MSPNetworks Blog

For the longest time, smartphone manufacturers looked to develop devices that came with unique features in all different manners of form factors. Nowadays, however, there are very few phone manufacturers and those that are left have pretty much decided, for now, what the smartphone would look like. Even the ones that fold in half look and function pretty much the same. In this week’s blog, we will take a look at the declining innovation in the smartphone market and why it may not be a bad thing.

With technology becoming more mobile, the way we interact with tech has changed considerably. Now that dial-up has evolved to broadband and cellular networks have dramatically improved, technology has allowed people to become more connected than ever. Your business can improve its communications and operations with the right mobile technology.

Summer is here, and sometimes, your technology pays the price. In today’s blog, we’ll discuss some ways to protect your tech as you travel and enjoy the nice weather.

It is important to keep modern computers clean, and laptops are no exception. However, a laptop's different form factor makes cleaning it much different from cleaning a traditional desktop computer.

When it comes to exclusive user features, one of the better-known ones on the Apple side of the house is FaceTime, a video chat platform. Apple has however made certain features of FaceTime available to Android users, but they come with a catch. Let’s go over how an iPhone user can FaceTime with an Android user, even if some of the features are not quite there.

It’s important to preface this blog by stating that Android users cannot initiate a FaceTime call. The user of the iPhone in question will have to start the call. Basically, what happens is that the Android user will use a specific link to join the FaceTime call in much the same way you would join any typical video conferencing call. Here’s how to get your link.

We’ll start from the iPhone user’s perspective to generate the link. They will have to go into the FaceTime application to select the option for Create Link. This will be available in the top-left menu. The user then sends the link to the Android smartphone. This can be done through text, email, or whatever other method you might use.

After the recipient has the link, they can use it to open the FaceTime web application on their device. Since it is a video call, know that it will need access to your microphone and camera in order to work properly. Once the user has added their name to the call, they can join by tapping on Continue.

Now that the Android user has gotten to this point, the iPhone user can see the option to accept or reject the call.

And now, the call can proceed as usual. The call works mostly the same way as your typical FaceTime call would, but with some feature limitations placed on the Android user. You should be able to enjoy your FaceTime calls no matter the device used by whoever is on the other end of the call!

Of course, FaceTime is far from a business-grade video chat platform, so if you’re using it to conduct business as usual, perhaps it’s time to invest in a video collaboration platform for your business instead. These platforms also won’t be nearly as restrictive or as limited by the type of device used by your workers, meaning that anyone can collaborate in the same way.

Hopefully you find this tip of some help. If you want additional assistance with collaboration platforms or further tips and tricks, be sure to call us at (516) 403-9001.

There is no denying that Quick Response codes—better known as QR codes—are a handy little invention. Just a few years ago, many businesses heavily adopted these contactless communication tools, allowing customers with a smartphone to access menus, documents, and more with ease. Having said that, we unfortunately can’t deny that cybercriminals are taking advantage of how handy QR codes are, too.

Let’s talk about the rise in QR code fraud, as well as how you and your team can avoid it.

How Do QR Codes, and QR Code Fraud, Work?

First developed in 1994, a QR code is a two-dimensional version of a barcode, meant to adjust for the limitations of its predecessor. A traditional barcode is limited to 20 alphanumeric characters due to it only being able to be scanned horizontally. The QR code was then developed to hold exponentially more information in its combination of vertical and horizontal data as well as allow this data to be accessed at any angle.

While this makes the QR code a very appealing option for businesses, it also gives cybercriminals a relatively easy means of sharing malicious links and malware that has become largely trusted by people everywhere.

After all, if major brands are now displaying QR codes in their advertisements, they must be safe, right?

Unfortunately not. The utility offered by a QR code also applies to cybercriminals and scammers, who can use them to augment their attacks in numerous ways.

QR Codes Make Effective Phishing Tools

Phishing is one of the most unpleasant cyberthreats out there today, largely because it requires a user to be engaged and aware about their own cybersecurity at all times. It relies heavily on the target to not see it coming.

Now let me ask you this: would you hesitate to scan a QR code on a poster or a menu if prompted? If you’re like most people…probably not. It just isn’t how most people see a threat coming in.

This makes us vulnerable. This is why many of these threats have been spotted that pose as parking tickets, or as offers or loyalty programs attached to storefront doors.

Making this bad situation even worse, these attacks often don’t go into effect immediately. Instead, malware can be uploaded to the device that scans the malicious code where it will lie in wait until the opportune moment to strike arises. Many of these attacks will simply take notice if you use your device to access an account and record the credentials you use to access it, giving the attacker the keys to the castle.

Alternatively, some QR phishing tools will send users to a phishing website—one that poses as a legitimate one to fool the victim into handing their credentials over willingly. Some scams cover what were once legitimate codes with their own, diverting payments to their own accounts.

This Makes It Critical that You Protect Yourself

Whether you’re talking about your business or your personal life, QR code scams need to be avoided. Fortunately, there are a few somewhat familiar steps that you can follow to help ensure that you do so:

• Just like with other forms of phishing, any suspicious QR codes should prompt you to separately reach out to the party that supposedly shared it to confirm its legitimacy.
• Similarly, don’t hesitate to manually seek out what a QR code seems to offer.
• Using the security tools at your disposal, like antivirus or scam alert applications, to mitigate the risks associated with these scams helps protect you from falling victim to these attacks.

