One of the biggest obstacles to smooth business operation is the threat of cybersecurity attacks. If your company’s cybersecurity systems are breached, it can lead to an incalculable loss of goodwill and money. Despite the ever-increasing number of security breaches ranging from amateurish hacking to very sophisticated phishing events, many businesses tend to believe in several security myths and leave themselves open to data breaches and loss of confidentiality. Some of the most common cybersecurity myths:

Installing Anti-Virus Software Is Good Enough to Keep Data Safe

No doubt, anti-virus software is vital for the smooth operation of your IT system, however, even the best anti-virus software cannot prevent all hacker attacks from succeeding. For ensuring complete protection of your IT infrastructure and data, you need to implement a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy that encompasses everything from threat detection to employee training and protection from security disasters.

It Is Enough to Have Strong Passwords

There is no denying the fact that strong passwords are intrinsic to robust cybersecurity practices. However, planning, implementing, and enforcing password policies are only the beginning of the process of keeping yourself safe. According to security experts, most companies tend to overlook what information is available and focus more on how people are accessing the information. Therefore, not only do you need to provide your employees with strong passwords but also you need to think about whom to allow access to the data. Strangely, many companies don’t have an IT security policy that restricting access to sensitive information to only those who need to access it. To make your data even more secure, you should implement a two-factor authentication system.

Only Specific Industries Are Targeted by Hackers

Many small business owners incorrectly assume that they will not be targets of data breaches because they are in industries that are not attractive enough for hackers. Unfortunately, the stark reality is your business can become a hacking target if there is any financially sensitive information. On many occasions, even if there is no data worth stealing, paralyzing a business to extract a ransom can be a worthwhile exercise for cyber miscreants.

SMEs Are Not Targeted by Hackers

Since only large-scale attacks on high-profile businesses get highlighted by the news media, owners of small and medium enterprises are often fooled to believe that their businesses are too small to be an attractive target for hackers. However, the reality is unfortunately quite different with CNN reporting that 43% of cyberattacks were aimed at small businesses and tragically only 14% were prepared to defend themselves. This is due to various reasons, one of the main ones being small businesses are not targeted specifically but become victims of automated hacking systems set up by hackers to make random attacks on businesses, irrespective of their size. With less budgeted for cybersecurity, smaller businesses tend to be more prone to hacker infiltration.

Conclusion 

For businesses to effectively protect themselves from malicious infiltration of their IT systems, it is needed to carry out a comprehensive threat analysis that includes both external threats as well as security breaches by people within the organization. Some studies go to the extent of suggesting that threats from the inside account for around three-quarters of all data breaches.

Bullies are just desolate people looking for interesting reactions. And their actions come in myriad forms – one of them being subtle, emotional, and from behind-the-screens, popularly known as cyberbullying. Cyberbullying involves the sending of unsolicited hate and malicious remarks to someone, online. It has come out as the most toxic form of bullying due to its ‘open’ nature as online platforms, nowadays, are easily accessible.

In simple terms, Cyberbullying is the use of these social networks like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook to badger, pester or threaten an individual. Its usually done by the youngsters because they have the privilege to access the internet at this early age. They usually talk as an anonymous person out of the fear of being caught. But, somehow, they still choose to continue doing these kinds of activities. This gives them the confidence of doing the mistake without giving it a second thought as it does not involve any physical work or in-person meetings. 

Cyberbullying also includes dominating their character, posting their morphed pictures and blackmailing, sending random intimidating messages, and so on. The victim needn’t panic during these situations. Rather he or she can ignore the threats and reduce their screen time. It is not really possible to delete the entire content of what has been posted on the internet as it somehow goes into the cloud. It might disappear right away as we delete it, but it is there with someone, somewhere. Cyberbullying usually humiliates the individual and breaks their character into pieces. It affects them mentally. And, it really takes a long time for the victim to come out of it. Yes, we do have a certain team who can track the person behind the threat, but according to me, I would say, Prevention is better than cure. 

The Hate They Give – Quantifying the Impact

Be it on gaming platforms or social media, everyone is equally exposed to online bullying by others. This is primarily because of how technology and the internet are being exploited for such wrong practices.

