside of the store before purchase.
• Remote Assistance and Training - AR face-up designs can revolutionize training and remote assistance.
• Enhanced Marketing and Advertising - AR is a great medium for improving advertising and marketing of products. 
• Maintenance and Repair - With AR, people without experience can be taken step-by-step through maintenance and repair processes.

Internet of Things

The Internet of Things is one of the fastest-growing technologies out there. As a result, different types of businesses can utilize IoT technology to become more efficient. Here are some of the ways IoT technology works for small businesses:

• Security and Access Control - Install IoT-enabled security cameras, motion sensors, and smart locks to monitor and secure the office. Access can be controlled using mobile apps or keycards.
• Energy Management - Employ IoT sensors and devices to monitor and manage energy usage in real time, helping to reduce energy costs.
• Environmental Monitoring - Use IoT sensors to track indoor air quality, temperature, humidity, and noise levels, ensuring a healthy and comfortable workspace.
• Asset Tracking - Employ IoT devices to track the location of office equipment, such as laptops, projectors, or other valuable assets.
• Inventory Management - Implement IoT solutions to track inventory levels automatically and trigger reorder alerts when supplies are running low.

Artificial Intelligence

AI has become one of the most transformative technologies in recent memory. Computer programs that can learn to do tasks more effectively are not going to get old. Here are a few ways businesses can leverage AI:

• Customer Support and Chatbots - Chatbots can answer frequently asked questions, assist with basic troubleshooting, and even schedule appointments or orders. They operate 24/7, improving customer service and reducing response times.
• Data Analytics and Insights - AI can uncover valuable patterns and insights that can inform your marketing strategies, product development, and inventory management.
• Inventory Management Optimization - AI can predict demand, manage inventory levels, and even suggest optimal reorder points. This can reduce costs and prevent overstock or stockouts.

New technologies aren’t always as useful as this, but no matter how big or small your organization is, these three technologies can make a huge difference to your business by building efficiency. If you would like to talk to one of our knowledgeable consultants about getting new and exciting technology working for your business, give us a call today at (516) 403-9001.

Maintaining network security has proven to be more difficult for organizations as time has gone on. Like the people trying to keep them out of networks they don’t have access to, hackers are increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance their cyberattacks and achieve various malicious objectives. Here are some ways in which hackers are using AI.

Automated Attacks

Hackers can use AI to automate various stages of an attack, from reconnaissance and vulnerability scanning to exploitation and data exfiltration. This can significantly speed up the attack process and allow for more efficient targeting of vulnerabilities.

Phishing Attacks

AI can be used to create highly convincing phishing emails and messages. Natural language processing (NLP) techniques can generate text that appears legitimate, making it more likely that recipients will fall for the phishing attempt.

Password Cracking 

AI can be used to accelerate the process of cracking passwords by rapidly trying different combinations and patterns. Machine learning algorithms can also analyze user behavior and patterns to predict passwords more effectively.

Malware Development 

Hackers can use AI to design and customize malware that is difficult to detect by traditional antivirus solutions. This involves using AI to obfuscate code and create polymorphic malware that constantly changes its appearance.

Distributed Denial of Service Attacks

AI can be used to launch more sophisticated DDoS attacks. AI-powered bots can adapt to defensive measures, making it harder to mitigate the attack.

Exfiltration 

AI can be employed to intelligently identify valuable data within an infected system and exfiltrate it while evading detection. This can involve compressing and encrypting data to minimize its footprint.

Social Engineering

AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants can be used to impersonate legitimate individuals in social engineering attacks, making it easier to manipulate victims into divulging sensitive information.

Deepfakes

AI can be used to create convincing deepfake videos or audio recordings, which can be used for impersonation or disinformation campaigns.

If hackers are using AI, it is important that your organization get the advanced AI-integrated tools needed to thwart hacking attempts. If you would like more information about how hackers go about using advanced technology, including AI, to try and circumvent attempts to keep them out of accounts and off your network, give the IT security experts at MSPNetworks a call today at (516) 403-9001. 

Artificial intelligence, or AI, is just one way of describing the concept of machine learning technologies. AI has grown considerably over the past couple of years, so much that automation as we know it today wouldn’t exist without it. Throw in some data-driven insights and you have a technology that has cemented itself for use in a business environment, but there are some concerns with how fast it is growing and evolving.

Defining Artificial Intelligence

If you’ve seen the AI on display in movies and on television, the kind that quickly becomes so advanced that it threatens all sentient life, you’ve seen a science-fiction depiction of AI that is not necessarily grounded in reality. AI is often characterized as a technology that grows too fast and spirals out of control, eventually overthrowing humanity and acting of its own volition. One recent leak from the US Air Force in which the AI system saw the human operator as an enemy is one such instance that has been, at this time, denied by the U.S. Department of Defense. Whether or not this is a true story, however, is not why we are here today.

