Horn-IT Solutions

Horn IT Newsletter: Security for Every Business -

Horn IT Newsletter: Security for Every Business As advisors to businesses with varied and complex security needs across a range of compliance and regulatory environments, Horn has adopted a security assessment strategy that follows the recommendations of the Center for Internet Security (CIS) Top 20 Critical Security Controls. This assessment gui...

You need a password policy: How a strong password policy protects you from the common mistakes your users make.

You need a password policy - Whitby, Oshawa, Ontario, Ajax | Horn IT A solid password policy is perhaps the most important security control an organization can employ. Reach out to Horn to request a free template of a password policy download to adapt to your specific requirements.

Cybertip Tuesday: 3 Things to Remember When You're In the Cloud

If you’re using any kind of cloud application (and while we're all working from home, who isn't?), you are right to be concerned about data privacy and security. The company hosting your data is ultimately responsible for keeping hackers out of their network, but most cloud breaches are due to user error. So it’s important that you, the user, are being smart about security. Here are a few things you can easily do to improve security in the cloud:

1. Maintain a STRONG password of at least eight characters with both uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols. Do NOT make it easy, such as “Password123!” While that technically meets the requirements, a hacker could easily crack that.

2. Make sure the device you’re using to access the application is secure. This is an area where you need professional help in installing and maintaining a strong firewall, antivirus and spam-filtering software. Don’t access your cloud application with a device you also use to check social media sites and free e-mail accounts like Hotmail.

3. Back up your data. If the data in a cloud application is important, make sure you’re downloading it from the application and backing it up in another safe and secure location. That way, if your account is hacked, if the data is corrupted OR if the cloud company shuts down your account, you have a copy.