Backup Strategies for Artists Important When Systems Fail

/in /by

Your computer fails during a set. Are you prepared?

I was photographing a festival one night, and in the midst of the flashing lights and loud music, everything stopped. A weird scratching sound came over the speakers, and then silence. A frenzy ensued, as behind the stage people came popping up from left and right. A system had failed, and without a basic backup in place, there was absolutely nothing anyone could do.

over saturated picture of a person looking at computer equipment used by a DJ that has failedNormally, when a speaker system crashes, it takes a couple technicians and everything is up and running again. But this time it wasn’t the speakers. As the artist waved her hands in frustration, it was pretty obvious there was a problem with her computer. Unfortunately, her Macbook was the only piece of hardware she had, and as the computer shut down, so did her set. Without a plan in place, she had to pack it up and call it a night.

This could have been prevented. By only having only one computer that could play the music, the minute the computer stopped working, so did her event.  Had she carried even just an old computer with another copy of the music as a backup, the whole mess could have been avoided.

Having a basic backup solution is a start for any artist. Knowing your information is stored in multiple places, such a second computer, an external hard drive or even just a simple USB stick, leaves room for the disaster that will eventually strike.

Thinking it won’t happen is just avoiding the inevitable. The first step in protecting your assets, and the music and mixes involved in playing any show, is admitting that if your immediate technology does fail, you need to know what is your next plan of action.

Do you have that extra copy of your data backed up? If your computer fails, but you still have your hard drive, do you have a way to still play the files?

These are the questions you have to pay attention to, and if you answer no to any of them, maybe it’s time to take a better look at your plan. Having backup plans in place helps go ensure you don’t lose everything you worked so hard for.

Maybe the show you are opening tomorrow isn’t the biggest show of your career, but it definitely won’t be if you can’t even play.

Phishing Scams – How to Prevent a Disaster

/in , , /by

Imagine this. You’re scrolling the internet and your instant messaging pops up. It’s someone you talk to quite frequently, and they’ve sent you a link telling you to check it out. You click the link, and suddenly your files start changing and you can’t open anything. Suddenly you’ve become a victim of a phishing scam.

What just happened?

You sit there confused, but in the back of your mind you understand the link you clicked was not what it seemed to be, and are now wondering what it will take to get the information back?

Phishing is a common cyber crime that has hit many unsuspecting people, and sometimes the results are harmless. Sometimes you are only locked out of your online accounts for few minutes. But other times serious damage can begin the minute your mouse clicks the link.

Hackers target companies and individuals by email, and most people see a link in an email and don’t even consider it is going to be detrimental to click.

A good rule to follow is to limit the links you do click in email messages.  Remember, when protecting yourself from phishing scams, pay attention to the where the link is going to take you, be skeptical of email attachments and pay close attention to the sender email address.

If something looks suspicious, taking the time to check and be sure makes sense.

Getting to a place where you understand how to protect yourself takes effort and some training. This training has come a long way over the years.

Find out how a few quick and focused training sessions can help you and your team improve your skills.  Ask us about some options for effective cyber security training.

World Password Day 2018

/in , , , /by

How secure are you?

Passwords are your first line of defense when it comes to protecting your private systems and information. Having a strong password in place leaves you just that much more secure.

On May 3, 2018, we celebrated World Password Day, and the facts are simple; most people either don’t understand the importance of a secure password, or don’t want to take the time to ensure information is protected in the simplest way.

I don’t know about you, but I’m just as guilty as the majority of the population for having the same password across the board, changing up one number or letter per platform. Just like you, I’ve left myself extremely vulnerable to hackers of any level.

With digital platforms filling up most of your spare time, it’s important to adhere to the rules and suggestions. Each of these platforms ask for a different sequence of characters, for good reason.

According to Entrepreneur Online, a survey was conducted by TeleSign a few years ago, which polled approximately 2,000 consumers throughout the U.S. and the U.K. The study concluded about 3 out of 4 people use duplicate passwords, some of which haven’t been changed in years.

Good to know I’m not the only one who could lose everything.

In the past year alone, about 40% of people received noticed of personal information being compromised, accounts being hacked, or have had a password stolen. Data breaches are inevitable. Therefore, why aren’t you taking better measures to protect your information.

When is the last time you changed your password? In the same survey, mentioned above, about 21% of people still use passwords they created 10 years ago. If you can’t remember the last time you changed your password, I highly suggest you take the time today to do so.

Keep them long, complicated, a sequence of numbers and letters. You can even generate up passwords for free online. Whatever you do, your password should not be something that can be guessed. No birthday’s please. Pet names are out too.

The next step you can take is to add another level of security. Two-factor authentication is a great way to significantly decrease the risk of any hacker. This method requires an additional type of identification, of which the user has on them at the time.

Passwords are inevitably a part of everyday life, and to be careless with them is simply asking for the worst to happen. Whatever method you use, being aware of how secure you are is detrimental for a future dealing with technology.

If you are curious as to how secure your password is visit www.howsecureismypassword.net. Enter in a password SIMILAR to the one you currently have and sit back and see how long it would take a hacker to enter your system.