Zinc Blog

PDFs are a hugely useful file format, especially as a means of securing a signature. Just in case you’re not sure how to do so effectively, let’s go over how you can digitally sign your PDF files.

Regardless of what your business does, there is a good chance that it relies pretty heavily on technology. When that technology falters, so does your business. Sure, this might be for a couple hours at a time, but it all adds up and has a major impact on the success of your business. Many organizations have outsourced their IT support and management, but could benefit from a more proactive approach than the one they currently employ. Today, we will take a look at some of the priorities that businesses should consider when choosing an outsourced IT provider.

Adobe Flash, once one of the most utilized pieces of software on the Internet is being retired by the software giant. Support will stop on December 31, 2020 and like any other piece of retired software, you should remove it from any systems you have that still run it. 

If you’re seeking out an IT resource to assist your business in maintaining its all-important technology resources, you’re almost certainly seeking out the option that will give you the greatest return on your investment in terms of value. There is no denying that we are biased in our opinion, but that doesn’t change the fact that—dollar for dollar—the investment you make into managed services will always be the best choice.

Most people like new technology, whether it is a lamp shaped like the moon, a new video game console, or just a gadget that may improve their life a little bit. We looked around to try and find some business-esque technology the professional would be able to use in their office (or home office). Let’s take a look at them now:

There’s no denying that marketing is a big deal for smartphone manufacturers. They spend a lion’s share of their money pushing one or two devices on the public, when they build many more that sell as well or better. The thing is, not everyone has $1,000-to-$2,000 to drop on a cellphone every couple of years. To wrap up our look at the smartphone market, we thought we’d introduce you to some phones that won’t bust your budget and that can still provide users some value. 

Working from home—especially for an extended period, as many have—can take its toll on anyone. Just think about it: instead of the home being a place of relative sanctuary that your employees can retreat to after the workday is over, the home has become just another place for work to be done. This quite understandably isn’t healthy, so it becomes important that your team members are able to separate their work life from their home life.

With so many people working from home right now, businesses have managed to keep their operations going somewhat successfully by using the remote solutions that are available today. While it is fortunate that today’s technology enables businesses to do so, the importance of cybersecurity cannot be understated as remote work is implemented.

Last week we explored the flagship smartphones that are on the market right now. Today, we wanted to look at some different devices. These devices carry the price tag of a flagship (or cost more), but don’t necessarily have the specs that you would expect from devices priced in that area. They explore new form factors, or in some cases, older form factors. Let’s briefly discuss four innovative new devices.

While loaning out your mobile device probably isn’t something you’re particularly keen to do right now, this may have been the case even before there were health concerns involved. After all, your phone really is just a little package of your personal data. What you may not have known, however, is that Android has had a feature—Android Guest Mode—that can help protect you since Android 5.0 Lollipop came out in 2014.

We haven’t exactly been shy about sharing our recommendation that a ransomware demand should never be met with payment, but there is now an even more impactful reason not to. This deterrent comes courtesy of the United States Treasury Department, which has released a statement informing businesses of potential fines as retribution for doing so.

Millions of people have moved off the traditional computer and now use their smartphone for most of their browsing and other tasks, with new devices coming out regularly to help them do so. Let’s take a few minutes to examine the latest devices available today.

Back in June, Microsoft applied an update to the Microsoft 365 version of their Outlook email platform, adding various features—including one that allows users to run a native poll through their email. Let’s go over how it works so that you can take advantage of this useful utility.

Business workforces are shifting and it’s undeniable that a business’ IT has to shift with it. This can leave users maneuvering through their day using all types of different tools. This can tax an IT administrator. One solution that can be used for several purposes and can help almost any project-fueled business is Microsoft SharePoint. Today, we talk about the positive effect SharePoint can have. 

With just shy of a month before the 2020 United States Election, there has been quite a bit of concern over the idea that external interests may try to sway the results—and it seems for good reason. Only recently, Microsoft interrupted a massive coordinated hacking plot that could have altered the very infrastructure needed to support a fair election. Let’s examine this plot, and what Microsoft did, in some more detail.

Technology is getting smarter, from the consumer level on up. As such, artificial intelligence is appearing in more and more applications that all businesses can embrace. Let’s take a few minutes and go over the various ways that artificial intelligence can be used to support your business’ operations.

When a component of your business is as foundationally important as your technology infrastructure is, ensuring it operates effectively is imperative to your organizational success. However, this isn’t always as simple as it sounds. Let’s go over what this means for your business and how this challenge can be addressed.

Shadow IT is a big problem in today’s business, but not a lot of people know about it. As powerful as technology can be if it is left unmonitored, it can run into problems. Shadow IT is unmonitored technology because it is brought onto a network without an IT administrator’s knowledge. Today, we talk a little bit about fighting shadow IT and how to get your staff on board.

If asked to list its most valuable assets, every modern business currently in existence should include its data on that list. This is part of the reason that data security should be treated as a priority. We know—this isn’t exactly a small ask, so to help, we’ve put together a few tips to get you started off on the right foot. If you’re already working on your data security preparedness, consider this a refresher.

One of the most valuable things for a business to know, in terms of its cybersecurity, is how vulnerable it is to breaches and exploits. This kind of information can be gathered via a process called penetration testing, or “pen testing.” Let’s go over how the average pen test is conducted to see how these insights are collected.