The kind of AI used by businesses is built around automation. Many tools use machine learning as a way of automating specific tasks that would typically slow down processes and systems. This is the type of AI we are examining today.

Let’s look at some ways that businesses use AI and automation to improve their processes and productivity.

Better Customer Experiences

A business cannot last long if they don’t have a consumer base, especially in today’s competitive business environment. The biggest use of AI in business is perhaps the use of AI chatbots on the support side of the house to help consumers get the help they need, when they need it. This means that the human typically responsible for such work can instead focus their efforts elsewhere, or help consumers with more complicated requests.

Improved Business Knowledge

AI and automation can be used to help improve countless processes within your organization, and it’s all thanks to AI and automation allowing for data insights and analytics. Collecting all of the data is one thing, but sifting through it and gleaning insights from it is another story altogether. AI can handle it faster and more efficiently than any human resource could, allowing businesses to both learn and act much faster than they typically would be able to.

But How Fast is it Advancing?

Some industry leaders believe that these technologies are growing too fast for comfort, depending on who you ask. As demand for these solutions increases, people feel like they are losing control over their technology, and since AI tools are growing so fast, humans often feel like they have to slow the technology down to keep it from going too wild with the data at hand.

Here are some of the major concerns people have with AI:

• AI-fueled automation creates problems for organizations to keep workers.
• Making workers depend too much on technology and are less productive.
• Information that is unreliable is being shared because of its prevalence of it.
• A complete lack of oversight.
• The creation of dangerous malware.

Are you considering implementing artificial intelligence systems for your business? MSPNetworks can help you make the most of them. To learn more, call us today at (516) 403-9001.

We get it: you’d expect to read the statement “AI is everywhere nowadays” as a science fiction story about the enslavement of humans by the very machines they’ve created. We aren’t quite there yet, but more and more humans are coming to rely on artificial intelligence to automate a lot of different tasks inside their businesses. Let’s take a look at what people are actually using AI for. 

Automating Repetitive Tasks

One of the most significant contributions of AI to businesses is its ability to automate repetitive tasks. Machines equipped with AI algorithms can effectively perform tasks that would otherwise require significant time and effort from human employees. AI systems can automate data entry, invoice processing, and inventory management, eliminating the need for manual intervention and reducing human error.

Improved Decision-Making

With the vast amounts of data generated by businesses on a daily basis, decision-making can become a complex and time-consuming process. However, AI-powered analytics tools can quickly process and analyze massive datasets, providing valuable insights and recommendations to business leaders. By automating data analysis, AI enables businesses to make informed decisions in real-time, saving considerable time and resources.

Enhancing Customer Service

Exceptional customer service is a crucial aspect of any successful business. AI-powered virtual assistants and chatbots have become increasingly popular in providing round-the-clock customer support. These AI systems can handle a wide range of customer inquiries, assist in troubleshooting, and even make personalized product recommendations. By promptly addressing customer needs and automating support processes, businesses can significantly reduce response times and enhance overall customer satisfaction.

Predictive Maintenance

In industries that heavily rely on machinery and equipment, AI plays a vital role in predictive maintenance. Traditional maintenance practices often involve scheduled inspections and repairs, which can be time-consuming and costly. However, AI algorithms can analyze real-time data from sensors and machines to detect potential issues before they escalate. By predicting maintenance requirements, businesses can proactively address equipment failures, minimize downtime, and save significant time and costs.

Optimizing Supply Chain Management

The efficient management of the supply chain is crucial for businesses across various industries. AI-powered algorithms can analyze historical data, market trends, and customer demand to forecast demand accurately. By optimizing inventory levels, businesses can avoid stockouts and overstocking, saving both time and money. Furthermore, AI can automate the routing and scheduling of deliveries, ensuring efficient logistics operations and timely deliveries.

AI is evolving extraordinarily fast and will create more places in which businesses need to consider investing in the technology. For more information about how to leverage AI for your particular business needs, give the IT experts at MSPNetworks a call today at (516) 403-9001.

Healthcare is one industry that consistently operates under an immense amount of pressure, and as such, professionals in the industry are always trying to find new and innovative ways to make things more manageable. The latest technology to aid in this trend is artificial intelligence, or AI, and it has proven to be a considerable asset for the industry. Here are some ways that AI has changed the way healthcare manages particularly stressful situations for the better.