MSPNetworks is here to help protect your business from all types of threats, like this one and others. Give us a call at (516) 403-9001 to learn more about what we can do for you.

Smartphones are everywhere. Nearly everyone has one either in their pocket or in their hand and that fact would make you think that the underlying smartphone market is one that is remarkably strong. This really isn’t the case. Today, we’ll take a brief look at the smartphone market and how a lack of true innovation is one of the reasons the industry has seen large decreases in sales. 

The Smartphone Market is Shrinking

It wasn’t too long ago that the smartphone market was filled with companies looking to gain a significant market share in the industry. Since then some of the largest companies in the world have ceased their smartphone divisions. LG, Microsoft, and Amazon have stopped making smartphones altogether, while once industry leaders like Motorola have been bought and sold numerous times. 

2022, in particular, was not kind to smartphone manufacturers. In fact, the whole market saw an incredible twelve percent decline. You may be thinking, “How can that be, with so many people using smartphones?” The answer comes from the fact that lots of people aren’t buying new phones every 18 months or two years like they have been for the past decade. Much of this has to do with a lack of innovation.

“Innovation”

Smartphone manufacturers dispute that they aren’t at the forefront of innovation. Today’s budget smartphones are as good as flagships were only five short years ago. The problem is that flagships aren’t moving the needle each year with new features and form factors. Consider for a minute that for years the chipsets, the displays, the user interfaces and cameras on new flagship smartphones were greatly improved in some manner each year. For the past few years, however, there are slight improvements, but a major rise in costs. Even real innovations, such as the foldable smartphone market, haven't taken off because of the cost of the devices vs. the practical need for them. 

The point is that when innovation slows, people aren’t going to jump at the chance to buy a new phone for twice as much money than they paid for a device that works well enough and has relatively the same general makeup. This is why only a handful of companies are actually turning a profit in the smartphone space. In their marketing material they speak about innovation, without proving to customers that they are pushing the space forward. 

While the smartphone market is struggling to capture the imagination of its users, it’s still an extremely important part of today’s society and therefore will be invested in. So, while you may not see marked enhancements in display clarity, device speed, or security features, there are still benefits from getting a new phone every couple of years or so.  

If you are looking to use mobile to your business’ advantage, you’ll need help managing all the new endpoints on your network. Our technicians can help you develop a mobile policy, a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy, and help your organization make mobile productivity a feature of your business. Give us a call today at (516) 403-9001 to learn more.

It’s a common enough frustration—just as you really need it, your mobile device’s battery is on its last legs. This is something that we all would like to avoid if we could. That’s why we wanted to take the time to share a few ways to prolong your device’s battery life just a bit longer.

Five Tricks to Prolong Your Device’s Battery Life

While there are a few other means of keeping your device charged for longer, we figured it best to stick to the simplest and most cost-effective ones.

Avoid Apps that Drink Up Charge

Different applications will call for different things, and if those demands utilize more of the system’s resources, more power will be necessary to support them. Basically, the more computing that needs to be done, the more power will be used up. This is why using multiple apps at once eats away at your battery faster, too. Apps that keep the screen on, play video, or make your phone generally feel warm to the touch tend to be the ones that consume the most battery.

Keep Locked When Not Actively Using

Locking your phone offers a variety of benefits, not the least of which is the fact that it turns off the screen, thereby saving your device a considerable amount of power.

Update the OS

Your phone’s operating system effectively controls how the device works, which itself will influence how long its battery lasts. In fact, part of the improvements made during updates are generally related to battery optimization.

Therefore, an up-to-date OS and the bug fixes it brings often assists with battery performance and longevity.

Set Sleep Mode to Kick in Faster

As a power-saving measure, most mobile devices have a setting that will turn off the screen and suspend background processes until the phone is actively used once again. Once sleep mode is activated, it requires a password to disengage, making it a basic security feature as well as a power-saving one.

Minimize Notifications and Location Services

While both location services and notifications are meant to make a mobile device’s processes more convenient, they can also result in the battery being drained. Try turning off all non-essential notifications for less drain on the battery. Limiting location services to only kick in when an app is actively being used both maintains your privacy, and your battery!

Trust MSPNetworks to Ensure Your Business IT Works as Well as Possible

Give us a call at (516) 403-9001 to find out what our managed IT services can do to improve your work processes!

Mobile devices have changed the world. They’ve definitely changed the way people do business. The prevailing sentiment is smartphone innovation has stagnated a bit over the past few years as most of the flagship smartphones are using extremely fast processors, data storage has moved to the cloud, and many other factors. Just look at the new iPhone, which traditionally looks just like the last iPhone. Today, we’ll take a look at what you need to know when buying your new phone.

The Modern Smartphone

With device reviewers becoming big business on platforms like YouTube, these reviewers have become the audience that smartphone manufacturers play to, even if the general public couldn’t possibly understand the year-over-year improvements that these devices have made. Consider that the biggest change in the smartphone over the past couple of generations is mostly improvements to the camera system while making marginal improvements to processing, data storage, etc. This indicates that most improvements are driven by the marketing benefits to be had.

