Blog: All Things Nortec

Microsoft users – your best security options are inexpensive and right under your nose. Yet, we keep running into businesses that aren’t using them.

If you’re an Office365 user, you’re probably already paying for security and not using it.

Here’s why:

1. Nobody is telling you about the new features in O365
2. You acquired Office365 and didn’t have a Microsoft Gold partner set it up for you, so there are configurations that are not enabled
3. Microsoft’s cloud innovation is too rapid for businesses to keep up with and understand what the options are

Do you know what you’re paying for? Likely, you know what Office 365 license you have, but you don’t know what that includes, what’s available, what’s enabled and what’s not. (You can read our warning about installing cloud apps like Office 365 yourself here.)

With so much of Microsoft in the cloud, innovations are popping up left and right. Microsoft has some incredible security features, but they don’t get communicated to you unless your Managed IT provider is an active partner who will sift through Microsoft’s applications. Getting insight should be OUR challenge, not yours.

You might already be paying for essential security features and not using them. If you have any kind of subscription with Microsoft, you could have paid for security features or there are more available to you you’re not using, that are relatively inexpensive add-ons.

Here are some security options at entry-level costs:

• Cloud App Security – manages all your cloud application usage
• Office365 Advanced Threat Protection – protect against malware and phishing attacks
• Office 365 Secure Store – issues a score using security analytics that examines company behavior
• Windows Defender – Microsoft Windows built-in malware protection

Many of these are available for a few more dollars per month, per user and can be implemented immediately – not a long procurement cycle. You buy it, you turn it on. There are no end-user disruptions. You can terminate the service just as quickly.

Your current IT vendor might not know about these options because they are not Microsoft partners who are up to date on the security features Microsoft offers. In this case, many IT providers offer different security solutions from other vendors. This is where the expenses can really add up especially if you are already a Microsoft user!

Too many vendors are involved in your security especially in a hybrid environment. This gets expensive and complicated to make everything work together. You end up needing in-house expertise make it work. The irony is when you move into the cloud you can get 80-90% of your security that way.

What it Costs to Not Have Security At All

Security threats are increasingly complex and coming at your network from all angles. Hacking tools are prolific and can be purchased via subscription models on the dark web.

Not protecting your business opens you up to a number of expenses. Close to one-third of U.S. businesses had a data breach in 2017 alone. Businesses are quietly paying thousands of dollars in bitcoin to get those files back. These breaches also open you up to liability lawsuits and arbitration if vendor or client data is lost in the breach.

In the event of a data breach, not having any real security in place costs you:

• Downtime – over $100,000 per hour for 98% of organizations, typically for a week
• Ransoms or data recovery costs – up to $30k in bitcoin or hundreds in recovery
• Liability costs – into the millions, depending on damages
• Non-compliance fees from HIPAA or SOX – depends on the violation

With one-third of businesses breached in a single year and security options being easy to implement and inexpensive, why take chances?

Security threats are real, they’re complex, and they target all sizes of businesses – particularly small and mid-sized businesses because they are considerably easier targets than a large corporation.

Let Nortec help you implement affordable security measures to keep the bad guys out and your network protected.

We’re only a click or a phone call away. Contact us online or call (866) 531-1990.