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Macro Systems Blog

Macro Systems has been serving the Metro Washington, DC area since 1997, providing IT Support such as technical helpdesk support, computer support and consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.

Why Do Modern Businesses Have Such Difficulty Spotting Cyber Threats?

Why Do Modern Businesses Have Such Difficulty Spotting Cyber Threats?

Cybersecurity is intensely critical, so a business owner would think implementing every security feature and defense would be a good idea. As research has shown, this can be counterproductive, as only 67% of surveyed security leaders know what led to cybersecurity incidents in their businesses over the past year. 

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The Latest Lesson We Can Learn from Disney: Manage Permissions More Cautiously

The Latest Lesson We Can Learn from Disney: Manage Permissions More Cautiously

The Disney brand has long cultivated an image of magic and wonder. That being said, this image has yet to materialize any magical effects in reality. For example: people still suffer from food allergies while visiting Disney’s various parks.

This makes it especially dangerous that a former Disney employee was allegedly still able to access a specialized menu-planning app and make alterations, like changing prices, adding language that Disney certainly would not approve of, switching text to the unintelligible “Wingdings” font, and worst of all… changing menu information.

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Redbox Kiosks Could Still Contain Your Data

Redbox Kiosks Could Still Contain Your Data

In June of this year, publisher Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, best known for its book series of the same name, filed for Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 bankruptcy and had many of its assets liquidated. One of these assets was the movie rental service Redbox and its eponymous scarlet rental kiosks, rendering the service defunct.

Nonetheless, many kiosks remain standing outside businesses even now, which makes us wonder… what about all the data they collected while they were in use?

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Five Functions of NIST-Supported Cybersecurity Framework

Five Functions of NIST-Supported Cybersecurity Framework

A well-structured framework is essential for establishing effective, consistent policies and strategies. This applies to many areas, including network security. Listed below is a look into the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) cybersecurity framework, which outlines steps to help safeguard your business.

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Episode 1 'Of Vice and Vulnerability': Ransomware

Episode 1 'Of Vice and Vulnerability': Ransomware

This blog post is written in the format of a daytime soap opera. Please make sure you read all of the dialogue as if being whispered by extremely attractive television stars and starlets!

Life goes on in the small town of Oak Falls, deep woods surrounding the little hamlet nestled on the coast of Cape Seguridad. Let’s follow the lives of some of the residents, their lives Of Vice… and Vulnerability.

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Signs You're Experiencing a Phishing Attack

Signs You're Experiencing a Phishing Attack

With digital technology taking on a greater importance for businesses than ever before, companies have to contend with a variety of threats, including increasingly popular phishing scams, regardless of their geographical location.

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What Your Business Needs to Know about Zero-Trust

What Your Business Needs to Know about Zero-Trust

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

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

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Best Practices to Safeguard Your Business from Cyber Threats

Best Practices to Safeguard Your Business from Cyber Threats

Over 25 percent of data breaches target small businesses, and the impact can be significant. To protect your business, you need the right technology and smart strategies. Listed below are some key steps to help safeguard your business from digital threats.

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Your Business Isn't Too Small to Be a Cybersecurity Target

Your Business Isn't Too Small to Be a Cybersecurity Target

“I don’t need to worry about cyberattacks… my business is too small to be of any interest.”

This brief rationalization is one of the most dangerous fallacies a modern business can make concerning cybersecurity; it shows a fundamental misunderstanding of how modern cyberthreats operate. If this has been your mindset, we urge you to read on so we can help set you on a more realistic path.

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What Your Business Needs to Include in Security Awareness Training

What Your Business Needs to Include in Security Awareness Training

Security awareness training is an imperative process for today's businesses to undergo to have any chance of success. Alas, as much as security software or policy can help, it can only do so much. You also need your team members to be on board, knowledgeable about what they need to do, and motivated to do it. 

Listed below are some security awareness training tips.