The fact is that other than the folding phones most devices have very similar form factors. All flagship smartphones have a 5 nm processor or better, 356 GB of flash memory, 8 GB of RAM, and a bezel-less display. That said, savvy consumers are constantly looking for a specification upgrade, so it forces each iteration of a device to make marginal improvements (if only in name). If you think about how much you’ve paid for your current device, and how similar it is to the last device you owned—especially if you haven’t moved to a device with a brand new form factor—you may just feel like you aren’t getting the value for your money that you once did when you upgraded after two years of using a device. 

What to Look for In a New Device

Before we get into what you should consider when looking for a new smartphone, we have to talk a little bit about form factor. The form factor of a device is how the device is built. As we stated above, most smartphones have laughably similar form factors. The ones that don’t are using innovative new OLED screens that allow the displays to fold in half. This presents users and app developers with interesting new constructs (with very large price tags), but for the most part, devices adhere to the more familiar form factor.

So what should you look for when buying your new device if you don’t want to pay a premium price for a foldable phone? Let’s go through some considerations:

Build Quality

The build quality of a smartphone may not have a lot to do with its ability to do what you need it to do, but devices that have better build quality will last longer and enhance the user experience. Most of the top-tier smartphones are built on a stainless steel or aluminum frame. These devices are typically draped in some type of tempered glass, such as Corning’s Gorilla Glass. The better materials used to make the smartphone, the more premium it will feel when you are using it.

Display

Today, most flagship smartphones come with impressive displays. For people that use their smartphones for media consumption, you will want a larger display with a higher resolution, but there are plenty of mid-range models manufactured today that have impressive screens that could have been found on a flagship phone only a couple of years ago. 

Processing Power

This is where smartphones vary wildly. Most of the top-end smartphones have a multi-core 5 nm processor or better nowadays. This means that the top smartphones have the computing power of pretty powerful workstations that can fit in your pocket. The better the processor, the better the phone will be.

Camera

A lot of manufacturers will point to a high number of megapixels in their marketing, but the effectiveness of a camera is contingent on many other factors. Obviously, the features of the camera system: number of lenses and their focal length, ISO levels, pixel size, and autofocus ability have to be taken into account. Each year the camera systems on devices do improve, however, some substantially. 

Battery

An often overlooked feature when buying new hardware is the battery life. For the smartphone, it is one of the most important considerations. After all, if a device has to be plugged in, it isn’t really “mobile”. Most phones that have upwards of 3,500 mAh batteries should do, but the foldable phones will use more juice than devices with the traditional smartphone form factor, so be mindful.

Operating System

Most phones typically have one of two mobile operating systems: Apple’s iOS or Google’s Android OS. The majority of phones will come with some semblance of Android on them, but not all versions of Android are created equal, so knowing what version of the OS your handset is on is pretty important considering it will dictate what apps you can run, how your device’s security is handled, and many other factors important to a clean and productive smartphone experience. 

Cost

Probably the most important factor in the purchase of a new device is the cost it presents to you. If you are planning on buying one of the top smartphones on the market, you will likely be paying about $500 or more per year of use for the device alone (and that is if you don’t have to have it repaired). Mobile service providers mostly work with users to finance smartphones, but it can add a lot of money to your monthly bill. 

Other Considerations

All other factors are basically the icing on the proverbial cake. There are devices with larger displays. There are smartphones built for gaming. There are ones that have huge batteries so they don’t need to be charged every day. Some users like to have a 3.5mm headphone jack, but most flagship phones have done away with them long ago. 

Finding the phone for you may come down to these small features, but chances are that they won’t have as big of a role on the reliability of the device as the variables listed above. 

Have you recently bought a new smartphone? What are the features that got you to buy the model you chose? Leave your comments below and stop back soon for more great technology content. 

At the beginning of September, it was revealed that a relatively simple issue existed in nearly 2,000 mobile applications that potentially exposed some (read: a lot of) sensitive data. Let’s take a brief, basic look at the situation to see if there are any lessons that can apply to your business.

Trust us, there will be.

In Essence, the Issue is One of Access Permissions

Let’s go over how these apps generally work.

Naturally, the apps that you use on your phone aren’t fully hosted on your device. Instead, they are commonly hosted in cloud services. In theory, the application you install effectively just contains hardcoded access credentials that allow you to access the data or the service that application provides.

Notice that we said, in theory. Research conducted by Broadcom’s Symantec Threat Hunter team revealed that these purportedly single-purpose logins were able to access all of the files that a cloud service contained—including company data, backups of databases, and system controls.

Worse, if multiple apps included the same publicly available software development kits (SDKs) or were created by a single company, these login credentials could potentially grant access to numerous applications, exposing the infrastructure and user data of each.

So, let’s say that an attacker happened to obtain these access tokens. With the situation being the way it is, that would give the attacker access to all of the applications—and more critically, the user data these applications contain—that the access tokens granted access to.

Between the Android and iOS platforms, researchers found almost 2,000 applications that had their credentials hard-coded to Amazon Web Services—three-quarters of those granting access to private cloud services (and half of those granting access to private files), with about half containing access tokens found in completely unrelated applications.

So, What Does This Have to Do With Your Business?

