Tech Help for Your Business

Add a second step to your logins — like a text code — so a stolen password alone can't get a hacker into your email or banking. Takes 5 minutes and stops most account takeovers cold.

Ransomware locks your files and demands payment. Your best defense is a recent backup stored somewhere separate from your main computer — a cloud service or an external drive kept offsite.

Most successful attacks exploit known holes that patches already fix. Be sure that someone is managing Windows updates as well as 3rd party software patching.

Scammers send emails that look like your bank, your vendor, or even your own boss asking you to wire money or share passwords. Always verify unusual requests by phone before acting.

Reusing the same password across sites is one of the biggest risks small businesses face. A password manager like Bitwarden (free) creates and remembers strong, unique passwords for every account.

Change your router's default admin password, use WPA3 or WPA2 encryption, and keep guest devices on a separate network. An unsecured router is an open door to your whole business network.

Your employees are your biggest security asset — or your biggest vulnerability. A quick 15-minute walkthrough of what phishing emails look like can prevent the most common type of breach.

Coffee shop and hotel Wi-Fi is convenient but unencrypted. Anyone on the same network can potentially intercept your traffic. Use your phone's hotspot or a VPN when working away from the office.

Not everyone needs full admin rights on their computer. Limiting admin access means that if an account gets compromised, the damage is contained — the attacker can't install software or change system settings.

Running your business through a Gmail or Yahoo account makes it harder to control access when an employee leaves and looks unprofessional to clients. A business email address on your own domain is easy to set up and worth it.

Former employees, old vendors, and forgotten app integrations can still have access to your email, cloud storage, or accounting software. Do a quarterly review and revoke anything that shouldn't be there.

Set your computer to lock automatically after 5–10 minutes of inactivity. It's a simple setting that protects you if you forget to lock manually — especially important in shared office spaces.