Lanit Updates 11/2020

Is it 2021 yet?


Office 365, now called Microsoft 365 for your confusion, is a pretty well known product as most of you know already. For those that don't, it's basically a suite of products you can subscribe to directly from and hosted by Microsoft but don't confuse that with Microsoft's actual cloud service called Azure. The main difference between Azure and Microsoft 365 is that Microsoft 365 are tools to enhance your current network or hosted infrastructure but isn't a replacement for your infrastructure as Azure is a full infrastructure capable hosting option or a hybrid thereof.  


Finding the correct Microsoft 365 subscription to fit your needs can be a little challenging and is good to obtain some knowledge prior to making that decision. If you go to the Microsoft 365 website to subscribe to their services you'll probably be overwhelmed by the options however you're not going to see all available options. I would be willing to bet that most business subscribers of Microsoft 365 are over subscribing since you don't initially see all of the available options on the initial page and can take some digging to actually find. 


Most people know the Microsoft Office basic suite of products pretty well as we have been using them for years such as Word, Outlook, and Excel as the main three but most people probably don't realize that even the basic Microsoft 365 provides around 20+ products that you probably haven't heard of outside of the "big three". That's the ones I want to focus on over the next few newsletters. This may help you to either make a decision on Microsoft 365 subscriptions or make sure you're getting the most out of an existing subscription. 


The first product that's a part of almost every subscription option is Microsoft Teams. If you already have a subscription you may be pretty familiar with this one but if not then it's a good one to get to know since it seems Microsoft is making this the hub of their communications. Microsoft Teams is a collaboration app that some users may compare to Zoom or Google Meet but that wouldn't be doing it any justice. You can sync your existing company user account with Microsoft 365 making single sign-on to any of the apps that we'll discuss accessible with the same username/password used to access your existing cloud or local network and changes accordingly if you change your current network password. Teams is a video conferencing application but that's only a small part of its capability. Teams can be broken down into groups or channels for project collaboration with built-in file sharing for internal and external collaboration, one-to-many video conferences (webinars), desktop sharing, Outlook integration, and other application integration that's accessible directly through the Teams interface, including all other Microsoft 365 apps. 


One of the "neatest" capabilities that most may not know exist is the Walkie Talkie app. You can install and have access to all Teams capabilities on your mobile device including an app called Walkie Talkie that turns your mobile device into an instant voice communication device just like using a walkie talkie. You can create a Walkie Talkie channel and assign existing Teams members to that channel and all will have instant voice access to each other which is great for field users, large retail stores, warehouses, etc. but unlike walkie talkies there is no range limitation. Your field person can be communicating with anyone on the channel no matter what their location may be even if that includes a different state.


Another neat little application built inside of Teams is called Approval. This is an app that you can access and use through the Teams interface to "approve" things such as vacation request, expense reports, supply orders, or anything else that would require approval before completing the request can be built into this app. This app also integrates into other applications and can be customized to interact with almost any application that has a workflow process. 


There are also a lot of third party apps such as Adobe Creative Cloud to share Creative Cloud documents within Teams, YouTube for in-session video sharing (not just a link to an external website), Wikipedia searches, Citrix GoToMeeting, and a ton of other third party apps that keeps growing in numbers. As the popularity and 3rd party support integration continues to grow for Teams it's easy to see why it's at least worth a look. 
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Regular IT Meetings

This is to invite you to invite us to regular IT planning meetings. It's good to have a regular planning meeting or even just an question answer session. We learn a lot about our customers during these meetings and sometimes we can bring ideas to the table that you may not have known about or considered. Everyone usually walks away with a little more knowledge on both sides and may push us to things we haven't considered either such as additional services or conveniences we may be able to offer. 


Onsite or over the phone feel free to reach out to us if this is something you may be interested in, even if it's just once a year.
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iPhone Editing


For those of you who are iPhone users and find it sometimes aggravating trying to go back through a text or some other website or document and try to edit something realizes how difficult it can be to try and place the cursor just right without deleting half of what you just wrote to correct a single letter...there's a trick. 


If you hold down on the space bar for a few seconds it will then allow you to move the cursor to anywhere on the screen, even between letters on a single word. Some of you may have already known that but this little trick has saved me so much time and aggravation that I wanted to share in hopes that it helps others as it has helped me. 
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Social Engineering Attacks

A common misconception about cyber attackers is that they use only highly advanced tools and techniques to hack into peoples’ computers or accounts. Cyber attackers have learned that the easiest ways to steal your information, hack your accounts, or infect your systems is by simply tricking you into doing it for them using a technique called social engineering. Let’s learn how these attacks work and what you can do to protect yourself..


What is Social Engineering

Social engineering is a psychological attack where an attacker tricks you into doing something you should not do through various manipulation techniques. Think of scammers or con artists; it is the same idea. However, today’s technology makes it much easier for any attacker from anywhere in the world, to pretend to be anything or anyone they want, and target anyone around the world, including you. Let’s take a look at two real-world examples:


You receive a phone call from someone claiming to be from the government informing you that your taxes are overdue and that if you do not pay them right away you will be fined or arrested. They then pressure you to pay over the phone with a credit card, gift card, or wire transfer warning you that if you don’t pay you could go to jail. The caller is not really from the government, but an attacker attempting to trick you into giving them money.


Another example is an email attack called phishing. This is when attackers create an email that attempts to trick you into taking an action, such as opening an infected email attachment, clicking on a malicious link, or giving up sensitive information. Sometimes phishing emails are generic and easy to spot, such as pretending to come from a bank. Other times phishing emails can be highly customized and targeted as attackers research their targets first, such as a phishing email pretending to come from your boss or colleague.


Keep in mind, social engineering attacks like these are not limited to phone calls or email; they can happen in any form including text message, over social media, or even in person. The key is to know what clues to look out for.


Common Clues of a Social Engineering Attack

Fortunately, common sense is your best defense. If something seems suspicious or does not feel right, it may be an attack. The most common clues include:

  • A tremendous sense of urgency or crisis. The attackers are attempting to rush you into making a mistake. The greater the sense of urgency, the more likely it is an attack.
  • Pressure to bypass or ignore security policies or procedures you are expected to follow at work.
  • Requests for sensitive information they should not have access to or should already know, such as your account numbers.
  • An email or message from a friend or coworker that you know, but the message does not sound like them - perhaps the wording is odd or the signature is not right.
  • An email that appears to be from a coworker or legitimate company, but the email is sent using a personal email address such as @gmail.com.
  • Playing on your curiosity or something too good to be true. For example, you are notified your package was delayed, even though you never ordered a package or that you’ve won a prize in a contest that you never entered.

If you suspect someone is trying to trick or fool you, do not communicate with the person anymore. Remember, common sense is your best defense.
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