According to UNICEF, reportedly, one in five students have skipped school due to cyberbullying and harassment. This points to the ordeals the younger generation is subjected to on the internet. An Ofcom study revealed that one in eight adolescents had been victims of online bullying. Another survey, conducted by an anti-bullying community, discovered that more than half of the total respondents admitted to having experienced bullying on giant social networks like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat. Further, 56 percent of the total bullying on social media occurs in private chat groups.

However, sadly, social media is not the commonplace of such happenings. Another popular platform where teens have admitted to being bullied is gaming. The major causes have been ascribed to anonymity and no fear of repercussions and punishment. This height of ignorance is aggravated by the fact that 81 percent of the bullies assume that they can get away with it.

Ensuring Kids’ Privacy Online

Gone are the days when mobile phones were a luxury, merely possessed by ‘grown-ups’. Today, as appalling it might be, around 80 percent of teenagers and kids can be witnessed with a cell in hand and they are easily able to get content from social media. So, the question which arises here is, “Are you, as a parent or guardian, safeguarding your children from predators and ill-suited content online?”

How to protect a kid’s online privacy?

You need to have an eye on what kind of activities your kids do on the internet. Limiting to share personal information such as an address, phone number, and school location on online. Posting pictures every day about every little thing can be avoided as it might keep the stranger updated. It is not necessary to reply to all the messages. Sometimes kids might not be able to identify which is the original account or fake account. They might get into those fake account traps. And, they start replying to those messages and then block or report that account. But, these strangers will create a new account and start doing the same thing all over again. So, it is better to warn the kids to be aware.

For now, I think conducting webinars for the parents and telling them the pros and cons of cyberbullying. They need to know that even if something bad happens, that there are ways to come out of it and recover. Parents need not panic and scold their kids for using the internet. In any incident, the victim should not be questioned or punished. So, instead of scolding, their parents should teach their kids to enable the private modes and use their social media accounts.

Other few things the parents can do their children are:-

• Limit Screen time
• Restrict certain websites 
• Keep an eye on what they do. 

Children do not understand the real-life consequences, and they do what they like, but it’s the parents’ duty to guide them on the right path. There are many Online protection tools that have parent-control options. Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) will protect kids who are younger than 13 when they are online.

Well, if you aren’t already, here are a few tips to get started: 

1.Taking charge:

The primary and the most basic way of getting a clear picture of your kid’s online presence is to talk to them. Engage your child in a conversation centred around their internet activity and be sure to ask them about any negative or disturbing experiences faced by them online. Know who their online buddies are.

Always remember that it’s not a one-way conversation. From your end, teach them about the precautions they should take while they’re online such as avoiding interactions with strangers and representing themselves with utmost care.

2. Parental Controls:

Sometimes, a child might end up landing where they didn’t intend to. Such instances are common and, often, many people are directed to sites containing sexual or violent content, which is surely where you wouldn’t want your child to be. To prevent your child’s being redirected to these sites and advertisements, you can set up parental controls to supervise what they get to see and do online. 

One prominent example of a parental control or restrictions tool is the SafeSearch Filters feature, provided by Google. Using this, one can ensure that the search results are filtered accurately with minimal or no violent and sexual material.

3.The How-to of Protecting Online Privacy:

Privacy, psychologically, is the most valued asset one can own. To prevent your kids from getting involved in troubles related to information-sharing and leakage, remind them of these simple things daily:

 

•       Never share personal details and private pictures with anyone online.
•       Never reply to a malicious message, comment, email, or post.
•       Avoid talking to unknown personalities whether on social media or in games and never plan get-togethers or meet-ups with online friends without parental guidance and supervision.
•       Talk to your parents about any disturbing incident on the internet.

4. Being Social-Network Savvy:

Raise privacy-sagacious kids, who are acquainted with the potential dangers online. Set up a ‘Code of Conduct’ for their social media presence. Keep them updated about basic things like keeping their locations private, not responding to inappropriate texts, and reporting any kind of insecurity to you or any trusted adult.