AI Can Efficiently Analyze Vast Troves of Data

No matter how often (or not) you go to the doctor, chances are that your provider only has a fragmented version of your health records, the reason being that it relies on you manually updating them every time you go in for a checkup. Unfortunately, this lack of information can mean that your doctors don’t get the birds-eye view they need to provide the best care possible. AI makes sifting through data like this much easier and more practical, and machine-based predictions can catch things that the human eye might miss. AI could be used to predict health issues before they even appear, meaning that preventative care can be administered promptly (much like addressing issues on your IT network before they become major problems). 

AI Can Make New Medicines, Cheaper

When you consider the amount of time and research that goes into crafting effective medicines, you start to realize that there is a reason why it’s not cheap. However, through the same technology that allows automated self-driving cars, databases of molecular structures can be considered and tested through simulations. With this technology, time spent on research and development can be significantly reduced, as evidenced by the 2015 ebola virus outbreak, where analysis and treatment were developed far more quickly thanks to it. AI can also be used to study existing medicines or find new ways for them to be used. If new use cases for existing drugs can be identified, companies can save money and make their offerings more diverse.

AI Can Make Healthcare More Secure

Healthcare providers are responsible for storing and securing a lot of sensitive or personally identifiable information, as well as financial data. Considering that many patients’ lives depend on this data, it becomes incredibly important to keep it all secure, especially with the rise of cybercrime. It might be possible for humans to prevent some of these threats from coming to fruition, but it’s not possible for them to prevent all of them. AI might be able to aid them, though, by powering automated security solutions designed to keep records safe from malicious activity. After all, many threats are using AI themselves, so why not turn the tables on the attackers?

AI Can (Potentially) Help Eliminate Bias

There is an inherent bias in the healthcare industry with factors like race, gender, and ethnicity playing a part in how accessible healthcare is to some. This bias has seeped into research. AI programs can help to eliminate some of this bias, as it is separate from human deliberation and can remain impartial throughout the entire process. AI can effectively identify the objective truth and prevent factors like these from influencing research or access in healthcare.

What are your thoughts on using AI in this way, or in other practical parts of everyday life? Let us know in the comments.

In popular science fiction, the portrayal of an artificial intelligence is that of an entity completely compelled by pure logic, objective fact being the only thing that factors into its considerations. The same can not be said of the artificially intelligent tools currently in use in the real world. Much like their flawed creators, many of today’s AI systems have presented some considerable biases in their operations. Let’s discuss this issue, and how it can be resolved.

What Kind of Biases Have AI Systems Demonstrated?

There are a variety of biases that have been observed in artificially intelligent systems. These biases are as follows:

• Sampling Bias - This kind of bias comes up when a study only considers part of a given population, or the selection of samples to consider isn’t a random process.
  
  • Voluntary Bias - A kind of sampling bias, voluntary bias specifically refers to how a population’s results are artificially skewed by their willingness to participate.
• Design Bias - This bias describes when a process itself leads to skewed outcomes, often impacting the data collection process or the analysis of that data. In AI, a skewed dataset is the most likely culprit.
• Exclusion Bias - This form of bias is the result of the removal or omission of some feature of the data, leaving out important information that could impact the significance of the data and providing fewer or less valuable insights.
• Label Bias - Predictably, this is simply the phenomenon of data being labeled incorrectly. This itself often appears in two forms:
  
  • Recall Bias - This form of bias appears in data that has been mislabeled and annotated inaccurately.
  • Measurement Bias - This division of label bias is the result of inaccurately or inconsistently taken data points.
• Confounding Bias - This bias occurs when external variables have impact on your data, in addition to what you have based your data on. This can lead to great inaccuracies in your final data. 
• Survivorship Bias - This variety of bias is what we see when only the data that has made it through the selection process is considered. For instance, World War II researchers made this error when examining fighter jets to better reinforce them. By only examining jets that survived the trip back from a combat mission, the most useful information (where the planes that went down were hit) was ignored.
• Time-Interval Bias - If data is collected over periods of time, this bias can emerge when only data from a certain time period is actively considered, rather than the complete set.
• Omitted Variable Bias - This kind of bias occurs when the data to be collected is cherry-picked, with only certain variables considered. By removing this data, the results can be skewed.
• Observer Bias - Better known as confirmation bias, observer bias is the phenomenon where the individual making their observations only considers the data that lines up with their own values or goals.
  
  • Funding Bias - Predictably, this variety of observer bias comes when the interests of a financial backer leads to the data being skewed.
• Cause-Effect Bias - Or in other words, correlation being seen as causation. This bias dictates that two events happening concurrently must be the result of one leading to the other, rather than a third factor contributing or the two being completely unrelated.
• Model Over/Underfitting - This bias comes from the analytical system (called the model) not having the capability to see the forest for the trees, as it were, or not being equipped with enough features to identify the patterns it should.
• Data Leakage - This type of bias comes into play when two separate data sets to be compared inadvertently share data… for example, predictions for a certain time period also including actual observations from that time period.