Let me ask you something: who in your business could potentially access your payroll information, your employees’ private information, or all the financial data you’ve collected from your clientele and workforce alike?

This idea that certain information is accessible by those who shouldn’t have access to it is the crux of the issue. You need to ensure that your data and files are only accessible to those who need them for their work responsibilities. This is known as the principle of least privilege—basically, all access and information are distributed on a need-to-know basis, based on the responsibilities of the individual users.

In short, much like these applications should have been doing, you need to ensure that access to this data is locked down. We can help.

Give us a call at (516) 403-9001 to learn more about how we can help you.

As you might expect, the remote circumstances that many business professionals have found themselves in as of late have created challenges that must be overcome, especially in regards to the access and dissemination of data to mobile devices. Let’s examine the mobile device’s role in the modern business and how you can ensure these great tools are being used properly for your organization.

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)

On top of the many challenges that mobile devices bring to the table, chief among them is the concept of Bring Your Own Device. While some organizations might provide mobile devices to their employees for work-related purposes, others opt to save the capital by allowing their employees to use their personal devices for work. While this can be an effective way to cut costs, it comes with its fair share of difficulties, such as security. When you have so many employees using their personal devices for work, connecting to the network, and accessing data, you can see how BYOD can quickly start to complicate things. This is why you need to enact a policy to govern how your employees use these mobile devices in relation to the workplace.

Think of your BYOD policy as an umbrella that encompasses all mobile devices used by your organization’s workforce. If an employee wants to use their own personal devices for work-related purposes, they must adhere to the BYOD policy.

Implement Mobile Device Management

While BYOD is more of a policy that must be carefully outlined and explained to your employees, mobile device management is more of a tool or solution that you implement to reinforce such a policy. Mobile device management can give your business a tool to track its mobile devices and ensure that they are being used in ways that are consistent with your BYOD policy. Some examples of features that a mobile device management tool might include are:

• Whitelisting/blacklisting mobile applications
• Remote wiping of lost or stolen devices
• Access controls for accounts
• Multi-factor authentication
• Device location services
• And more!

MSPNetworks can work with your business and help it implement the perfect mobile device management solution that suits its needs. This determination is made after a comprehensive network assessment which includes mobile devices with access to your network. Once we know the scope and breadth of your infrastructure, the rest is easy!

To learn more about how we can help your business wrestle its mobile device challenges, reach out to us at (516) 403-9001.

With how business is conducted today, the capability of your workforce to stay connected while mobile is important. However, it can be equally important that this connectivity doesn’t come at the cost of their manners. Let’s go over a few ways to be more polite as you work remotely using a mobile device.

Sometimes, Your Calls Can Wait

We’ve all been there: in the middle of a commute, a work-related call comes in. While many might be tempted to take the call then and there, it is often best to delegate it to voicemail and promptly return it once you reach your destination. Why?

Simple, to do otherwise could potentially distract you, creating a safety risk for yourself and others. In addition, you might make a wrong turn or miss your stop and further inconvenience those you are working with as a result. As important as diligence and productivity are, safety should always be prioritized.

Be Aware of Your Surroundings

One undeniable aspect of mobile communications is that people inherently assume that you are always available to have a conversation with them. If you are, this isn’t so much of a problem, but there is always the chance that taking a phone call would be rude to those you are around. If you must answer a call, do your best to step away from those you are around so you can devote your full attention to your caller, and keep the call as short as politeness allows.

On That Note, Don’t Text When Inappropriate

While one might assume that you would know this, based on simple politeness, the pressure of work might push people to try and hold multiple conversations at once. Keep your manners in mind and resist this temptation, devoting your attention to the person addressing you directly.

Establish a Good Connection

Noth…can…rupt...a nversati…ke a poor c…ection.

Let’s try that again. As was just demonstrated, nothing can interrupt a conversation like a poor connection. If your calls are being dropped or your messages aren’t going through, reconsider where you are and correct it if possible. If you cannot, let everyone else on the call know about it and offer them the chance to postpone the call until your connection is better.

Return Calls Promptly

Don’t let any missed calls sit without any interaction for too long, whether it’s with a quick response or even an outgoing voicemail message outlining your availability followed by a timely call back. Make sure you keep this voicemail message up to date, as well.

Of course, your mobile device is just one part of your communication infrastructure. Lean on MSPNetworks for assistance in handling the entire thing. Learn more about how our managed services can benefit your professional communications by calling (516) 403-9001.

2020 was a contentious—and for the wireless industry, momentous—year. Marking the official start of 5G networks, 2020’s events amongst mobile providers helped to reinvigorate an industry, while making some considerable shifts in the balance. Let’s consider some of these changes, and how the industry will continue to change for some time moving forward as 5G continues to grow.

How 5G Offerings Have Shaped Up

When 2020 first rolled around, Verizon was America’s largest carrier by far, followed by AT&T with T-Mobile (at the time, trying to merge with/acquire Sprint) trailing along afterwards. In terms of the networks these carriers offered, Verizon was focused on implementing millimeter-wave networks in some cities while T-Mobile was pushing a nationwide low-band 5G option that was very similar to 4G. As for AT&T, they were experimenting with both.