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How to Spot and Deal with Sextortion Scams

How to Spot and Deal with Sextortion Scams

Sextortion scams are scary. The scammer contacts the victim, claiming to have gotten access to their computer and captured video footage of their target engaging in some private and decidedly adult activities, as well as the content that was onscreen at the time. The threat: pay up, or I send the footage to all of your contacts.

However, lately hackers have added another layer of “proof” to these claims, now referring to victims by name and including pictures of their homes. Listed below are what one of these scams looks like and what you should do if one appears in your inbox.

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The Largest Data Breaches of 2024 So Far

The Largest Data Breaches of 2024 So Far

Data breaches remain a constant threat that cause serious disruptions for businesses and potentially creating widespread issues for customers. Highlighted below are some of the largest and most impactful breaches of 2024.

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Two Employee Problems that can Sabotage Your Company

Two Employee Problems that can Sabotage Your Company

Businesses have to deal with a variety of different types of problems, but they often don’t see many of the problems that come from within their company. Whether this comes from hackers, disgruntled customers, or unreliable vendors, every business leader constantly deals with some type of issue. Alas, sometimes these problems can come from inside your organization. Listed below is a look at two employee issues that can potentially cause major headaches for business owners.

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Utilizing Remote Operations Carries Cybersecurity Risks

Utilizing Remote Operations Carries Cybersecurity Risks

Remote work has been incredibly useful over the past few years despite many employers having various concerns about its implementation. While these concerns vary, one prevalent one is how remote operations impact cybersecurity.

If you’re utilizing remote operations to any degree and aren’t concerned about cybersecurity, you must adjust this mindset and correct your approach.

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Network Security Tips for Your Organization

Network Security Tips for Your Organization

Network security is hard, which is why so many businesses struggle to implement the solutions they so desperately need to stay safe and relevant. Below we demystify some of these components and lay out in clear terms what your highest priorities should be for your business’ network security.

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Cybersecurity Is Mandatory for Businesses

Cybersecurity Is Mandatory for Businesses

Today's businesses cannot and should not operate without robust cybersecurity protections. This is a point we will emphasize at every opportunity. Listed below: why security is so imperative and what steps you need to take to safeguard your business.

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How to Make Your Passwords More Secure in 2024

How to Make Your Passwords More Secure in 2024

Passwords have long been one of the central pillars of account security on the Internet. Combined with a username, they make up the foundation of most login systems. Because of this, they are a hot commodity for hackers who want to steal credentials and infiltrate accounts or networks. However, in recent years, other security measures have exposed the weakness of poor passwords for security, leading to the adoption of other measures.

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How to Limit Cybersecurity Sprawl

How to Limit Cybersecurity Sprawl

We obviously won’t tell you to cut down on your cybersecurity. However, it can be easy to overinvest and overreach if you aren’t careful about what you’re implementing. This phenomenon is known as cybersecurity sprawl, and if not prevented, it can easily have serious consequences for your business. Listed below is how to avoid this sprawl.

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The Story of a Guy Who Scams the Scammers

The Story of a Guy Who Scams the Scammers

When you think of a scammer, you probably think of someone looking to take advantage of someone for their own gain. While this isn’t exactly inaccurate, another variety exists to acknowledge… those who aim to scam the scammers. Listed below is the story of one such white-hat scammer, or “scam baiter,” a content creator who uses the alias “Kitboga,” Kit for short.

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Report: Many New Cybersecurity Professionals are Destined to Make Mistakes

Report: Many New Cybersecurity Professionals are Destined to Make Mistakes

Cyberattacks will only continue in the weeks, months, and years to come, making it increasingly essential that businesses have access to cybersecurity expertise. Even more unfortunately, professionals with this level of expertise are becoming harder to find. Globally, we’re short almost four million people, and those we have are prone to make mistakes in their first few years. This comes from a report by Kaspersky, entitled “The Portrait of Modern Information Security Professional,” Let’s review what the cybersecurity developer found and what we can take away from these findings.

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Macro Systems
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