5. Monitoring Online Time and Activity:

Keep devices and gadgets near you so that you know exactly when your children are using them. Set screen time limits on mobile phones to avoid over-usage. In addition to controlling the time spent online, monitor their activity, too. Ensure that they seek your advice before posting anything on social media.

These precautionary measures, along with your personalised set of rules, can help in reducing your child’s exposure to cyberbullying. Also, in case of online bullying, keep the evidence safe for effective action against the bullies.

6. Talk to Someone You Trust

Most experts believe that the first step you need to take is to tell an adult whom you trust. Individuals who are cyberbullied may feel ashamed or hesitant to disclose being bullied. Some may delay since they’re not 100 percent sure who is bullying them. But harassment could get worse, so talk up before you find somebody to support. Even the police will track down an unidentified online murderer, so it’s always worth reporting.

Conclusion

In this generation of high-speed internet and technology, cyberbullying is rapidly growing all over the world. This activity is harmful to both kids and adults. But you can protect yourself by using the internet carefully. Most of the cyberbullying take place via the social media platforms like Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram, and many more. 

We hope that by reading the article above, you have gotten an idea about how dangerous cyberbullying can be. Keep the key points in mind and keep yourself safe online.

The impact of bullying, irrespective of the medium and form, goes deep and is irreversible. Unlike texts and comments, the negative effect of cyberbullying can neither be unsent nor be deleted. Hence, it becomes a prime responsibility of ours to abstain from participating in and encouraging bullying and harassment online. Instead, let’s create a positive social space where everybody feels safe. And if you do sense some rule-breaking there, now you know what to do!

 

Cable TV and internet services along with their extended services including home phones, home security, and cellular networks, have been ruling the industry for more than three decades. Cable services in the United States have millions of customers in more than 40 states and still growing. Some leading ISPs namely Xfinity, Spectrum cable, Frontier, and Mediacom cable, etc. have most of the loyal subscribers in around 40 states.

Cable services function based on the underground structure of wires carrying the services in different areas. This is where cables and types of cable became the game changer because it affects the overall quality of services and speed of the internet. So, here in this article, we will try to evaluate how Ethernet and coaxial cables are different from one another. By the end of this article, we will have an idea of which one is better. So, without further delay, let’s get started:

Before we give any final verdict on whether Ethernet cable is better than coaxial cables or otherwise, let’s first understand how both work and what are their best uses.

How do coaxial cables work and what is it best for?

Coaxial cables are a lot beneficial in an extended office structure. Coaxial cables use a single cable as an enveloped shield that guards the other, is highly enclosed, and provides signals over large distances. These cables are used by big office centers to connect a wide floor or even various floors.

Coaxial cables are made up of an internal conductor enclosed by a pipe-like insulating layer, surrounded by cannular conducting protection. ‘Coax’ means that these two sheets; the external sheathing and conductor lying below, share the same center of conformation. When mathematician and engineer Oliver Heaviside permitted the design in the 1880s, coaxial cables became a reality.

Typically, audio and visual functions are performed by coaxial cables. In present modernized homes, each room will have at least one coax cable. Coaxial cables are normally used by cable companies to form a connection between the wall outlet and your television or cable box. Coax cables were utilized to connect antennas to TV or digital converter box in the past. Moreover, they were in use for connecting VCRs to a TV, but it will be quite unusual if anyone still has it. Coaxial cables are expensive, costing you 75 cents per foot, in comparison to the twisted cable which costs you 15-50 cents. This cost may even increase in larger functionalities but we can’t avoid it.

 

How do Ethernet cables work and what is it best for?

Ethernet is known as a networking technology that dissevers data in packets termed as ‘frames’ and it was launched in 1980 on a commercial scale. Metadata about the sender, recipient, and backup data to review inaccuracies is encompassed by every frame holding actual data.

A device that works to receive data and see if it is sent from an authentic source, tests for any likelihood of corruption, and then adds it to frames that have been decoded beforehand to provide a consistent stream. Ethernet is generally used in the case of local area networks (LANs) which connect devices present in one building or several buildings in the same area.