Now, as we begin 2021, Verizon remains the largest carrier, but T-Mobile now leads in the 5G race with the largest network availability and has passed AT&T to become the second-largest provider. Furthermore, T-Mobile has been rolling out a mid-band 5G network with faster speeds and better coverage. AT&T has focused on offering promotions to their customers. Of course, these are just overall nationwide statistics, everything is going to be different depending on what part of the world you live in.

This has spurred on some fierce competition between Verizon and T-Mobile, with both outlining ambitious goals for 2021. T-Mobile intends to expand its network to cover 200 million people by the time 2021 ends with its faster mid-band network. Adding to T-Mobile’s accomplishments, they were first to launch a standalone 5G network… although the other carriers intend to follow suit sooner than later.

Verizon, on the other hand, plans to go all-in on millimeter wave technology. Therefore, their strategy is primarily to focus on improvements to their networks in the cities where it has been implemented already, optimizing its indoor use and performance.

Both are also looking to 5G’s potential where home broadband comes into play. With both companies seeking to expand further into home Internet delivery, there is certainly considerable potential for either… as well as for the users who would benefit from these services.

AT&T, for their part, plans to improve how responsive their 5G network is.

Current Issues with 5G

Of course, 5G is far from perfect. In terms of the low-band network connectivity, all options remain close to 4G connectivity. However, that could be slated to change in the future, with the Federal Communications Commission auctioning off more of the mid-band network and both competitively participating. Regardless, the timeline for any improvements resulting from this auction still places any good coverage coming from the mid-band spectrum at least two or three years from now.

So, while 5G will undoubtedly have some influence on mobile connectivity and its potential uses, we still have some time to wait. What do you think? Are you anticipating or planning for some of the opportunities that 5G might open for your operations? Let us know in the comments, and for assistance in making the most of your business’ networking, reach out to our team at (516) 403-9001.

Nobody intends to lose their smartphone. For some of us, our mobile device is glued to our hands for a good portion of the day—it’s hard to imagine simply leaving it somewhere, right?

Mistakes happen. It doesn’t take more than a few minutes to set your smartphone up so you can track it down easily if you lose it. 

The steps are going to be a little different depending on if you have Android or an iPhone.

Prevent Your iPhone from Being Lost Forever with Apple’s Find My iPhone

Enable Apple’s Find My iPhone.

Apple has a built-in service that is a part of iCloud that will allow you to track the location of your lost iPhone in case you accidentally lose it. This is ideal for when it slips out of your pocket in a taxi or you accidentally leave it in the booth at a restaurant. Technically, it could be useful if your iPhone was stolen, but it’s advised that you report a stolen iPhone to the police instead of trying to steal it back yourself.

Another great feature that Find My iPhone has is the ability to delete all of the data on the device so nobody can use it to steal your identity, break into your online accounts, or otherwise do what they want with your data.

Usually these features aren’t enabled by default—it’s something you need to turn on.

On your iPhone (it also works on iPads):

Open the Settings app.

Tap on iCloud

Set the Find My iPhone (or Find My iPad) slider to On.

If you haven’t already set up an iCloud account on that particular device, you’ll be walked through the steps to do so. Make sure you use a strong, secure password that you aren’t using anywhere else for your iCloud account, or else someone could potentially lock or wipe your device on you, and track your location.

You’ll then be able to log into the iCloud website and track the location of your iPhone, provided that your iPhone is on and not in Airplane mode.

Beyond that, you’ll also want to set up Touch ID or Face ID, and make sure you are always using strong passwords. Touch ID and Face ID options are presented to you when you first set up your new iPhone, but you can also find them in the Settings app. Just look for Touch ID & Passcode.

Track Down Your Lost Android Phone with Google’s Find My Device App

Android phones have a feature that is similar to Apple’s Find My iPhone. It’s called Google Find My Device. Just like Apple, it’s not typically set up by default.

To get started, open the Google Play Store and search for Google Find My Device. Install the application (you can also use this link to get there). 

Once installed, open the Google Find My Device application.

The app will ask you what account you want to log in as, typically you’ll want to use the same Google account you use for everything else on your phone. Make sure your Google account password is strong and unique.

Be sure to Allow Find My Device to access this device’s location when you are prompted.

As long as your phone is on, and its Wi-Fi and GPS is enabled, Find My Device will be able to track your phone for you.

You can sign into Google’s Find My Device site to manage and track your devices.

Of course, make sure your password for your Google account is strong, secure, and unique. Otherwise, anyone could gain access and track your location or wipe your devices.

We hope you never have to use this feature, but it never hurts to have it set up. Most smartphones are pretty expensive, and the amount of data on them and access to all of your personal information makes them practically priceless. 

For more information pertaining to your device security and other IT best practices, make sure you return to our blog!

If you’ve lost or misplaced your smartphone (or tablet), it’s critical that you act quickly. Every second counts, especially if you suspect that your device was stolen. Here are the steps you need to follow immediately, even if you think you simply left it at a restaurant or in the backseat of a taxi.

The steps are pretty similar whether you have an iPhone or Android device, but we’ll note some differences.

Step 1 - Assume the Worst

I know, this sounds bleak. While it’s possible that you are going to get your phone back, it helps to go into this assuming you will need a new one, and that the following steps you are taking are to preserve your identity (and your dignity). Getting your phone back will be a huge bonus, but right now, you need to act to protect yourself.