Where Do These Biases Come From?

Looking over this list, a clear pattern emerges: in the vast majority of cases, the bias doesn’t come from the system. Rather, it comes from the person using the system itself.

AI Bias is Just an Extension of Human Bias

Whether made in error or based on some prejudice or assumption, the majority of biases (particularly those that could impact the function of an artificially intelligent system) come from the user.

For instance, let’s say that we wanted to try and figure out what the most important aspect of our services was to our clientele. While this is a greatly oversimplified example for AI’s capabilities, it gets our point across. While the algorithm powering the AI could be perfectly put together, the data used can easily skew those results. For instance, let’s say that your data was specifically and exclusively collected from your business’ Facebook followers. There are numerous biases that could very much impact the accuracy of your data. For instance, drawing your data specifically from your Facebook followers is clear sampling bias (compounded with voluntary bias as your followers need to opt into providing you with said data).

That’s just one example. We’ve all seen the news articles telling stories about how AI-powered facial recognition systems aren’t able to recognize people of certain races, or in one particularly egregious case, labeling all members of certain races as criminals.

Obviously, not ideal.

AI presents a few additional biases as well, particularly when it comes to predicting unprecedented events… after all, the data to consider it just isn’t there (unintentional exclusion bias). The big problem here is that, like most biases, it takes an awareness to avoid them—an awareness that an AI system unfortunately lacks.

How Can Bias Be Avoided in AI?

There are a few different steps that need to be taken to mitigate the issues that bias can create in AI. The approach to this needs to follow two parts.

In terms of creating an AI in the first place, there needs to be the capability for a human being to observe the program’s processes and catch its mistakes, with (as we always promote) frequent updates to ensure any issues are addressed and the system in general is improved upon. There also needs to be standards in place in terms of the data collected and used to ensure that the above biases are minimized as much as possible.

Likewise, your team members need to keep these kinds of biases in mind when they’re working without the assistance of AI. As we’ve established, the biases present in AI are generally sourced from human biases, which means they can potentially influence your business even if you aren’t using an artificially intelligent system. In this way, you need to make sure that your team members are keeping open minds as they process the data you collect and generate.

As artificial intelligence and machine learning becomes more accessible and commonplace, it’s likely that businesses of all sizes will be able to embrace more advanced tools. In the meantime, we’ll be here to support the tools you currently rely on. To find out more about our fully managed IT services, give us a call at (516) 403-9001

Artificial intelligence, commonly known as AI, is used in several different ways in various industries, but one of the most impactful has been with cybersecurity and its automation. On the other hand, however, are the hackers who use AI in ways that fly in the face of the efforts of these cybersecurity professionals and use AI for cybercrime. What are some ways that AI is used in cybercrime, and why is it so scary for businesses to handle?

Deepfakes

The term “deepfake” stems from the words “deep learning” and “fake media.” Essentially, a deepfake uses false imaging or audio to create something which appears to be authentic when it really isn’t. Used incorrectly, deepfakes can be incredibly harmful in a variety of ways. Imagine reading something on the Internet and having it be accompanied by a fake video or image that skews your perspective and leads you to believe one thing rather than another. AI-generated deepfakes can (and have) been used in this way, and they can even be used in extortion and misinformation schemes.

Deepfakes use AI to generate realistic videos, typically of a famous person with a lot of source material online to pull from. Videos can be generated of a celebrity or government official doing and saying virtually anything, misguiding the viewer and causing confusion. 

AI-Supported Hacking Attacks

AI can also help cybercriminals when they are going about your average hacking attack, like trying to crack passwords or infiltrate a system. For example, hackers can use machine learning and artificial intelligence to analyze and parse password sets; they then use the information gleaned from these password sets to more accurately guess passwords. These systems can even go so far as to learn how people adjust their passwords over time.

Furthermore, there have been instances of hackers using machine learning to inform and automate their hacking practices. Some systems can use machine learning to identify weak points in a system and penetrate them through those weaker links. The systems used can then autonomously improve their operations for greater effectiveness. It is quite concerning to say the least.

Human Impersonation and Social Engineering

AI can also impersonate human beings themselves by imitating their behaviors. Through the use of automated bots, it is possible for hackers to create fake accounts that are capable of performing many of the everyday things your average user might do on social networking sites, like liking posts, sharing things out, and more. These bots can even be used to turn a profit in certain circumstances.

The possibilities for artificial intelligence in a cybercriminal’s toolbox are just as endless as they are for augmenting the operations of businesses, and it is a threat that should be closely monitored both now and in the future.

Don’t let cybercrime of any type complicate your business’ future. To learn more about what we can do for your business to keep it safe and sound from all kinds of threats, reach out to MSPNetworks at (516) 403-9001.