The second use is in form of metropolitan area networks (MANs) which are meant to link the whole city together. Because of all the advancements, heavily shielded wires are no longer in use and twisted-pair cables are the real equipment now. In the past coaxial cables were used for Ethernet.  For connecting devices like PCs, routers, and switches to LANs, these cables are employed on wired networks.

The most frequently used are Category 5 (CAT5) and Category 6 (CAT6) regardless of the many kinds of Ethernet cables. Usually, Ethernet cables are designed to connect only a single device but a special Ethernet Cable that is a cross-over cable and is formulated to link two computers to each other.

Business networks have cables within the brick walls or below floors of lab attached to a secured location and they make use of the above-mentioned type of Ethernet cable. The other type of Ethernet cable is the stranded cable and they don’t suffer from damages such as failures and cracks often. Travelers or a home network make the most use out of it.

Wrapping up,

We hope by now you have a better insight on both Ethernet cable and coaxial cable to understand which one works better

If you have a business or a personal computer system, you must protect it from cybercriminals round-the-clock. Simply having passwords is not enough. You must protect your computer systems from virus infections, phishing, malware, and other security threats that you might be unaware of.

However, despite being aware of the importance of cybersecurity for their computer systems, many businesses and people commit mistakes whose consequences are often dear. These mistakes are mostly due to a lack of awareness and knowledge. Most businesses and people overlook and turn a blind eye to the importance of cybersecurity for their computer systems and only wake up when the damage has been caused.

So, what are these cybersecurity mistakes that businesses and people commit?

This post will look at the three most common cybersecurity mistakes that make your computer system an open playground for hackers and cybercriminals. Go through them one by one to learn how simple mistakes can be heavily risky to your computer systems and businesses.

Three common cybersecurity mistakes for your computer systems to avoid-

1. Weak and vulnerable passwords

Cybersecurity experts state that strong passwords do not protect most computer systems. Businesses often have lax practices for passwords, and this is one of the key factors for inviting cybercriminals to your computer systems. Note that PINs or personal identification numbers and other letter and number-based codes are the first defense for business and private computer systems as well as mobile devices.

Weak passwords have always been a problem since the first user of computer systems decided to use the password 123456789 or qwerty for their supposed gateway for security. Similar unwise options for passwords can be the names of family members, pets, date of birth, and even the location of a place that can be easily associated with you are weak passwords. Good cyber hackers often break into two-thirds of passwords that are present in the online world today in just some minutes.

Solutions-

Experts in the field of cybersecurity recommend that you should use complex passwords for your computer systems. They should combine letters, symbols on the keyboard, and numbers. Even in order to remember your password and keep it closely associated, you can randomize it with numbers along with symbols so that it becomes hard for hackers to crack. For instance, hamburgers can become “8&5$@9!K*#.”

Again, cybersecurity experts state that using the same passwords for all of your computer system accounts is definitely not recommended. Even if the password is a strong one, if a smart hacker can crack even one of your accounts, it will be easy for him to crack the rest. It is like having a single key that opens all your doors.

Passwords often become vulnerable when you store them in the wrong manner. It is obvious that you might find it difficult to remember complex and long passwords so writing them down in a memo right on your desk is a foolish thing for you to do. Some people go to the extent of sticking their passwords on post-it notes on their computer monitors. If you have the habit of doing the above, it is equivalent to having no password for your computer systems at all!

Today, you will find many desktop and mobile apps that randomly generate, manage, and store difficult and complex passwords. They are a much safer option than the post-it notes that you leave clearly in the sight of others. At the same time, these apps give you the opportunity to change your passwords often, as experts in cybersecurity advise.

Professionals from esteemed Salesforce solutions company, Flosum recommends that You should enable multi-factor authentication where it is available, for instance, services and websites that need a password and some form of authentication like a one-time code for security that is sent to the inbox of your phone is a prudent step.

2. Gullible and lax email practices

Cybersecurity experts regularly warn people not to click on unsolicited text messages, emails, and links that contain/open to attachments, however despite the repeated caution, people still commit this common mistake and fall prey to the menace of phishing, smishing (Phishing of SMS text and all sorts of social engineering scams.