It sounds terrible, reading that out loud, but hear us out. Your phone has access to your email (and tons of other accounts), right? If someone gets access to your email, they can reset any password they want and log into any account tied to that email. That includes your bank account, your social media, your web hosting accounts, and literally anything else. If someone owns access to your email, they own you, figuratively speaking.

Step 2 - Remotely Lock and Wipe Your Phone

If you’ve set up Apple’s Find My iPhone setting for your iPhone or iPad, or you’ve set up Google’s Find My Device app, you can track the location of your phone, assuming it is on and the GPS/Wireless data is turned on.

For iPhones, log into your iCloud account in order to do this. For Android, go to Google’s Find My Device page. From either platform, you can usually get the exact location of your device. If it’s somewhere you recognize (at the restaurant you were just at, or at the office, for example), lock the device and call the location and have it located before someone else finds it. If you don’t recognize where the device is or it’s on the move, lock the device and wipe it if possible. 

If you didn’t set up Find My iPhone or Find My Device, you might be able to find and manage your device from your carrier or the phone’s manufacturer. Here are a few links to use as a reference:

• Apple - Find My iPhone Activation Lock: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201365  
• Verizon - Lock My Device: https://www.verizon.com/support/suspend-service-faqs/#lost-stolen
• Samsung - Find My Mobile: https://findmymobile.samsung.com
• T-Mobile - Lookout Mobile Security: https://support.t-mobile.com/docs/DOC-4257

Step 3 - Report It Immediately

Tuck away your pride here, you’ll need to report that you lost your phone. If you control your phone plan (as opposed to your phone being given to you from your workplace), contact your carrier and let them know. They can stop your phone from using their network which might slow someone down for stealing your information.

Here are some of the larger U.S. carriers, as a reference:

• AT&T: 1-800-331-0500 or www.att.com/suspend
• Sprint: 1-888-211-4727 or https://www.sprint.com/en/support/solutions/device/report-that-your-device-is-lost-or-stolen.html  
• T-Mobile: 1-877-746-0909 or https://support.t-mobile.com/docs/DOC-1211  
• Verizon: 1-800-922-0204 or https://www.verizonwireless.com/support/suspend-service-faqs/#lost-stolen

If your phone is provided to you from where you work, you’ll want to contact them immediately too, so they can take proper action. If you use your phone for your job in any way (checking emails, getting messages, etc.) you’ll need to tell them. At this point, it’s a liability and not only is your data at risk, but some level of company data is at risk too. Most businesses should have the ability to revoke access to company data and email remotely, or they may even be able to remotely wipe the device or the work profile on the device.

Step 4 - Change Your Passwords

Here are the big three accounts to change IMMEDIATELY:

• Apple
• Google
• Microsoft

Log into these three accounts (if you have them) and update your passwords.

Remember, all of your passwords need to be unique, strong, and secure. Don’t EVER use the same password twice. Ever. We cannot stress this enough.

Next up, change out your passwords in this order:

• Email accounts (if you have others besides your main Apple/Google/Microsoft accounts)
• Banking/financial accounts (bank accounts, credit cards, Paypal, merchant accounts, etc.)
• Cloud storage accounts (e.g. Dropbox, Amazon, Box, iCloud, Google Drive, Onedrive, etc.)
• Hosting/Domain-related accounts (e.g. GoDaddy, Network Solutions, Cloudflare, etc.)
• Social media (e.g. LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
• eCommerce stores (e.g. Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, ebay, etc.)
• Services/utilities (e.g. Netflix, Hulu, your electric company, insurance companies, etc.)

Expect to spend a lot of time doing this, and be sure to take your time. You’ll want to be extremely thorough and ensure that every password is unique, and carefully document everything you do.

If You Suspect Your Phone Has Been Stolen, Report It to Authorities

We’ve saved this for the last step, but it’s probably a good idea to do this once you’ve changed your most important passwords. That being said, this step tends to not offer much as far as getting your stolen phone back.

Here’s the thing—if you track your phone and it is where you left it (for example, at a restaurant you were just at), then go ahead and call the restaurant and have someone find it and keep it somewhere safe for you. If your phone was stolen, or appears to be on the move, or it is somewhere that you couldn’t have left it, don’t try to retrieve it. 

If someone stole your phone, they are probably aware that you can track it. Don’t risk it.

Call the police and report it. There is no guarantee that they will be able to retrieve your phone (there’s no guarantee that they will even try, even if you provide the location), but it’s still a good idea to report it. It is a crime, after all.

Maybe, just maybe, someone picked up your phone and plans on being a good Samaritan and is taking it home to try to figure out how to get it back to its owner. You can’t really depend on that though—locking it and wiping the data is still a good practice. You could try calling your phone to see who is on the other side, but be extremely cautious. Again, if someone intentionally stole your phone from you, assume it is gone.

If You Find a Lost Phone

If you find a stray phone in a public place, the most helpful thing you can do is to give it to the staff at that place. For example, if you find a phone at a store, report it to customer service. Most people will instinctively backtrack and trace their steps to try to recover it. Help them out by leaving the phone at a location they would have lost it. Don’t try to take it somewhere else to help solve the mystery, you are only adding extra complexity, even if your intentions are good.