Most of these emails contain false offers for jobs, warnings, and threats from tax, law, or bank authorities, complicated cons, and investment opportunities that actually seem too good to be real. You will find all of the above in present messaging systems, and they have evolved when it comes to sophistication and targeting specifically gullible people. New sources of data are often a trap that thieves, fraudsters, and other cybercriminals layout for you.

In order to stay alert, apply common sense and diligence. Your keys to 24/7 protection against cybercriminals stay intact when you avoid-

• Emails that look or sound too good to be real.
• Looks or even sounds suspicious; you need to verify the source by contacting the sender via phone, face-to-face, or any other credible means.
• If the text message or the email is unsolicited, do not click on any of its links, nor should you open any attachment that comes with the email.
• Never react with emotion as these emails are drafted in such a way to invoke a sense of enthusiasm, greed, fear, or urgency.
• Pause and think.

3. Poor network or system administration

There should be a competent and secure network present for users of computer systems in corporates and institutions. The facility must have a skilled system administrator that protects the infrastructure against the onslaught of cybercriminals. Effective administrative skills are responsible for installing and enforcing stringent security policies and the best practices that keep applications, processes, and users protected.

Unfortunately, there are instances where administrators fail to secure their network devices correctly like, for instance, they use passwords and default factory settings, or validation procedures, etc. They often do not give permission for data encryption and ignore monitoring user activities and privileges. This often invites cybercriminals and hackers to gain access to network assets and credentials.

Therefore, companies and individuals must keep the above three mistakes in mind if they do not want to compromise their computer systems’ security and avert potential online attacks. Businesses should have qualified and competent network administrators to identify loopholes and promptly safeguard computers from cybercriminals around the clock!

Times have changed. The vast expanse of the universe has now converged into small electronic boxes called TV, laptops, and mobiles that are easily and effortlessly accessible to everyone alike. Though the internet has made it possible for people to just stream news, or download movies or tv shows, there are many channels that restrict their broadcast to the internet and are still only available on TV.

People install cable TV in their homes to catch international programs and shows, but there is always the price factor that stops people from opting for this option. Furthermore, cable TV does not offer you a wide variety of channels due to technical limitations. We are living in an era where more than 400 TV series are being aired at a time, making it difficult for average cable companies to bring it all to you without running into technical difficulties. And those who manage to do so charge a fee that becomes unaffordable for many. But an average customer usually does not know much about the advantages of dish TV over cable TV. Here is what you need to know.

Accessibility

People today want variety in their television services, so they can watch all of their favorite shows or catch the news from all over the world without any hassle. Content providers are simultaneously embroiled in fierce competition to attract paying customers by offering as much content as they possibly can. But the variety alone is not the deciding factor. People want easy access to channels too. And that is only available with dish TV with utmost convenience.

Price

One of the biggest deciding factors when selecting your TV service provider is the cost of the service. There are several service providers who have been ramping up their offerings of dish network by announcing many attractive deals. When competition is picking up pace now more than ever, it’s time to consider the networks that are offering the best service at the lowest cost possible. Check out the internet to explore the best dish tv promotion and deals before considering a content provider for your TV services.

Quality

The most prominent change you’ll notice when you get a dish TV is the quality of transmission. Even with your existing television set, you’ll notice enhanced picture quality as high definition signals are transmitted to you via dish TV as opposed to cable TV. Not to mention the overall color scheme and contrast that’s much higher and denser than the colors in cable TV.

Variety of channels

If there is one reason why one really opts for a TV service provider is the limitation of content available online. As compared to a cable TV, a dish setup box offer over 400 channels on average, giving you access to a wide range of viewing possibilities.

Better sound quality

Due to high signal transmission in dish TV, the sound quality is automatically enhanced and amplified, with clear vocal signals as compared to cable TV. Some service providers also offer true surround and Dolby digital-like sound that offers a truly immersive entertainment experience.

So what are you waiting for? With so many promotional deals out there to get the best Dish TV service, now is the right time ever to get DISH TV and take your TV entertainment to a whole new level.