We hope you never lose your phone, but if you have, we hope this guide helps.

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, many people are avoiding human contact by turning to the Internet and mobile apps. On a national scope, mobile banking alone has seen an increase of 50 percent over just the last few months. In what certainly is no coincidence, the Federal Bureau of Investigation recently put out a warning that identified banking apps as likely targets for hackers.

As was said in the FBI’s announcement:

“As the public increases its use of mobile banking apps, partially due to increased time at home, the FBI anticipates cyber actors will exploit these platforms.”

We recommend that you take a few minutes and read the entire announcement, as it has a lot of information about these threats and quite a few tips that can help protect your mobile banking as well as many other applications.

If you don’t have the chance to go over all of this now, we’ve put together some of the most important tips to abide by if you’re trying to protect yourself and your financial interests.

Use 2FA

2FA, short for Two-Factor Authentication, and often seen nowadays as MFA or Multi-Factor Authentication, is effectively the addition of another identifier to ensure that someone trying to access an account is who they claim to be. Via texting, emailing, or generating a unique code through an application like Google Authenticator, Authy, Duo, or LastPass Authenticator, a user is given the key to open the additional lock on their accounts.

Any account you use should be protected by 2FA/MFA, especially those that deal with your finances or other sensitive information.

You should always set up 2-Factor Authentication on any account you have, especially if it deals with sensitive information or your money.

Be Smart About Your Passwords

Make sure that any passwords you use are sufficiently secure for your purposes. Rather than using common phrases or easy-to-guess combinations, like your birthday or a pet’s name, use a unique string of characters, numbers, and symbols for each account, or a passphrase consisting of unrelated words.

If You Aren’t Sure, Don’t Click on It

In what is probably the best piece of advice you can give someone who does business online in 2020, if you don’t know who sent it or where it will take you, don’t click on it. In fact, if you aren’t 100 percent sure about something, don’t click on it. Chances are your bank has a mobile app. Download that one from a reputable app store. They may have the link on their website, but if it doesn’t take you to the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store, don’t click on any link. Your bank has spent significant resources to make sure that their app has the security needed, don’t risk using any other app. 

Contact the Bank if You Have Questions

Confirmation that it was your bank sending you information, or that their app isn’t working properly at the moment won’t take more than a simple phone call to confirm. Go to their official website and get the customer assistance number.

We’re really glad the FBI covered this tip too, as it’s often glossed over. If you have any suspicion that something is strange or not working correctly, just call your bank. Go to their official website, or use the number on the back of your card or from a statement. You don’t want to be fooled into making a mistake that puts your finances in the crosshairs of hackers or scammers. Your bank will never ask you for your name or password over the phone, so never give that information out. 

Keep your money out of the hands of cybercriminals by being vigilant and understanding the signs of a scam. If you would like any more information about keeping your finances secure, call the IT security professionals at MSPNetworks today at (516) 403-9001. 

More people than ever are utilizing the conveniences of the Internet and mobile apps to avoid unnecessary human contact during the coronavirus pandemic. In fact, mobile banking alone has increased by 50 percent over the last few months, nationwide. In a recent PSA, the FBI warned that hackers are likely to be targeting mobile banking apps.

According to the FBI’s public service announcement:

“As the public increases its use of mobile banking apps, partially due to increased time at home, the FBI anticipates cyber actors will exploit these platforms.”

The PSA is definitely worth a read, and includes some good tips and potential threats that are out there. It’s worth noting that many of the tips apply to a lot more than just mobile banking.

If you are in a rush, here are some of the best tips to take away from it to protect yourself.

Utilize 2-Factor Authentication

You’ll see this called 2-Factor Authentication, Multi-Factor Authentication, 2FA, or MFA. That’s where a website or service will email or text you a little code to log you in. Some services will utilize an authentication application, such as Google Authenticator, Authy, Duo, or LastPass Authenticator. Using an authentication app is definitely a safer way to go, as they are harder to spoof than email and text, but anything is better than nothing.

You should always set up 2-Factor Authentication on any account you have, especially if it deals with sensitive information or your money.

Always Have Good Password Hygiene

Use strong passwords that contain lower and uppercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Your passwords should always be unique and not be used for multiple accounts, and your passwords should never contain information that could be guessed like your name, birthdays, your pets, and so forth.

If Something Seems Fishy, Don’t Install It

Never install something you aren’t 100 percent sure about. If your bank has a mobile app, be sure to download their official app, which they should have linked in their website. Avoid installing a mobile banking app that is sent to you via email or text message, because there is a chance that it could be bogus. 

When In Doubt, Call the Bank

We’re really glad the FBI covered this tip too, as it’s often glossed over. If you have any suspicion that something is strange or not working correctly, just call your bank. Go to their official website, or use the number on the back of your card or from a statement. 

If you accidentally called the number from the banking app, and that phone call seems suspicious, immediately hang up and be sure you use the number from their official website. If the hackers were clever enough to get you to download a fake banking app, they could easily have a fake support number to get you to call and submit your credentials. Your bank will never need your username and password over the phone.

All in all, be ever vigilant, because cybercriminals want to take advantage of the chaos to grift people out of their money. Don’t let them!

If you need help locking down your business and protecting your staff from cyberthreats, give MSPNetworks a call at (516) 403-9001 today!

Nowadays, laptops are the weapon of choice for productivity. They function much like a desktop computer but are mobile enough to go anywhere with. Unfortunately, most laptops chew through their batteries in only a few hours of work and need to be plugged in in order to function. With so many people working from home, many people are using their laptops more like a desktop and keeping them plugged in around the clock. For this week’s tip, we’ll discuss the best practices of a laptop battery. 

Is Overcharging a Laptop Battery a Problem?

Of course, like everything there is a qualified answer to this question. The first qualification is the age of your device. It wasn’t too long ago that battery innovation in these devices was truly lacking and devices that have older batteries have a much better chance of degrading when they are overcharged. On the other hand, newer batteries made of lithium-polymer or lithium-ion don’t have this problem. Hardware improvements have also played a role in keeping batteries juiced without ruining them. 

If you have a laptop on its power source for long periods of time that the device itself starts getting warm, it may be smart to remove it from the power supply as it can damage internal components and ruin the device. The temperature you are storing the device at matters too. In fact, enough research has been performed on the subject to suggest that leaving a fully charged laptop at high heat will significantly degrade the battery compared with a laptop stored at lower temperatures, to a point. 

In total, you will want to monitor your laptop’s heat levels when keeping it plugged in, but if you store it in a cool well-ventilated area, you should be fine keeping your laptop on the charger for as long as you want. 

For more great tips and tricks about how to manage your hardware and use your technology, return to our blog each week.

A lot of people aren’t aware that working from home is not a recent innovation. It can arguably be traced back over a million and a half years, when our ancestors would work relatively close to their dwelling places. Throughout our history, work has shifted away and back again to the remote methodology. Let’s look back through the years to see the progression of how people worked, based on the technology that was available.

Working from Home Was Largely the Norm

In the years leading up to the Industrial Revolution, especially in the medieval period and the Renaissance, working from home was how people worked. European peasantry lived in structures called “longhouses” with their livestock and workplaces contained inside with them. In fact, it wasn’t until 1760 and the Industrial Revolution that working someplace else was a common option.

Even then, factory managers often operated out of small buildings adjacent to the factory that were built to reflect many of the comforts of home.

The Shift to Office Work

The office as we know it today didn’t come around until the early 1900s, as technologies like electricity, telephony, and typing became available, with Ford Motor Companies adopting the now-traditional 9-to-5 workday in 1926.

By the 1960s, clerical work had taken over much of the job market, and with it, an intense obsession with productivity. Managers of the time kept detailed notes of how long it should take to carry out activities that today aren’t even considered. In case you were wondering, turning in your swivel chair should take you 0.009 minutes, as a guide from 1960 dictates. The cubicle, the epitome of removing distractions in the workplace, was first designed in 1968.

Technology Helped Encourage Remote Practices

However, in the 1970s, a variety of factors were introduced that made the prospect of remote work more appealing. For instance, rising concerns over the environment brought up the concept of remote work, and technology was developed that enabled remote productivity.

Once the Internet was introduced in 1983, remote work was considered a legitimate option again. With Wi-Fi’s development in 1991 and various professional and governmental innovations over the next few decades, we now have the means to support remote operations for so many—and thank goodness we do.

MSPNetworks is here to help you leverage the various tools that your business can use to support its operations on a remote basis. To learn more about these tools and how you can best use them today, reach out to us at (516) 403-9001.

Productivity is a huge priority in any business. This makes it crucial that all tasks can be picked up and put down as efficiently as possible. With mobile browsing now playing a major role in most users’ lives, the version of Chrome for Android devices is a very utilized tool. With these factors in mind, we’re sharing tips to make your use of Android Chrome that much more efficient and productive.

Continuous Productivity

Everyone takes a little while to ramp up their productivity, mainly so that they can get everything arranged and organized before diving in. With so many tools now online, Google Chrome enables you to access them from essentially everywhere. However, as an added bonus, by logging into the same Google account on a computer and on your Android device, your history would contain exactly what you would need to open. Even better, if your desktop version was still active with certain pages, the Recent Tabs option in the Android version of Chrome could replicate them.

Download Pages for Offline Browsing

While mobile devices are incredibly useful, the occasional lack of connection you may encounter can put some of these uses on hold. However, if you know that your connection is going to be poor later, you can proactively save certain web pages with the Android Chrome browser. By selecting Download (the one that looks like an arrow pointing at a horizontal line) in the three-dot menu while you’re on a page, you can save that page for later in the Downloads section.

Referential Search

Context is an important thing to have, especially when you are reviewing online documents and other materials. On an Android device, this context would be a pain to get, as you’d have to open a new tab and start an entirely new search, just to go back and continue. Would be, if the Android version of Chrome didn’t have a feature to work around this need.

By highlighting a word or phrase that they need more information about with a long press, a user can generate a small tab at the bottom of their display that displays a search for whatever was highlighted. This tab can then be dismissed or opened as an additional page in the browser.

What are some of your favorite tips for using Google Chrome to browse while on a mobile device? Tell us some of them in the comments, and make sure you subscribe today!